Sermon 29

The Gospel, The Jew And You

Romans 9:6-33

God loves the nation of Israel and so should Christians. There is nothing about Biblical Christianity that should be anti-Semitic.

That being said, we must acknowledge that Israel is not today the theocracy that it once was. While there are many religious groups, Israel is basically a secular nation today.

The gospel is a problem for the Jew. In the land of God's own promise to them, few Jews acknowledge their true Messiah. Some are still awaiting the first coming of their promised King. They live where the prophets lived and walk where Jesus walked, but do not truly believe the prophets (honoring only their memories) and, far worse, they reject the truth of the sacrifice of Messiah's own life made for sin. While many Israelis pragmatically appreciate Bible believing Christians strong support of the state of Israel, it is really only for their own political and economic benefit.

Jews might express questions like - "If Jesus was the true Jewish Messiah, how could those ancient Jews possibly have not recognized and accepted Him? How could they have put Him to death? To them Christianity is a perversion of their Jewish faith. It is a heresy which nullifies the ancient promises of God, the traditions of the rabbis, offering equal access to God's grace to Gentiles. The gospel, you see, is a problem for the Jew. And it is that very problem that Paul addresses in Romans 9.

But Paul's words in Romans 9 can be a theological problem for us. It is very important that you understand that these chapters are about national Israel, not individual people - Jewish or otherwise. For example, in vss. 11-13, Paul's reference to choosing Jacob over Esau, to loving Jacob and hating Esau, can only be correctly understood as referring to the nations that came from Jacob and from Esau, see Genesis 25:23 and Malachi 1:2-3. God does not hate any individual (John 3:16) but He did favor Israel over other nations. (Hate = love less, Genesis 29:30-31; Luke 14:26/Matthew 10:37).

So what does Paul say about the gospel and the Jew? He begins by expressing his deep personal anguish for the salvation of Jews. Romans 8 ends with exhilarating joy about the security of a Christian's relationship with God. Then Romans 9 begins with deep anguish for the unbelief of Israel. Next, Paul catalogs the privileges enjoyed by the nation of Israel.

Possessed A Passion for Israel, vs. 1-3.

Expressed The Privileges of Israel, vs. 4-5.

Addressed The Problems Of Israel, vs. 6-33.

In order to address the Jewish problem, Paul relies on quotations and questions. These 28 verses have 14 Old Testament quotations (Genesis - 3x; Exodus - 2x; Isaiah - 5x; Jeremiah - 1x; Hosea - 2x; Malachi - 1x). There are also several questions both asked and answered by Paul.

Relying On Family Ties, read vs. 6-13.

The number of those who are "of Israel" is not determined by natural descent. John 8:33 - We be Abraham's seed ... as though that was enough. Verse 7 Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children. Paul uses two illustrations to make this point. Ishmael (vs. 7-9) was also Abraham's seed and he was the father of the Arab nations. And Esau (vs. 10-13) was also the descendent of Abraham and he fathered the Edomites. The point is that physical birth does not confer spiritual privilege.

When we lived in Amarillo, a young lady once visited my young adult class. I asked her if she were a Christian. She answered that "yes" she was. "That's great," I said, "when did you become a Christian?" "I've always been a Christian," she said, "my dad was a preacher." Being raised in a Christian home, by believing parents who attended church and said grace at meal time does not make you a Christian, anymore than being a Jew, a descendant of Abraham makes one righteous. The Jews relied on their family ties, their ancestry for righteousness and that is a problem for the gospel. The gospel must be personally and individually believed, John 6:53ff.

Questioning God's Fairness, read vs. 14-18.

Does God's selection of Israel as His chosen people, does choosing one nation over another make God unfair? Paul asks that in verse 14 and then immediately answers his one question with the strongest way of saying "no" in the whole Greek language - "God forbid."

God is God and we are not. He is absolutely infinite, absolutely holy and righteous, and absolutely independent of us. He is under no obligation to explain His ways to man.

These verses indicate that, just as righteousness is not attained by family ancestry, it is not attained by human merit. Individual merit does not confer spiritual privilege. It is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy. God alone is the source of salvation. Salvation is by God's mercy, not by human merit.

Verses 17-18 speak about Pharaoh's hard heart. In those first 14 chapters of Exodus, there are 20 references to Pharaoh's hardened heart. 10 times the Bible says that Pharaoh hardened his own heart and 10 times the Bible says that God hardened Pharaoh's heart. The point is that God did not harden Pharaoh's heart contrary to Pharaoh's own free choice. In fact, Pharaoh is first said to have hardened his own heart before God ever is said to have. God did not create Pharaoh in order to damn him to hell. There comes a point when God turns one over to his decision and that is what is being said here. The fact that God does that does not make Him unrighteous or unfair.

Challenging Man's Freedom, read vs. 19-23.

Someone is sure to ask, "How can man be responsible for his own actions? Who can resist God's will?" (v. 19). "Who are we to (question) God?" - (Warren W. Wiersbe). "Is the creature wise enough to question the Creator" - (John Philips). That would be like a pot questioning the pot maker about why he made the pot the way he did.

Resisting God's Inclusion Of Foreigners, read vs. 24-29.

The Jews had a major problem with Christianity's inclusion of Gentile nations in the blessing of salvation. Paul cites numerous Old Testament passages to prove that the Gentiles were as much an object of God's mercy as were the Jews. Even when God's work was being focused on the nation of Israel, He still spoke prophetically about the Gentiles.

This raises another problem for the Jews. Why would God reject holy Israel and accept wicked Gentiles?

The Requirement Of Faith, read vs. 30-33.

God's mercy has always been on the basis of faith. The Jews were pursuing righteousness by works and rejected Christ. The Gentiles were not pursuing righteousness at all but upon hearing the gospel, repented and believed in Christ.

Jesus is either a rock that you build your life on - the foundation of faith, the chief corner stone - or a stone that you stumble over.

Christianity created a problem for Jews ... and for all who are relying on something other than faith in Christ for righteousness. If you think you are righteous because of your ancestry or on the basis of your own merit ... if you seek to be righteous by your own works, then you like the unbelieving Jews will stumble over Jesus Christ.

God is God and God can do what He chooses. He has chosen Israel to be His own special people and He as chosen to save all men - Jews and Gentiles alike - on the basis of faith in Jesus Christ.