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LONDON HOUSE OF PRAYER – RYAN MEEGAN ROMANS 9-11 – NOVEMBER 15, 2014 Session 1

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

The church in Rome was founded before Paul was converted, and before there was a concerted attempt to take the gospel to the gentiles. So the church in Rome was a predominantly Jewish church at its founding. Romans 16:7 - Greet Andronicus and Junias, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners, who are outstanding among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me.

Around 49 A.D., after the church in Rome is founded, Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome. This leaves only gentile believers in the church at Rome. For 5 years (until 54 A.D.) the church in Rome is nearly 100% gentile. Gentiles lead it, preach at it, and grow it with more gentile converts. Acts 18:2 - And he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, having recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. He came to them,

In 54 A.D. Nero welcomes the Jews back to Rome. Suddenly the previous Jewish leaders and members of the Roman church return to “their” church, which is now made up of and run by a group of gentiles. Who will lead now? What will the character of the church be like? Will it return to its “Jewish roots”? Or will it be a gentile church? Was God punishing the Jews by having them expelled from Rome? Do these new gentiles need to become Jews first to be good Christians? This is the context that Paul writes his letter to the Romans to address.

Romans, therefore, is not a general epistle, but is specifically addressing an issue (how the Gospel works in regards to Jews and gentiles). It is not a generic “systematic theology” that Paul is writing, but it is directed specifically at questions about Jewish-ness and gentile-ness and the Gospel. In light of this, Romans 9-11 is actually the climax of the book, not a strange parenthesis in the middle of the book. Romans 1-8 sets the stage for the main point Paul will make in 9-11, and then 12-16 flesh out how to live in light of the main argument in 9-11.

OUTLINE

1:1-15 – Address and Introduction

1:16-17 – Theme (the gospel is the power of God to save, to the Jew first and also to the gentile)

1:18-32 – Historic, universal, and particular fall of gentile mankind. Gentiles are lost, and need saving.

2 – Pride and fall of the Jews. Jews are lost, and need saving.

3:1-20 – Jew and gentile alike condemned for sin, regardless of possession of the law.

3:21-30 – Jew and gentile offered exact same gift of righteousness through Jesus.

3:31-4:25 – Justification (being made righteous) is by faith not by law for Jew and gentile.

5:1-11 – Results of justification. London House of Prayer – London, KY 2

5:12-21 – Two men, Adam and Christ.

6:1-7:4 – Freedom from sin for the believer.

7:5-25 – The state of the unbeliever, e.g. Adam after the fall and Paul prior to salvation.

8:1-13 – Freedom from sin and responsibility to walk in that freedom.

8:14-39 – Present and eschatological hope of the gospel.

9:1-11:32 – God’s plan for Israel (past, present, future). Climax of book.

12 – How Jew and gentile can live in peace

13 – How believers live in relation to unrighteous government

14-15:12 – How Jew and gentile can live in peace

15:13-33 – Closing

16 – Personal greetings, final warnings, attempting to bring Jew and gentile into relationship

ROMANS 9:1-5

Romans 9:1-5 NASB I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, (2) that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. (3) For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh, (4) who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons, and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises, (5) whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen.

Paul begins this discourse by setting it in terms of a heart reality, not merely an abstract theology. He goes to great lengths at the beginning to express both the truth of what he is saying, as well as the depth of heart-felt emotion behind it. Paul feels real emotion, painful emotion, over the condition of his “kinsmen according to the flesh, who are Israelites”. Paul makes it clear that he is writing concerning Israel, Jews, and the gospel, not a generic treatise on the mechanism of individual justification.

In verses 4 and 5 Paul gives some explanation as to why he cares so deeply about this issue. He explains that the Gospel that he is giving his life for is a Jewish Gospel, that the Christ that saved him and that he is following is a Jewish Christ, that the worship he offers is Jewish worship, that the fathers of the faith he lives by are Jewish fathers, and that his ultimate hope of resurrection and glory are Jewish promises. He will later apply this to gentile believers, but even now we should look at that list in verses 4 and 5 and marvel at the fact that all the things that we so joyfully partake of are in fact most properly Jewish things, things promised through Abraham to his seed.

ROMANS 9:6-13

London House of Prayer – London, KY

LONDON HOUSE OF PRAYER – NOVEMBER 15, 2014 – RYAN MEEGAN Romans 9-11 – Session 1 PAGE 3

Romans 9:6-13 NASB But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; (7) nor are they all children because they are Abraham's descendants, but: "THROUGH ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS WILL BE NAMED." (8) That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants. (9) For this is the word of promise: "AT THIS TIME I WILL COME, AND SARAH SHALL HAVE A SON." (10) And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac; (11) for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God's purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls, (12) it was said to her, "THE OLDER WILL SERVE THE YOUNGER." (13) Just as it is written, "JACOB I LOVED, BUT ESAU I HATED."

The assertion of verses 4 and 5 leads to the implied question, “If the Gospel is a Jewish Gospel, and if the promises are Jewish promises, then hasn’t the Word of God (the Gospel and promises to Israel) failed?” After all, the vast majority of Jews at the time of the writing of this book (and in our day as well) have rejected this Gospel. Surely this is important and means something. But what does it mean? Underlying this question are the seeds of “replacement theology” in all of its forms.

Paul answers the question with a resounding “No!” How can this be? Paul begins a complex explanation of who the heirs of the promise are. First he asserts that not every single person who is in the physical blood-line of Abraham is part of “Israel” and children of the promise.

We should pause to note that the word “Israel” can be a very confusing word. It can refer to many things. It can refer to a person (Jacob after his name was changed). It can refer to an ethnic people group (the Jewish race). It can refer to a political nation-state (the county of Israel). It can refer to a parcel of land (the land of Israel). It can refer to a spiritual people group (the Israel of God - Gal 6:16). It can refer to the children of the promise. Whenever we see the word Israel we need to be very careful to use the narrow and broad contexts to determine which “Israel” is in view. In this case it is clear that the first use of “Israel” in vs. 6 is regarding the heirs of the promise, while the second use of “Israel” in vs. 6 is regarding the person of Jacob/Israel.

Paul uses the example of Jacob and Esau. Both of the twins were the children of Isaac and Rebekah, both were the grandchildren of Abraham through the promised child Isaac. Yet God elected (chose) one of them as the vehicle through whom to continue the promise. God chose Jacob/Israel for this, not Esau. Paul insists that this choice was apart from works of the flesh, but simply according to God’s own choice.

It is so important to note the flow of the passage. What choice is Paul speaking of? It is NOT the choice to justify an individual. It is the choice of what human on the earth to keep moving the promise forward through. Every person has the exact same access to justification by faith. But every person is not used by God in the same governmental way in history. God chose Abraham, then Isaac, and now Jacob as the vehicle to bring the promise through.

Verse 13 is initially a troubling verse to many. To understand it rightly we must take it both in the narrow context (Paul’s argument concerning God’s method of furthering the outworking of His promise in the earth), and in the broader contexts of the quotation itself (Malachi 1:2-3) and the history that Malachi was speaking of.

In the narrow context Paul is still speaking of God choosing a vessel to continue bringing the promise through. He is not speaking of the justification of individuals.

In the broader context, Paul is quoting Malachi: Malachi 1:1-3 NASB The oracle of the word of the LORD to Israel through Malachi. (2) "I have loved you," says the LORD. But you say, "How have You loved us?" "Was not Esau Jacob's brother?" declares the LORD. "Yet I have loved Jacob; (3) but I have hated Esau, and I have made his mountains a desolation and appointed his inheritance for the jackals of the wilderness."

In this context, the Lord is arguing His case against Israel, accusing them of not rightly responding to His lovingkindness through their history. Israel argues back, asking how the Lord has loved them. The Lord responds that He loved Jacob, and hence Israel, and for the sake of His own promises has preserved them, as a people, throughout history. This is in comparison to Esau (and hence the nation of Edom) who have been reduced to desolation. The Lord here is speaking not of individual salvation but of His sovereign guidance of history, in which He has judged Esau/Edom, as a people, for their sin. He accuses Israel of not responding rightly to His mercy, for they have sinned even as Edom, but God has preserved them, as a people. Why? Because they are the carriers of the promise. This preservation is not a guarantee of individual salvation, but simply a governmental decision based on the need for the Seed to come forth. Note also that their “preservation” has been a troubled one, full of desolation and destruction.

Malachi is writing during the period of the return from Babylonian captivity, under Ezra and Nehemiah. So we must see this preserving “love” and this desolating “hate” in this context. It isn’t as though the preserving “love” gave Israel a great nation, with a great capital, and a great temple, over and against Edom’s desolation. Rather, Israel has been preserved through captivity to Babylon/Persia, their land IS in fact desolate, their capital city destroyed, and their temple destroyed. Not only that, but Malachi is writing to them just prior to a period where this preserving “love” will put them in the middle of a regional conflict where they will be overrun time and again by foreign armies, and controlled by a type of the Antichrist (Antiochus Epiphanes IV). They will, through this preserving “love”, emerge from that time, only to enter into a time of servitude to the Roman Empire.

ROMANS 9:14-18

Romans 9:14-18 NASB What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! (15) For He says to Moses, "I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION." (16) So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy. (17) For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, "FOR THIS VERY PURPOSE I RAISED YOU UP, TO DEMONSTRATE MY POWER IN YOU, AND THAT MY NAME MIGHT BE PROCLAIMED THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE EARTH." (18) So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.

Once again we must understand this passage in light of Paul’s overall point. Paul is addressing how God is ordering human history to bring forth His promise. He is NOT addressing how God is relating to individuals in terms of justification.

Paul is concerned that some will get the wrong idea and think that God is being unfair in how he uses one nation versus another nation. In verse 15, Paul is quoting Exodus 33. Israel has been given the Law through Moses, but in the time that Moses was on the mountain, Israel went straight into idolatry. Moses intercedes for them to not be destroyed, and then asks God for another confirmation of His goodness, presence, and help for the coming days of leading this people. God responds by both giving Moses a personal encounter, and by renewing the covenant with Israel.

Who then is God having mercy and compassion on? The entire world!! God is continuing to use a flawed people to bring forth His promise, in whom all nations will be blessed. The mercy wasn’t on Israel for Israel’s sake, the mercy was the continued use of Israel for the blessing of the entire world. The “mercy” is national preservation, not individual salvation.

Verse 16 is an echo of verse 11, describing that God’s election (choice) of vessels for bringing forth His purposes is not based on the suitability of the vessel, but rather based on the very mercy of God to bring redemption to the earth. The “it” is bringing forth the gospel, not individual salvation.

In verses 17 and 18 Paul demonstrates his point with the story of the Exodus. Verse 17 is a quote of Exodus 9. God has been telling Pharaoh to let Israel go (for the sake of blessing the whole earth, not simply for the sake of Israel). Pharaoh has been resisting God. In Exodus 9 the Lord tells Pharaoh that He could have already completely destroyed him from the earth and delivered His people. But He is showing a measure of mercy in restraint. If Pharaoh will not let the people go, then worse will come. God has shown patience and allowed Pharaoh to stand, for the purpose of proclaiming His Name throughout the earth (blessing all nations).

In essence, God is offering Pharaoh the opportunity to participate in His plan of redemption! Pharaoh could cooperate and say yes to the purpose of God, and be part of God glorifying His Name in the earth. In this way Pharaoh could receive mercy. Or, Pharaoh could say no to the purpose of God. Still, God will glorify His Name. In this way, Pharaoh would be hardened.

The question of mercy or hardening was a question that was up to Pharaoh! God simply ratified Pharaoh’s choice. Pharaoh hardened himself against the Lord, so the Lord further hardened him and used him in a negative way to demonstrate His glory.

ROMANS 9:19-26

Romans 9:19-26 NASB You will say to me then, "Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?" (20) On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, "Why did you make me like this," will it? (21) Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use? (22) What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? (23) And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, (24) even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles. (25) As He says also in Hosea, "I WILL CALL THOSE WHO WERE NOT MY PEOPLE, 'MY PEOPLE,' AND HER WHO WAS NOT BELOVED, 'BELOVED.'" (26) "AND IT SHALL BE THAT IN THE PLACE WHERE IT WAS SAID TO THEM, 'YOU ARE NOT MY PEOPLE,' THERE THEY SHALL BE CALLED SONS OF THE LIVING GOD."

Paul goes on to answer the implied question: “If through the wrong choices of nations and national leaders, God’s will (bringing His Name to the earth) is still done, then why are nations and national leaders still under judgment?” Paul’s answer can at first glance sound like a rebuke for even wanting to understand such things. But Paul isn’t saying that we shouldn’t ask or understand how God is working, but rather that we need to submit to God’s answer.

Paul uses the analogy of a potter. Once again, Paul is not talking about how God relates to humans in justification, but rather how God is dealing with the entire flow of human history, nations, and national leaders, to bring forth redemption in Jesus. The clay and the vessels are references to nations and the flow of history. God is molding history toward the coming of Messiah. A lump of clay that will say yes and participate can be used honorably. A lump of clay that resists and says no will be used dishonorably. Both will be used, and God’s plan will be accomplished.

Verse 22 seems to be a reference to Pharaoh once again. God tells Pharaoh that He is indeed willing and able to demonstrate His wrath, and He will indeed do it if necessary, but that He has been being patient and enduring Pharaoh all this time.

It is important to note in the word “prepared” in verse 22, G2675, “katarizo”. Strong’s defines this as “to complete thoroughly”. The idea in verse 22 is that God is patiently enduring those lumps of clay (nations in the flow of history) that are resisting Him, waiting until they have thoroughly completed their choice of becoming vessels of wrath (or vessels of mercy).

Why is He enduring them? So that He can ultimately make known the riches of His glory. Upon whom? Jews only? No, also Gentiles.

In other words, this entire process of history has been so that God could bring forth the Promise, and that whosoever will say Yes, whether Jew or Gentile, can be part of the people of God who are granted the ultimate mercy of salvation.

Paul shows that this is not a new plan, but even Hosea foresaw a time when the Gentiles would be brought into the people of God.

ROMANS 9:27-29

Romans 9:27-29 NASB Isaiah cries out concerning Israel, "THOUGH THE NUMBER OF THE SONS OF ISRAEL BE LIKE THE SAND OF THE SEA, IT IS THE REMNANT THAT WILL BE SAVED; (28) FOR THE LORD WILL EXECUTE HIS WORD ON THE EARTH, THOROUGHLY AND QUICKLY." (29) And just as Isaiah foretold, "UNLESS THE LORD OF SABAOTH HAD LEFT TO US A POSTERITY, WE WOULD HAVE BECOME LIKE SODOM, AND WOULD HAVE RESEMBLED GOMORRAH."

Paul now brings us full circle back to the beginning point. What has happened to Israel? Has God’s original plan and promise failed in some way? No, and he uses Isaiah to show that God has known of and planned for this situation all along.

All the way back in Isaiah, God foretold that it was not actually the entire ethnic people group as defined by a blood-line descent from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that would partake of the promise, but that it would indeed be a remnant.

ROMANS 9:30-33

Romans 9:30-33 NASB What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith; (31) but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. (32) Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone, (33) just as it is written, "BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE, AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED."

Paul sums up by answering the question: “How did this happen?” How is it that most Jews did not become part of the remnant, even though they had the revelation of the Law and the Promises, but Gentiles who had neither, have become partakers of what many Jews missed?

Verse 32 says that it is because they tried to find justification by their works, not by faith. But it has never been by works, and always by faith (remember chapters 1-8).

Verse 33 spells out the great irony in all of this. The very promise, the very seed, the very purpose for which Israel was singled out, Jesus the Messiah, becomes (through their disobedience and lack of faith) the very object that they stumble over. On the other hand, anyone who will believe in this Rock will be saved.