The People of God Pt. 5 Rom. 10:1-10

There are many important questions that people confront in life—Will she say “yes”? Does this make me look fat? What is the meaning of life? What are women thinking? How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Roll Pop? What is next for me? What if I did this differently? Or, perhaps most precarious—where do you want to go for dinner? J Though Paul doesn’t provide an answer to all of these questions in Romans, he has answered a lot concerning what is most important—salvation.

Who is guilty and needs saving? How effective is the law? Who are God’s people? What is grace? Etc. These are just some of the important questions that Paul has provided in our study of this important book. However, there is at least one question that has gone unanswered up to this point—“How are people saved?” Though we have learned that everyone everywhere needs saving as all have sinned, that it is grace through faith, not the law that saves people, and that God is sovereign over His program of salvation, an explicit explanation to HOW all of this is applied to the individual has not yet been provided. That is until now. In Romans 10:1-10 we are going to observe four elements of Paul’s presentation of the process of salvation and learn about the significance of confession and belief.

a) The Misconception-10:1-3

Paul begins chapter 10 by reminding his audience what his entire ministry is all about—“Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation” (10:1). Paul leaves no doubt here that he desperately longed for his people –the Jews—to be saved. Unfortunately, many weren’t being saved. However, this has not stopped Paul longing that his countrymen experience salvation.

That said, why are so many of Paul’s compatriots in the dark on this? How has this happened? An account of their failure is provided in verses 2-3. First, they had all the zeal they needed, they just weren’t directing that zeal in the right direction—“for I testify about them, that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge” (10:2). Throughout the New Testament, the idea of zeal is praised. The same is true here. The only problem is, they were pointing their zeal in the wrong direction.

This is similar to what was discussed in chapter 9:30-33. There, a quote from Andy Stanley proved useful—“Your direction, not your intention, determines your destination.” Paul reiterates here that the Jews had all the right intentions, they were just heading in the wrong direction.

There was no question that the Jewish people were zealous for God, unfortunately, their zeal was not guided by “knowledge.”  What “knowledge” were they missing? What did they have wrong? 

Paul explains all of this in verse 3—“for not knowing about God’s righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God” (10:3). In other words the Jews “had no valid insight into God’s plan for providing righteousness. They failed completely to recognize the righteousness that comes from God” (Mounce, 207). This wasn’t because things weren’t clear. Instead, the verb for “not knowing” means to “ignore” as much as it does to “fail to understand.” Unfortunately, the Jews had ignored the true message and meaning of the Law and failed to head and understand the prophets. Because they interpreted these signs incorrectly or ignored them altogether, they did not understand what salvation was all about—God’s righteousness bestowed by His Son Jesus.

As a result, they “sought to establish their own.” Paul has already revealed this in the previous chapter. In chapter 9, Paul admitted that so many of his fellow Jews were not entering into a relationship with God because they were trading grace for performance and relying on their own patriarchy rather than Christ. The consequence—they replaced the standard of God’s righteousness with their own—“they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God” (10:3).

b) The Foundation-10:4-“…For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes,…”

This is a crucial mistake because, as Paul reveals next, Christ’s righteousness, not man’s, is the foundation for salvation—“For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes” (10:4). In other words, the unreachable standard of God’ righteousness has been achieved, not by us, but by Christ. His achievement makes righteousness available for all who believe. One commentator has translated this important verse this way: “For Christ means the end of the struggle for righteousness-by-the-Law for everyone who believes in him.”

How did Christ achieve this? The answer is found in 2 Corinthians 5:21.

2 Corinthians 5:21-“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

A. M. Toplady: “Nothing in my hand I bring; simply to the cross I cling.”

”The only thing God requires of people is that they not persist in trying to earn what they can only receive as a totally free gift” (Mounce, 208).

c) The References-10:5-8

After laying this foundation before his audience (again), Paul juxtaposes two brands of righteousness (self-righteousness and God’s righteousness) to further illustrate his point. Self-righteousness has its origin in the law, “For Moses writes that the man who practices the righteousness which is based on the law shall live by that righteousness” (10:5).  What Paul means hear by quoting Leviticus 18:5 (see also Gal. 3:12) is that if someone were to perfectly adhere to all that the law demands, it would, in fact, lead to life. However, NO ONE has nor ever will be able to perform on that level. Again “there is none righteous, not even one” (Rom. 3:10).

God’s righteousness, on the other hand is “based on faith” (10:6; see also 9:30). Righteousness coming through faith is reiterated in Ephesians 2:8-9-“for by grace are you saved through faith and not by yourselves, it is a gift, not of works lest any man should boast.”  This kind of faith does not demand performance of any kind for effectiveness. This is what Paul means when he says that it “does not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ (that is, to bring Christ down)” (10:6). Here, Paul interprets verses from Deuteronomy in reference to the incarnation and resurrection of Christ. “In Deuteronomy, Moses was telling the people that they did not have to climb up to heaven or cross the sea (in their own strength) to discover the will of God. Paul applied the passage to the availability of the message of salvation” (10:6).

Not only do people not need to “storm the citadel of heaven,” in their own power to reach God, neither do they need to invade “the kingdom of the dead” (Hunter, Romans, 95)—“…or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead)…” (10:7). Instead, Christ has done all of this! It is He who has come down out of heaven to bring grace to the sinner by means of His incarnation. It is He who has conquered sin and death and has been brought back up from the dead to grant righteousness and salvation. “Christ the Saviour is here, incarnate and risen” (Hunter, Romans, 95).

As good as this news is, what makes it even better is it has been revealed and is near—“”The Word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart’—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching…“ (10:8). Paul is, at present, preaching this gospel message and many along with him have spread the word across the known world. In fact, when Paul says “in your mouth and in your heart” he is hoping that some in his audience have accepted and embraced the information given and, as a result, could speak the truth back to him and others.

This reference to the mouth and heart tees up the final element of Paul’s presentation of the program of salvation nicely.

d) The Process-10:9-10

As Paul elucidates the process of salvation, he indicates that there are two related steps—First, “confess with your mouth, Jesus as Lord” (10:9a). “Confession” involves the expression of one’s allegiance to a proposition or person. Here, the content of the proposition being endorsed is “Jesus is Lord” and the implied person is Christ. Though this is a short phrase, it is heavy with salvific implications. “Jesus is Lord” betrays at least two things when said in the context of confessing salvation. First, claiming “Jesus is Lord” is claiming that Jesus is God made flesh as “Lord” (kurioV) is the New Testament and Greek equivalent of the divine name of God used in the Old Testament (yhwh). The implications of this are immense as such a claim necessarily betrays belief in Jesus’ unlimited, universal, and absolute authority and equality with God. Second, “Jesus is Lord” indicates subservience to Jesus in large part because of His amazing power and authority as God. “Those who come to Christ by faith are acknowledging that they have placed themselves entirely and with no reservation under his authority to carry out without hesitation whatever he may choose for them to do” (Mounce, 209). Jesus, in essence, is master over whoever says these words in faith.

The second step involved in salvation, very much related to the first mentioned, is “believing in your heart that God raised Him from the dead” (10:9b). Though Paul only mentions one element of Christ’s redemptive work here—the resurrection—he has the entirety of Jesus’ work in mind. We know this because of how Paul speaks about the resurrection in other places.

1 Corinthians 15:14, 17-“…and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain,…And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins,”

These verses are offered after Paul defined the contents of his “preaching” and the proper elements of saving faith earlier in the chapter.

1 Corinthians 15:1, 3b-4-“Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received in which also you stand,…that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day, according to the Scriptures.”

In 1 Corinthians 15 we have a clear case of what is called synecdoche—a literary device in which part of something, sometimes the most important part of something, is used as shorthand for the whole. Here, Paul capitalizes on the resurrection in an effort to call to mind Jesus’ entire program of salvation from start to finish. Therefore, “believing in your heart that God raised Him from the dead” is shorthand for believing in everything that Jesus did to accomplish salvation on one’s behalf. In fact, it logically follows that if you believe that God raised Jesus from the dead,  you would necessarily believe that Jesus had died. Even further, if one believes that Jesus died, it would naturally follow that one believe that he had been sent in the flesh in the first place. 

Those who confess “Jesus is Lord” and trust in His completed work of redemption “will be saved” (10:9b).

Why? What is significant about these steps? Paul says “For with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness” (10:10a). Belief in something implies complete trust and reliance in the truths involved. Contrary to where many were placing their belief in Paul’s day—themselves, the law, other gods, etc.—those who place their complete trust in and reliance upon Christ’s completed work will received what He alone is capable of giving (God’s righteousness). This righteousness is what God demands for relationship with Him.

Complementary to saving belief is saving confession—“and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation” (10:10b). The Bible has much to say about the tongue and the mouth. After all, God spoke the world and everything in it into existence with his voice (Gen. 1). Jesus is called the Word of God and the Word become flesh (John 1). These references indicate a creative power behind speech. Speech, in other words is capable of doing things. However, in the hands of man, the tongue can prove to be a “fire” (James 3:6) and “restless evil full of deadly poison” (James 3:9) proving that although “the tongue is a small part of the body,… it boasts of great things” (James 3:5). That said, out of the heart, the mouth speaks and here, any mouth that confesses “Jesus is Lord” indicates a heart that has fully trust in Christ’s work for salvation.

What we have in these final two verses (9-10) is an example of a chiasm (and A-B-B-A presentation) in which both belief in Christ’s completed work and confession of His corresponding Lordship is celebrated. Both are necessary for salvation to take place in the life of the believer.

So What?

In this passage Paul has answered a very important question—perhaps the most important question—“How are people saved?” His answer is twofold—(1) confessing that Jesus is Lord of your life because of one’s (2) trust in His completed work of redemption on your behalf. Ultimately, one must believe and confess who Jesus is and what He has done. So here is a couple of other questions worth asking in light of this passage today. Have you made such a confession in your life? Is Jesus your Lord?...Do you trust in all that He has accomplished on your behalf for meaningful life both now and on into eternity? Or, are you the Lord of your life? Do you trust yourself to pull yourself through to the end? As Paul reveals, this is a losing play call. It will fail every time.

My desire and the desire of this church is that you would not just have zeal for God or spiritual matters, but that this zeal would be accompanied by knowledge of Christ and what He has done to make it possible for you to enter into a relationship with God.

The People of God Pt. 3: The Potter and the Pottery- Rom. 9:19-29

The controversy concerning what Romans 9 says was not lost on Paul’s original audience nor is it lost on any student of the Bible today. As introduced earlier in our study of Romans 9-11, these passages, the truths therein, and the applications thereof, are difficult to understand and harder to digest. That said, no matter how difficult these truths may be, they must be included in any biblically-informed understanding of the gospel. However, for those who, like many, bring charges against God and question His ability to choose His people based on His prerogative, Paul provides a defense in Romans 9:19-29. Today we are going to observe four elements of Paul’s defense of God’s prerogative and come to understand who the People of God are and what they are/aren’t able to demand.

a) The Potter is Questioned-9:19

As Paul progresses in his presentation he continues to employ a conversation with a hypothetical objector. In fact, in verse 1, verse 14, and now in verse 19, this objector brings charges against Paul’s salient points and provide the apostle with an opportunity to further explain/defend what he has introduced. These objections begin with a question that confronts something that was presented immediately prior. In this latest case, the objector asks “why does He still find fault?” (9:19). This inquiry is based on what Paul has said about God’s prerogative in verses 14-18. If God is choosing people and hardening others, some might ask “how can God fault those who refuse Him?”

After all, “who resists His will?” (9:19b) or, put another way, “who can go against what God has ordained?” This line of questioning was inevitable and, continues to this day. Paul’s relatively clear presentation of God’s freedom to choose who His people are remains just as provocative as it must have been in the first century.

However, the way in which this question is framed takes on different forms in our own context. Some might ask, for instance, "if God chooses His people, are those whom He has chosen really free to make the choice in His direction in the first place?" Others might ask, "if God doesn’t choose others, are the unchosen not free to choose God if they wanted to?" Still others might wonder if God’s sovereignty doesn’t erase human freedom altogether, leading to determinism.

b) The Pottery is Cross Examined-9:20-22

Interestingly, instead of answering this question, Paul rebukes the inquirer—“On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God?...” (9:20). There are two theories on what Paul is doing in answering this way. First, some believe that he is harshly scolding those who would dare make God answerable to humans (Mounce, Romans, 201). Others think that Paul is attempting to help this hypothetical objector see how his question(s) are illegitimate in the sense that the creature has no right to question to Creator. In either case, Paul’s retort highlights how inappropriate it is for humans to demand exhaustive knowledge of what God has left mysterious. In fact, the verb for “answers back” in this context carries the connotation of talking back or expressing disapproval in response to something done or said.

In an effort to illustrate how out of place it is for humans to demands these kinds of answers, Paul asks the following, “the thing molded will not say to the molder, ‘Why did you make me like this’ will it?” (9:20). In other words, “Man has no more right to talk back to his creator than the pot to the Potter” (A. M. Hunter, Romans, 91).

There were few household items that were more common than pottery in the first century. Additionally, the Old Testament frequently uses the imagery of a potter and clay to say something about God’s control over His creation. Nearest to Paul’s statement here is Isaiah 29:16.

Isaiah 29:16-“… Shall the potter be considered as equal with the clay, That what is made would say to its maker, ‘He did not make me’; Or what is formed say to him who formed it, ‘He has no understanding’?” (see also Isa. 45:9-10; Jer. 18:1-6; Job 10:9; 38:14).

In both Isaiah and Romans the author finds it unacceptable that the product would prevail upon the producer to understand or know his internal motivations. 

After all “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?” as Paul asks in verse 21. He went out and bought the clay or made the clay himself. As a result he owns the clay and can do as he pleases it. He does not seek the guidance of the clay before molding it with his hands nor does the will of the clay supervene over what the potter has purposed to make.

Similarly, God created the world and the people therein. He, as a result, owns it all and can do as He pleases with it. In fact, the potter and the clay imagery is not as figurative as it is a direct reference to Genesis.

Genesis 2:7-“Then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living being.”

There, man was literally formed by God’s hand from the ground much like a potter forms a masterwork on the spinning table. Mankind owes its very existence and survival to God and therefore, lays no claim to…well,…anything. This includes an exhaustive understanding of the way God works in the salvation process.

Applied to what Paul is saying here, He wonders why God (the creator, owner, and director) could not make different things out of the same substance as He wills (“make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use?”). Like a potter who fashions things for specific purposes as desired (ornamental vessels and other for menial uses) God is free to do the same. In fact, an example of the latter has already been offered in the reference to Pharaoh earlier in 9:14-18.

However, rather than ending on a negative note and example, Paul ends by once again highlighting the mercy inherent within God’s choosing by raising a fourth question in response to the objection made earlier—“What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make known His power, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction?” (9:22). This is where a lot of people miss the real essence of Paul’s analogy. Far from the potter and pottery being a symbol of God’s active creation of vessels intended for destruction, here, Paul suggests that God is willing to tolerate and, in fact, redeem broken cups. After all, it was His intention to be a potter who made only the greatest! However, as a result of sin (which, news flash, is a result of PEOPLE’S FAILURE), only vessels of wrath prepared for destruction exist (sinners deserving of condemnation). What was intended for perfection has been broken and cracked –fitting only for the trash heap. However, God, while perfectly justified in destroying the whole lot, chose to “endure with much patience” such vessels. “’Objects of wrath’ are not summarily dismissed with no concern for their lot as those not chosen. God’s sovereignty does not reduce humans to helpless automatons. Although it was God’s will to show His wrath against sin and make known His power, He nevertheless postponed action against those who will someday experience His judicial displeasure” (Mounce, 202). Even further, some of those wrathful objects will be redeemed!

Therefore, this passage is not a suggestion of God’s choosing to see that some are destroyed as much as it is an argument for God choosing some of what would be destroyed saved from such destruction. Hallelujah!

c) The Purpose is Revealed-9:23

Paul explains again as in verse 17-18, that the reason God does this (and really anything for that matter) is to glorify Himself—“And He did so to make known the riches of His glory” (9:23a). It is a glorious God who shows mercy on those who do not deserve it. It is a glorious God who is longsuffering and patient on those bent against Him.

Though God is glorified, as we learned in 14-18, in both choosing some and hardening others, this glory is most acutely realized in the lives of what Paul calls “vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory” (9:23b). After all, these are those who receive what they do not deserve—grace in spite of their sin. Such vessels live as examples of God’s unconditional love and mercy. Paul says that these vessels—the people of God—were prepared beforehand for this special capacity to glorify God. Much as Jacob was while in the womb, these, as Paul has said in Romans 8 were “predestined,…called,…justified,…and glorified” (8:30).

d) The Participants are Identified-9:24-29

Chosen/hardened, vessels of mercy/vessels of wrath. These are the distinctions that Paul has identified when it comes to the human race. The people of God are those vessels of mercy that God has chosen for His glorious purposes. But what kind of diversity is there in this special group? Paul provides the answer in verses 24-29 when he provides three categories that successfully identify what kinds of people God chooses to be vessels of mercy.

First among these are Jews and Gentiles—“Even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among gentiles” (9:24). This may have come as a surprise to some in Paul’s audience. Many in the Jewish community believed that they had a monopoly on God’s affections and yet, Paul indicates here that both Jews and Gentiles are chosen of God to be included among His people. This means that God is not a respecter or race, ethnicity, geography, or tradition. People of all kinds are chosen by God and welcomed into his family.

The second category given in describing God’s people are former outsiders. As He says also in Hosea, ‘I will call those who were not My people,  ‘My people,’ and her who was not beloved ‘beloved’ 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” (9:25-26). Here, Paul quotes two verses from Hosea (Hosea 2:23 and 1:10). Hosea was a prophet that was asked to marry a harlot and remain with her even after she left him. This served as an illustration of God’s unconditional love for and faithfulness toward his people who, on multiple occasions followed after other God’s (cheating on their first love).  One of the things that Hosea reveals in his book is this: because God’s people (the Jews) could not remain faithful, God would extend his grace to others (non-Jews) and bring them into His family. Those formally on the outside looking in would be welcomed to the table.

Jesus reiterates this pattern of accepting outsiders throughout His ministry. He confronted a Samaritan woman in John 4, invited himself over to Zaccheus’ house in Luke 19:1-10; dined with sinners in Matthew 9:10, and touched many who were ceremonially unclean, bringing healing not only to their bodies, but also to their isolation.  

The next term that Paul uses to describe the people of God is “remnant”—“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; for the Lord will execute His word on the earth, thoroughly and quickly” (9:27-28). Earlier Paul mentioned that not everyone who calls themselves Jewish is really a spiritual member of God’s family.

Romans 2:28-“For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God.”

Later Paul said that Jewish family heritage, titles, and traditions matter very little when it comes to being among the People of God.

Romans 9:3-5-“For I could with that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh, 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, whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever, Amen.”

Ultimately, the people of God have been and will continue to be a chosen remnant of true believers that exist in a larger body of mere professors.

God has always had a chosen remnant. For instance, Noah and his family were a remnant used to save humanity from annihilation. It is when a remnant doesn’t exist that real disaster ensues. This was the case in the story referenced by Paul in 9:29—“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.”

In the tragedy of Sodom and Gomorrah, God was willing to spare the city and her inhabitants if he found a remnant of faithful followers therein. The size of the remnant that Abraham negotiates with God moves from 50 to 45 to 40 to 30 to 20 to just 10. However, God didn’t find a remnant of ten. Only Abraham, Lot and their respective wives were spared as God rained down fire upon this wicked metropolis.

Paul’s point in Romans 9 is that a remnant does exist among the Jews of true followers of the Lord Jesus Christ and so long as there is, salvation among the Jews would continue.

Who are among the chosen people of God? Saved Jews and Gentiles, former outsiders, and a persevering remnant of faithful followers.

So What?

These elements of Paul’s defense of God’s prerogative provide us with an understanding of who the people of God are. Are you among these? Can it be said of your life that you belong to the people of God? Are you a redeemed vessel of God’s glory or are you still a broken vessel, at risk of being discarded? The good news today is this- “God although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known” is enduring “with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction,” allowing them an opportunity to respond positively to His gift of salvation? Do you need to take advantage of God’s patience today?

For those who have accepted God’s grace but make demands on understanding everything about God’s choice in the matter, remember exactly who you are and who God is. You are a product of God’s creation and recreation—God is the Creator and Savior. As such He is free to do as He pleases and we don’t have the right to insist that He make explicit what He has left mysterious.  

The People of God Pt. 2: Divine Prerogative Rom. 9:14-18

There are some attributes of God that most Christians love to sing about. For instance, there are many songs that celebrate the power of God (A Mighty Fortress is Our God…), the Love of God (praise Him praise Him all ye little children, God is Love, God is Love!, Jesus love me…), the faithfulness of God (Great is thy faithfulness, It is well,…) the hope that God provides (Even if you don’t, my hope is You alone!) and many others (His goodness, grace, sacrifice, and glory, etc.). These songs and the divine characteristics they mention receive a lot of airtime on Christian radio and attention during Sunday morning worship sets. However, at least one facet of God’s nature is not as well represented in the music that Christians enjoy or the discussions that Christians have—His sovereignty, particularly as it pertains to God’s prerogative in choosing people for salvation. Perhaps because of the controversies surrounding various interpretations of God’s sovereignty or a lack of knowledge concerning what it means are to blame for a believer’s reticence on this divine attribute. That said, God’s sovereignty is no less glorious or praiseworthy than His grace and it is my prayer that today’s message on Romans 9:14-18 might help us all learn to appreciate God’s divine prerogative (especially if we are put off by this idea). To this end we are going to listen carefully to 5 Statements Paul makes concerning God’s prerogative in choosing His people from Romans 9:14-18. 

a) A Question is Raised-9:14

In the previous passage Paul revealed the foundations upon which God’s program of relating to the world are fixed—people’s failure and His promised Word. In so doing, Paul used the choosing of Jacob over Esau as an example of how God’s will moved forward in the history of the Jews to bring about the Messiah—Jesus Christ. Some must have asked, as many do today, is this fair? Can God just choose Jacob over Esau and, by proxy, establish His people as He sees fit? In an effort to anticipate this question and provide an answer, Paul asks it himself in verse 14a-“What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there?...”.

Many people throughout the church age and even more recently have unfortunately believed that God is somehow not justified in choosing some to be His people. The fact that not all are chosen or that not all are “God’s People” is offensive to many and viewed by others as “unfair.” However, don’t forget who is really to blame for the predicament people find themselves in. It was and remains the people’s failure to accept the will of God that has rendered everyone in jeopardy. God would be justified in condemning EVERYONE and choosing NO ONE.

This is why Paul answers this question with an emphatic “May it never be!” That God has saved some and not others is not an example of injustice as much as it is an expression of His great mercy. That God even has a people in lieu of people’s failure is an example of His supererogatory nature.

b) A Choice is Presented-9:15

That said, God’s choice in having a people at all is His to make—“I will have mercy on who I have mercy,…” (9:15a). This statement is a quote from Exodus 33:19. There, God is responding to yet another failure of the people to embrace the will of God. While Moses met with God on Mt. Sinai and received the Law, the impatient people down below, in an attempt to satisfy their tendency toward worship and in an example of reverting back to Egyptian practices, constructed an idol—a golden calf. Infuriated with this wicked demonstration, Moses breaks the precious tablets and intercedes to God on behalf of his people. Desperate for some assurance that God is still with them, Moses asks God to show him His glory. In response to Moses’ request, God calls him to himself and says “I Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim to you the name of the Lord before you; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion on whom I will show compassion.”

As with Moses in Exodus 33, Paul is concerned that many in his audience, like the Jews at the base of Mt Sinai, are missing what God has made available. In Exodus, the people of God failed to wait on the Lord and embrace His Law. In Paul’s day, the Jews failed to accept Jesus and endorse the salvation that He provides. As a result of both failures (one in the Old Covenant and one in the New Covenant), all deserved judgment and yet grace was provided in an effort to spare some—God inscribed a new set of commandments and the Gospel message continues to go forth.

c) The Reason is Given-9:16

Unlike the illustration above in which my student’s completion of the assignment or good performance in the bowling alley earned them something that I had previously determined to give, God’s mercy is bestowed in spite of man’s works or will.

The reason for God’s gracious choice is not determined by man’s will or works—“So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs” (9:16a). The Hebrews did not earn a second set of tablets and the first century Jews didn’t deserve the gospel they were hearing. Earlier, Paul made the case that this was the same for Jacob and Esau—“for 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” (9:11). These passages reveal that it is not mankind’s desire nor is it any set of works that mankind achieves that directs God’s program of salvation forward.

The fact that anyone is saved is determined by “God who has mercy” (9:16c). This is not surprising given the respective track records of mankind and the Lord. Adam and Eve’s desired wrongly to be like God and then performed an act of egregious sin; God’s mercy stepped in and provided coverings and a promise that one day sin would be dealt with soundly. Man’s lusts birthed pervasive wickedness leading to an epic flood; God’s mercy saved humanity through Noah and his family. People wanted to reach God in their own way and built a tower in Babel; God destroyed the tower but plucked a man called Abraham from obscurity to start a special nation of blessing. Abraham grew impatient and went around God’s will to have a son through Hagar; God graciously kept his promise to Sarah and gave the couple Isaac. Moses and his people proved frustrated and doubtful at times in the wilderness; God led their progeny to the Promised Land. David’s wandering eye led to a scandal of adultery and murder; God kept his promise of a forever kingdom through His line and even blessed David’s son. In all of these examples and many others, mankind has proven that whenever things are left to them, both their desires (will) and their actions (works) let them down. It is God who is consistently merciful, not giving what is deserved but providing grace according to His perfect will.

According to Paul, the same is true following Jesus’ ministry and the latest example of a failed will and incorrect action happens to be the Jewish people the apostle addresses here. Though they had every reason to accept and embrace Jesus, their wills led them away from Him and their works were in keeping with obsolete systems. In spite of this, God would, Paul says, save some of them out of His grace. The very opportunity for salvation is highlighted by Paul’s message of Jesus Christ given through the letter to the Romans and his many other correspondences. That said, if only some are saved, that means others aren’t. If God actively applies grace toward those that receive His mercy for His glorious purposes, then it is also the case that God can use those that do not receive His mercy to the same end.

d) An Example is Referenced-9:17

One compelling example of this is given in verse 17—Pharaoh. Paul has already alluded to and we have already identified how God used some in Old Testament in spite of themselves in a positive way. Now he reveals that God can use others in a completely different way. “For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, ‘For this very purpose I raised you up,…” (9:17a). This Old Testament pagan ruler believed he was God on earth and demanded worship from those around him. From his youth, this lost soul was steeped in a worldview that was far from the Lord (much as all of us are before salvation). That said, God was at work in Pharaoh’s career and rise to power. God saw the connections and situation in which Pharaoh resided and determined to use him in an unexpected way.

God worked in and through Pharaoh’s rise to prominence to demonstrate the Lord’s divine power by brining Pharaoh to his knees—“to demonstrate My power in you” (9:17b). In the battle of wills that ensues between God and Pharaoh, a series of plagues eventually breaks Pharaoh’s resolve and  demonstrates to this polytheist ruler that there is only one true God over all.  In fact, in many ways the individual plagues (frogs, darkness, death of livestock, river into blood, etc.) each show God’s power over one of the many false gods in which the Egyptians believed.

God’s victory over Pharaoh and the subsequent salvation of the Hebrew people not only proved Yahweh’s superiority over paganism, it also betrayed the Lord’s character as the One who delivers the children of Israel from bondage. Something of God’s power and merciful character was made known throughout the world because of how the Lord used Pharaoh. This is what the Scripture means when it says “and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth” (9:17c). Again, even this—the proclamation of the name of God throughout the world—is an example of God’s mercy and grace for the world.

The reference to Pharaoh here is not only intended to provide an example of someone who has not received God’s mercy, it is also meant to show why God does anything, let alone save some and not others. In the case of Pharaoh’s saga, God did everything in an effort to 1) demonstrate His own power, and 2) see to it that His name (His character/who He is) would be proclaimed throughout the earth.

e) The Conclusion is Made-9:18

What this short passage teaches is summarized in verse 18—“So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.”  Many do not have a problem with the first part of this verse and the idea that God is free to show mercy on whom He shows mercy. That God is gracious and loving to save sits comfortably in our twenty-first century context. However, many do take issue with the second part of this verse—“and he hardens whom He desires” (9:18). That God’s sovereignty extends this far is offensive to those who prioritize personal autonomy over divine will. That said, no matter how foreign this may be in our modern era, God is, much as he was shown to do in Pharaoh’s life, free to harden hearts against Him.

A few qualifications must be made in order for us to appreciate the nuances surrounding what has just been said by Paul (that God hardens people’s hearts). First, although the text says that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart, it also stresses that Pharaoh hardened himself (Ex. 7:13-14, 22; 8:15, 19, 32; 9:7, 34-35) (Mounce, Romans, 200).

Exodus 7:13-14-“Yet Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he did not listen to them, as the Lord had said. Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Pharaoh’s heart is stubborn; He refuses to let the people go.”

In fact, “neither here nor anywhere else is God said to harden anyone who had not first hardened himself” (Morris, Romans, 361). One commentator has even suggested that “the hardening of the heart by God is a protological way of expressing divine reaction to persistent human obstinacy against him” (Fitzmyer, Romans, 568). Such is the case in a similar competition between God and man found in Revelation.  

Revelation 16:8-11-“The fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun, and it was given to it to scorch men with fire. Men were scorched with fierce hear; and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory. Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became darkened; and they gnawed their tongues because of pain, and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds.”

In other words, the Scriptures suggest that God hardens hearts that are more than just indifferent toward Him/ignorant of Him. He hardens hearts that are bent against Him and actively seeking to usurp His glorious throne (much as it was in the life of Pharaoh). God is just as free to harden hearts like this as He is to show mercy to those who do not deserve it.

Second, anytime God does anything (let alone harden someone’s heart), He does so for at least two explicit reasons and at least one implicit reason. First, as this text states, God hardened Pharaoh’s heart to demonstrate His own power and see to it that His nature was proclaimed to the world. Surely we cannot find fault in that inasmuch as God is most powerful and His name is the only one worthy of being exalted. In essence, God does His choosing (His mercy-giving and His hardening) for His glory. Additionally, implicit within God’s choice of showing mercy and hardening is His bent toward providing salvation for what Paul calls elsewhere “the many.” Though, to be sure, salvation for Pharaoh did not result from God hardening his already hardened heart, the salvation of many Hebrew slave did result, in part, from how God moved in the life of this pagan leader. In fact, God is about disseminating the message of His mighty power and wonderful nature (glorifying Himself) by these less conventional means so that as many as possible might benefit from His grace and mercy.

Therefore, should we be put off by God’s choice to harden some and show mercy to others? No! We ought to trust that anything God does is for His glory and in an effort to promote His program of salvation to the world.

So What?

Paul’s presentation here has carefully explained the freedom that God extend mercy as He wills. If all have failed and are deserving of condemnation, that God would save anyone, let alone move in a way that proclaims salvation to as many as possible, is a demonstration of God’s love and mercy. That God chooses to harden others who have already hardened themselves against the Lord is God’s prerogative and a demonstration of His justice. Both activities determined by God’s sovereignty result in God being glorified and in this believers can rejoice. Truly, God’s sovereignty is something that all should embrace/celebrate for, it is active regardless of our feelings toward it.

The application for some in light of this passage is to ask whether they have received God’s mercy or whether they are hardening ourselves against Jesus, God, or even the idea thereof. Friends, one of the takeaways of this passage is simple: embrace the grace that you do not deserve before you receive the justice that you do deserve.

For those who have already embraced God’s mercy in salvation but have or are struggling to embrace the idea that God’s prerogative is directing His program according to His perfect will, consider this: the Christian life is supposed to be preoccupied with God receiving all the glory as is due His name. Therefore, if, as Paul has taught, His choosing results in His glory, we ought to be thankful and accepting of this facet of His matchless wonder. 

The People of God Pt. 1-The Predicament and the Promise-Rom. 9:1-13

Over the next several weeks we are going to be traversing some fairly difficult passages of Scripture—difficulty to read through, interpret, preach, and apply. For this reason and because of the nature of what will be discussed I thought it might be helpful to preach Romans 9-11 as its own series within our greater Romans series. This is appropriate for several reasons. First, after having discussed the nature of salvation (justification in chapters 5-6, sanctification in 7-8, and glorification in chapter 8), Paul decides to reveal to whom this salvation applies and how. Second, the majority of what Paul discusses helps distinguish between various groups of people—Jews, Gentiles, lost, saved, loved, hated, etc. For these reasons and many others, we are going to prayerfully and carefully walk through these important chapters together in a series entitled “The People of God.”

To this end, Paul helps his audience at the beginning of chapter 9 by establishing a couple of foundations that will help guide his discussion. In 9:1-13 these foundations are introduced alongside the great predicament many found themselves in and continue to find themselves in today.

a) The People’s Failure-9:1-5

Paul wants to preface the following comments by reminding his audience of what kind of spirit guides his writing-“I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testified with me in the Holy Spirit” (9:1). What Paul is about to divulge is not only important, it is difficult to digest. Therefore, he wants to reiterate that what is being shared is not as much a product of his own theological ruminations as much as it is revelation directly given by God, in Christ, through the Holy Spirit.

In other words, Paul is playing the part of the messenger and making sure that this status is known. I’m sure some of you have had times in which you had to share confusing and/or difficult messages and then were prompted to say in your defense: “I’m just the messenger” or even “Don’t shoot the messenger.” At the beginning of this more theologically precarious section of his letter to the church in Rome Paul decides to reestablish his messenger status.

This reminder helps get Paul off the hook and is especially helpful as the first foundation he has been given to identify is quite negative—the people’s failure (more specifically, HIS people’s failure). Though the failure is not identified outright, evidence of its nature is made clear in the sorrow that this failure has caused Paul-“I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart,…” (9:2). When an ancient Greek writer wants to evoke an emotion in a more superlative/emphatic way, he strings similar phrases together to accentuate the feeling emoted. When Paul says “I have great sorrow and unceasing grief” he is trying to convey just how distraught he is in response to the failure of his people. However, what did they fail to do? What has caused this acute distress?

Again, though Paul does not come right out and say it, he betrays the essence of his people’s failure when he reveals what he wishes he could do in response—“For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen, according to the flesh,…”(9:3). It is obvious by what the author says here that the great failure of his people was their refusal to repent from their sin and old ways of relating to God and accept, in faith, the true nature and ministry of Jesus Christ—God’s greatest gift.

I imagine that many of you spent time over the last week exchanging gifts with loved ones. Many of you were probably looking forward to seeing your friend or family member open that perfect present that you had spent a lot of time putting together or waiting in line to purchase. Maybe it was exactly what that asked for or just what that person needed. Imagine how you would feel if, after handing the wrapped present to that special someone, they refused to accept it and turned the other way. A little bit offended and saddened would only begin to describe your response.

The implications of refusing Jesus were far worse. These Jews (whom Paul refers to as “kinsmen, according to the flesh”) were “accursed, separated from Christ.” Truly, this is the sad state of anyone who fails to repent and embrace Jesus Christ—they are accursed, separated from Christ. In fact, to be separated from Christ is to be accursed—the former defines/explains the latter.

What made the people’s refusal of Christ so egregious was that that this denial of the Savior took place in spite of all the aid God had given. Paul continues by listing the many blessings the Jews had enjoyed for centuries--"who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoptions as sons, and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises, who are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever, Amen" (9:4-5). It would be one thing for a pagan idolater to deny Christ, but many of those who were refusing Jesus were Israelites (blessed with a special nation), given to be sons and daughters of God, participants in divine covenants handed down to Abraham, Moses, David, etc., beneficiaries of the law that Moses brought down from Sinai, worshippers in the temple of God, receivers of special promises that were communicated by the prophets, and relatives of the forefathers of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In many ways, all of these things—the nation, the covenants, the law, the temple, the promises, the family, pointed directly to the coming Messiah and were fulfilled in the person and work of Jesus. Christ even came to the earth as a Jew Himself!

In other words, not only did God offer the greatest gift of all to the Jews when He offered Jesus, He placed Jesus well within reach (right in their hands!). All they had to do was enjoy it!

The failure of the Jewish people to embrace Jesus Christ, in spite of all that God did to make Him accessible to them is a real tragedy. However, this failure also set the foundation for how God would relate not only to His people, but the world. Paul will unpack this more later as we journey through chapters 9-11. However, let us now move on to discuss another important foundation upon which Paul constructs his presentation of the people of God.  

b) The Promised Word-9:6-13

The second foundation Paul discusses is the promised Word. Paul wants to make it very clear that while mankind in general and the Jews in particular did not take advantage of the opportunity afforded them, the Word of God has not failed—“But (in contrast to the failure of mankind), it is not as though the word of God has failed” (9:6a).

Like many in our world today, many of those reading this letter may have been tempted to place blame for their failure onto someone or something else. Maybe the promises were not explicit enough. Perhaps the law could have been worded better. Maybe something was lacking in the details surrounding the temple worship or in the covenants. Paul says “nah ah ah. Stop right there. The Word of God is not blameworthy for your failure.” How could it be given its nature?

Isaiah 40:8: “Grass dries up, and flowers wither, but the word of our God will last forever…”

Matthew 5:17-18: “I did not come to abolish the Law but to fulfill it. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.”

 When it comes to the Word of God, these and other passages clearly reveal that it is consistently compelling, persevering, and completely qualified to inspire, foreshadow, and accomplish everything required by the will of God. The Word cannot fail in so much as God—its author—cannot fail.

What has led to the dilemma concerning the people of God? Paul answers this as he explains how the people of the promised Word are identified—“For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; nor are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants, but ‘through Isaac your descendants will be named’” (9:6b-7). Paul introduces a huge correction to the first-century Jewish thinking. He reveals here, probably to the surprise of many in his original audience, that not every Israelite is a true descendant. In fact, just as the Jews conceded that not all descendants of Abraham were legitimate (i.e. those born of the line of Ishmael), so too were they to concede that not all who called themselves Israelites were, in fact, true Israelites—that is in a spiritual sense.

In other words, the predicament concerning the people of God is brought about because not all who consider themselves part of the people of God are, in fact, among the people of God in the fullest sense.

Paul makes this abundantly clear in verse 8 when he says the following: “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.” Not only is merely claiming to be among the people of God not a guarantee of real relationship with Him, neither is being genetically Jewish an indicator that someone is a member of God’s family! Instead, Paul says, one must be a “children of the promise” (9:8).

The unfailing Word of God has already made this explicit—“For this is the word of promise, ‘At this time I will come and Sarah shall have a son…” (9:9). According to God’s perfect plan, it would be from Abraham and Sarah that God would build a nation and bring for this Son Jesus. Not just any combination nor just any offspring would do for this most holy purpose.

Paul continues, “And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by the one man, our father Isaac; 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,…” (9:10-11). Here again a special calling for a specific son through whom would come the Messiah is in view. The circumstances surrounding the birth of Jacob and Esau prove that God’s unfailing Word stands in spite of what may/may not occur. Even before these twins were born and had time to prove themselves one way or the other, God had a plan—a plan irrespective of works. This plan was determined by God’s will and expressed in His sovereign Word.

Details of God’s explicit promise to Jacob and his descendants are provided in verses 12-13—“It was said to her (Rebekah), ‘The older will serve the younger. Just as it is written, Jacob I love but Esau I hated.’” Such comments reveal that not only does God’s Word trump man’s actions, it also overwhelms birth order and the traditions associated therewith.

However, what does it mean when God says “Jacob I love, Esau I hated”? How might we square this rather provocative text with verses like “For God so loved the World” and “God is love?” Perhaps another passage might help shine light on what this verse means.

Luke 14:26-“If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.”

In this context, Jesus is referring to a disciple’s choice. A disciple’s devotion to Christ must be so acute that other relationships and loyalties pale in comparison. This is similar to how what Paul references in Romans 9. God’s choice of Jacob over Esau is described in more drastic terms in order to highlight the Lord’s plan and purpose for the former over the latter. A paraphrase of these last verses might read “Jacob have I chosen for a special task, Esau I have not chosen for the same.”

That said, what is quite clear from verses 6-13 is the perseverance of God’s Word. It has expressed the will of God and it has established promises to the appropriate people. It never has nor ever will fail to communicate and call forth God’s grand purposes (especially as it pertains to Jesus Christ and the salvation that He alone provides).  

So What?

The failure lies, unfortunately, with the people God had appointed. All who thought they were “in” weren’t because they failed to accept and embrace the Word made flesh—Jesus Christ. In so doing, these proved that they were not children of the promised and unfailing Word of God. These two foundations—the people’s failure and the promised Word—must be firmly established in order to fully understand and appreciate what Paul has to say throughout the remainder of chapters 9-11.

However, what might we glean from what we’ve read today? Truly, the failure of God’s intended people is not unlike the failure of many people today who have, in spite of all that God has made available to them, refused to accept, embrace, and follow after Jesus Christ. Are you refusing the greatest gift of all?

Maybe you have fooled yourself into believing that you’re “in” already—you grew up in church, come every now and then to a service, are a better person than most, or know where to find John 3:16 in your Bible. Friend, if genetics and titles didn’t automatically guarantee that a Jew in the Old Testament was part of the family of God do you really think that going through the motions and superficial lip service will go far in assuring your relationship with Christ?

Let us not be guilty of the same failure we read about in this passage today. Let’s not fail to embrace the unfailing Word of God this year and the Jesus that it reveals. 

Contexts of Victory-Romans 8:31-39

Last Sunday we enumerated some of the many sights and sounds that people will hear this Christmas season in an effort to introduce what we looked at in Romans 8:26-30. Today I want to ask where you might find yourself over the next few weeks. What contexts will you endorse this holiday season? Some of you may make trips to different cities and find yourself in an airport, or in a car. Others of you may spend time at home. Many might find themselves at the mall, in line at the register, seated in an auditorium for a performance, outside at a live nativity, inside by a warm fire. Wherever we are, the hope is (right) that we are enjoying the time of year and celebrating what is most important… J Easier said than done! Especially when your flight is delayed, the car begins to make a weird noise, the store runs out of that must-have item, the line for checkout stretches for a quarter mile, the performance doesn’t meet your expectations, its frigid outside, and the fire won’t light. Instead of the season looking like the end of It’s a Wonderful Life, it becomes more like National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. Instead of James Stewart embracing the little girl and bells awarding angels their wings, we are Chevy Chase falling off the latter and being locked up in the attic!

The Christian life (in the Spirit), is much the same way. We have every intention of growing in Christ, persevering to the end, and seeing to it that others are reached no matter where God leads us and yet sometimes we find ourselves in places/situations that seem more like inhibitions than opportunities. Thankfully, Paul provides us with an inspiring passage that carries us through the end of Romans (Romans 8:31-39). There we witness four contexts in which the victory of God is realized in the life of a believer.

1) The Battlefield-8:31-“…What shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?...”

Throughout Romans 8, Paul has carefully described what life is like for those who are “in the Spirit.” So far he has revealed that those who are in the Spirit enjoy freedom (1-17), persevering hope (18-25), and victory in Christ (26-30). As Paul has delineated this reality, he has also claimed that those in the Spirit enjoy status as adopted sons and daughters of God (8:15), an inheritance as heirs (8:17), and the assurance of hope that comes from the guarantee of the Spirit. Believers have also been reminded that because they are in the Spirit, they cannot lose when it comes to prayer or their own salvation.

As chapter 8 comes to a close Paul discusses several different contexts in which believers enjoy these blessings, their status, and the victories involved therein. The first context that Paul chooses to deal with is the context of the battlefield that is this world. Paul asks in verse 31-“What shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?” In other words, if God is going to provide freedom, hope, victory, adoption, inheritance, and assurance of salvation, who or what should intimidate the people of God? The answer is a resounding No One!

Make no mistake, life is a battlefield.

Ephesians 6:10ff-“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of HIs might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.”

1 Peter 1:6-“In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials.

Paul’s point in Romans 8 is that even in this battlefield, believers can know victory and enjoy the blessings that he has labored to enumerate in this compelling chapter of Scripture. Paul therefore agrees with what Jesus said in John 16:33--“these things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage, I have overcome the world.”

Because Jesus has overcome the world and all battlefields therein, He is capable of assuring the blessings contained in this chapter for His children as they traverse the same theatres of war. None can stand against Him or those who are in the Spirit!

2) The Storehouse-8:32-“…He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?...”

To this end, it follows naturally that those who endure this warfare need to be adequately supplied. This too is guaranteed by the Lord in verse 32—“He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will not also with Him freely give us all things?” Here, Paul employs an argument from the greater the lesser—“A God who sacrificed his own Son on our behalf will certainly not withhold that which by comparison is merely trivial” (Mounce, 190). In other words, if God is willing to bestow His greatest grace for his children—His Son—surely he will also bestow every other grace needed to endure to the end. After all, “God is by nature a giving God” (Mounce, 190).

Psalm 31:19-“How great is Your goodness, Which You have stored up for those who fear You, Which You have wrought for those who take refuge in You, Before the sons of men!”

Those in the Spirit not only know blessing and victory in the context of the battlefield, they know blessing and victory whenever they go to the storehouse of God’s grace for in that storehouse is an consistent abundance of God’s goodness ready to be bestowed.

3) The Courtroom-8:33-34

Believers also enjoy God’s victory and blessings in the courtroom—that is the courtroom of spiritual judgment. Paul asks “Who is able to bring charges against God’s elect?” (8:33). The verb “to bring a charge against” means “to bring serious…accusations against someone, with the possible connotation of a legal or court context” (Louw Nida). Certainly, the world and the devil himself would love more than to bring charges against the people of God. In fact, in Revelation 12:10 Satan is called the “accuser of the brethren.” One example of this is found in Job.

Job 1:8-11-“The Lord said to Satan, ‘Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil.’ Then Satan answered the Lord, ‘Does Job fear God for nothing? Have You not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But put forth Your hand now and touch all that he has; he will sure curse You to Your face.’”

Like a prosecuting attorney in a court, the devil and the world system would love more than to indict the people of God.

However, the question “Who will bring a charge against God’s elect?” must be answered negatively when one considers the rest of the verse—“God is the one who justifies” (8:33b). When the devil draws up accusations against those who are in Christ, it falls on deaf ears. The gavel has already fallen in the case against God’s people and the Lord has found them righteous—acquitting them from all wrongdoing and rendering them justified in His sight. 

This idea is supported by Paul in verse 24 when he takes things one step further. If the devil and the world can no longer bring charges against God’s people, certainly they cannot convict them either. “Who is the one who condemns?” Paul wonders. The clear answer is no one. As Paul has already articulated earlier in this chapter, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (8:1). But why is this? Paul provides the answer in the rest of the verse—“Christ Jesus is He who died, yew, rather, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us,…” (8:34b).

In this single verse 3 reasons are given for why followers of the Lord Jesus Christ are not condemned and therefore enjoy victory in the courtroom of life. First, Jesus died, thereby paying the penalty/suffering the condemnation that all deserve. Through faith in Jesus Christ, believers have the satisfaction of the atonement Jesus provided on the cross applied to them. In other words, because He suffered the condemnation, believers do not have to. Second, and even better, Jesus rose again, indicating that He was a worthy sacrifice to begin with and victorious over sin and death. Therefore his followers enjoy the same liberation from the same condemnation. Third, and probably best, now alive, Jesus acts as the believer’s advocate before the throne of God. In other words, while Satan might serve in the courtroom as prosecutor against the people of God, Jesus acts as the believer’s defense attorney, pleading their case in a most convincing way. Only He can say before God, my client (those in the Spirit), are acquitted—I’ve suffered their penalty already and demonstrated my worthiness to do so by overwhelming condemnation altogether.

Praise the Lord that believers do not have to fear accusation and/or condemnation before God! Instead, they know victory in God’s courtroom!

4) The Marriage-8:35-39

The final context in which the believer enjoys victory and blessing might be illustrated best as the marriage—that is the marriage between the church (the bride) and Christ (the bridegroom). Though this isn’t explicit in Romans 8, Paul and others illustrate these two parties in this way elsewhere in his writings.

John 3:29-“The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete.”

Ephesians 5:25-“Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,”

Revelation 19:7-9-“’Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure’— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, ‘Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’ And he said to me, ‘These are the true words of God.’”

With this analogy in mind, we can read the remainder of Romans 8 and appreciate what it has to say about the deep connection that is enjoyed between those in the Spirit (the bride) and Christ (the groom). First, Paul asks “Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or word?...” (8:35). Again, as with most of the question in this passage, the answer is clearly “nothing”—nothing can separate God’s people from his love.

Here, the context of marriage provides us with an illustration of this phenomenon. Typically, during a marriage ceremony, the bride and groom exchange vows. As part of these vows, the two parties of the marriage promise their persevering love to each other, even in sickness, poverty, until death do them part. Here, Jesus love for his bride is said to withstand “…tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or word?...” (8:35). In other words, God’s love for those in the Spirit follows them even in the worst seasons of life, providing them with  all of the blessings that come with a meaningful relationship with Him.

This is important to remember given what Paul reminds the church of next. He continues by saying “Just as it is written, ‘For your sake we are being put to death all day long; we were considered as sheep to be slaughtered’” (8:36). Paul understood what it was like to endure difficult times. He was beaten on several occasions within an inch of his life, imprisoned, shipwrecked, etc. In enduring these circumstances, Paul followed in the footsteps of Jesus who was betrayed, whipped, and crucified. In fact, every follower of Jesus should expect, to some degree or another, a path of ridicule, humiliation, and suffering. After all, this is only natural for those who follow the one who was crucified on the cross. It is one of the ways in which believers grow more like Him. Just as He was a sheep led to the slaughter, those who take up their cross daily and follow Him can expect the same path.

However, this is no cause for alarm. As God’s love endures even the worst of all circumstances in the context of a believer’s spiritual marriage to Christ, “in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us” (8:37). The unbroken relational bond believers enjoy with Jesus provides them with victory and blessing as they follow Christ’s even to the point of great suffering and death (that is if it be required of them). The word “conquer” means to prevail over completely. Put differently, the victory believers enjoy in their relationship with Jesus is overwhelming.

Given the presence of this overwhelming victory that is enjoyed in the context of the believer’s spiritual marriage to Christ, it ought to come as no surprise that Paul would conclude by making the case that nothing can separate the bride and the groom.'

Paul is “convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, not things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (8:38-39). In other words, no life event, no matter how final, no spiritual being, no matter how intimidating, no matter what what’s past may hold, no matter how shady, no matter what the world has in store for tomorrow, no matter how epic, no matter what space may seem to exist at any given moment between believers and God, NOTHING can severe love that God has for his children. Why? Because they are “in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Though I typically do not give this invitation in the weddings that I conduct, in a traditional ceremony the pastor will often say near the beginning of the ceremony “If any can give just cause for why these two should not be joined together, speak now or forever hold your peace.” Most of the time, no one speaks up and the ceremony continues uninterrupted. The same is true of God’s people—no one, nothing can provide any reason for there to ever be any separation of love between Jesus and His bride—the church (i.e. those in the Spirit).

So What?

Though we are all gathered together in the context of this church this morning, I wonder what context some of you will enter upon leaving this place later this afternoon. Some of you may be heading into a battlefield—a conflict at home or at work, persecution, or some internal struggle. Perhaps after being filled by the fellowship that God will allowed today and the Word that has gone forth, some experience will require much of you leaving you looking for the storehouse for what it is that you need to make it through another week. Maybe you will find yourself under attack, accused, and near-prosecuted for your faith. Your weirdness for Jesus may make those around you uncomfortable. Perhaps some in your vicinity are hoping to catch you in some kind of process crime so that they can indict you for hypocrisy. In whatever context you may find yourself, know today, you who are in Christ and living in the Spirit, that the victory of God and His blessings go ahead of you and with you! If God is for you, who can be against you? If God gave you His son, why should we ever expect to hold back what we need (according to His will)? Charges against God’s clients? What charges? All has been paid in full! The battle of life, the needs we run across, and the case against us is no match for the victory believers have in Christ. He is the victorious general, the affluent provider, the bullet-proof defense, and He is ours! His love and affections are for us and nothing can separate us from that! Praise the Lord!