Romans 9, September 29th.
We are continuing with our series on Romans, which we will follow until the end of November.
Romans 8: 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39.
So ends Romans 8.
Paul’s words in Romans 8 are so uplifting and then we have 9-11.
Chapters 9-11 looks complicated and it does seem, on quick glance, no link to what has been going before.
It can seem like a big tangent – we feel that Paul’s main argument is 1-8 and then he wanders off, (as we may think he does sometimes in others letters, at our first glance), and then returns to how to live the gospel in Romans 12.
It is very important to remember. Paul is no random writer. When we encounter something – out of place – we need to wrestle or perhaps just dig into it and look for links across the letter, or what was just said or what is coming up.
As I said I focused on Philippians in my sabbatical. Chapter 2 is a very good example. Read it through. You hear Paul teach, because of disunity within the community, of the need for a servant focused approach to how we relate to others, and follows this with the amazing creed describing the great servanthood of Christ.
And then he suddenly moves on travel plans with Timothy and Epaphroditus. It all seems – not connected.
No. The people he talks about – yes it does share travel plans, when they will visit Philippi etc – BUT the main reason he includes and carefully describes these two men, is that they are examples of what he is saying. So on the surface – it can seem random, unconnected – and on a closer look, intimately connected to the themes within the letter.
This is what is going on here.
Romans 9-11 is intimately connected to the letter and these chapters are not an after-thought.
So why did he write chapter 9-11. Two possible reasons…
Romans 8 has just ended. Great verses about what God does. God predestines, calls, justifies, glorifies. Nothing can separate us from God’s active love.
Yet that prompts a question – if God is so involved in salvation and at work, then why, are the majority of the Jews not responding to the good news?
In fact, why is there actually in many places strong reaction against the message about Jesus. If God is so at work, why does it seem, his work is not achieving anything among the Jews or is he actually working?
Those questions may have been in the community. They are missional questions. They are also questions affecting their community as a church. Paul wants to speak to.
He will clearly show that God has not rejected the Jews.
Second additional or possible issue.
I mentioned Philippians. You look for themes and words across the letter and you begin to see connections.
The one that perhaps catches your attention most easily, as you read Romans, is Romans chapters 14-15.
James Dunn notes how Paul is carefully sharing words about the worship, discipleship, community life of the church in Rome, because of the tensions that now exist inside it, because it is Jewish and Gentile.
And in fact tensions have arose because Messianic Jews – have returned to the church.
What do I mean returned…
Writer and pastor David Pawson helpfully points out, (a point also raised by Michael Gorman), the Church in Rome went through 4 stages.
- Formation. How was it planted. All Saints was planted in December 2015, it was a daughter church of Holy Trinity Utrecht. Rome. We do not know bar the reference in Acts 2 on Pentecost of Jews who were from Rome, among the nations. So the assumption is – some or all of these Jews, now believing and trusting in Jesus as Lord, Messiah and Saviour, returned and the church was born. So stage 1 – it was a Jewish church.
- At some point – whether through word of mouth about what had happened in Antioch or in Corneilus or on the first missionary journey – Gentiles come to faith in Christ. The Church becomes a community of Jew and Gentile – like quite a few churches in the Eastern Med.
- In AD49 Emperor Claudius expelled all the Jews from Rome – we read of that in Acts 18 – when Paul meets Priscilla and Aquila. Why – because of disturbances over a man called Crestus. This name is taken to be a form of Christ – so what we see in Paul’s missionary journeys – riots, violence, mobs – when the message of Christ came to Jews from Jews – took place in Rome. Rome or at least the Emperor had enough of it. So in his mind – this is a Jewish problem so the solution – therefore all to leave. Messianic Jews and non believing Jews. The Church was forced to become Gentile only.
- Nero became Emperor in AD54. The letter to the Romans was written sometime from AD57-59. Nero allowed the Jews to return. The Church was at least 5-7 years Gentile only. Then the Jews returned to the church. These returns led to tensions in the community. Attitudes towards each other.
Paul had become aware of these matters.
So this tension becomes one of the reasons he has written.
He knows he needs to tackle this – unity is a strong theme for him we note in his letters – Corinthians, Philippians are two other examples.
So tensions exist within the community over worship, community life, discipleship, mission.
Now tensions can then lead to one group looking down on each other. Pawson suggests that tensions, at least for some, it has moved in an unhealthy direction – in Romans 11:18 he calls on the Gentiles in the church not to be ‘arrogant’. It suggests that at least for some Gentiles, the situation has moved from a view of equals, and trying to work out unity among diversity and tension, to an attitude ‘we are better than you…’
Hence when they read / heard the closing part of Romans 8 – God’s love, God’s action, justifying, calling and they saw how many Gentiles or heard how many were coming to faith in Christ… and they considered the smaller number of Jews responding positively to the message about Christ, could that have led some to think they were better in some way? Perhaps to feel that Jews were not ‘’open to the gospel?’’
How does Paul speak into this important topic.
Romans 9-11 fits into Paul’s approach of bringing the gospel to bear on the situation.
Romans 1.
He begins right from the start in those opening v1-7.
In his opening words, this gospel – it is God’s gospel
It is a gospel that was promised through the Scriptures, like we have seen in the past weeks in Isaiah – whose Scriptures are they – the scriptures of the Hebrews, the Jews.
Gospel regarding his son – human descent is of David – the greatest Jewish King.
Yet through the Spirit, declared to be the Son of God.
Paul and others received grace to call people from among the Gentiles.
To call people. God gave grace – help anointing etc.
Grace, meant it was God’s plan to reach out to the Gentiles, not an entitlement. God’s plan to reach out – to include them…
In Romans 1:16-17 will declare ‘’I am not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.’’
Paul then applies the gospel to the church community.
Romans 1-3.
Paul is clear – all have sinned, both Jews and Gentiles.
3:10 – we have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin. Unity in how they stood before God.
Both saved by faith.
Romans 3 – For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law. Is God the God of the Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles too?’’
Salvation is the same, same gospel.
Romans 4
Jews and Gentiles he declares, you are all sons of Abraham – a son of Abraham is not someone who shares his flesh – but those who share his faith. ‘’He is the father of us all.’’ (Romans 4:16).
We can see his approach – both groups sinners
Both saved by faith
Both sons of Abraham.
Romans 5-8
Then Romans 5-8, he talks about holiness – sanctification – both groups need to learn to live by the Spirit which brings freedom, and not to backslide and turn again to religious laws or to living as they want, believing grace covers it all.
It is a similar problem in Galatians that Paul writes about – the temptation to turning back to religious laws or living as you want.
Both called to Holiness,
both have the indwelling Holy Spirit,
both are called to freedom.
Paul is not ashamed of the Gospel. It creates Oneness, it maintains Oneness – it did then and it does now…
Paul may be focusing on how Gentiles and Jews see each other; but his approach is important for us all, how we look at Christians different then us. Do we focus on the Oneness as Paul does, or do we focus on the differences…?
Pawson describes beautifully where Paul has brought us to:
What becomes clear
They are saved from the same sin
By the same saviour
By the same grace
To the same holiness
With the same Spirit,
For the same eternity
All in the same saviour, in Christ Jesus.
And so, Romans 9-11 is continuing that teaching.
He knows that there can be people thinking – well if this is all true, why do we see so little impact among the Jewish community in Rome and the Gentiles responding so openly.
Romans 9:1-5.
From describing the elect in Romans 8, which inspires Paul to be confident ‘’Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen?’’ he shares an elect of God which brings him to despair and anguish.
V1 – he makes an oath – one of the most solemn sentences he ever wrote. His grief is great. His anguish unceasing.
This was not the cry of someone who had abandoned his people, and now cares nothing for them.
We would have understood if he had – when we read, Acts 13-17, nearly every time he turns up in a town with an existing Jewish community, shortly or after sometime, he would get abuse, or violence, or ran out of time. You’d understand if his heart would have become hard and he had just turned his back on them.
He is instead in anguish.
It is worth noting here. Paul is often seen as some form of robotic AI type biblical writer – no emotion and just throws out words. No no no. Paul shows his heart in many places. This is one of them.
Paul echoes Moses in Exodus 32:22. Moses intercedes for the Israelites after the sin of the golden calf. ‘’But now, if you will only forgive their sin – but if not, blot me out of the book you have written.’’
Paul says he is willing to be cut off, to be accursed, to go to hell, for the sake of his people. He is saying – if it meant me being separate from Christ so they would go to heaven, he would do it…
It is an amazing statement. He imitates Christ’s heart. Paul could not be separated. But Christ did – he did agree, he suffered, willing separate himself from the Father, so we would not be, so we could go to heaven, we could be with him in paradise.
His heart makes me think – for those who do not know Christ. Do I have anguish. Do I need to pray for more of that heart Paul had, that it grieves me that they do not know Christ…
Paul then discusses the blessings of the Israelites.
Note he says – they are Israelites – not that they were or had ceased to be – they are – they still had they special relationship and all those blessings.
Paul says they have so much, had so much, God gave them so much. Adoption, glory, covenant, law, service, promises and he even gave them the chief of blessings – the Messiah – born as Paul said in Romans 1 and now says again ‘’from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all.’’ Those truths are still true today.
They were given so much, even the Messiah… yet they, many, did not receive him.
He has grief.
They have so much, and yet many have not responded…
And that is where we need to stop due to time.
We will return to Romans 9 and journey into 10, next Sunday…
Three simple applications
First.
Are there Christians – individuals or groups or denominations with whom we have tension or even feel better than? How does Paul’s approach challenge us by how he describes Oneness…
Second.
None of us probably have the heart that Paul shares, in his anguish. Yet can we pray that some of that heart of Paul could be worked within us by the Spirit of Jesus who did become separated so we could go to heaven?
Third.
Paul’s teaching is connected across the three chapters – so if you can, read Romans 9-11, and ask yourself: When you see the word Israel – what does that word mean for you? Do you think that is what Paul has in mind?
Shall we pray…