Commentary on "The Election of Grace"

COLLEEN TINKER

 

Day 6: Thursday, September 9, 2010 - The Salvation of Sinners

 

Overview

Today’s lesson covers Romans 11:28-36. It focuses on the fact that God shows mercy to both Jews and Gentiles, that all mankind receives God’s mercy and love and grace.

 

Observations

While the lesson accurately notices God’s grace and mercy that is for all mankind, it completely misses the point of the day’s text:

As regards the gospel, they are enemies of God for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. For just as you were at one time disobedient to God but now have received mercy because of their disobedience, so they too have now been disobedient in order that by the mercy shown to you they also may now receive mercy. For god has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all.

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!

“For who has known the mind of the Lord,

or who has been his counselor?”

“Or who has given a gift to him

that he might be repaid?”

For from him and through him and to him are all things. T him be glory forever. Amen.

This text is actually making a profound statement about Israel’s assurance of having a future in God’s plan. Paul acknowledges that Jews are currently “enemies of God” for the sake of the gentiles—us—who have now received mercy from God and are being grafted into the olive tree of God’s purposes. At this time, the church is primarily a gentile phenomenon.

Then Paul makes the more startling statement that the Jews are beloved to God. Because of God’s sovereign election, the Jews are still His loved people “for the sake of their forefathers”—Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. God’s promises to the forefathers are certain; He will fulfill them not only for the uncircumcised gentile children of Abraham’s faith, but also for the Jews. The fact that they were disobedient does not negate God’s promises made to Abraham on their account. Those promises were made before the conditional Mosaic covenant was given.

God’s promises are unconditional.

Paul continues by pointing out that, because of Israel’s disobedience of unbelief, we the gentiles have received His mercy. Just as Jesus foretold in his parable of the landowner who told the wicked vineyard keepers that He would take the vineyard from them and give it to others (Matthew 21), so he received gentile believers in great numbers into the new covenant gospel and has built His church largely with gentile “living stones”.

The day is coming, however, when they will receive mercy as well. God has turned all people over to disobedience so that all people may receive His mercy. In other words, Israel began their existence by sovereign election. God called them and formed them and made them His people, not because they asked for it or behaved well or otherwise deserved or earned His choice of them. Rather, He formed them totally by election.

Gentiles, however, were without God in the world (Ephesians 2:12), and God showed them mercy, bringing them to Himself and giving them His Spirit and making them His people. He had mercy on the gentiles while they were dead in their disobedience (Eph. 2:1-6).

Now, Paul says, God will also have mercy on the Jews even though they have been disciplined and scattered because of their disobedience.

Paul ends this chapter with a spontaneous and deeply reverent doxology of praise to God for His unsearchable, inscrutable ways. He acknowledges that no one can know or explain the mind of the Lord, and no one receives God’s mercy because they have offered God any gift. All we know is that all things are for Him, through Him, and to Him. Our existence isn’t about us or our lives. We are here for God. What we do is to God, and everything we do, we are able to do because our life and strength come to us through Him.

No one can explain how or why God chooses whom He chooses nor how or why His timing is as it is. He chose Israel; He disciplined Israel and turned them over to disobedience. He brought disobedient gentiles to life and made them His body—and He will still show mercy on disobedient Israel and re-graft them into His olive tree. All this is for His glory.

The lesson says that Christians attitudes and rejection of the Sabbath has made it hard for Jews to come to Christ, and it urges that readers show mercy to everyone because if they don’t, they’re not really Christians.

This guilt-producing admonition is nowhere suggested in the text of Romans. In fact, Paul says quite the opposite. The Jews’ lack of coming to Christ has to do with God’s timing. They have been “hardened in part” until the full number of gentiles has come in, and furthermore, He awakens them when He wills. Romans NEVER suggests that we are responsible for Jews either coming to Christ or not coming to Christ.

Salvation is all of God. We do not effect salvation in any person. We are asked to be His witnesses; we do not prevent people or cause people to accept Jesus. God is more than capable of bringing His people to life whether or not we are individually obedient.

Moreover, the Sabbath is a red herring. It has absolutely NOTHING to do with this passage—nor does it have anything at all to do with the gospel. God never asks us in the new covenant to teach the Sabbath to people, nor does he ever hint that not keeping Sabbath will prevent anyone, including Jews, from becoming Christian.

The issue is Jesus alone. It is Jesus with whom we have to deal, whether we are Jews or gentiles. God judges us on the basis of Jesus. If we have accepted the Sin Bearer, we have life, and we are eternally secure. If we reject the Sin Bearer, we stand condemned already (Jn. 3:18).

Let go of the guilt-producing “shoulds” and deal with Jesus. Will you accept His blood as the eternal payment for your sin and the only way to the Father?

 

Summary

1. This passage is not a simple statement of God’s impartial mercy.
2. God showed mercy to the gentiles because the Jews were disobedient.
3. God will yet show mercy to the Jews because they have been bound to disobedience.
4. God will show mercy to all men because all have been bound in disobedience.
5. We cannot explain why or how God is doing this; we can only know that each of us is here not for ourselves but for God. Our sole purpose in life is His glory. We are here for Him, not for ourselves or even each other (Rom. 14:7-8).
6. Our disobedience is not the cause of Jews not coming to faith.
7. Our lack of Sabbath-keeping has nothing whatsoever to do with this passage, nor does it have any effect on Jews becoming Christians.
8. All of us will be judged based on whether or not we accepted the Sin Bearer. God Himself is in charge of salvation; it is not up to us.
9. The Sabbath is never mentioned in the New Testament as either a sign or a requirement of God’s will.
10. Jesus asks us to trust Him and His completed atonement.

 

GO TO DAY 7

 

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