Salvation by Faith
A Study in Romans • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Introduction
Introduction
Last week we discussed Paul’s zeal to bring the Gospel to the Jews. Paul makes it clear that he esteemed the nation of Israel and that God has never abandoned His people and therefore we as a church despise Israel at our own peril! Instead, we should esteem them and pray for the peace of Jerusalem. It is the city that Jesus wept over.
We also learned that we have become the people of the promise through adoption and faith in Jesus. It is by faith and not by works, so we must be careful not to put stumbling block in people’s way by clinging to the traditions of men. We do this sometimes unintentionally by imposing standards upon ourselves that are over-burdensome. Then, by example we project those standards upon those that look up to us. Instead we need to remember that Jesus came to simplify the law by hanging it on a new commandment:
“I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, so also you must love one another.
This week we pick up from there and take a look at the very crux of Paul’s desire. Read it with me:
Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for Israel is for their salvation. For I testify about them that they have zeal for God—but not based on knowledge. For being ignorant of God’s righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit themselves to the righteousness of God. For Messiah is the goal of the Torah as a means to righteousness for everyone who keeps trusting.
He recognizes that they have a zeal for God, but not “according to knowledge”. In other words, they are zealous, but they don’t know why. They are zealous for the things of God and for His righteousness, but they fall short because they haven’t figured out that the key to righteousness is not found within themselves or their ability to be good enough for God. “For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God.” So then the key is the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. They can’t know God’s righteousness if they don’t know Jesus.
We see this theme resonate over and over in Paul’s writings. He is very big on the idea that righteousness doesn’t come from us. We are unable to be righteous in and of ourselves.
A psalm of David.
Hear my prayer, Adonai,
give ear to my petitions.
In Your faithfulness
and Your righteousness, answer me!
Do not bring Your servant into judgment,
for in Your eyes no one living
is righteous.
So if no one living is righteous, what more is there to see here? Glad you asked, because Paul answers that too: “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes”.
Paul is once again emphasizing that the old system of animal sacrifice and meticulous keeping of the law has been done away with. There is no New Testament equivalent except for the death of Jesus, and obedience to the Holy Spirit. Righteousness comes only from Jesus and not our own efforts.
Now are there certain things that we must do as Christians? You bet! If you have a problem with alcohol, then a little wine cooler or a beer here or there is a very bad thing, and can derail your Christianity completely. Likewise if you have a problem with lust or pornography, then watching a TV show or movie that is suggestive is a very bad thing for you. Now listen to what I’m saying, those actions in and of themselves aren’t bad, but are they wise?
This is how Paul put it concerning the law:
For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on Torah, “The man who does these things shall live by them.” But the righteousness based on faith speaks in this way:
“Do not say in your heart,
‘Who will go up into heaven?’
(that is, to bring Messiah down),
or, ‘Who will go down into the abyss?’
(that is, to bring Messiah up
from the dead).”
But what does it say?
“The word is near you,
in your mouth and in your heart”
—that is, the word of faith
that we are proclaiming:
Paul is showing the Jews that this idea of righteousness that comes by faith is not a heretical new Christian revelation, but something that Moses himself spoke about.
Paul is basically quoting passages from Deuteronomy 30, where Moses was talking to the people as they were getting ready to enter Canaan. This was a prophetic word which promised blessing for obedience, but punishment for rejecting the word of God.
He goes on to point out that there was no need for anyone to bring Christ down because He had already done that Himself by coming as a man, and there was no need to bring Christ up from the dead, because He had also already done that.
Because Jesus had fulfilled those two prophetic requirements in Deuteronomy, he was able to confidently proclaim that the word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart… what word? It is the word of faith which we preach.
Next Paul lays out the basic Gospel message in much the same way that Peter did on the day of Pentecost when he addressed the crowd.
For if you confess with your mouth
that Yeshua is Lord,
and believe in your heart that God
raised Him from the dead,
you will be saved.
For with the heart it is believed
for righteousness,
and with the mouth it is confessed
for salvation.
For the Scripture says, “Whoever trusts in Him will not be put to shame.”
See, he couldn’t preach this to the Jews without first showing them that salvation by faith was taught by Moses and was perfectly legitimate for them as Jews, and that the advent, death and resurrection of Jesus was a fulfillment of Old Testament Prophesy.
So he lays out the Gospel message and ends with “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”
He then finishes off this section of Romans by appealing to the Jews who had a problem with the addition of Gentiles to the church by saying:
For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord is Lord of all—richly generous to all who call on Him. For “Everyone who calls upon the name of Adonai shall be saved.”
By demonstrating that adherence to the law was not what saved, but faith, Paul made his case for saying God was not a respecter of persons, only faith.
Something to remember about the Jews is that they do not recruit you to join their faith. There is no proselytizing. You’re either Jewish or you aren’t. You can become a Jew, but being Jewish is a genetic state that is traditionally transferred by the mother (this is how Jesus could be fully man and fully God). With this in mind, you could understand how some of them were a bit uncomfortable with the preaching that was being done by the Christians – why was it necessary?
How then shall they call on the One in whom they have not trusted? And how shall they trust in the One they have not heard of? And how shall they hear without someone proclaiming? And how shall they proclaim unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who proclaim good news of good things!”
We’ve discussed in the past that faith comes from hearing the word of God preached – that for whatever reason, God chose to use the foolishness of preaching to be His method of transferring faith to His children. Here we see in context that Paul is telling the Jews, “look, this is why we preach – so that this word of faith might be imparted to everyone.”
Sadly Paul had to give the news that not all obeyed the Gospel, and he quotes Isaiah 53 saying, “Lord, who has believed our report?”
But not all heeded the Good News. For Isaiah says, “Adonai, who has believed our report?” So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Messiah.
But I say, have they never heard? Indeed they have, for
“Their voice has gone out into all the earth,
and their words to the ends
of the world.”
But I say, did Israel not understand? First Moses says,
“I will provoke you to jealousy by
those who are not a nation,
with a nation empty of understanding
I will vex you.”
Paul tells the Jews that they have nobody to blame but themselves. They heard. Everyone heard. There is no excuse. In fact, God Himself provokes jealousy in Israel by dangling our salvation in front of them in much the same way a gal will go out with a guy just to make her ex-boyfriend jealous.
But not all heeded the Good News. For Isaiah says, “Adonai, who has believed our report?” So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Messiah.
But I say, have they never heard? Indeed they have, for
“Their voice has gone out into all the earth,
and their words to the ends
of the world.”
But I say, did Israel not understand? First Moses says,
“I will provoke you to jealousy by
those who are not a nation,
with a nation empty of understanding
I will vex you.”
And Isaiah is so bold as to say,
“I was found by those who did not seek Me;
I became visible to those
who did not ask for Me.”
But about Israel He says,
“All day long I stretched forth My hands
to a disobedient and contrary people.”
He says the way is so easy that even a people who were not seeking Him was able to fall into the truth – yet here He was stretching out His hands toward them and He was rewarded with nothing but disobedience and a contrarian heart.
The same is true today, not just for Jews but for our nation. Look, our nation was founded by godly men on godly principles. Ever since we kicked God out of school, things have been going to hell in a hand-basket and there seems to be no way to reverse the tide. Well, the truth is that the tide is easily reversed, there just isn’t any desire to do it. That is the problem we have today. The word has been preached yet they did not receive it. Instead all God has received is disobedience and rebellion.
This would be a very depressing sermon if it ended here. Well thank God it doesn’t because there is good news.
I say then, God has not rejected His people, has He? May it never be! For I too am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected His people whom He knew beforehand. Or do you not know what the Scripture says about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? “Adonai, they have killed your prophets, they have destroyed your altars; I alone am left, and they are seeking my life.” But what is the divine response to him? “I have kept for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”
God did not cast away His people! In fact throughout their existence Israel has had a bad habit of turning away from God, yet the mercies of God continue to extend toward her and it always seems as though God reserves a remnant. Remember we talked last week about that “seed” that God sowed in order to conserve His grace – that seed was hidden in the church so that one day, when they were ready, the Jews might be saved? Well Paul talks about this remnant – this is our saving grace. No matter how bad things are going, all it takes for a few people of God to get serious and things can turn around very quickly.
when My people, over whom My Name is called, humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their evil ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
Conclusion
Conclusion
God has reserved a remnant. Are you a part of that? Are you one of the few that will be willing to get on your knees to cry out for the condition of our city? God is eager to save us, just as He was eager to save Israel in Paul’s day, and continues to be today. The thing is, we need to position ourselves in such a way as to help rather than hinder what God is trying to do for our community. With the right amount of prayer, a neighborhood can be transformed. With continued prayer Southeast Tucson can experience revival, but in truth these goals are short-sighted. We need to pray for a transformation of our national values and morality. It is that bad and getting worse and it is up to us – the remnant to take a stand by getting down on our knees.
Let us pray.