Romans 11:25-36
Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
++
SLIDE 3
Romans 11:25
Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob”;
++
SLIDE 4
Romans 11:27
“and this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins.”
++
Intro:
Whenever we take a team on a mission trip to another country, we do our best to teach, affirm, and re-affirm that thing that I call “THE NUMBER ONE RULE”.
...
Some of you have been with us on these trips. Tell me, loud and clear, right now… what the number one rule is. - (awareness).
++
SLIDE 5
+
AWARENESS
++
Specifically, we always need to be aware of our surroundings… which is a good practice no matter where you go. You could be here in town, at the 7-11… you could be in line at your bank… you could be walking downtown on the sidewalk…
++
It’s a good practice… to be aware of the things… the people… the situations… that are happening around you.
++
Now… often times when we open our Bibles, we find that the lessons we are reading about, are calling us to a state of awareness… and today’s passage is no exception. As we consider the message in the final verses of … we will see… the Apostle Paul is calling us to an ‘awareness of grace’.
++
Now, maybe you’ve read through this passage.... and you don’t see such a message popping out at you…
++
but instead, you see the story of how God extended grace to a people who rejected it, and were thus hardened to the Gospel, in part… so God allowed His grace to then overflow to the Gentiles, so that their faith experience with God would then provoke the elect w/in unbelieving Israel to jealousy…
++
That’s the main message… and it was the main main message from last week’s study also… So, instead of re-hashing what we talked about 7 days ago… I want to consider the principle which lies behind the details of this passage.
++
… a principle that introduces itself to us, in verse 25, where Paul says… “I do not want you to be unaware...”
++
SLIDE 6
++
Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.
++
We are going to actually have points to follow in today’s sermon… which is a new and unusual thing for me.... but POINT ONE:
++
SLIDE 7
++
BEING WISE IN OUR OWN SIGHT MAKES US UNAWARE.
++
We humans have a natural tendency to build up walls, grow hedges, and to fence ourselves in concerning the way we think.
++
We settle into an idea, or a way of thinking… maybe it’s because we have been taught to think a certain way and we are comfortable with it. Maybe it’s part of our group identity thought…
++
For instance… on a social level, those who identify themselves on either end of the two main American political philosophies… will probably have a set list of ideals that are unique to their group.
++
If you grew up rich and privileged, your thinking process might be completely different than someone who grew up poor and underprivileged.
++
There are many reasons why we think, process information, and form opinions the way we do… and often times… it’s not primarily an issue of what is reasonable, rational, or actually true. For many humans, the claim of truth lies in the voice that has spoken the greatest amount of influence into their lives.
++
So, when we form our truth, and we settle into our own way of thinking… we become what the Bible calls “wise in our own sight”.
++
We have programed ourselves to believe things a specific way… we can’t think or see beyond our mental walls.. our hedges.. and our fences.
++
With God, there is a contrast… between our claim of wisdom, and His wisdom.
++
And is telling us, loud and clear… that if we are wise in our own sight… we run the risk of being UNAWARE.
++
Unaware of what? Well, specifically… -unaware of the plan that God has for Israel, and how He is carrying out that plan… But on a more general level - We could become unaware of any subtlety laid out within the will of God.
++
God is working in and around us… and His work can generally be identified within the master plan that is revealed in the scriptures.
++
—for instance: Scripture tells us that the HS brings conviction… - That’s part of God’s master plan...
… --so, we might see someone who is exhibiting signs of conviction, and since we know that this is something the HS does, we can step in and knowingly be part of God’s plan.
++
In today’s passage… Paul is reminding the Gentile believers that God has a master plan as it pertains to Israel. Israel, for the most part, rejected the Messiah… and because of this, they have been hardened in part…
++
Because of their rejection, the Gospel has continued to go out, and found an audience amongst the Gentiles..
++
This is an ongoing process, and will continue until the fullness of the Gentiles has come… which means… until all the elect Gentile believers hear the Gospel and respond.
++
But here’s the emphasis that is being made in this passage… Paul makes it clear.... -God is NOT done with Israel… don’t be unaware of this mystery.
++
If we are wise in our own sight… if we have concluded in our own minds, our own version of wisdom… then we will be unaware.
++
There are not different brands of wisdom… there is the wisdom of God, experienced and practiced by those who belong to God, who are knowledgable of His Word, and who are willing to walk according to His word..
++
Then, there is the wisdom of this world… which is not wisdom. It is falsely called such.
++
If we go to … we are told what the wise person does:
++
SLIDE 8
Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord.
++
The wise person attends to ‘these things’… - To find out what ‘these things’ are, we need to look at the previous 42 verses...
++
Let’s just look at a couple…
++
vs. 1… the wise give thanks… Vs. 1, 2… the wise declare His goodness and His love. vs 3-30… the wise remember the lessons of the past. Vs. 31… The wise give thanks again. Vs. 32… the wise exalt and praise God with others. Vs. 33-38… the wise recognize God as being over nature. vs. 39-40… the wise know How God deals with evil people. vs. 41… the wise know that God will raise up the needy out of affliction… and vs. 43… the wise consider the steadfast love of the LORD.
++
People who are wise in their own sight… don’t give thanks. They think that they are in control. They think that they are responsible…
++
People who are wise in their own eyes don’t declare the goodness and love of God.... they don’t give praise God, because they have a hard time lifting the ideas of God above their own understanding.
++
People who are wise in their own eyes don’t consider the lessons of the past. They think that their current and temporary view is superior to anything that history supplies. - Now… this thought leads us into our next point.
++
SLIDE 9
WE NEED TO BE AWARE OF GOD’S HISTORY OF SHOWING GRACE.
Let’s look back at today’s passage..
++
SLIDE 10
And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob”; “and this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins.”
Romans 11:
++
Here we have two quotes from Isaiah.
++
is in the midst of a chapter which is all about a saving righteousness which is offered to Israel… to give repentance to some in Israel who had previously been unrepentant.
++
The same context of atonement for the sins of Israel… is also found in … the source of the second quotation.
++
If you weren’t here last week… the question of ‘all Israel will be saved’ was answered… Quickly… if we go back to where it says:
++
SLIDE 11
++
But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel,
Romans 9:
++
Israel… meaning: prince with God… or ‘governed by God’… - that is, not all who are born from the lineage of Abraham… will be those who are governed by God.
++
The intent of these quotations from Isaiah, is to remind the Gentile believers… the ones where not to become prideful… the ones who were encouraged to not be wise in their own sight… the ones who were to live a faith that provoked others to jealousy…
++
They were reminded… that God still has a plan to banish ungodliness from Jacob… that God still intends to fulfill His covenant with Israel.
++
He has shown them grace in the past, even in the midst of their great rebellion… and He fully intends on showing them grace again.
++
Point #3
++
SLIDE 12
++
DON’T BE UNAWARE OF GOD’S GRACE TOWARDS THOSE YOU MIGHT CONSIDER AN ENEMY.
++
SLIDE 13
As regards the gospel, they are enemies for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers.
++
The wording of this passage is confusing, but most likely, what it means is… that Israel is an enemy of the Gospel for the sake of the Gentiles… And basically, the meaning of that is simply the same message that Paul has been teaching in the previous verses…
++
Israel rejected the Gospel… and that grace which was shown to them, then poured over onto the Gentiles. He has re-stated this same thing repeatedly, which is why I say… that this is most likely what this verse means…
++
So… the Gentile believers found themselves in a place where they had an opposite view… and opposite opinion of the Gospel than the people of Israel did.
++
Now, I’m sure you’ve noticed… that when we have polar opposite opinions with people… it generally translates over to conflict and division. And we generally refer to those other people as enemies.
++
It is our natural instinct… is to hate our enemies. Even when we know that Biblical call to love your enemies… - it is all too easy, to fall back into hate. To name calling. To slander. To entrapment.
++
We are always on the reasonable team… and the enemy is always the devil
++
The Gentile believers may have felt this way about the Jews… But they are reminded… that even the people they looked upon and called enemy… were in fact… beloved by God.
++
For us… a remembrance of this fact… might go a long ways towards tempering the harsh division that exists in our nation right now.
++
We have become so divided, that amongst some.... disagreement with their principles, marks you out as an enemy. There’s no reasoning. Either you agree… or… you’re the devil.
++
Well… we’re not all going to agree. And we, as Christians… have an opportunity to not play into this ridiculous game. If people oppose you… if people mark themselves out as your enemy… just remember… That God’s grace is NOT exempt from being poured out on them.
++
Those are people whom God loves… and amongst that crowd of polar opposites… will be some who receive grace… and come to believe in Jesus…
++
We always think our enemy is bad… so the thought of them receiving grace might boggle our minds… which is why the next point in our study is so important.
++
SLIDE 14 - point #4
++
BE AWARE OF THE GRACE THAT CAME TO YOU IN YOUR TIME OF DISOBEDIENCE
++
SLIDE 15
==
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.
++
There are few things that help us to show grace and understanding to others… like our own story.
++
When we fall into the trap of thinking that we are good.... and other people are bad… we have a tendency to forget… that God found us when we were bad. God found us when we were living in disobedience.
++
Who does God show His mercy and grace to? To those who, by their works, declare themselves good and deserving?
++
No… God shows grace and mercy… to disobedient people.
++
The Gentile believers were being reminded… that yes… unbelieving Israel is disobedient… but that doesn’t mean that God’s grace is with held. Think back… remember… there was a time when you too were disobedient. And God found you.
++
Here’s why we struggle with grace… It isn’t fair. It isn’t reasonable. It offends our senses, our knowledge, and our understanding of right and wrong.
++
which leads us to our final point:
SLIDE 16
++
BE AWARE TAHT GOD’S PLAN TO SHOW GRACE, GREATLY EXCEEDS OUR UNDERSTANDING.
++
SLIDE 17
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. To him be glory forever. Amen.
++
We need to be aware of God’s history of showing grace - calling unrepentant Israel, to repentance (26, 27) - pg. 134
Paul has been speaking about the grace of God… and when one truly gets a glimpse of grace… they can’t help but the give God praise… so this is what Paul does… as he declares how incredible the work and wisdom of God is…
++
In chapter 2:4.. Paul spoke of the riches of God’s kindness… and in 9:23… he spoke of the riches of His glory… To these riches…and many others… there is a depth that can’t be known...…
++
We could never fathom how much kindness… how much glory… how much goodness there is in God…
Be aware that God’s plan to show grace, greatly exceeds our understanding (33-36)
++
Along with the riches… there is wisdom and knowledge. Real wisdom… the the kind of wisdom that humans deceive themselves into having. Real knowledge… the kind that goes above and beyond the surfaces that we are scratching.
++
His Judgments are unsearchable. - WE could never fathom the way God governs…
His ways are inscrutable… - That is… even as we get a glimpse in and through the Bible at how God works… -there is so much more to Him that we could never comprehend… His paths, are beyond tracing out..
++
He backs up this praise with two passages… the first is from … where Isaiah is marveling at God’s future grace in bringing the people out of captivity from Babylon… and looking further forward to the wonder of the forgiveness of sins.
++
And then… he quotes … where, Job… faced with the awesome terror of the evil of Leviathan… needed to know… that no creature in the universe was so big, or so powerful.. that it would be able to make a claim on God… and say to God… “You owe me.”
++
In this passage… Job is recognizing… that God is the source of all power and all grace.
++
This closing verse says three things about God…
++
1… From HIm… (God is the source of all)_
2… Through Him… (God is the sustainer of all)
3… To Him… (God is the goal of all creation)
..
Because of these three facts… there is no one else… to whom glory is giving… and this extends… all the way, into eternity.
++
CONCLUSION…
++
This brings us to the end of chapter 11, and to the end of a big section of Romans where Paul focused mostly on the issue of Israel.
++
In our next study, there is a shift… -Where as here, Paul is addressing the Gentile believers concerning their attitude towards Israel… in the passages that come.. Paul will be addressing all believers, as it pertains to their attitude towards the world.
++
But he’s not done talking about grace… -as it should be. Grace is something that we should always be reminded of… our appreciation for it must always be refreshed… and as we’ve seen in today’s study..
==
WE MUST ALWAYS REMEMBER.. Grace found us in our time of disobedience… and grace is still doing that work, of being extended to those who currently don’t know Jesus.
++
end