Being Zealous and Yet Still Not Know God
Notes
Transcript
Romans 10:1-4 notes
Romans 10:1-4 notes
Exegetical Guide
desire (Romans 10:1) = εὐδοκία -ας, ἡ; ( eudokia ), n. good pleasure; pleasing . Hebrew equivalent: רָצוֹן (6), רָעָה (1), תִּרְצָה 2 (1).
prayer (Romans 10:1) = δέησις, εως f: (derivative of δέομαι ‘to plead, to beg,’ 33.170) that which is asked with urgency based on presumed need—‘request, plea, prayer.’ μὴ φοβοῦ, Ζαχαρία, διότι εἰσηκούσθη ἡ δέησίς σου ‘do not be afraid, Zechariah! (God) has heard your prayer’ Lk 1:13.
zeal (Romans 10:2) = ζηλόωb; ζῆλοςa, ου m and ους n: to have a deep concern for or devotion to someone or something—‘to have a deep concern for, to be devoted to, earnest concern.’
ζηλόωb: ζηλοῦσιν ὑμᾶς οὐ καλῶς ‘they have a deep concern for you, but it is not good’ Ga 4:17. The Judaizers referred to in Ga 4:17 may have been sincere, but they were misguided in their zeal.
ζῆλοςa: μαρτυρῶ γὰρ αὐτοῖς ὅτι ζῆλον θεοῦ ἔχουσιν ‘for I witness for them that they are deeply devoted to God’ Ro 10:2; τὸν ὑμῶν ζῆλον ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ ‘your earnest concern on my behalf’ 2 Cor 7:7.
knowledge (Romans 10:2) = 28.18 ἐπίγνωσιςb, εως f: the content of what is definitely known—‘what is known, definite knowledge, full knowledge, knowledge.’ μαρτυρῶ γὰρ αὐτοῖς ὅτι ζῆλον θεοῦ ἔχουσιν, ἀλλ’ οὐ κατ’ ἐπίγνωσιν ‘for I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but (their zeal is) not based on knowledge’ Ro 10:2.
ignorant (Romans 10:3) = ἀγνοέω agnoéō; contracted agnoṓ, fut. agnoḗsō, from the priv. a (1), not, and noéō (3539), to perceive, understand. Not to recognize or know.
(I) To be ignorant of, unacquainted with, followed by the acc. (Acts 17:23; Rom. 10:3; 11:25; 2 Cor. 2:11); with the prep. perí (4012), concerning, meaning to be in ignorance concerning anything (1 Cor. 12:1; 1 Thess. 4:13); followed by hóti (3754), that (Rom. 1:13 “I would not have you ignorant,” i.e., be well assured; Rom. 2:4; 6:3; 7:1; 11:25; 1 Cor. 10:1; 2 Cor. 1:8). In the pass., to be unknown, unrecognized, rejected (2 Cor. 6:9). It came to mean to be ignorant, to have no discernment of, not to understand (Mark 9:32; Luke 9:45; Rom. 10:3; Acts 13:27 [cf. Acts 17:23; 1 Cor. 2:8; 14:38 “let him be ignorant [voluntarily],” of foolish action; 1 Tim. 1:13]).
(II) To err, to commit a fault or faults arising from the want of discernment, knowledge, or insight, denoting conduct of which the result and importance is unperceived by the agent (Heb. 5:2; 2 Pet. 2:12; Sept.: Lev. 4:13; 5:18). The idea that sin can be done ignorantly and involuntarily is not found in the NT.
Deriv.: agnóēma (51), mistake, oversight, sin resulting from ignorance; ágnoia (52), ignorance.
establish (Romans 10:3) = ἵστημιc: to establish as validated and in force—‘to establish, to authorize, to put into force.’ τὴν ἰδίαν δικαιοσύνην ζητοῦντες στῆσαι ‘seeking to establish their own righteousness’ or ‘… their own way of being put right with God’ Ro 10:3; ἀναιρεῖ τὸ πρῶτον ἵνα τὸ δεύτερον στήσῃ ‘he does away with the first in order to establish the second’ He 10:9. In rendering this expression in He 10:9 it may be necessary to indicate what is involved in ‘the first’ and ‘the second.’ The contrast is between the OT system of sacrifices and the sacrifice of Christ.
submitted (Romans 10:3) = ὑποτάσσομαι; ὑποταγή, ῆς f; ὑπείκω: to submit to the orders or directives of someone—‘to obey, to submit to, obedience, submission.’
ὑποτάσσομαι: δούλους ἰδίοις δεσπόταις ὑποτάσσεσθαι ‘slaves are to obey their masters’ Tt 2:9.
ὑποταγή: δοξάζοντες τὸν θεὸν ἐπὶ τῇ ὑποταγῇ τῆς ὁμολογίας ὑμῶν εἰς τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τοῦ Χριστοῦ ‘giving glory to God on account of your obedience to the gospel of Christ which you profess’ 2 Cor 9:13.
ὑπείκω: πείθεσθε τοῖς ἡγουμένοις ὑμῶν καὶ
ὑπείκετε ‘obey your leaders and submit to them’ He 13:17.
“They have a zeal for God but not according to knowledge.” = “They were zealous for God (v. 2). Ever since Israel returned to their land from Babylonian Captivity, the nation had been cured of idolatry. In the temple and the local synagogues, only the true God was worshiped and served, and only the true Law was taught. So zealous were the Jews that they even “improved upon God’s Law” and added their own traditions, making them equal to the Law.” Warren Wiersbe
“This means that zeal is no substitute for conversion. Even the zealous must be saved.” James Boice
“The Greek word used here, zēlos, refers to an intense desire for something. The OT describes God as zealous for His honor (Isa 42:13). Many Jews considered zeal a prized virtue, and in some instances they resorted to violence to express zeal for God (Num 25:10–11). In this context, Paul suggests that his fellow Jews misdirected their zeal because they did not recognize God’s work.”
Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ro 10:2). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
“Israel had a zeal for God; outwardly, they were very religious. But their effort was not according to knowledge. They lacked a correct understanding of the kind of worship God wanted from them.” Radmacher, E. D., Allen, R. B., & House, H. W. (1999). Nelson’s new illustrated Bible commentary (p. 1444). Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers.
“A fanatic is somebody who loses sight of where he is going but redoubles his effort to get there. He is full of zeal, but he has no knowledge or understanding of that for which he is zealous.”
Sproul, R. C. (2009). Romans (p. 346). Wheaton, IL: Crossway.
Big Idea: “There is no benefit having a zeal for God if you unprepared to believe by faith in Christ.”
1 Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved. 2 For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. 3 For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God. 4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
Tevye from Fiddler on the Roof, “"Because of our traditions, we've kept our balance for many, many years. Here in Anatevka we have traditions for everything… how to eat, how to sleep, even, how to wear clothes.For instance, we always keep our heads covered and always wear a little prayer shawl… This shows our constant devotion to God. You may ask, how did this tradition start? I'll tell you - I don't know. But it's a tradition… Because of our traditions, everyone knows who he is and what God expects him to do."
A practicing Judiazer will spend their whole life trying to impress God, but all to no avail.
It is ok to have zeal for God. Paul is not saying that being zealous for God is wrong.
Being devoted is fine as long as you are devoted to the right cause.
If you are devoted to the thought that your goodworks will mean that God will show you favour and allow you to heaven, then you are devoted to an ideology that is false.
If you are devoted to the thought that if you come to church everyweek and God will be happy with you, then you are in danger of having a false perception of what salvation is all about.
Our goal in Christ should never be aiming to be a devoted Christian. What does that even mean?
The moment we begin to seek to be a good Christian, we have already missed the point of what Christ did for us.
I have come to learn that a fruitful life is a life under the power and influence of the Holy Spirit.
We have learnt already that we cannot bear good fruit unless we abide in Christ (John 15:1-5).
Our Goal in Christ is to love Christ, by daily abiding in Him and being obedient to the the Holy Spirit’s leading in our lives.
When we abide in Christ we will bear good fruit.
16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. 17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. 24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
What can we gain from this passage of Scripture if Paul is speaking to the Jews?
What can we learn from what Paul is teaching them?
Here are three things Paul teaches us in this passage.
Without recieving Christ you are not saved. (Rom 10:1)
2. It is not enough to know about God you need to know Him personally. (Rom 10:2)
3. It is impossible to please God without faith. (Rom 10:3-4; Heb 11:6)