Well, I invite you to turn tonight to Romans, Romans chapter 11, Romans chapter 11, and we're looking at the first 10 verses tonight of Romans 11, found on page 1125, verse 10 verses Let's give our attention tonight to the holy word of the Lord. This is the word of God.
I asked then: has God rejected his people? By no means. For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the scripture says of Elijah? How he appeals to God against Israel: "Lord, they have killed your prophets, they've demolished your altars, and I alone am left and they seek my life." But what is God's reply to him? "I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to bail So too at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace. What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened. As it is written: "God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day." And David says: "Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a retribution for them; let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see and bend their backs forever."
And there will end tonight the reading of God's word.
The important question of chapter 11 tonight the very important question of chapter 11, really comes in verse 2, where Paul's echoing back to chapter 9 when he began this great subject with regard to Israel and God's salvation of Israel, and the challenges that have come with that. is in verse two, you'll notice very clearly: "God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew." That's a very important comment tonight, a very important word tonight for us.
And of course, back then, has God I say, has God cast away his people? He's talking about national Israel. As God cast away his people? He wants to deal right up front with the question of national Israel, with bloodline Jews, with all the interest in the church today on this subject. I've said we haven't, in the reform world, been as interested as dispensationalism is in this, but we need to have a good answer to it because there's been so much craziness on this subject. And I can't see how you could read Romans, especially chapter 11, and not draw some very clear conclusions from this. And I hope to help you with that tonight.
So has God cast off the whole nation of Israel? That's sort of the question tonight that's before us. And you'll notice at the end of chapter 9, we just concluded with that imagery: "I have stretched out my hands all day long to a disobedient and a contrary people." That's how, actually, the end of verse 10 chapter 10 ends in verse 21. But of Israel, he says: "All day long, I held out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people." We studied them under that covenant, and we've looked at what everything that has taught us. And they were a disobedient and contrary people. They did not seek to attain to the righteousness that comes by faith. We've been looking at that in chapter 9.
But this question about Israel has exercised Bible expositors and commentators, and it will continue to do so until Christ comes. There will always be great interest in this. And so it leads to this great question: Is there a future plan for Israel? Is there a future plan for Israel? And embedded in that is the assertion that God has not cast away his people if people believe there's a future for Israel. So this is the sort of focus of chapter 11. And by the time we get back down to the end of chapter 11, we will consider more of the future of Israel and some of the things that he says. But it's an important one because we hear from dispensationalists all the time: "Israel is the apple of God's eye." They who teach this, I've used it before, but it's coined so much, so I like to combat it. "You are all known as replacement theologists. You never chose that term. Don't worry, you don't really believe that. But that's how you're coined. That's how you're pegged out there. You're replacement theology. That you believe the church replaced Israel." And we have to answer very clearly to that. That is hogwash. That's the only word I could come up with in the moment.
But the church has not replaced Israel. um The church is the fulfillment of all the promises to Israel. We have a fulfillment theology. All of God's plan has worked out just as he said it would. And where did that first promise really come? Where we see the shape of this? To Abraham: "And you, all the Gentiles, all the nations will of the earth will be blessed from Abraham." So it's a very important promise. But no one is saying the church replaces i haven't heard that. But that the one true church of God has always been Israel. And that's why, at the end of Galatians 3, you would have him saying, even to Gentiles, he designates them. Read it at the end of Galatians 6: "Galatians 6, you are the Israel of God. You are the Israel of God." He wasn't speaking ethnically there. So something's happened, something's going on, and that's what we're wrestling through here.
And the question lingers, though, from dispensationalists: "What about all these Old Testament promises made to that nation?" And it's not just a dispensational question. I think it's a fair question: What about all the promises made to those people? And Paul is dealing with that. Paul's answering that paul's answering that by saying that there is a present and we'll look at, with the question, maybe next week or the week after with regard to the future of Israel. But for the moment, we want to think about the present of Israel. We want to think about what God is presently doing.
And Paul says three things tonight that initially answers the question: Is God done with Israel? Has God rejected Israel? Is God done with them? Does he have a plan for them, as we always here And that's exactly what this is addressing tonight. And the clear message that Paul gives us a simple one that you can discern very easily from the Old Testament, all throughout the Old testament is that God has always saved a remnant. And that number two, if you're taking notes, it's always been by grace. And number three, they're coming in right now. That's the main point here: God has always saved a remnant, it has always been by grace, and they're coming in right now.
Now that never gets discussed. That's always bypassed. But Paul saw that as a remarkable truth. This is what helped him on this question. When he got all in a tizzy about this and at the beginning, "My heart aches for israel this was the part and parcel, as you say, to his solution to this: What is God presently doing? And that has great application for us: What is God presently doing? We always want to look to what we speculate about what God will do, but we should start with what God is presently doing. And that gives us good indication of what he will do. So it's a very important section tonight.
And you could sum it up by saying: The answer is remnant theology. Remnant theology. All those Old Testament judgments if you go through the Old Testament and you read judgment after judgment after judgment on Israel for all their sins, all their idolatry remember what Paul said about that in Romans 2? He says they are a tutor. Galatians says that they're teaching the whole world something about sin and rebellion so that the mouth of everyone stopped. That was a great what we call pedagogical, or teaching, tool about Israel. That's what Israel was given to help us with for the whole world there. You might say, a microcosm of the macrocosm. they you can study the microcosm and see all the principles for the macrocosm, okay?
Isaiah 1 9 "Except the Lord of hosts had left us a very small remnant, we should have become as Sodom, and we should have been made like Gomorrah." He quotes that in chapter 9, that very verse.
So we jump into chapter 11 tonight, and notice how he begins to answer the question. "I say then: has I ask then i ask this important question tonight has God rejected his people?" Clearly, he's thinking about Israel as as he is an Israelite. That's a big question. And there's an emphatic response: "By no means." Now he said that a few times in Romans, you know? "Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means." And he has the same sort of emphatic assertion about Israel: "By no means has he rejected them. By no means has he done that."
And then he says: "Let me give you proof. Let me give you proof. For I, notice this, am an Israelite. I'm one. I'm a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew." That is really important for all this discussion about Israel. I think it's just a really important question. It may seem like a simple argument, but for Paul, it was a very important argument. It was a very important argument that God's not done by saving ethnic jews gentile and Jew together. Remember, the whole point of in chapter 10 was: "All who call jew and gentile upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." He didn't axe off Jew on that. So he says, "I'm one. For I'm an Israelite of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. Proof number one: look at me."
That's no small thing with Paul. um Before he had believed, what kind of person was Paul? Well, he was a fanatic, Christ-hating, christian killing Pharisee of the strictest sect. Remember that? We know Paul's record. philippians though I might have confidence in the flesh, if anyone thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I'm more so, sir. I mean, I am cut right out of the stock here. Circumcised on the eighth day of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; concerning the law, of Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church; concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. And then he says, you know, "What things were gained to me, I've counted loss for Christ."
So if a guy like me is saying, "the most Jewish of all Jews," if you will, if they want to play that game, I'll play it if a guy like me has believed the gospel and the report of Jesus being conveyed out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of his Son in love, that I am a living testimony that God has not cast away his people. What a thing! What a thing to say! In fact, he says, "I am a Jew." It's a remarkable testimony.
This must have been for Paul in ministry when he said, "I grieve over Israel." And the next, he's saying, "But I'm not going to focus on that. Here's what I'm going to focus on: God's not done with Israel. Look at the wonderful things the Lord has done for me."
Now we often speak corporately. That's important. But I also think at times, as the Psalms do, it's important to speak individually. I'm evidence of God's saving work. In other words, I believe this is so important to remember when we stand concerned about things and whether anyone's saved. And you might stop and ask you know, all the problems that we see in the world, in the church i'll come back to this thought in a minute but you can always pause and stop looking at the big thing and look right in front of you. What he's done for you and your children.
Notice what the apostle does: in confidence, grace has been shown to him in his life as a witness that God is saving. Translate? Equation? God's not done.
The next question then is: well, how many? Right? How many is God saving? I stopped and say, "Well, just think about and open your eyes to the power of the gospel that's happened just right here. We don't have to look we can look in many churches in Escondido, around the world but just look here. What has God done for us? You have no idea what's going on out there. He does. But look right here. Look at all the wonderful things he's done for you. And look what he's done for you personally. He's raising up people all the time. He's continuing to save all the time."
And the shocking thing about is I always rehearse because i think it's so important are few saved? The disciples were stuck on that question. And when you come to Revelation and you open up chapter seven it's "a multitude from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation that no one can number." It was a remarkable success! I can tell you he's still working. I'm one who's been given life.
So he draws the conclusion: "God has not cast away his people." Notice this very important tonight for everything we've considered in chapter 9: "whom he foreknew." Whom he foreknew! Every last one of his people whom he foreknew, he's not cast off. And who's going to fight against election? Who wants to fight against election?
That word, for what we say here, "foreknew," should have some meaning by now, I hope. I made it clear in chapter 8. You remember it in chapter 8? "For whom he foreknew, that's not divine foreknowledge to see who would make the choice to choose him. That's how that's been bent right out of shape. For whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren."
The word means to choose beforehand. Whom he chose beforehand the objects of his delight in whom are his good pleasure. He loved before they were ever born. He hasn't cast off one.
Again, focus for a minute because everyone's mind goes, "Well, what about all the others?" No! Stop! Look what he's done for you. Look what he's done here. God has not cast away his people. They're his people. They are objects of his eternal love. They're objects of his sovereign predestinating grace, just as Jesus said all throughout the Gospels. Just as I quoted in the prayer: "It is not the will of my Father that one of these little ones should perish. I will not lose one." That is really the heart of the sovereign grace of God in the gospel: not one!
Remind yourself of that: not one! And the divine love and foreknowledge of God means he chose beforehand his people. And I think Paul wants us to see how determined God is in that. And if you want to put it on us, how undetermined we are in that.
Now hold that thought: how determined God is in that, and how undetermined we are in that. Because if you want to put it back on human will, we've got a real problem. And that's Elijah. That's Elijah.
Look at verse three Lord, notice this. Actually, he says um yeah verse two again: "God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the scripture says of Elijah? How he appeals to God—" Now, what you would expect to read right now is, "for Israel," wouldn't you? Right? That's not what the text says. "—he appealed to God against Israel." "Lord, they've killed your prophets. They've demolished your altars. And I alone am left and they seek my life."
Paul wants to grab the darkest moment and is one of the darkest moments in Israel's history. You know the account? It's pulled right out of the narratives with Elijah, with Israel as a nation bowing down to Baal of all the things that he had done for them. And the Lord wants us to think about that situation for a moment. Think about it.
You remember the scene? The nation of Israel is summoned up by Ahab to Mount Carmel, and they have this great showdown on Mount Carmel. And Israel is up there worshiping a storm God who has no power over the creation at all. They've sided with all the false prophets. And Elijah's on one side, Israel's on another. You know this. And Elijah commands the building of the altars, and "the God who would answer by fire, he is God. He is God. It's either Baal or Jehovah. He is God. Who is God? Who will answer?"
Well, the Lord consumed the altar. And all the priests of Baal were put to death. And Jezebel hears about it. Jezebel wants Elijah's head. And so Elijah flees to a cave and he prays all night that he would die. "How's that for ministry, right? How's that for the success of ministry, right? The whole nation." And the Lord comes and he says, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" He says, "I'm zealous for the Lord because the children of Israel have forsaken your covenant, torn down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I'm it. I'm the last one standing. This is what we do. And they want my life."
And Paul captures that here. He says, "Do you remember when Elijah pleaded with God against Israel?" And what did God do? Wipe them out?
Elijah is not pleading positively. So in context, all of Israel has gone after another god, senses the complaint for judgment: "Take me out, this is a total failure. This whole ministry is a failure, right?" And if it were up to us, this is what we would all end up doing to each other, right?
God had every reason to answer Elijah's cry with severe judgment. But instead, what did he do? Paul says, "Think for a minute of the divine response about history. In this case, in a dark moment, to even Elijah. What was the divine response?"
"I have reserved 7,000 men who've not bowed the knee to Baal. Who did? Who did, right? They didn't do that. And every mouth that has not kissed him the darkest moment of apostasy. Elijah's pleading against Israel, and God notice here did not cast away his people whom he foreknew. Not one! Not one!
And 7,000 by the way, just this morning I got a lot of the young listeners coming up to me saying, "Pastor, we think you missed something in the text. It was, you know, um, you said 70 times 7. It's It's ambiguous in the greek okay it's probably taken from Genesis 4, where if Cain is avenged, it's 77 fold the seventh the reason I raised that, and I know my math. I knew seven times seven is 49, and I should add a zero!" Um, I was getting all kinds of grief this one. I'm so thankful for a listening congregation. It's just amazing how you guys listen to sermons. Thank you. It's just, I have to be on my feet.
But anyways, 7,000 is a seven is a very special number, isn't it? It's perfection. I have my number. I have my people. I'm not losing them!
Paul is awestruck by this. Throughout history, Elijah had no idea about it. And Paul is awestruck that God's love in his election and his choosing beforehand always preserved a remnant. always preserved a remnant
And paul sees that truth as a great comfort on this question and so he answers about national Israel: "Even so then, right now when I'm writing this is what he says: god right now, right now presently about Israel, God is fulfilling his promises. God is fulfilling his promises to abraham
Because if you want to talk about national Israel, there There is of God's people a remnant according to the election of grace. Did you see that? "There is a remnant according to the election of grace." That's verse 5. "So too at this present time there's a remnant chosen by grace."
And that overwhelmed him! God could never cast off his Israel. In Paul's day, and in ours, there is a remnant of ethnic Jews who believe, who are true spiritual Jews. It's very simple. It's very simple. They're coming in right now. And you can't see that, but they're coming in. But you can see his work in you. And that means that, you know, that's happening. And that gives us great hope today.
I think whenever we think and we fall into this sort of martyr complex that few are saved, and I'm the last one standing on whatever's true the Belgic Confession reminds us at times in history that number is smaller than others, sometimes very small, and sometimes that number is very large in history. And maybe you might say that right now we're in a time that's very small. How do you know, really? It's a big world. God has always preserved every last one of his people who will not be lost.
If every last church put up with false doctrine, if every last church has itching ears and heaps up false teachers and turns away from the truth, the Lord says the same to us: "I will reserve a whole multitude who have not bowed down the knee to the world. I will do that. I'll always do that. He always is."
At a church, and Paul drives this home in verse 6, reminding us there's a principle that salvation rests upon something we forget: "If it's by grace, then it's no longer works. Otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it's works, it's no longer grace. Otherwise work is no longer work."
Salvation has always been according to the election of grace. That election is the driving principle of the grace that he has shown to us. He has elected us in Christ. And you see what he's emphasizing? If election were based on anything that God saw in us, and if it were based on works, right, then it would no longer be an election of grace because you can't fight fit that into the middle between those things. It's one or the other, he says. And if that's the case, Elijah and Paul would have case. If it were of works, for mass discouragement today, and you would have you and i would have great discouragement in our lives because none of us would make it.
And so this is so comforting. And that's why all over the Scriptures, beloved, it says: "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And that it's the whole thing: grace through faith. It's It's not your own doing It's a gift It's a free gift." of god to you nothing you do it's a gift paul wants us to understand God means that we we don't tend to mean it. as much god means it If you ever thought salvation was of works, he's saying there's no middle ground on this question. You can't. You cannot hybrid these things: works being anything that the sinner does versus grace given to us meaning that the even the gift of faith in receiving Christ, all comes by grace. That you even believe the Gospel today What a marvel in your life what a marvel of his work!
He's not contrasting two things that belong to humans. Grace operates entirely upon the sovereign will of God and his sovereign grace to you. So he puts in contrast these radically opposed principles: grace and works, law and Gospel. The contrast is between human activity and God's activity. It's all God's activity.
So put it together tonight: God spared those 7 000 on what basis? If it had been works, no one would have been spared. God has never based his acceptance of you on anything that you would perform. What would grace mean if God is looking for faithful Israelites? The Gospel we receive is in their own works. We receive is given wholly outside of us and a savior who died for us that we embrace.
So the question tonight: has God cast away his people? How does he conclude? Verse seven "What then?"
Let's draw this to initial conclusion. Presently about Israel: "Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. Well, but the elect obtained it."
So again: who fights against election? I don't know how you would divorce the doctrine of election and get rid of it in light of something like that. Yeah, Israel failed, but the elect didn't. The elect did not fail. "And the rest were hardened."
The elect obtained what? Well, talking to Jews, you know, Jesus would say very strong statements. And if you talk to any Orthodox Jew to this day, they have not even found their Messiah. They're hardened to this day. Paul says that in Second Corinthians 3: there's a veil over their hearts. But Paul says the elect obtained it. Obtained what? The righteousness that comes by faith. That's what he's been saying to us. But the rest were hardened. And that judgment was righteous.
He says that God gave them, in verse 8, a spirit of stupor, citing two Old Testament verses: "Eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear." They would not hear. They would not see. "Down to this very day. Jesus quotes that constantly in the Gospels about the judgment of Isaiah." And David says: "Let their snare become table become a snare and a trap a stumbling block and a retribution. Let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see and bend their backs forever."
So this is the initial answer tonight. And God is showing us the whole time that the true Israel are made up of all of those of the same faith as father Abraham. And whether it's Jew or Gentile, and name the ethnicity tonight, just name the ethnicity all who have had their hearts circumcised, that's the true circumcision, have received the righteousness of Christ by faith that is God's Israel: Jew and Gentile alike.
Ephesians 2, he tore down the middle wall of separation. He made them one new man from the two.
And I just want to encourage us tonight to close: every last one of Christ's sheep will be saved. He's saying to us, "I have always preserved. I always will. It has always been by my electing grace, not yours. You didn't elect me i guess you could say." And there have always been children. Think about this: my children have always come. The Father could say to my Son, "Because they're given for eternal life."
You'll know whether you're a true Israelite and whether you've come to rest in Jesus Christ, freely receiving his righteousness and embracing him as the Lord of your life. And when you see God's power to bring you here, and you know all that he's done for you, it already anticipates the praise of next time, as we if we get to the close of this chapter oh the depths of the riches and wisdom of knowledge of God! Listen to this: how unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord? Who has been his counselor? Or who is 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."
Let's pray.
Heavenly Father, thank you for helping us with this subject. It really is so clear. It really comes down to our rejection of your sovereign grace. And so many people who do fight against you on the teaching of election, thank you for the election according to grace. And thank you for saving your people, Israel. And thank you for not failing, for not losing one. But that your Gospel ministry is successful. So we give you our praise tonight.
And whenever we are distressed, whenever we are worried about someone who has not come to believe, we remember this great truth: you have the power to save, and the Gospel ministry continues on, as we considered last time. Everything's in place. And so may we sound out this Gospel to the ends of the earth with great comfort that your sheep will come, even if it's a thief on the cross, and we're all dead and don't see it. How comforting that is to us. Oh, Lord, we give you our praise tonight in Jesus name. Amen.