Romans 10:14-11:10
The Election of Grace
The Apostle Paul continues his dissertation on the fact that God's Word is indeed faithful in spite of the fact that Israel has rejected the gospel of Christ.
Paul began his discussion in ch. 9 showing that Israel's rejection was actually according to the sovereign plan and outworking of God and therefore fulfilling God's plan.
In ch. 10, he shows that humanly speaking, Israel has rejected the gospel of grace alone, through faith alone, on account of Christ alone because she has sought to gain righteousness through the works of the Mosaic law. In doing so, she has sought her OWN righteousness as opposed to the righteousness of God which comes only through faith alone in Jesus Christ. She has failed to see that Christ is the end OR fulfillment of the Law of Moses and that He alone has earned or merited righteousness through His perfect obedience to the Law and that we are given this alien righteousness only through faith in Him alone.
In the verses this morning we will see that Israel is without any excuse for not turning toward Christ in faith. She is entirely accountable to God for her rejection of the gospel of Christ because she, along with the whole world, has heard the Word of God.
Then in chp. 11, Paul returns to the fact that true, spiritual Israel has indeed come to faith in Christ through the election of grace, and that according to God's sovereign plan, the rest of national Israel were hardened unto condemnation. Therefore, according to this sovereign election of grace, God's Word to Israel has indeed been fulfilled.
10:14-21 -- How can they call upon the LORD?
v. 14 -- Paul begins this section with a series of rhetorical questions (14-15a). The emphasis is upon Israel calling upon the LORD for salvation -- the idea of "calling" is faith in the gospel of Christ (cf. v. 13).
How can Israel call upon God's gospel of salvation if they have never heard it?
Maybe Israel hasn't heard yet (15b-18)
Paul points out from Isaiah (15b) that the gospel of God has in fact been preached to Israel -- they have heard the gospel -- the problem is that they have not BELIEVED the gospel (v. 16).
v. 17 -- Faith comes by hearing the Word of God -- Means of Grace
Faith does not come simply by the immediate work of the Spirit upon the soul.
God uses means by which He unites us to Christ -- the preaching of the Word of God is necessary unto salvation. God does not save apart from His Word.
To assure us of the preached Word, God unites visible sacraments to make visible the audible Word. These signs and seals are used by God as means by which He assures us that what we HEAR is in fact true of us who receive the sacraments.
v. 18 -- Israel has indeed heard! They are fully accountable unto God.
Not only did the prophets preach the gospel to them, but it has gone out to the ends of the earth -- reference to Gentiles. All have heard the gospel proclamation.
Maybe Israel didn't understand (19-21).
v. 19-20 -- even those who did not seek to understand, have understood (cf. 9:30).
v. 21 -- The problem is not that God's Word has not been heard or understood, but that Israel is disobedient and obstinate to the Word of God (9:31-32; 10:3 -- "have not submitted").
They don't want the offer of God's own alien righteousness in Christ (10-3-4), rather they want their own righteousness by the works of the Law (10:3).
This is the problem with the heart of every man. Without God's sovereign regeneration of our hearts, man wants to accomplish his own salvation. He therefore creates all sorts of false religions and manners by which he can CLAIM his own righteousness. At the center or foundation of each of these false religions is the anthropocentric -- man centered approach. It is what man does that EARNS his salvation -- not what God does by His grace.
Israel has not called upon the name of the LORD for salvation, NOT because they haven't heard the gospel, or because they haven't understood, but BECAUSE they are rebellious and want salvation on their terms, not God's.
11:1-10 -- Israel is Still Being Saved!
The natural reaction to what Paul says in 10:21 is to ask: "If Israel is refusing to call upon the LORD for salvation, then has God just cast Israel aside?"
Israel is rejecting the LORD, then is the LORD rejecting Israel?
Paul's answer to this question is the KEY to understanding how God's Word has not failed. Remember the question that Paul has been answering since ch. 9: Is God unfaithful to His promise to Israel since they are not coming to faith in Christ?
Paul's whole point of chps. 9-11 is to prove that God is indeed faithful to His Word.
In vv. 1-10, Paul summarizes his whole argument: God is indeed faithful to His Word because the promises were never made to the nation of Israel as a whole, but only to the elect of Israel -- the remnant -- to whom the elect Gentiles have been added (11-32).
To prove his thesis that God is in fact true to His Word to Israel -- Paul points to himself as proof.
Paul, who is an Israelite himself, has come to faith in Christ and is therefore proof that God has not rejected Israel.
In fact God has not cast away His people whom He "foreknew" -- Foreknowledge refers back to 8:29, where God sets His love beforehand upon a certain chosen people whom He predestines unto salvation. It is from this "fore-knowing" or 
"fore-loving" before the world was ever created that causes the predestination unto glorification in union with Christ.
"fore-loving" before the world was ever created that causes the predestination unto glorification in union with Christ.Paul's whole argument in ch. 9 is that God freely chooses from WITHIN Israel those elect few to show mercy to by fashioning them unto glory.
Paul then relates the story of Elijah, who fled from Jezebel, and who approaches God thinking that he is the last of the faithful. God promises Elijah that His purpose is not being thwarted by King Ahab and Jezebel and in fact there are 7,000 men who have not bowed the knee to Baal in rebellion to God (11:2a-4; cf. 1 Kings 19:1-18).
Elijah was sure that God's Word to Israel had failed and that Elijah, the only one left, was about to be killed by Jezebel. Elijah's questioning of God -- was the same as Israel's questioning of Paul -- Has God's Word failed?
Paul's whole point of using the story of Elijah is to show that in the same manner that God's Word was being accomplished in Elijah's day and that the mass rejection of the Israelites to the worship of Baal in no way thwarted the plan and promises of God, SO in Paul's day -- the mass rejection of Israel in no way invalidates God's present faithfulness to Israel which would thereby cause God's Word to fail.
God's Word to Israel is just as SURE today as it was in Elijah's day.
v. 5 -- "present time" -- a remnant according to the election of grace
The remnant of Israel is presently being saved because:1. They have been chosen by God.2. They have been saved by grace, not works.The two are intimately intertwined here. Salvation is always the result of God's gracious election.
v. 6 -- In fact, if it is by grace, then it is not by works (cf. Rom. 4:3-5).
Paul is wanting to show the difference between obstinate Israel, and faithful Israel (cf. 9:31-32; 10:3).
(cf. 9:31-32; 10:3).In Summary: True, elect Israel has obtained salvation by God's grace. God's Word has not failed. The problem has never been with God's Word, but with Israel's understanding of it. The elect of Israel have indeed obtained the promises of God.
The rest of Israel has been hardened/desensitized to things spiritual by God and therefore they have failed to call upon the LORD for salvation. The hardening of Israel goes back to 9:18 to show that this is clearly the work of the sovereign God -- He has so hardened Israel by putting within them a spiritual insensitivity that prevents them from responding favorably to the message of salvation.
God actually prevents Israel from responding to the offer of salvation by hardening their heart. In 9:14-23 -- Paul shows that God has every right to harden them simply because He created them -- (9:18, 21-22).
Now, Paul quotes from all three portions of the OT (Law, Prophets, Writings) to show that this hardening of Israel is in fact according to God's plan from the very beginning. The hardening of Israel is fulfilling God's purpose -- What is that purpose? (vv. 11-32 -- so that salvation may come to the elect Gentiles). Paul says that Israel has been hardened in part and broken off of the true people of God to make room for the chosen Gentiles that they may be brought into salvation.
Therefore, God's Word has not failed. We can trust that God's Word is accomplishing all that it promises and going all the way back to Romans 8, we can be absolutely assured that those whom God has set His sovereign love upon will never, ever be separated from the love of Christ.
We can proclaim with full assurance while looking to Israel along with Paul (8:37-39).
In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
+Soli Deo Gloria+
