Romans 10.8-The Righteousness Originating From And Based On Faith Proclaimed By The Christian Is Available And Accessible
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Tuesday May 19, 2009
Romans: Romans 10:8-The Righteousness Originating From And Based On Faith Proclaimed By The Christian Is Available And Accessible
Lesson # 337
Please turn in your Bibles to Romans 10:1.
This evening we will note Romans 10:8 and in this verse Paul cites Deuteronomy 30:14 to teach that the righteousness that originates from and is based on faith in Christ is easily accessible unlike the righteousness through perfect obedience to the Law.
Romans 10:1, “Brethren, my heart's desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation.”
Romans 10:2, “For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge.”
Romans 10:3, “For not knowing about God's righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God.”
Romans 10:4, “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”
Romans 10:5, “For Moses writes that the man who practices the righteousness which is based on law shall live by that righteousness.”
Romans 10:6, “But the righteousness based on faith speaks as follows: ‘DO NOT SAY IN YOUR HEART, ‘WHO WILL ASCEND INTO HEAVEN?’ (that is, to bring Christ down).”
Romans 10:7, “Or ‘WHO WILL DESCEND INTO THE ABYSS?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).”
Romans 10:8, “But what does it say? ‘THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, in your mouth and in your heart’ -- that is, the word of faith which we are preaching.”
This statement stands in direct contrast to what Paul taught in Romans 10:6-7, which teaches what the righteousness originating from and based on faith does “not” think, namely it does not deny the incarnation and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Now, in Romans 10:8, Paul employs the strong adversative conjunction alla, “but” in order to introduce a statement that is totally antithetical to what the righteousness originating from and based on faith in Christ does “not” think in one’s heart.
This verse presents a statement concerning what the righteousness originating from and based on faith in Christ “does” think in one’s heart.
So Paul is contrasting what the righteousness originating from and based on faith in Christ does not think in one’s heart with what it does think.
Romans 10:8 presents a “positive” assertion about the righteousness that originates from and is based on faith in Christ with the “negative” assertions about it in Romans 10:6-7.
Paul’s statement in verse 8 stands in stark contrast to what Paul taught in Romans 10:6 that it is impossible for someone to ascend into heaven since that would imply that Christ did not come in the flesh.
It also stands in stark contrast with what he taught in Romans 10:7 that it is impossible for someone to descend into the abyss since that would imply that Christ did not rise from the dead.
The Jews do not have to ascend heaven or descend into the abyss to receive the righteousness of God meaning that it is not an impossible task since Christ has already come in the flesh and has been raised from the dead.
The righteousness of Christ is readily available and not an impossibility to acquire and in fact easy to acquire by obeying the gospel and exercising faith in Christ.
Romans 10:8, “But what does it say? ‘THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, in your mouth and in your heart’ -- that is, the word of faith which we are preaching.”
“What does it say?” is personifying the righteousness that originates from and is based on faith.
The statement “THE WORD IS NEAR YOU” is a paraphrase of Deuteronomy 30:14.
In Romans 10:6, Paul quotes from Deuteronomy 30:12 whereas in Romans 10:7 he quotes from Deuteronomy 30:13.
Just as Moses emphasized with Israel in Deuteronomy 30:11-14 that the command to love God is easily accessible to them so Paul uses this principle to teach his readers that the gospel, which proclaims that righteousness that originates from and is based on faith in Christ, is easily accessible to the Israelites in his day.
“THE WORD” is the noun rhema (r(hma) (hray-mah), which refers to the gospel in relation to the unsaved in the sense of the good news message to sinners that they can receive divine righteousness as a gift through imputation as a result of faith alone in Christ alone, which in turn results in the Father declaring them justified.
This is indicated by the explanatory phrase to follow, “that is, the word of faith, which we are preaching.”
“NEAR” is the adverb engus (e)gguv$) (eng-goos), which is used by Paul in a figurative sense of the gospel message of faith alone in Christ alone for justification and means “near” in the sense of being “readily accessible and available” to everyone, both Jew and Gentile.
Romans 10:9 teaches that it is “readily accessible and available” in the sense that with the sinner’s heart he or she can trust that the Father raised Jesus from the dead, which is in effect acknowledging that Jesus is Lord since the resurrection demonstrated that Jesus is God and faith alone in Christ alone is the only way to receive eternal salvation.
This is indicated by a comparison of the expression “in your mouth and in your heart” in Romans 10:8 with Paul’s statement in Romans 10:9-10.
Romans 10:9-10, “That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.”
Romans 10:8, “But what does it say? ‘THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, in your mouth and in your heart’ -- that is, the word of faith which we are preaching.”
“YOU” refers to an individual unsaved Jew since Paul in context is speaking of the nation of Israel’s rejection of Jesus of Nazareth as Messiah and the word is in the second person singular form.
“In your mouth” denotes that the unsaved Jew’s mouth is the place where they can acknowledge to the Father that Jesus is Lord so as to be saved.
“In your heart” denotes that the unsaved Jew’s heart is the place where they must believe that the Father raised Jesus from the dead as Savior so as to receive eternal salvation.
“That is” introduces a statement that clarifies or explains the previous statement
“The word” refers once again to the gospel in relation to the unsaved.
“Of faith” is the articular genitive feminine singular form of the noun pistis (pivsti$), which refers to the non-meritorious system of perception of placing one’s “trust” or “confidence” that the Father raised Jesus from the dead.
The word functions as a “genitive of product” meaning that it is the “product” of the noun rhema, “the word” indicating that “the word,” i.e. the gospel “produces” or “effects” or “brings about” or “causes” the sinner to exercise faith that the Father raised Jesus from the dead.
This interpretation is supported by Paul’s statement in Romans 10:17.
Romans 10:17, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”
Paul teaches in this passage that faith in Christ is brought about by the word of Christ or about Christ, which is the gospel.
Romans 10:8, “But what does it say? ‘THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, in your mouth and in your heart’ -- that is, the word of faith which we are preaching.”
“We are proclaiming” is the first person plural present active indicative form of the verb kerusso (khruvssw) (kay-roos-so), which means, “to publicly proclaim something as a herald in a dignified and authoritative manner which commands the respect and attention of those who hear it.”
In Romans 10:8, the verb refers to Paul and his fellow Christians who “publicly proclaimed the gospel of Jesus Christ as heralds in a dignified and authoritative manner which commanded the respect and attention of the unsaved Jew and Gentiles who were exposed to it.”
The first person plural form refers to Paul and his fellow Christians, which would include his fellow apostles, pastor-teachers, evangelists and believers operating under the royal ambassadorship (See 2 Corinthians 5:14-21).
The present tense is a “customary” present describing Paul and his fellow Christians “making it a habit” to publicly proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ as heralds in a dignified and authoritative manner to the unsaved so that it commands their respect.