Calling on the Name of the Lord

Introduction

As we look at this passage today it is important to remember Paul's goal in life. Paul was a Jewish zealot. To the point where he was having Christians stoned for believing in Jesus as the Christ. When he had his encounter with Jesus and something like scales fell from his eyes, he could see.

Paul was told by God that as a Jewish believer in Israel's Messiah (Christ), it was his job to fulfill what was Israel’s original calling form God since the days of Abraham. That is to take the blessings of God to all the peoples of the earth.

To make a long story short, Israel was blessed to be a blessing. First explained to a “Gentile” named Abram (who became the first Jew), God said, “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you … and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (Gen. 12:1–3).

What Israel had lost sight of through the generations was that they were to be a missionary light to the rest of the inhabited earth. And they had failed completely in their calling.

Consider Bob Sjogren’s contemporary paraphrase of God’s words to Abram in Genesis 12:1–3:

God looked down and saw 70 distinct groups of people [the author is referring here to the post-Flood people groups listed in the Table of Nations in Genesis 10], and He loved every one of them equally. He wanted to reach out to all of them with the blessing of redemption. He could have spoken the Gospel to each of them separately, but He chose not to. He chose to use mankind to reach mankind, in order to prepare mankind in the process to rule and reign for eternity.

So, He picked out one man and said to him, “Abe, I want to bless you. In fact, I want to bless your socks off. I want to pour My grace upon you. I want to give you My word. I want to give you My Holy Spirit. I want to be your God, and I want you to be My people. The reason that I want to bless you, Abram, is that I love you, but also I want you to turn around and pass My blessings to all those 70 other groups of people that I formed at the tower of Babel, because I love them, too.

“Now Abe, you’re not to just sit around in a nice easy chair saying, ‘Oh, thank the Lord, I’m blessed.’ You’re to reach out to those other peoples and tell them what I’m telling you” (Sjogren, pp. 28–29).

This Paul knows is now his calling. that’s why he wants to go to Spain in the first place its the last place that hasn’t been reached from Gen 10 in the book of Acts. God told him Ideal had failed and now it was their turn Go and make disciples of all nations.

Romans 9:30–10:13

Romans 9:30–10:13 CSB

What should we say then? Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained righteousness—namely the righteousness that comes from faith. But Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not achieved the righteousness of the law. Why is that? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone. As it is written, Look, I am putting a stone in Zion to stumble over and a rock to trip over, and the one who believes on him will not be put to shame. Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and prayer to God concerning them is for their salvation. I can testify about them that they have zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. Since they are ignorant of the righteousness of God and attempted to establish their own righteousness, they have not submitted to God’s righteousness. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes, since Moses writes about the righteousness that is from the law: The one who does these things will live by them. But the righteousness that comes from faith speaks like this: Do not say in your heart, “Who will go up to heaven?” that is, to bring Christ down or, “Who will go down into the abyss?” that is, to bring Christ up from the dead. On the contrary, what does it say? The message is near you, in your mouth and in your heart. This is the message of faith that we proclaim: If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, Everyone who believes on him will not be put to shame, since there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, because the same Lord of all richly blesses all who call on him. For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

In our present chapter, Paul will answer the question we cited above: What then shall we say?

Why did God “elect” there to be so few if such a huge task was at hand—the task of evangelizing (blessing) the entire world’s population with the knowledge of God?

The answer lies in the fact of Israel’s disobedience to God’s command. They didn’t share the blessing

And still God is at work. Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, obtained it, but Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it. What an irony!

God will bless the nations

But Israel is stubbing

Paul Quotes from Romans 8 and 28 Stating that there is a stone in Their path that they are stumbling over. That stone is Jesus Christ. They can’t see the stone for what it is so the fall over it.

Righteousness Revealed

Righteousness will Be Reviled

Jesus will be reviled. and Paul is praying that Israel might be saved.

They were stumbling over Christ because of spiritual blindness.

It was as if they were walking down a path on a moonless night and stepped on the tail of the Lion of Judah who was lying in their way. They never even knew what hit them. Thus is the nature of spiritual blindness.

They did not lack zeal; they lacked knowledge (not “head” knowledge, gnosis, but “real” knowledge, perception, or recognition, epignosis).

As a result of their lack of knowledge, their zeal became misguided.

Not only did they fail to recognize Jesus as the Messiah, but they failed to point him out to the nation.

Of all people, the scribes should have seen the fulfillment of the Old Testament messianic prophecies in Jesus.

Is it any wonder that Paul quotes more passages from the Old Testament in Romans 10 than in any other passage of similar length in his writings?

He wants the church at Rome to know that the Scriptures have been clear for generation after generation about God’s plan and how to live in step with it.

The fact that Israel was out of step was due to their failure to believe, not God’s failure to make it clear.

The specific knowledge they lacked was that righteousness … comes from God, not from themselves. As the end of the law.

Christ made it possible for everyone who believes to attain a righteous standing before God.

Faith in Jesus Christ

As Paul continues in this section he will quote from Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Isaiah, and Joel.

Emphasizing that God has been telling us all along. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.

And it is through Faith in Jesus Christ that we can have life.

and what does it take believe in one’s heart and confess with ones mouth and you will be saved. That is to say belief that is more than just saying I believe. But faith that leads to action in your life.

Which is not different from the passage found in Matthew 7:21 ““Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.”

If saying lord I believe was enough of a confession this would not be the case. No it is about belief in your heart that leads to you walking a path that leads to life.

If You believe in him you will not be put to shame and those who call upon the Lord will be Saved

Next Steps

ABC

Blessed (salvation) Bless others

holding you back

Chaining you down

Bibliography

https://youtu.be/_Ooi53yBE9k

W., Jackson. Reading Romans with Eastern Eyes: Honor and Shame in Paul’s Message and Mission. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic: An Imprint of InterVarsity Press, 2019.

Kenneth Boa and William Kruidenier, Romans, vol. 6, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2000), 256–268. Social Help

https://www.gotquestions.org/not-everyone-who-says-to-me-Lord-Lord.html

Social Help

Summary: Romans 9:30–10:13 emphasizes that righteousness comes through faith in Christ. Paul highlights the importance of calling on the name of the Lord for salvation.

Application: This passage reminds Christians that salvation is available to all who call on the name of the Lord. It encourages believers to have faith in Christ and to share the message of salvation with others.

Teaching: The passage teaches that salvation is not based on works but on faith in Jesus Christ. It emphasizes the inclusivity of God's salvation for all who believe in Him.

How this passage could point to Christ: The theme of calling on the name of the Lord echoes throughout the Bible, pointing to the ultimate fulfillment in Jesus Christ. He is the name above all names whom all must call upon for salvation.

Big Idea: Salvation is available to all who call on the name of the Lord through faith in Jesus Christ, emphasizing the centrality of Christ in the believer's life and the inclusivity of God's salvation plan.

Recommended Study: To deepen your understanding of the righteousness that comes through faith in Christ, explore the concept of justification and righteousness in the book of Romans using your Logos library. Examine how Paul contrasts the law and faith to highlight the importance of calling on the name of the Lord for salvation.

Questions for Further Discussion

What was Paul's goal in life according to the sermon text?

Why did God choose to use mankind to reach out to all the people with the blessing of redemption instead of speaking to them separately?

How did Israel fail in their calling as explained in the sermon text?

How does the sermon highlight the importance of faith in Jesus Christ for salvation?

How did Israel's lack of knowledge lead to their misguided zeal as discussed in the sermon?

How did Israel stumble in their path according to the sermon text?

In what way does the sermon encourage believers to have faith in Christ and share the message of salvation with others?

What was the specific knowledge that Israel lacked, leading to their failure to believe according to the sermon?