Romans 11
Notes
Transcript
Tori Dees an Prep
Tori Dees an Prep
Tory Dees has been leading our Prep kids for the past 7 years or so. She has helped build an incredible program that not only teaches the kids about God but helps them develop their own spiritual muscles.
Two years ago she finished her masters program and since then has been working on getting all her certificates done to be able to pursue a calling as an Assistant Principal. Two things with this.
One that means she has decided to step down from leading our Prep ministry so she can devote the time needed to her calling. She is still going to serve but cannot balance both. We say thank you to Tory and we and the kids you have shepherded are grateful for your love and leadership.
Two, thank you Tory for teaching about what it means to have a calling. We often think ministry is just what happens here at the church but that is not true. Ministry is everywhere and all sorts of things. We need Christian who are teachers, we need Christian who are plumbers, we need Christian who are mechanics, bankers, singers, actors, and so on. We should never be running away from the culture but finding ways to engage the world and bring our faith with us into different arenas.
Romans 11
I ask, then, has God rejected his people? Absolutely not! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin.
God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Or don’t you know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah—how he pleads with God against Israel?
Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars. I am the only one left, and they are trying to take my life!
But what was God’s answer to him? I have left seven thousand for myself who have not bowed down to Baal.
In the same way, then, there is also at the present time a remnant chosen by grace.
Now if by grace, then it is not by works; otherwise grace ceases to be grace.
What then? Israel did not find what it was looking for, but the elect did find it. The rest were hardened,
as it is written, God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that cannot see and ears that cannot hear, to this day.
And David says, Let their table become a snare and a trap, a pitfall and a retribution to them.
Let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and their backs be bent continually.
I ask, then, have they stumbled so as to fall? Absolutely not! On the contrary, by their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel jealous.
Now if their transgression brings riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fullness bring!
Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Insofar as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry,
if I might somehow make my own people jealous and save some of them.
For if their rejection brings reconciliation to the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead?
Now if the firstfruits are holy, so is the whole batch. And if the root is holy, so are the branches.
Now if some of the branches were broken off, and you, though a wild olive branch, were grafted in among them and have come to share in the rich root of the cultivated olive tree,
do not boast that you are better than those branches. But if you do boast—you do not sustain the root, but the root sustains you.
Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.”
True enough; they were broken off because of unbelief, but you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but beware,
because if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either.
Therefore, consider God’s kindness and severity: severity toward those who have fallen but God’s kindness toward you—if you remain in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off.
And even they, if they do not remain in unbelief, will be grafted in, because God has the power to graft them in again.
For if you were cut off from your native wild olive tree and against nature were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these—the natural branches—be grafted into their own olive tree?
I don’t want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you will not be conceited: A partial hardening has come upon Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.
And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, The Deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob.
And this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins.
Regarding the gospel, they are enemies for your advantage, but regarding election, they are loved because of the patriarchs,
since God’s gracious gifts and calling are irrevocable.
As you once disobeyed God but now have received mercy through their disobedience,
so they too have now disobeyed, resulting in mercy to you, so that they also may now receive mercy.
For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may have mercy on all.
Oh, the depth of the riches and the wisdom and the knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments and untraceable his ways!
For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?
And who has ever given to God, that he should be repaid?
For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen.
God is not done with Israel (11:1)
God is not done with Israel (11:1)
God has a plan for Israel. He is not done. Romans 11:1 and 11:11 show us this. It was for our benefit that they rejected Christ but He still has plans for them. God is faithful.
Salvation is still extended to them. Salvation is offered to everyone and salvation only comes through Christ.
Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Whether the OT or the NT only Christ offers salvation. It is only through Him. It has always been a covenant of Grace. Salvation is an extension of God’s mercy and grace.
Again, God is not done with Israel. He has a plan and He will work it out to completion. He is the one who provided a partial hardening so that we might come to faith.
I don’t want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you will not be conceited: A partial hardening has come upon Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.
Sometimes God does this. He withholds salvation for a little bit from someone or some group so that others might find it. But ultimately He desires to receive all and He will sort it out.
We do not need to have and we are not expected to have all the answers.
No matter what we are dealing with in life we can rest because God is faithful. We might not always understand it. But when we are worried, stressed, or have any type of negative feeling we can read Romans 11:1a
I ask, then, has God rejected his people? Absolutely not! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin.
If God has not abandoned Israel He has not abandoned you or me.
What God has done is add the church to the promises.
The church, gentiles, have been grafted into the promises of God.
The church, gentiles, have been grafted into the promises of God.
What is the promise?
After these things the word of the Lord came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.
God is the reward. God is the promises.
He is your praise and he is your God, who has done for you these great and awe-inspiring works your eyes have seen.
And to you and your future offspring I will give the land where you are residing—all the land of Canaan—as a permanent possession, and I will be their God.”
The relationship with the Creator of Heaven and Earth is the reward.
Yes other things come with that as we saw last week but those things come out of the salvation we have. We have them because He is our salvation. But the relationship with Him is the ultimate reward.
The greatest reward, the ultimate prize, the majestic promise is that God will be our God and He will not reject or forget about us.
We should grab that and hold it tightly!
As people who follow the Messiah we can be bold in our faith but never arrogant in it. The faith we have is not to the exclusion of others. We cannot become a club that says we have and you cannot. This is what happened to ancient Israel.
True enough; they were broken off because of unbelief, but you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but beware,
because if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either.
The church is a hospital for the sick. Not a social club for the few. We are calling others to join and receive what we have. We have position and that position is to be used to reach outward.
How many churches have closed because they turned inward and became about us at the exclusion of them.
Our mission at Journey is to:
Encounter God
Engage together
Empowering change
We are to focus on getting the church into the community and the community into the church and not just on a Sunday morning.
This is why we exist. And it is Jesus who gives us the calling and sustains us.
The root which is Jesus is holy so we are holy by connection to Him. This is the grafting Romans talks about.
Then a shoot will grow from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit.
The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— a Spirit of wisdom and understanding, a Spirit of counsel and strength, a Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.
In this whole section Paul is expounding on what has been said about Jesus and what Jesus already said.
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.
Every branch in me that does not produce fruit he removes, and he prunes every branch that produces fruit so that it will produce more fruit.
You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.
Remain in me, and I in you. Just as a branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, neither can you unless you remain in me.
I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me.
If we are connected to Jesus we produce fruit and are holy. We cannot separate ourselves and think we stand on our own two feet. We do not.
We produce because of our attachment to the root!
You want to be a better student, stick to the root.
You want to be a better parent, stick to the root.
You want to be a better spouse, stick to the root.
You want to be a better employee, manager, boss, business owner, or whatever, stick to the root.
We have no nourishment apart from Him!
We all feel the sting of sin and God has mercy on all.
We all feel the sting of sin and God has mercy on all.
For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may have mercy on all.
This is not universalism as we saw in Romans 10:9
Romans 10:9 we have to respond to the gift in faith. I can offer you a million dollars but you still need to accept it. If I tell everyone here that there is a check at the bank and all you need to do is go get it. If you do, you did not earn it, you simply responded to what I offered.
The Hymn of praise
The Hymn of praise
How do we respond to this? To the mystery, to the promise, to the grafting? We say like the Hymn of Praise
Oh, the depth of the riches and the wisdom and the knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments and untraceable his ways!
For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?
And who has ever given to God, that he should be repaid?
For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen.
God’s wisdom is so beyond our understanding.
His ways are so beyond our comprehension.
We cannot give Him advise or council.
We end almost right back where we started. God is faithful. If He did not and does not abandon Israel He will not abandon you or I. God has called you He has grafted you in you are not part of the root that is Jesus. You can take that to the bank. It is solid. And our response is praise. Our response is like the song worthy of it all.
You are worthy of it all
You are worthy of it all
For from You are all things
And to You are all things
You deserve the glory
Day and night night and day let incense arise
Day and night night and day let incense arise
We let our incense of praise arise because He is faithful and He is worthy. We are grafted in and connected so we praise.