Corporate Election

Introduction

As we finish up the first two sections of the book of Romans, we come to the third major section of the book. Some have even said that this is the climax of the book. We are going to at times take a step back and dive into more detail in this section. It is heavily theological; so it will require teaching more than preaching at times. Chapters 9-11 function as one group addressing the role of Israel in God’s plan of redemption. Some think it is a side note or a rabbit trail of Paul, but I believe it is actually a continuation of the central issue Paul is addressing in the book: the role of Jews and Gentiles in the Body of Christ because of the gospel. Paul is seeking to prove that God has done nothing in the gospel that is inconsistent with His promises to Israel.

Think for a moment, if you were a Jew in the church of Rome, how would you have responded to the book of Romans?

Reasons a Jew might be concerned hearing the book of Romans:

God had promised never to leave them nor forsake them Deuteronomy 31:8 “And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.” If God is working a new plan through the Church now, then what happens to Israel. Of great concern is the fact that so many of the Jews were not responding to salvation. So what happens to God’s promise to not forsake them if they are excluded.

God had chosen them to be a special people Deuteronomy 7:6 “For thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God: the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth.” What happens to their special status? The Jews had reveled in the fact that they were chosen above all other people’s. Has God just thrown that aside?

The gospel is declared as for everyone Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” Election as the people of God was something that only belonged to the Jews; but now it is being opened to the Gentiles and more Gentiles are being saved than Jews are. Soon the Church will look more Gentile than Jew! The Jews were the ones God had called to receive and preserve his word, but now the gospel is for everyone.

The Jews will be judged Romans 2:2–3 “But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things. And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?” Probably the worst nail in the coffin is that some Jews will be condemned even if they were orthodox, law abiding Jews. Their whole system has been turned upside down. But what about God’s promises to those who obey his law, has he abandoned them?

Righteousness comes apart from the law which is at the heart of Judaism Romans 3:21 “But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;” Now righteousness is being touted as coming without law, by faith alone. The law was one of the things that made Israel so unique from the other nations.

Paul presented the law as stirring up sin and producing death. On top of that, now the law is seen as having a negative affect on our lives. So the Jew is left with a lot of questions which Paul will address in this section.

Paul is also addressing antisemitism in the church of Rome because there was a tendency already in the church for Gentile believers to look down on Jewish believers. Romans 11:13-32 addresses the Gentiles in rebuke. Romans 11:18 “Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee.”

Paul’s main purpose is to unite the squabbling Jews and Gentiles in the church of Rome. Rather than just dive right into the text, we are going to lay a foundation for understanding this text. These chapters are very controversial in Christianity for those who hold to Calvinism and Covenant Theology. I want you to understand that I am going to teach what I believe the text says and try to show you why I believe the text says it. What I have to say honestly is not what many commentaries say, but that is not how we determine truth. We don’t take a poll of the most popular though we shouldn’t lightly throw out what they have to say either. So I understand if you disagree with me though I hope you will be open to the evidence I lay out. One key concept that we must deal with is the doctrine of election. Romans 9:11 “(For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)” I believe that Romans 9-11 is not primarily teaching individual election to salvation but corporate election. To show that we are going to look at two points: What is election and what type of election is seen in this text.

What is election?

The word election has a lot of theological baggage tied to it. Some people bristle whenever the word comes up, but we cannot just throw the word out of the bible. There are many ways of understanding the doctrine of election, but I am trying to limit myself primarily to what is meant here. The word elect or election means selection or choice. It refers to choices that God has made. Essential to understanding this passage, is an acknowledgment that there is more than one type of election. I don’t want you to take my word for it; so let’s look at the evidence from the word of God:

Election of Jesus to be the Messiah Matthew 12:18 “Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles.” The bible teaches that before the world began, God the Father and God the Son agreed that the son would come to die for the sins of the world. Revelation 13:8 “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” This was a decision and choice that God made even before mankind had sinned.

Election for service Acts 15:7 “And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.” There is a different kind of election here where God chooses some people for certain service. Notice not everyone was chosen for this service. God had specifically chosen one man Peter to do this things.

Election of the weak things to confound the wise 1 Corinthians 1:28 “And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:” God also chooses how somethings will come about. In this verse, God has chosen that the weak things will confound the wise. He has a plan and a purpose for what he is doing. Not many mighty are called because God has decided to humble the mighty.

Election to salvation Acts 13:48 “And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.” Some have argued that election never applies to salvation. Verses like this one make me say that it does. As I have mentioned I believe in election and free will. The verse doesn’t tell us here the basis of election, just that those who were ordained (which means assigned) to eternal life, believed.

Elect Politicians Isaiah 45:1 “Thus saith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, Whose right hand I have holden, To subdue nations before him; And I will loose the loins of kings, To open before him the two leaved gates; And the gates shall not be shut;” Election also can be on unbelieving men for God’s specific purposes. Here the word anointed speaks of a chosen for a specific purpose. Cyrus would be used by God to deliver His people from capitivity. This is again an election not to salvation.

Elect as the People of God Romans 11:28 “As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sakes.” The election in Romans 9-11 is not primarily about salvation either though the way in is by salvation. I want you to just look at one verse for now. We will prove this in more detail in the next point. Notice in this verse the gospel and election are contrasted. Paul says when it comes to salvation through the gospel, the Jews are your enemies because they oppose the gospel and kill you; but when it comes to God’s election (an entirely different category) they are beloved by God. Election here refers to God’s choice of Israel as His people. Was all Israel before Christ faithful to God, did all Israel receive eternal life and go to heaven? No but God had still chosen them. So this election is not about salvation primarily, but God having chosen a people.

Difference between Corporate and Individual Election

The difference between corporate and individual election is important to understanding the entire passage. Maybe this is new to you or you aren’t used to thinking about things at this level. Let me illustrate the difference between these two terms for you:

Let’s imagine that Donald Trump decides America is going to go to war with Russia. Donald Trump has decided for the entire group a course of action; so we could say America is at war with Russia. Now let me ask you this, does that mean that Dwight Hardman is going to pick up a gun and go fight Russia? No it does not. The decision, the choice, the election of Donald Trump applies to the Nation; not necessarily the individual though he is impacted by that decision.

So when we talk about corporate election, we are talking about God’s choosing a people, a nation for Himself. That decision needs to be made distinct from individual salvation to accurately interpret this text. So let me show you why this distinction needs to be made and the evidence for it.

Which Election is found in this passage?

So to determine which election is being addressed in this text, we must dig into some details of the text. We will be looking at them more as we work through the text but we need to highlight them here.

Paul addresses the nation of Israel- verse 4 Who are Israelites? Paul begins with a question about who true Israel as a nation is. Multiple times he references back to the promises made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The entirety of chapter 11 is primarily focused on whether God is done with Israel as a nation and it even promises a future revival in Israel in which all the Jews would be saved. It is clear that the nation of Israel is in view here. When we talk about nations, we are speaking corporately of a group of people.

Paul addresses the benefits of belonging to the nation of Israel- Verse 4-5 to whom belong adoption, glory, covenants, law, service of God and promises- Paul is also concerned with all those promises and benefits that belong to those who are the people of God. Does God just stop giving Israel the benefits he promised? Again these benefits belong to the nation of Israel primarily. God said he would given them the land of Israel and yet some Jews do not live in the land. The promise was made to the nation primarily.

Paul speaks of those who are Jews by birth- Verse 3- As concerning the flesh- Here Paul’s heart is for those he is related to by birth. Ethnic Israel.

Paul speaks of Esau and Jacob symbolically of their descendents- One of the biggest pieces of proof that this is about nations and not individuals is found in verses 10-13. God had determined before the children were ever born that the elder would serve the younger. Jacob received both the birthright and the blessing from his brother Esau. The one thing we do not see in any of the text is Esau serving Jacob. What we do see in scripture are the descendents of Esau, the Edomites serving the descendents of Jacob. 2 Samuel 8:13–14 “And David gat him a name when he returned from smiting of the Syrians in the valley of salt, being eighteen thousand men. And he put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom put he garrisons, and all they of Edom became David’s servants. And the Lord preserved David whithersoever he went.” Another prood that this promise refers to the nations that would come from Esau and Jacob more than the individuals themselves can be found in Malachi 1:2–3 “I have loved you, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau Jacob’s brother? saith the Lord: Yet I loved Jacob, And I hated Esau, And laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness.” The evidence that God had loved Jacob and not Esau is seen in the fact that many years later God laid the nation waste and set Himself against them. Esau was long dead by this point. In 5th and 6th century, the Nabatean Arabs invaded Edom and by 312 BC they were drived out of their homeland. Another thing to consider: if this was about individual salvation, then no Edomite could ever be saved. Esau reconciled with Jacob in Gen 33 and yet is still not considered the elect of God.

Paul says that some who were part of this election are ripped out- Probably the biggest reason to reject that this passage is about indivual election is the fact that Paul says some branches were removd. Some in Israel had been elect, they were part of the tree; but they were removed because of unbelief. Romans 11:21- if this was about individual election to salvation, you have loss of salvation here.

Paul speaks of some who were ripped out as regaining their election- You also end up with a possibility of regaining salvation if election is individual in this text. Romans 11:23 “And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be graffed in: for God is able to graff them in again.” Clearly, this election was not final if they can be grafted back in. Understanding election in Romans 9-11 as primarily individual leads to a distorted doctrine of salvation.

Conclusion

Sometimes application of a text is not about sin to confess, sometimes its not something to praise God for. Sometimes the application is this is something I need to believe. Today, I have sought to teach you something that will lay the foundation for the application of the text that will come later one. Feel free to ask me questions and we can work through things if you would like.