Sermon Tone Analysis

We are beginning chapter 11 and this chapter brings up a discussion we have spent much time on and it would be worth it to look at what we have already covered.

Not just for the sake of contacts but to remind us hose what's Paul is talking about because he is the one that brings this topic up again.

If you remember back when we were in chapter 8 I told you all that the closing verses of chapter 8 all the way through chapter 11 are some of the most controversial chapters in all of scripture amongst Christians.

It may not be the most debated section not just within our time but throughout history.

And if you remember I shared with you all that this section of scripture is so controversial that pastors will go their entire careers never preaching out of the sections.

The type of preaching that I do is called expository preaching and the message that I do is called exegesis.

This is where you allow the text to speak for itself and you use scripture to interpret scripture and what you were doing is you are trying to the best of your abilities to create the original message the way it was originally meant to be understood.

You exegete the text, you do not read into the text things that are not there.

The other route of preaching is called eisegesis and this is where you place yourself in the text and you pull out things that are not there.

Another way to look at this is that the first method starts with the text and builds up from their applying it to the self and the other method begins with the self and then tries to apply the self to the text.

Snout expository is the classic way of preaching.

Only in recent history has expository preaching fallen by the wayside.

It is coming back and I'm glad to see it come back and there are different forms where people do expository topical series which I find a bit strange but the ones who are capable of doing it are good at doing it.

Put the common form of preaching that we have all been mostly used to have been topical style preaching where people begin with the self and try to put himself into the text rather than beginning with the text and then trying to figure out how it fits to us.

This is very method of topical sermons you begin with yourself because you were trying to decide what is relevant what do you feel like you need to speak on so on and so forth.

And so it always begins with the self rather than beginning with the text.

The topical sermon preached through got the topic in mind and he goes okay now what verse is do I need to turn to in order to prove the point that I want to make.

And then we wonder why there are certain things we never heard of in the Bible.

Because preachers not handle the word correctly because preachers did not take what they were doing seriously.

And what a tragedy that has been.

But now that we have conditioned the human mind to think a certain way even though expository preaching is coming back we still face the issue of preachers not willing to tackle on the difficult issues.

Preachers who struggle with preaching on the difficult subjects and the reason why they struggle on this so much is because they’re not used to it.

They are not used to studying it they are not used to hearing it they are not used to hearing it being preached on and so they're kind of clueless on it.

so some expository preachers will go through the book of Romans but they will actually skip the end of chapter 8 and go right into chapter 12.

And the reason why preachers will go their entire preaching ministry without talking about this topic and the reason why there are some preachers out there who do expository preaching yet they will skip sections of chapter 8 and pick up at the beginning of chapter 12 is because of this word election.

And this is the topic that we are going to be discussing today.

We spent a lot of time on and already but Paul brings it up again and so it is fitting we talked about it again.

Sinners the point of scripture and that is the point of expository preaching is that certain topics are repetitive because they are worth discussing over and over again.

in certain topics are repetitive because God wants us to hear this over and over again.

Is God did not want us to hear such things he would not have put them in his word but he put this in his work for a purpose and our job is to understand that purpose and understand the teaching that God is laying out for us.

I have shared my own struggles with this doctor and as I did wrestle with this quite a bit but the one thing I could not stand or could not tolerate any longer was hearing I can tell you what it isn’t every time I ask what it is.

what is this mean faster while I can tell you what it doesn't mean.

now the difference between us discussing it back when we began discussing it in chapter 8 verses now is that Paul is in the context of talking about Israel where in chapter 8 he was just talkin about salvation in general.

the context has changed a bit but much of it still applies as the same language is being used.

And Paul does that on purpose he repeats and uses the same language so the reader knows what he is alluding to.

he has laid the foundation of the doctrine already and now he expects the reader to comprehend what he is saying now.

and I think it is rewarding to walk through and I think it is comforting to look at.

And I think that when we measure this up against our own culture that there is some comfort for us to take and a message like this.

In a culture that seems like it has turned its back on God.

In a culture that has rejected his law and his morality and has done what is right in their own eyes.

A culture that makes us scratch our head and go what in the world is going on and how much longer do we have.

So I am glad for all who are here now because I think that this is such a great topic and I think this is such a great discussion and if our hearts are open and receptive this is very comforting message to grasp onto.

So let us look at what Paul is saying to help us complete the narrative that he has already started.

Paul begins with the statement I say then.

This word should take your mind to what was previously said.

And in this case what has been said in the last two chapters.

He then asked God has not rejected his people has he?

And this is kind of a double negative question that insinuates the answer.

And he does answer with the emphatic may it never be.

The idea behind this word we have seen before it means far be it from your mind do not even allow that thought to enter.

So why is Paul asking this question in the first place?

What based on what he just concluded about the Jewish people.

And what he has been saying is that not all of Israel is of Israel and that he himself wishes he could be accursed for their sake.

But he can't and so it is important that he preaches.

He then went into how the Jewish people should have known about this, not only their rejection but also the grafting in of the gentiles.

now Paul has already had this conversation and he already knows what people are going to say.

You are saying that God went back on his promises about the Jewish people and that is the very thing that started this conversation to begin with.

Paul began speaking about election and then the question rose up what about the Jewish people if what you are saying is true about election, what about the Jewish people.

And he then explains the current condition of the Jewish people.

Now when I say the current condition I mean the current condition of Paul’s day.

It is clear that there were a lot of gentile converts and not a lot of Jewish converts in the days of Paul. it is important to keep in mind that the New testament does document that there were a lot of Jewish converts and a lot of those Jewish converts were the first believers.

And so based on his experience of what he has taught in the past Paul already knows what is going to be asked before it can be asked and so he goes ahead and jump the gun for the people.

Has God rejected his people?

May never be.

Don't even think such a thing.

Why?

He says for I too I’m an Israelite a descendant of Abraham of The tribe of Benjamin.

All the things you was people rested in Paul brings up.

I am an Israelite meaning he comes from Jacob.

Affirming his abrahamic descent and that he is from The tribe of Benjamin.

He is saying you do not to get more Jewish than I.

I come from an esteemed bloodline.

If God has rejected his people that means he has rejected me as well.

so may it never be because then I would not be here.

That is what Paul is saying but then he continues in verse 2.

now this verse does not need a whole lot of explanation it is pretty clear because he makes the statement that God has not rejected his people and then he also says do you not know the scripture is kind of leading their brain to the word of God.

He is pointing out that this is not just his opinion on the subject he is going to the word of God and he says what does the passage about Elijah say.

what's the word that does need explanation is that word foreknew.

This is the first word that leads us back to chapter 8 and what was said there about for knowledge and election.

Now the common understanding today when not properly looked at is that God look down the scope of time and is aware of people who would be faithful.

And that is his foreknowledge.

The problem with that understanding is the word foreknew or foreknow itself.

The word is not an adjective.

It's a verb.

Meaning it is an action by God.

For whom he foreknew.

And not only is this an action done by God but the word itself has at in internment action.

That not only does God has intellectual awareness of your existence before the foundation of the world but it states that God for loved you before the foundation of the world.

Which is why in history it has often been translated as for loved.

We will talk more about this but before we do I really want to get into the context of what Paul is saying.

So he moves on in verse 3 and 4.

Paul is quoting from 1st Kings chapter 19 and to paint a picture of that story Elijah had just been on Mount Carmel and they’re alone he had been facing 850 false prophets.

This one man stood against them and defeated them and having defeated them he heard about the intentions of Queen Jezebel the intentions were to put him to death.

And upon hearing that he goes to God in prayer and he's praying that God do something about the people of Israel his prayer was a prayer against Israel.

So he is praying that God does something against Israel.

He says they have broken your laws and they have killed your prophets and they have destroyed your altars.

I alone am left and now they are threatening to kill me.

Do something about these people destroy these people.

so that is the backstory of Paul addressing it in verse 3 and inverse for Paul gives us an answer.

And the answer reveals to us that Elijah I was misinformed.