Sermon Tone Analysis

The question.

Did they stumble to damnation?

Sadly this is the 10th and final time Paul uses this phrase, By no means, me genoito.

What purpose did God have in His people rejecting him?

Primarily so that we, the gentiles, could be grafted in.

This fulfills that promise to Abraham about his offspring blessing the whole world.

Through Israel’s disobedience in rejecting the Christ he was crucified for our sins.

This was part of God’s plan all along.

Did that purpose include Israel being damned and rejected by God? Absolutely not!

In fact the Gentile’s salvation will make them jealous so as to return to the lord.

Though that will be when the time of the Gentiles is fulfilled.

aka when Christ returns.

If the bad things God has turned to such good good things, how much more amazing will it be when the goodness of having Israel fully included be?

Paul’s desire, like it was when he wished he could be sacrificed for his people, is that the Jews would be jealous and believe Jesus is the Son of God.

This is of course the generic about the Jewish people not the speicific for many Jews did have Faith in Christ.

The Jew’s rejection happened at Christs first coming which was where the reconciliation of the world occured.

In their acceptance, which is the time of the Gentiles being fulfilled, It will be the return of Christ and the resurrection of the dead.

I think that’s what’s in view here.

Could Paul just mean they’ll be brought to life in Christ... yes.

Okay… what?

Let’s dive in a little and make sure we’re getting the reference here.

Okay, so this practice of taking a tenth, a tithe, is the tax that keeps the nation of Israel functioning through the priests who serve.

The Levites get the tenth from the people and then they give a tenth of that to the priests, those priests also burn up a tenth of their tenth of a tenth to the Lord.

But these offerings of first fruits are taken into the sanctuary, only Holy things go in the sanctuary.

Here Paul’s logic is that it means the whole thing is holy.

Now we tie that in with the roots being holy, so are the branches.

The first of the Jews would be the patriarchs.

They would also be the roots of a family tree.

They are a holy people set apart by God.

In other words you Gentiles don’t get uppity here thinking you’re the latest greatest.

When you compare Jew to Gentile, not individually but corporately the Jews are the ones God has made a holy people.

Just so Paul’s clear on that… We’re transitioning again from dismantling the Jews to now disarming the Gentiles of pride.

Okay, got it!?

You new gentile Christians? don’t look around you at the Jews and act like you’re all that and a bag of chips.

Hello random 90’s reference.

For those who wished to disparage the Jews this is a stark warning.

Sure they were broken off but that was their unbelief.

You need to stay firmly secure through faith.

If they were natural yet still cut off how much easier is it to cut you off who aren’t even an original part of this tree?

This again is speaking corporately not individually.

This is not some picture of the ways that people lose their salvation, or an example of it.

No, this is speaking of the people groups.

Again, I don’t want a confusion over salvation.

This is of the people groups Gentile and Jew.

The olive tree is not the church, the olive tree is the lineage of Abraham, at least spiritually speaking.

We are grafted into that covenant.

Israel is grafted back into the covenant through Christ when they acknowledge him.

We’ll see that as we keep reading.

A partial hardening has come upon Israel.

God’s sovereign plan has set aside some part of Israel for a time.

Let’s see what Paul is quoting here in Isaiah.

It is God whose own arm brought man salvation.

Okay, break this one down a little slower.

In terms of the Gospel, the story of Jesus and salvation, the Jews are enemies of God for the benefit of the gentiles.

But the way it relates to God’s choice in election means they are beloved because God has chosen them through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

They were put aside temporarily to accomplish God’s will.

There seems to be a time that Israel will be save corporately.

Don’t misunderstand, every individual must have faith in Jesus Christ to be saved.

But God’s choice will one day be the Jews as a group.

Paul says:

We all following along?

All of these quotes could be attributed to Job though other similar ones are elsewhere.

We don’t need a context on these they’re self explanatory.

Who knows the mind of God? Who gives God advice?

Who gives the creator of the world anything that He didn’t already have?

I thought about this on my birthday actually.

Eric saw that I didn’t have any presents ( I don’t particularly like presents, I’d rather just get something I actually want myself) but he went and got a dollar from his room and later that day he gave me a dollar and said happy birthday.

He doesn’t have much money but really wanted to give me a dollar for my birthday.

I almost broke that moment… I almost gave it back and said you don’t have to do that.

After all, I probably gave him that dollar, I’ve certainly given him plenty of dollars over his life in any case.

Instead I thanked him sincerely and took that dollar.

He didn’t put me in debt to him with his gift of a dollar.

He offered it as a loving son who wanted to honor his father.

Likewise our gifts to God aren’t something that puts God in debt to us.

They’re offerings to honor and bless His name.