And how shall they hear without a preacher? for on your own showing, according to that word to which we all bow, you must admit that one man's sin brought in universal moral ruin and death. This phrase, , "the word of faith", may be seen in the Jewish writings z; and this shows what word is here meant, even the Gospel so called, because it contains doctrines which are to be believed upon the testimony of God, and particularly the doctrine of justification by the righteousness of Christ received by faith; and because it proposes Christ as the object of faith, and encourages souls to believe in him for life and salvation; and is also the means of begetting and implanting faith in the heart, and without it the preaching of it is of no avail: and it is further described by the ministration of it. It is near and not hard to attain. "But unto Israel he saith, All day long have I stretched out my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people.". The righteousness of the law required absolute sinless perfection achieved through flawless obedience; however, the righteousness that is of faith does not make requirements that are impossible for sinners. Clearly, then, such ground is untenable. It is not God having an earthly centre, and the peoples doming up to worship the Lord in Jerusalem. And I answered him, "That is a very difficult question for me, because I do believe that your father does love God, has a zeal for God, but what is he doing about his sin? No topic is treated with anything like the frequency of God. Being Pure, blazing, glorious Godhead, "Light of lights, very God of very God," on a sudden they found him in a stable hanging on a woman's breast. The Jews have indeed heard this message, so they have no excuse (18). It is true God gave them that law for which they were so zealous; but they might have known that, by the appearance of the promised Messiah, an end was put to it. Yet note, that Paul opens this up into two things. But we believe on Him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead. The first is Moses himself. Conceivably, God could have chosen any means for the message of salvation to come, such as angelic messengers or directly working without a human preacher. This were indeed to deny the value of His death, and of that newness of life we have in Him risen, and a return to bondage of the worst description. Paul's answer is: "Israel's disbelief was only to be expected, for, long ago, Isaiah was moved to say in despair: 'Lord, who has believed what we have heard?'" Paul is attempting neither to quote Moses nor to interpret Moses. He has been telling them truths which were difficult for them to hear and bear. What were the principles of it? Now it is clear that that obedience could be given only by a man who was desperately in earnest about his religion. Now there is a tremendous failure some place of getting the message out.For how can they call on Him who they don't believe in? Article Images Copyright 2023 Getty Images unless otherwise indicated. It was a message that went out from God to sinners as such. "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: 9 If you declare with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.. It is not meant that Paul knew nothing of this; but that the ground of inference, and the general theory built up, are alike mistaken. Now, when you call upon the name of the Lord, God doesn't go down the list and say, "Let's see. He lays down such a summary as no Jew ever gave since they were a nation. We have the tenour of it, Romans 10:9; Romans 10:10, the sum of the gospel, which is plain and easy enough. why am I still under bondage and misery from the constant evil of my nature, over which I seem to have no power whatever? In the same way the apostle disposes of all pretence on the score of ordinances, especially circumcision. There is satisfaction; but the work of Christ goes a great deal farther. StudyLght.org. 3. The judgments of God will fall on man as man, but the heaviest blows are reserved for Christendom. The whole work is done. Take the Sabbath law. Our website uses cookies to store user preferences. or who hath first liven to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? Go to Jesus for everything. The facts were so well known by the preaching of the apostles, that they might be said to be in every mans mouth. - BN. The believer, therefore, unwittingly though really, dishonours the Saviour, if he be content to walk short of this standard and power; he is entitled and called to walk according to his place, and in the confidence of his deliverance in Christ Jesus before God. Unbelief is a non-submission to the righteousness of God, standing it out against the gospel proclamation of indemnity. It was all a matter of law and achievement. I appeared plainly to those who did not enquire after me." Rather does it add to his guilt: such is man's evil state and will. Brethren, my hearts desire and prayer to God for Israel: Paul again feels compelled to relate his heart regarding his fellow Jews. 5 Things You Should Know about the ESV Bible Translation. But this is the very thing that has happened, as it stands written: "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news of good things. The truth is not difficult to be understood and embraced. The ground taken by a Jew for supposing God exclusively for Israel was, that they had the law, which was the measure of what God claimed from man; and this the Gentile had not. You know what Cardinal Bellarmine said: he was a great antagonist of Luther, and thought that we might trust in our works; but, looking it all over, he admitted that inasmuch as no man could be quite sure that he had done enough good works, it was perhaps best on the whole and safest to trust altogether to the blood and merits of Jesus Christ. In stormy weather our beauty and glory soon turn pale; when the devil meets us face to face, he cracks up our tinsel perfection with a blow. Compare Romans 10:14; Romans 10:14. What is nigh us may be easily obtained. In thy heart - The word heart is very variously used in the sacred Scriptures. They already possessed them, and talked and thought about them: so that there was no need of going to distant places to learn them. The gospel is called the Word of faith, the Word of God, as being what was spoken, or communicated by God to man. Christ is come down from heaven; we need not go to fetch him. Love is the great debt that we owe, which never can be paid, but which we should always be paying. We believe everything which the Lord Jesus has taught, but we must go a step further, and trust him. "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,"[ a] that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: 9 If you declare with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. This, accordingly, is the essential spring of worship. Christ is thus the end of the law for righteousness, that is, for justification; but it is only to every one that believeth. (that is, to bring Christ down:) 7 or, Who shall descend into the abyss? You cannot believe in him unless you hear about him. $150.00 + $30 . These things are matters of conscience, and depend much for their solution on the degree to which souls have attained. No, he directed the comfort to his dear wife, for she had greater need of it than he had his faith was firm. (2.) Obedience was possible and the consequences of obedience (Gods blessings) were sure. i. Pauls hearts desire also translated into concrete action: prayer to God for Israel. It is here that you will find a great failure of Christendom as to this. That is not Christ's way. ( Romans 10:14-15 ). The hope of salvation by works is black despair; yet we have a set of men on the face of the earth who are always wanting us to preach up this hopeless hope, and urging us to lay this heavy burden upon the shoulders of dying men. The sacrifices, and offerings, and purifications appointed under the Old Testament, prefigured Christ, and pointed at him; and their inability to take away sin discovered the necessity of a sacrifice that should, by being once offered, take away sin. No wonder, if souls confound the two things together, that they never know deliverance in practice. IV. He observes Sabbath; he loves God. Their sound has gone out to all the earth: This quotation from Psalm 19:4 proves that the word of the gospel went forth and Israel heard it. First Moses says: I will provoke you to jealousy by those who are not a nation, It was a very great thing, especially, when the profession of Christ or Christianity hazarded estate, honour, preferment, liberty, life, and all that is dear in this world, which was the case in the primitive times. Do not leave that out. This, he says, was his heart's desire and prayer, which intimates, (1.) The Gentiles did not seem to him to be in the same position as the Jews at all. Romans 16:1-27; Romans 16:1-27 brings before us in the most. There never was an hour since Israel's existence as a nation that God has not had His remnant of them. He speaks of the sovereignty of God having elected that it might stand by election. God, therefore, having not the least hindrance to the manifestation of what He can be and is in merciful intervention on behalf of the worst of sinners, manifests it is His righteousness "by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe" (ver. If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved: We do not gain Gods righteousness by works. Paul ably demonstrated in the first several chapters of Romans how futile this is. Compare verse 6 (where the margin, not the text, is substantially correct) with verse 4. There would be found a stumblingstone there. Jesus wept over Jerusalem. Therefore I cast about me, and I considered what subject he would wish me to preach from if he were sitting behind me this morning as he was last Lord's-day. The believer, whosoever he might be, should not be ashamed. So Paul concludes his argument by citing two Old Testament texts to prove his case. We have Paul informing us that he transfers sometimes in a figure to himself that which was in no wise necessarily his own experience, and perhaps had not been so at any time. ( Romans Commentary) Paul's main point is the ready availability of Good News. They did not understand, and believe, and consider, the strict justice of God, in hating and punishing sin, and demanding satisfaction, did not consider what need we have of a righteousness wherein to appear before him; if they had, they would never have stood out against the gospel offer, nor expected justification by their own works, as if they could satisfy God's justice. Then the apostle introduces the ground, certainty, and character of God's judgment (verses 4-16). (James 2:10-11). But I say, did Israel not know? They ought to have known better: they had every chance to know better; but they rejected the appeal of God. Grace in the soul is its new nature; the soul is alive to God, and has begun its holy happiness which shall endure for ever. Chapter Summary Paul's heart is broken for his people, Israel. There are several texts from which it may be gathered that believers shall not be put to shame. (Spurgeon). The stumbling-stone was their despised and rejected Messiah. He cared nothing for oratory, which I have heard him call "a flash in the pan"; he delighted in the plain, solid gospel of Jesus Christ. God sought by His work among the Gentiles the pouring out of His grace and love and blessings, to provoke the jealousy of the Jew, so that the Jew will seek after God through Jesus Christ. Help me to believe, Lord." 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romans 10:8 17 commentary
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