WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.000 Today we're continuing our study on Sunday mornings in Paul's letter to the Romans. 00:00:05.000 --> 00:00:09.000 And we've come to chapter 11, which is what we're going to focus on today. 00:00:09.000 --> 00:00:14.000 And just to focus our minds, we can read again, verses 25 to 27. 00:00:14.000 --> 00:00:19.000 Lest you be wise in your sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers. 00:00:19.000 --> 00:00:24.000 A partial hardening has come upon Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. 00:00:24.000 --> 00:00:28.000 And in this way, all Israel will be saved as it is written. 00:00:28.000 --> 00:00:30.000 The deliverer will come from Zion. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:33.000 He will banish ungodliness from Jacob. 00:00:33.000 --> 00:00:39.000 And this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins. 00:00:39.000 --> 00:00:44.000 The last two or three weeks here, we've been looking at Romans chapters 9, 10 and 11, 00:00:44.000 --> 00:00:50.000 which in many ways are a very significant and in some ways unique section, 00:00:50.000 --> 00:00:54.000 not just of the letter to the Romans, but also the whole of the New Testament, 00:00:54.000 --> 00:01:00.000 because it's focusing very much on the whole question of the Jewish people, the Israelites. 00:01:00.000 --> 00:01:05.000 And that actually ties in with the great theme of the letter to the Romans. 00:01:05.000 --> 00:01:09.000 This letter, which Paul, one of the early Christians, Christian leaders, 00:01:09.000 --> 00:01:13.000 wrote to a congregation that was being formed in the Empire's capital of Rome, 00:01:13.000 --> 00:01:16.000 is focusing really on one big theme. 00:01:16.000 --> 00:01:20.000 And that's the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ. 00:01:20.000 --> 00:01:24.000 Paul's explaining how Christianity works. 00:01:24.000 --> 00:01:26.000 And back at the beginning, he said, 00:01:26.000 --> 00:01:30.000 I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation 00:01:30.000 --> 00:01:38.000 to everyone who believes to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 00:01:38.000 --> 00:01:42.000 And Paul, in this letter and in other letters, is emphasizing the wonderful point 00:01:42.000 --> 00:01:47.000 that whether you are a Jew or whether you are a non-Jew, a Greek or a Gentile, 00:01:47.000 --> 00:01:51.000 and you see that word Gentile, it just means someone who's not a Jew. 00:01:51.000 --> 00:01:56.000 If you're a Jew or a non-Jew, it makes no difference. 00:01:56.000 --> 00:02:02.000 Salvation is found in the good news of Jesus Christ. 00:02:02.000 --> 00:02:08.000 But the experience of the early church raised a situation that was potentially hard 00:02:08.000 --> 00:02:10.000 for people to understand. 00:02:10.000 --> 00:02:14.000 So when we're reading this letter, we have to think back to the context of the early church 00:02:14.000 --> 00:02:20.000 in just these very early decades after Jesus died and rose again. 00:02:20.000 --> 00:02:25.000 If you think about that situation, you have this Christian message 00:02:25.000 --> 00:02:30.000 that has emerged from the heartland and heritage of Judaism. 00:02:30.000 --> 00:02:34.000 So Jesus himself lived the life of a Jew in many ways. 00:02:34.000 --> 00:02:38.000 He went to the synagogue, he went to the temple. 00:02:38.000 --> 00:02:41.000 His message and the message of the followers that he had 00:02:41.000 --> 00:02:45.000 were grounded in the Jewish scriptures of the Old Testament. 00:02:45.000 --> 00:02:50.000 And all the key events of Jesus' life took place in Jewish territory, 00:02:50.000 --> 00:02:54.000 particularly around the city of Jerusalem. 00:02:54.000 --> 00:02:58.000 So at first glance, it's all really Jewish. 00:02:58.000 --> 00:03:03.000 But as the early church began to proclaim its message, 00:03:03.000 --> 00:03:10.000 by far the majority of people who were converted were non-Jews. 00:03:10.000 --> 00:03:16.000 In other words, the Jews were rejecting the gospel, 00:03:16.000 --> 00:03:23.000 while at the same time, many, many non-Jews were responding to this message 00:03:23.000 --> 00:03:26.000 and were trusting in Jesus and following him. 00:03:26.000 --> 00:03:29.000 And for many people at this time, they must have thought, 00:03:29.000 --> 00:03:32.000 what's going on? 00:03:32.000 --> 00:03:38.000 And this is the issue that Paul is addressing in chapters 9, 10 and 11. 00:03:38.000 --> 00:03:41.000 Chapter 9 and 10 make two really important points. 00:03:41.000 --> 00:03:45.000 One is personal for Paul and one is theological. 00:03:45.000 --> 00:03:51.000 The personal point that he makes is that he himself longs for his fellow Jews to be saved. 00:03:51.000 --> 00:03:56.000 Paul himself was a Jew, a very, very committed Jew before his conversion, 00:03:56.000 --> 00:04:00.000 but his primary role now is actually to reach non-Jews. 00:04:00.000 --> 00:04:07.000 He's called an apostle to the Gentiles, someone who's been sent to the people of other nations. 00:04:07.000 --> 00:04:10.000 But even though his work is primarily among non-Jews, 00:04:10.000 --> 00:04:15.000 he's still got this burning passion to see his kinsmen, 00:04:15.000 --> 00:04:18.000 his fellow Israelites coming to faith in Jesus. 00:04:18.000 --> 00:04:21.000 So that's the personal point that's really prominent in these chapters. 00:04:21.000 --> 00:04:28.000 The theological point that he wants to also emphasize is the fact that this situation now facing the Jews 00:04:28.000 --> 00:04:32.000 is not a failure on God's part. 00:04:32.000 --> 00:04:34.000 And that was an easy accusation to make. 00:04:34.000 --> 00:04:37.000 You could say, well, God had all this heritage with all these people 00:04:37.000 --> 00:04:39.000 and everything seemed to be pointing and coming together for the Jews. 00:04:39.000 --> 00:04:45.000 And then all of a sudden it's not working and you think, God, what have you done? 00:04:45.000 --> 00:04:47.000 And it's easy to blame God. 00:04:47.000 --> 00:04:50.000 Paul is saying, no, this is not a failure on God's part. 00:04:50.000 --> 00:04:57.000 And we looked at this a wee bit last week and saw that Israel repeatedly tried to approach God in the wrong way 00:04:57.000 --> 00:04:59.000 and on the wrong terms. 00:04:59.000 --> 00:05:06.000 And tragically, they actually pushed away the grace that God was showing to them. 00:05:06.000 --> 00:05:09.000 And it's powerfully summed up in the last verse of chapter 10, 00:05:09.000 --> 00:05:12.000 where Paul writes, of Israel, God says, 00:05:12.000 --> 00:05:21.000 all day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people. 00:05:21.000 --> 00:05:24.000 And that raises another question. 00:05:24.000 --> 00:05:29.000 So you would read to the end of chapter 10 and you'd think, well, okay, 00:05:29.000 --> 00:05:36.000 the Jews seem to be rejecting Jesus and the non-Jews seem to be accepting Jesus. 00:05:36.000 --> 00:05:42.000 So the question that probably logically should arise in our heads is, 00:05:42.000 --> 00:05:46.000 has God given up on the Jews? 00:05:46.000 --> 00:05:50.000 And Paul is wonderful at anticipating a question 00:05:50.000 --> 00:05:53.000 because the very first thing he says in chapter 11 is, 00:05:53.000 --> 00:05:56.000 I ask then, has God rejected his people? 00:05:56.000 --> 00:05:59.000 And the answer is absolutely clear. 00:05:59.000 --> 00:06:08.000 He says, no way by no means has God given up on the Jews. 00:06:08.000 --> 00:06:18.000 And then in the rest of the chapter, Paul explains how the good news of Jesus Christ is still good news for the Jews. 00:06:18.000 --> 00:06:30.000 So I want us just to look together at this chapter and see how Paul's argument fits together. 00:06:30.000 --> 00:06:34.000 This chapter is simultaneously simple and complicated. 00:06:34.000 --> 00:06:38.000 God made it simple, but we humans have made it complicated 00:06:38.000 --> 00:06:42.000 because the actual argument of the chapter is fairly straightforward, 00:06:42.000 --> 00:06:46.000 but there's a lot of different opinions as to what everything means. 00:06:46.000 --> 00:06:51.000 But let's just dive in and have a go and see where this takes us. 00:06:51.000 --> 00:06:56.000 So first of all, let's just summarize so we know exactly that we understand what Romans 11 is saying 00:06:56.000 --> 00:07:00.000 because as we read it, it's one of these chapters where it's easy to get a wee bit lost 00:07:00.000 --> 00:07:03.000 and to be a wee bit unsure what's going on. 00:07:03.000 --> 00:07:07.000 So let's just go through very simply and very briefly. 00:07:07.000 --> 00:07:09.000 As we said, Paul starts with a question. 00:07:09.000 --> 00:07:11.000 He says, has God rejected his people? 00:07:11.000 --> 00:07:13.000 He says, no, he absolutely has not. 00:07:13.000 --> 00:07:16.000 Then he gives evidence to back up the claim. 00:07:16.000 --> 00:07:20.000 So he says, I'm evidence that God hasn't abandoned the Jews. 00:07:20.000 --> 00:07:23.000 I was a Jew and I have come to faith. 00:07:23.000 --> 00:07:27.000 Then he goes back to the Old Testament and he uses the example of Elijah. 00:07:27.000 --> 00:07:29.000 Elijah was a prophet in the Old Testament. 00:07:29.000 --> 00:07:34.000 He spoke on behalf of God, but he did so at a time when on the face of it, 00:07:34.000 --> 00:07:37.000 it looked like everybody was rejecting God. 00:07:37.000 --> 00:07:41.000 And Elijah himself thought, I'm the only one left. 00:07:41.000 --> 00:07:48.000 And God said, no, no, there's still 7000 who have not turned away from me. 00:07:48.000 --> 00:07:53.000 And a couple to that is this big word that Paul uses, the word remnant, 00:07:53.000 --> 00:07:57.000 which is a really important Old Testament word, 00:07:57.000 --> 00:08:04.000 highlighting the fact that even though often the majority of people in Israel abandoned God, 00:08:04.000 --> 00:08:11.000 there was always a faithful core, a remnant whom God maintained. 00:08:11.000 --> 00:08:19.000 But for many, the Israelites rejected God and as a result, God hardened their hearts. 00:08:19.000 --> 00:08:23.000 And the privileges that they had, and this is a really solemn point, 00:08:23.000 --> 00:08:30.000 the privileges that they had actually became a stumbling block. 00:08:30.000 --> 00:08:41.000 And it's as though they just pushed God away and the division just became deeper and deeper and deeper. 00:08:41.000 --> 00:08:46.000 Paul then says, well, okay, is God's objective just for these Israelites to fall away? 00:08:46.000 --> 00:08:50.000 Is that his plan? Does he just want it to be an end of story for the Israelites? 00:08:50.000 --> 00:08:52.000 He says, no, absolutely not. 00:08:52.000 --> 00:08:54.000 He says, in fact, God was working it for good. 00:08:54.000 --> 00:09:01.000 And then in verses 11 to 15, he sets out what's been called quite often a chain of blessing. 00:09:01.000 --> 00:09:06.000 And I'm just going to read the verses and have this idea of a chain of blessing from one to another, 00:09:06.000 --> 00:09:08.000 from Jew to Gentile, Gentile to Jew. 00:09:08.000 --> 00:09:11.000 So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? 00:09:11.000 --> 00:09:16.000 By no means, rather, through their trespass, salvation has come to the Gentiles. 00:09:16.000 --> 00:09:18.000 So a blessing came to the Gentiles. 00:09:18.000 --> 00:09:20.000 So as to make Israel jealous. 00:09:20.000 --> 00:09:24.000 Now, if their trespass means riches for the world and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, 00:09:24.000 --> 00:09:27.000 how much more will their full inclusion mean? 00:09:27.000 --> 00:09:32.000 Now, speaking to you Gentiles, inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, 00:09:32.000 --> 00:09:38.000 I magnify my ministry in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous and thus save some of them. 00:09:38.000 --> 00:09:47.000 For if their rejection means reconciliation from the world, what then will their acceptance mean but life from the dead? 00:09:47.000 --> 00:09:50.000 What's that saying? Well, basically what Paul is saying there, 00:09:50.000 --> 00:09:55.000 he's saying that the Jews' hardness and rejection actually led to a blessing to the Gentiles. 00:09:55.000 --> 00:10:00.000 So they rejected it, but that meant that good came to the Gentiles. 00:10:00.000 --> 00:10:07.000 As good comes to the Gentiles, the Israelites see that and want it and they're drawn to it as well. 00:10:07.000 --> 00:10:12.000 And then their inclusion becomes an even greater blessing because more and more and more and more people 00:10:12.000 --> 00:10:17.000 will see the transformation that God's salvation brings in people's lives. 00:10:17.000 --> 00:10:22.000 There's this great chain of blessing from Jew to Gentile to Jew to Gentile, 00:10:22.000 --> 00:10:29.000 all benefiting from the way that God is working out his purposes of salvation. 00:10:29.000 --> 00:10:32.000 Then Paul moves on to an image of an olive tree. 00:10:32.000 --> 00:10:38.000 You remember Israel was reading all about an olive tree, about branches broken off, grafted in. 00:10:38.000 --> 00:10:45.000 And the great point of that picture is to emphasize the unity of Jew and Gentile in Jesus Christ. 00:10:45.000 --> 00:10:51.000 So the natural branches, the Jews, it was as though they were cut off because they rejected God. 00:10:51.000 --> 00:10:56.000 And the wild branches, the non-Jews, were stuck in, grafted in. 00:10:56.000 --> 00:11:00.000 But Paul is saying there's still room for the natural branches to return. 00:11:00.000 --> 00:11:04.000 In fact, that's where they belong. That's where they should come. 00:11:04.000 --> 00:11:10.000 And it's all building up to the key point of the passage, which is that God has not permanently cut off 00:11:10.000 --> 00:11:12.000 and abandoned the Jewish people. 00:11:12.000 --> 00:11:21.000 The gospel is the power of God for salvation to Jew and Greek together. 00:11:21.000 --> 00:11:24.000 And he sums it all up towards the end when he says, 00:11:24.000 --> 00:11:32.000 even though Israel had rejected God, his great purpose is that all Israel will be saved, 00:11:32.000 --> 00:11:35.000 as Paul says there in verse 26. 00:11:35.000 --> 00:11:37.000 So let's just recap very quickly. 00:11:37.000 --> 00:11:41.000 Here's the summary of the chapter. It's there before you. 00:11:41.000 --> 00:11:43.000 Has God rejected his people? No. 00:11:43.000 --> 00:11:45.000 And he gives evidence as to why that's not the case. 00:11:45.000 --> 00:11:50.000 Then talks about a chain of blessing, going from Jew to Gentile, to Jew to Gentile. 00:11:50.000 --> 00:11:57.000 That blessing culminates in the fact that Jew and non-Jew, Jew and Gentile, are now combined as one tree. 00:11:57.000 --> 00:12:05.000 He uses that image of a tree, one body, and the goal is that all Israel will be saved. 00:12:05.000 --> 00:12:07.000 Simple? 00:12:07.000 --> 00:12:10.000 Yeah. 00:12:10.000 --> 00:12:14.000 That's nice and clear. 00:12:14.000 --> 00:12:25.000 The challenge arises from the fact that there's different views, lots of different views about these various steps. 00:12:25.000 --> 00:12:30.000 And sometimes it's really tempting for me when I'm preaching, you prepare a sermon, 00:12:30.000 --> 00:12:33.000 and you think, okay, I'm just not going to talk about all the different views. 00:12:33.000 --> 00:12:37.000 But I think that's me taking the easy option, really. 00:12:37.000 --> 00:12:41.000 I think it's actually far better to set before you the fact that there are different views, 00:12:41.000 --> 00:12:45.000 because I want you to think as well, and to think these things through. 00:12:45.000 --> 00:12:54.000 And I really want to emphasize that different views are held by people who are absolutely rock solid in terms of their theology. 00:12:54.000 --> 00:13:03.000 So people whom we share really close convictions with, on whom we agree with all the fundamental points of Christian theology, 00:13:03.000 --> 00:13:06.000 they'll have different views. 00:13:06.000 --> 00:13:10.000 So in studying for Romans, two of the best common threes I've been using. 00:13:10.000 --> 00:13:17.000 One is by John Stott, and one is by a man called Stuart Oliot, who you may not have heard of, 00:13:17.000 --> 00:13:26.000 two brilliant common threes, two really solid biblical, evangelical, reformed Christians. 00:13:26.000 --> 00:13:29.000 They've got different opinions. 00:13:29.000 --> 00:13:35.000 So you read one, and you think, oh great, and you read the other one, and you're like, oh. 00:13:35.000 --> 00:13:38.000 So there's difference of opinions. 00:13:38.000 --> 00:13:43.000 There's four key questions that arise related to these points here. 00:13:43.000 --> 00:13:47.000 The first question is, you look at that question, has God rejected his people? 00:13:47.000 --> 00:13:49.000 And verse one mentions his people. 00:13:49.000 --> 00:13:53.000 The question is, who are his people? 00:13:53.000 --> 00:13:54.000 Okay? 00:13:54.000 --> 00:13:56.000 Question. 00:13:56.000 --> 00:14:02.000 This chain of blessing that we're talking about, Jew, Gentile, Jew, Gentile, how does that work? 00:14:02.000 --> 00:14:06.000 Is it something that runs in like a linear line? 00:14:06.000 --> 00:14:07.000 Okay? 00:14:07.000 --> 00:14:12.000 So a period for Jews, a period for Gentiles, a period for Jews, a period for Gentiles. 00:14:12.000 --> 00:14:15.000 One long line running across history? 00:14:15.000 --> 00:14:18.000 Or is it something that's continuously happening? 00:14:18.000 --> 00:14:22.000 Blessing from Jew to Gentile to Jew to Gentile, Jew to Gentile, again and again and again. 00:14:22.000 --> 00:14:24.000 That's the other question. 00:14:24.000 --> 00:14:32.000 Third question, are Jews and Gentiles to be kept distinct in God's plan? 00:14:32.000 --> 00:14:33.000 Okay? 00:14:33.000 --> 00:14:38.000 So are there certain things that apply to the Jews, and certain things that apply to the Gentiles? 00:14:38.000 --> 00:14:43.000 And then last of all, who is all Israel? 00:14:43.000 --> 00:14:44.000 Okay? 00:14:44.000 --> 00:14:47.000 Verse 26 says, all Israel, who is that? 00:14:47.000 --> 00:14:49.000 These are the questions we have to ask. 00:14:49.000 --> 00:14:57.000 And I thought just to try and make it simple, I would just summarize different views, okay? 00:14:57.000 --> 00:15:00.000 Now, I find this kind of thing really interesting. 00:15:00.000 --> 00:15:02.000 Maybe some people don't, but I think this is really interesting. 00:15:02.000 --> 00:15:07.000 And I hope that you do too, because it is fascinating to look at the differences of opinion. 00:15:07.000 --> 00:15:10.000 So question one, who are His people? 00:15:10.000 --> 00:15:13.000 Some will say the nation of Israel, okay? 00:15:13.000 --> 00:15:16.000 But some will say the elect within Israel. 00:15:16.000 --> 00:15:21.000 So you've got option one there that says it's the nation of Israel. 00:15:21.000 --> 00:15:26.000 There's a linear chain of blessing running across history, okay? 00:15:26.000 --> 00:15:30.000 So this chapter is talking about from the past to the future. 00:15:30.000 --> 00:15:38.000 Jews and Gentiles are to be kept distinct, and all Israel is the nation of Israel. 00:15:38.000 --> 00:15:39.000 That's one view. 00:15:39.000 --> 00:15:42.000 Option two, a bit similar, but a bit different. 00:15:42.000 --> 00:15:46.000 Yes, it's the nation of Israel, yes, it's linear, but they are not to be kept separate, 00:15:46.000 --> 00:15:53.000 and all Israel is a great number of Jews who will come to faith at some point in the future. 00:15:53.000 --> 00:15:59.000 Other option three will say that it's the elect within Israel. 00:15:59.000 --> 00:16:03.000 Not the whole nation, but just God's chosen people, that remnant. 00:16:03.000 --> 00:16:05.000 The chain of blessing is continuous. 00:16:05.000 --> 00:16:09.000 So it's not so much looking to the future, it's just talking about how things happen again and again. 00:16:09.000 --> 00:16:16.000 Jews and Gentiles should not be kept separate, and all Israel is referring to the church. 00:16:16.000 --> 00:16:17.000 That's a quick summary. 00:16:17.000 --> 00:16:21.000 I'll go through these in a little bit more detail, because I think it's, I hope that'll be helpful. 00:16:21.000 --> 00:16:26.000 Option one takes quite a literal approach to the passage. 00:16:26.000 --> 00:16:31.000 So reads Romans 11 and takes everything really quite literally, and will say, 00:16:31.000 --> 00:16:35.000 every reference to Israel is a reference to the nation of Israel. 00:16:35.000 --> 00:16:43.000 And that has led in the last 70 or so years to a big enthusiasm about what is the modern state of Israel. 00:16:43.000 --> 00:16:52.000 So people holding to option one will say that the formation of modern Israel in 1948 is a big moment in God's plan. 00:16:52.000 --> 00:16:55.000 That's what they would say. 00:16:55.000 --> 00:17:07.000 And this approach, option one, in many ways it takes a view of history that puts different periods into very clearly defined blocks. 00:17:07.000 --> 00:17:12.000 So there's like one block here, which is when God created the world. 00:17:12.000 --> 00:17:15.000 There's another block here, which is the Old Testament. 00:17:15.000 --> 00:17:18.000 There's another block here, which is when Jesus was on earth. 00:17:18.000 --> 00:17:22.000 There's another block here, which is when the Gospel is going to the Gentiles. 00:17:22.000 --> 00:17:30.000 And there's another block here when, again, the nation of Israel will have a big prominent place in God's plan. 00:17:30.000 --> 00:17:37.000 So these blocks are kept very distinct and very separate from each other. 00:17:37.000 --> 00:17:45.000 And that chain of blessing is a chronological step from one block to the next block to the next block. 00:17:45.000 --> 00:17:51.000 And within that, Israel and the church are kept very separate. 00:17:51.000 --> 00:17:58.000 So there's certain promises for the church in this block and there's certain promises for Israel in this block. 00:17:58.000 --> 00:18:02.000 So everything's kept very, very distinct. 00:18:02.000 --> 00:18:06.000 And all Israel refers to the nation of Israel. 00:18:06.000 --> 00:18:15.000 Now, these blocks, the technical word for these blocks is dispensations. 00:18:15.000 --> 00:18:19.000 And so this whole view is often called dispensationalism. 00:18:19.000 --> 00:18:25.000 I was hoping that blocky theology might take off as a term. 00:18:25.000 --> 00:18:28.000 But it says it's just blocks, these blocks. 00:18:28.000 --> 00:18:30.000 So that's one view. 00:18:30.000 --> 00:18:36.000 Option two does not take that same blocky approach, but it still holds to a linear view of history. 00:18:36.000 --> 00:18:44.000 And that chain of blessing still has a particular blessing for ethnic Israel. 00:18:44.000 --> 00:18:50.000 The key difference there is in the third line between option one and option two, the Jews and Gentiles no longer remain separate. 00:18:50.000 --> 00:18:52.000 They are brought together. 00:18:52.000 --> 00:18:56.000 And in the future, there'll be this great in-gathering of Jews. 00:18:56.000 --> 00:19:01.000 And so to them, the current nation of Israel is still important, but not as important. 00:19:01.000 --> 00:19:05.000 Option three is in a wee bit different again. 00:19:05.000 --> 00:19:11.000 And it strongly emphasizes the unity of Jew and Gentile and God's purposes. 00:19:11.000 --> 00:19:20.000 But instead of looking at this linear chain of blessing, it says it's more just a continuous thing that goes on and on and on and on. 00:19:20.000 --> 00:19:22.000 And you might think to yourself, well, that's a bit strange. 00:19:22.000 --> 00:19:23.000 You can't think that. 00:19:23.000 --> 00:19:32.000 But if you think about it, there's logic behind it, because when Paul talks about God not giving up on Israel, 00:19:32.000 --> 00:19:39.000 he uses himself as an example, which implies that this is something that's already happening. 00:19:39.000 --> 00:19:45.000 It's not necessarily something that's entirely based in the future. 00:19:45.000 --> 00:19:51.000 And according to this view, all Israel is referring to the church. 00:19:51.000 --> 00:20:00.000 And that's the view that the true Israel is the people of God made up of Jew and Gentile. 00:20:00.000 --> 00:20:09.000 And according to option three, that true political nation of Israel today is not of any greater significance than any other nation. 00:20:09.000 --> 00:20:12.000 And so you can see how divergent you can end up with. 00:20:12.000 --> 00:20:18.000 You can have option one where the nation of Israel is like really, really important in God's purposes. 00:20:18.000 --> 00:20:26.000 And then you can have option three, which says, well, actually it's not any more significant than any other nation at all. 00:20:26.000 --> 00:20:29.000 And lots of different opinions exist. 00:20:29.000 --> 00:20:34.000 I would love to take a survey of a show of hands to see which ones you are. 00:20:34.000 --> 00:20:38.000 Difficult to say who is right. 00:20:38.000 --> 00:20:40.000 I'll just be completely honest with you. 00:20:40.000 --> 00:20:46.000 I would not agree with option one. 00:20:46.000 --> 00:20:53.000 I would struggle to accept that clear kind of breach between Israel and the church, 00:20:53.000 --> 00:20:58.000 because I think that one of the big emphasis of the New Testament is the unity. 00:20:58.000 --> 00:21:01.000 Option two is very strong. 00:21:01.000 --> 00:21:08.000 Lots of people who are far wiser than me hold to option two. 00:21:08.000 --> 00:21:16.000 But I think if you really pushed me, I would just nudge into option three. 00:21:16.000 --> 00:21:29.000 And the reason why I would do that is because I think we can easily be confused by the word Israel. 00:21:29.000 --> 00:21:33.000 And when we hear the word Israel, we tend to think of a nation, don't we? 00:21:33.000 --> 00:21:42.000 But when you read the Bible, I think the primary emphasis on the word Israel is not so much on nation, but on family. 00:21:42.000 --> 00:21:47.000 Because that's what the nation of Israel was, although it was as big as a nation, it was still a family. 00:21:47.000 --> 00:21:49.000 They had common ancestry. 00:21:49.000 --> 00:21:53.000 They were organised according to their family relations. 00:21:53.000 --> 00:22:05.000 And I think the great message of the New Testament is that everybody, everybody is being called into that family as God's children. 00:22:05.000 --> 00:22:23.000 And so I do think that there's actually a danger of actually lowering our expectations of what God's saying. 00:22:23.000 --> 00:22:27.000 Because we could say, wouldn't it be amazing if a huge number of Jews came to faith? 00:22:27.000 --> 00:22:28.000 That would be brilliant. 00:22:28.000 --> 00:22:29.000 That would be absolutely brilliant. 00:22:29.000 --> 00:22:39.000 But even more amazing would be if Jews, Gentiles, people from every nation came to faith in great numbers. 00:22:39.000 --> 00:22:42.000 God's plans aren't just for the nation of Israel. 00:22:42.000 --> 00:22:44.000 They are way bigger than that. 00:22:44.000 --> 00:22:46.000 They're for everyone. 00:22:46.000 --> 00:22:49.000 Everybody is being called into God's family. 00:22:49.000 --> 00:22:57.000 The Gospel is amazing news for the Jews and it's amazing news for the Gentiles. 00:22:57.000 --> 00:23:05.000 But if the Apostle Paul came in here today and he said option two is right, then I would be very happy to be with him. 00:23:05.000 --> 00:23:07.000 But this is something to think about. 00:23:07.000 --> 00:23:13.000 And I wanted to mention all that because if you're ever reading about Romans, or even if you're reading blogs or books or whatever, 00:23:13.000 --> 00:23:15.000 you'll hear about all of this kind of thing. 00:23:15.000 --> 00:23:18.000 You'll hear people with strong views about the nation of Israel. 00:23:18.000 --> 00:23:22.000 You'll hear people talking about future events that may or may not take place. 00:23:22.000 --> 00:23:24.000 And this is where a lot of it comes from. 00:23:24.000 --> 00:23:30.000 And I just want you to be aware that there's differences of opinion in regard to it all. 00:23:30.000 --> 00:23:34.000 But you might well be asking Thomas, what is the relevance of any of this? 00:23:34.000 --> 00:23:39.000 Because it seems a wee bit detached from life today. 00:23:39.000 --> 00:23:43.000 Well, I think it is actually really, really helpful for us to look at that. 00:23:43.000 --> 00:23:48.000 There's actually loads of lessons for us to learn from this passage. 00:23:48.000 --> 00:23:54.000 And I think first of all, this chapter actually teaches us really helpful lessons about reading the Bible. 00:23:54.000 --> 00:23:57.000 Because we tell you all to read your Bible. 00:23:57.000 --> 00:23:59.000 You must read your Bible. 00:23:59.000 --> 00:24:01.000 It's a great thing to do. 00:24:01.000 --> 00:24:06.000 But probably people like me are guilty of not actually telling you how to read your Bible or giving you advice to help you. 00:24:06.000 --> 00:24:14.000 And this passage and this whole issue that's been raised here gives us important practical lessons for reading the Bible. 00:24:14.000 --> 00:24:16.000 And I want to just highlight three. 00:24:16.000 --> 00:24:21.000 Number one, when you read a passage from the Bible, it's hard to understand. 00:24:21.000 --> 00:24:26.000 Always, always remember that it's okay to ask questions. 00:24:26.000 --> 00:24:29.000 It's so easy to think, I shouldn't ask any questions. 00:24:29.000 --> 00:24:31.000 It's going to make me sound stupid. 00:24:31.000 --> 00:24:37.000 So often we can be in a group, a Bible study, a church setting, and think everybody else gets this and I don't. 00:24:37.000 --> 00:24:40.000 And I can't really ask because I better not do that. 00:24:40.000 --> 00:24:42.000 It's so easy to just keep quiet. 00:24:42.000 --> 00:24:45.000 But please, please, please don't ever, ever, ever feel like that. 00:24:45.000 --> 00:24:48.000 Asking questions is a brilliant thing to do. 00:24:48.000 --> 00:24:55.000 Remember, when Jesus Christ was 12 years old, his parents left him behind in Jerusalem. 00:24:55.000 --> 00:24:57.000 And they found him again at the temple. 00:24:57.000 --> 00:25:01.000 And what was he doing at that temple? 00:25:01.000 --> 00:25:05.000 He was asking people questions. 00:25:05.000 --> 00:25:08.000 And so never forget that it's really good to ask questions. 00:25:08.000 --> 00:25:10.000 Never be afraid to do that. 00:25:10.000 --> 00:25:14.000 You can ask an elder, you can ask me, you can ask Derek, you can ask the women in the congregation. 00:25:14.000 --> 00:25:17.000 You can go and look things up in a good Bible commentary. 00:25:17.000 --> 00:25:19.000 It's always good to ask questions. 00:25:19.000 --> 00:25:23.000 And if you are the one who's asked the question, so if someone comes and asks you a question, 00:25:23.000 --> 00:25:26.000 I want you to remember two important things. 00:25:26.000 --> 00:25:30.000 First of all, never, ever make someone feel silly for asking a question. 00:25:30.000 --> 00:25:33.000 That's a really important thing. 00:25:33.000 --> 00:25:41.000 Also, I want you to remember that it's okay to say, I don't know, or I'm not sure. 00:25:41.000 --> 00:25:45.000 Often we're really afraid of that, but it's absolutely fine. 00:25:45.000 --> 00:25:47.000 Please, please remember you can say that. 00:25:47.000 --> 00:25:48.000 I don't know, I'm not sure. 00:25:48.000 --> 00:25:53.000 Always remember, at the heart of discipleship is learning. 00:25:53.000 --> 00:25:55.000 We're all learning together. 00:25:55.000 --> 00:25:59.000 And it's really good to ask questions. 00:25:59.000 --> 00:26:05.000 Secondly, I want you to remember for your Bible reading and for your own growth in the faith, 00:26:05.000 --> 00:26:11.000 that there are times when people who agree on the fundamental truths of Christianity 00:26:11.000 --> 00:26:15.000 will have different opinions on some of the details. 00:26:15.000 --> 00:26:18.000 And that's a clear example here. 00:26:18.000 --> 00:26:24.000 People in all of these options would absolutely hold to the core teachings of the Bible, 00:26:24.000 --> 00:26:27.000 and yet they've got different views in this area. 00:26:27.000 --> 00:26:32.000 It's really important that we listen to each other, that we respect one another, 00:26:32.000 --> 00:26:38.000 and that we make sure we never, ever, ever let these things cause division among us. 00:26:38.000 --> 00:26:44.000 Falling out with somebody over a difference of opinion is absolutely tragic. 00:26:44.000 --> 00:26:48.000 And it's absolutely crazy. 00:26:48.000 --> 00:26:58.000 And if you ever fall out with a fellow Christian over an opinion or over an issue, 00:26:58.000 --> 00:27:02.000 you have to ask yourself a question, you have to ask yourself this. 00:27:02.000 --> 00:27:11.000 Can I prove from the New Testament that the unity of God's family is less important to God 00:27:11.000 --> 00:27:17.000 than this issue that we are falling out over? 00:27:17.000 --> 00:27:27.000 And you will find that there are very, very few circumstances where the answer to that question is yes. 00:27:27.000 --> 00:27:38.000 And thirdly, we need to make sure that we don't impose our personal prejudices on our reading of the Bible. 00:27:38.000 --> 00:27:42.000 And I do think that that's maybe something that's at risk here. 00:27:42.000 --> 00:27:48.000 It could be that our own personal political convictions, whatever they may be, 00:27:48.000 --> 00:27:52.000 could shape the way we read Romans 11. 00:27:52.000 --> 00:27:55.000 And that's something that we have to be careful of. 00:27:55.000 --> 00:28:00.000 We respect these opinions, people are absolutely entitled to whatever political opinion they hold. 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:02.000 And we're not in any way questioning that. 00:28:02.000 --> 00:28:07.000 But we need to be careful that our personal interests don't shape the way we read the Bible. 00:28:07.000 --> 00:28:10.000 I can give you a very silly example from my own life. 00:28:10.000 --> 00:28:16.000 I've always had a very strong sympathy towards the disciple Thomas, 00:28:16.000 --> 00:28:20.000 because he's got the same name as me. 00:28:20.000 --> 00:28:27.000 And so whenever I read about Thomas in the Bible, I'm on his side, which seems so silly. 00:28:27.000 --> 00:28:33.000 And that's probably fine most of the time, but it could shape the way I read the passage. 00:28:33.000 --> 00:28:40.000 And it could lead me to misunderstand the passage, because my preferences shape the way I read. 00:28:40.000 --> 00:28:41.000 And we have to think about that. 00:28:41.000 --> 00:28:46.000 Some people are hugely passionate about women's rights. 00:28:46.000 --> 00:28:48.000 Some people are very pro-monarchy. 00:28:48.000 --> 00:28:51.000 Some people are very anti-monarchy or anti-establishment. 00:28:51.000 --> 00:28:55.000 Some people tend to really look at things in terms of class divisions. 00:28:55.000 --> 00:28:59.000 Some people don't like the kind of technical language that Paul often uses. 00:28:59.000 --> 00:29:03.000 All of these opinions are absolutely fine, but we have to be very, very careful 00:29:03.000 --> 00:29:08.000 of the fact that these can shape the way we read the Bible. 00:29:08.000 --> 00:29:11.000 And the key point is this. 00:29:11.000 --> 00:29:19.000 Our prejudices must not shape what we read in the Bible. 00:29:19.000 --> 00:29:22.000 The truth is actually the other way around. 00:29:22.000 --> 00:29:31.000 What we read in the Bible should shape our prejudices. 00:29:31.000 --> 00:29:38.000 So what prejudices should we have from Romans chapter 11? 00:29:38.000 --> 00:29:43.000 Well, whatever your interpretation is, whatever your view on whether you're one, two or three, 00:29:43.000 --> 00:29:45.000 it doesn't really matter. 00:29:45.000 --> 00:29:53.000 I think there's four things that we must take from this passage, and there's going to be one minute on each of them. 00:29:53.000 --> 00:30:01.000 First of all, we need to have a deep passion for the lost. 00:30:01.000 --> 00:30:10.000 And that's one of the core things that are clear from Romans 9, 10, 11, that Paul has a huge burden for people who are lost. 00:30:10.000 --> 00:30:14.000 He has this burning desire that people would be saved. 00:30:14.000 --> 00:30:21.000 And I look at myself and I think, I wish I was more like that. 00:30:21.000 --> 00:30:30.000 And all too often, I am numb to the lostness of the people around me. 00:30:30.000 --> 00:30:36.000 And all too often, we are bothered by things that we see in other people's lives. 00:30:36.000 --> 00:30:39.000 And that's a sort of prejudice we have that I have. 00:30:39.000 --> 00:30:41.000 So we see things in people's lives and it bothers us. 00:30:41.000 --> 00:30:44.000 It bothers us the political views that people have. 00:30:44.000 --> 00:30:46.000 It bothers us the way people behave. 00:30:46.000 --> 00:30:48.000 It bothers us what football team they support. 00:30:48.000 --> 00:30:50.000 It bothers us the way they conduct themselves at work. 00:30:50.000 --> 00:30:53.000 There's loads of things that bother us about people. 00:30:53.000 --> 00:31:02.000 The thing that should bother us most about the people you see this week is the fact that they're lost. 00:31:02.000 --> 00:31:10.000 That should be a core prejudice that shapes everything that we do. 00:31:10.000 --> 00:31:14.000 We must have that compassion for the lost. 00:31:14.000 --> 00:31:23.000 Or two, we must have an absolute uncompromising loyalty to the unity of God's people. 00:31:23.000 --> 00:31:28.000 And the image that Paul uses of the olive tree is brilliant 00:31:28.000 --> 00:31:33.000 because it tells you whether you're a natural branch, a Jew, or a wild branch, a non-Jew, 00:31:33.000 --> 00:31:38.000 we all belong together as one in Jesus Christ. 00:31:38.000 --> 00:31:40.000 That's why Paul says in this chapter, 00:31:40.000 --> 00:31:46.000 there should never be any boasting between Christians and there should never be any jealousy between Christians. 00:31:46.000 --> 00:31:48.000 And yet that's so easy, isn't it? 00:31:48.000 --> 00:31:52.000 It's so easy for us to look down on Christians who muck up. 00:31:52.000 --> 00:31:57.000 And it's so easy for us to feel resentment towards the Christians who do well. 00:31:57.000 --> 00:32:00.000 We can be boastful, we can be jealous. 00:32:00.000 --> 00:32:08.000 And yet all of that is complete theological nonsense because none of us are anything but for the grace of God. 00:32:08.000 --> 00:32:16.000 And whether things go wrong or things go well, we should just stick together because we belong together. 00:32:16.000 --> 00:32:25.000 And if I am focusing on somebody else to the point where I feel superior to them because of their failings, 00:32:25.000 --> 00:32:31.000 or whether I am focusing on a person and I feel resentment towards them because they seem to be doing well, 00:32:31.000 --> 00:32:34.000 well, there's one thing that's certain. 00:32:34.000 --> 00:32:42.000 If I'm focusing on that person or that person, I've stopped focusing on Jesus. 00:32:42.000 --> 00:32:51.000 But if we keep our focus on Jesus, all of us together, then that will help us to maintain our unity as God's people. 00:32:51.000 --> 00:32:56.000 We want to just focus on who he is, on what he has done, on what he has taught us. 00:32:56.000 --> 00:33:05.000 We want this unflinching loyalty towards the unity of the church, the unity of God's people. 00:33:05.000 --> 00:33:11.000 Our third prejudice should be longing to be a blessing to others. 00:33:11.000 --> 00:33:13.000 That's one of the great themes of this chapter. 00:33:13.000 --> 00:33:19.000 The people who come to faith in Jesus, whether they're Jews or Gentiles, they are a blessing to others. 00:33:19.000 --> 00:33:22.000 And Paul speaks about something really interesting in this verse. 00:33:22.000 --> 00:33:30.000 There's a sense in which the conversions of the Gentiles makes the Jews envious. 00:33:30.000 --> 00:33:35.000 And we cannot sort of automatically think, well, that doesn't sound so good because we think of envious as a bad thing. 00:33:35.000 --> 00:33:45.000 But there is a sense in which we want our lives as Christians to make the world around us envious. 00:33:45.000 --> 00:33:51.000 Not in a boastful sense on our part, but in the sense that you wanted to be the case that the people you come into contact this week, 00:33:51.000 --> 00:33:58.000 you want these people to look at your life and say, they have got something that I wish I had. 00:33:58.000 --> 00:34:01.000 That's the kind of impression that we want to make on people. 00:34:01.000 --> 00:34:07.000 So we want this deep passion for the lost and unflinching loyalty to the unity of God's people, 00:34:07.000 --> 00:34:12.000 longing to be a blessing for others, and finally, and perhaps above all, 00:34:12.000 --> 00:34:18.000 a constant awareness of our dependence on grace. 00:34:18.000 --> 00:34:24.000 Because at the heart of what Paul is saying in Romans 9, 10, 11, which is the same theme that's running through the whole of the letter 00:34:24.000 --> 00:34:33.000 and the whole of Scripture is the fact that we are all completely dependent on the grace of God. 00:34:33.000 --> 00:34:39.000 Now, maybe in the future, there will be a prominent place for the nation of Israel. 00:34:39.000 --> 00:34:42.000 Maybe there will be a big in gathering of the Jews, 00:34:42.000 --> 00:34:47.000 or maybe it will be just a steady chain of continuous blessing between Jew and Gentile. 00:34:47.000 --> 00:34:51.000 I don't know for certain, but one thing we do know, 00:34:51.000 --> 00:35:03.000 every single person who becomes a follower of Jesus Christ does so because of the incredible grace and mercy of God. 00:35:03.000 --> 00:35:09.000 And I think that's something that's really lying at the heart of what this chapter says. 00:35:09.000 --> 00:35:14.000 It's easy to look at a chapter like this and to think, who's got the advantage? 00:35:14.000 --> 00:35:19.000 So some people will say, well, the Jews have the advantage. They've got all this stuff and all these blessings. 00:35:19.000 --> 00:35:24.000 Other people will say, well, the Gentiles have the advantage. They're the ones who are more important. 00:35:24.000 --> 00:35:28.000 So we kind of think, well, Jews are a wee bit more important. They've got this. Gentiles, they've got that. 00:35:28.000 --> 00:35:33.000 And we're kind of competing as to who's got the better status before God. 00:35:33.000 --> 00:35:36.000 We can do that ourselves. We can think, well, I've got this heritage that makes me special. 00:35:36.000 --> 00:35:39.000 I've done this, or I've done that, or I've not done this. I've done that. 00:35:39.000 --> 00:35:48.000 The truth is, every single person comes to God with nothing. 00:35:48.000 --> 00:35:58.000 And yet God, in his amazing love, will give you everything that you need. 00:35:58.000 --> 00:36:15.000 And so that's what matters more than anything else, to come to God and just totally throw yourself onto his grace, his mercy, his compassion. 00:36:15.000 --> 00:36:19.000 We come to him, we say, Lord, we're sorry for all the wrong things that we've done. 00:36:19.000 --> 00:36:27.000 But because of who you are, because of what Jesus has done, I pray that you'd save me. 00:36:27.000 --> 00:36:39.000 That's what the Jews need to do. That's what the Gentiles need to do. That's what you need to do. Amen. 00:36:39.000 --> 00:36:46.000 God our Father, we thank you for your word. And it's got so much to teach us and so much for us to learn from. 00:36:46.000 --> 00:36:57.000 And we acknowledge that there are times and passages where we can't be completely sure which interpretation is the best. 00:36:57.000 --> 00:37:07.000 But we pray that we would always just be ready to be taught, ready to learn, and that you would guide us and teach us. 00:37:07.000 --> 00:37:22.000 And we want to pray for the Jewish people, a people who have suffered enormously, a people who have been blessed in many, many ways. 00:37:22.000 --> 00:37:26.000 But in the midst of all of these things, their greatest need is for Jesus. 00:37:26.000 --> 00:37:31.000 And so we pray that you'd be at work among that people. 00:37:31.000 --> 00:37:48.000 And for all of us, most of us here, probably all of us who are non-Jews, who are Gentiles, we thank you, that you have kept your promise to bring blessing and salvation to all nations. 00:37:48.000 --> 00:38:05.000 Help us to continue to spread that message. Amen.