I.        INTRODUCTION

A.      In the first eight chapters of the book of Romans, much of what Paul had written was pertaining to the Jews and the influence of Judaism within the church.

B.      In the next three chapters (9-11), Paul directly addressed the Jews’ rejection of Christ.

II.      PAUL’S SORROW

A.      Paul expressed his desperate concern for his fellow Jews (Rom. 9:1-3).

                                                             1.      Perhaps Paul offered these words because he anticipated someone interpreting his teachings in this letter to be harsh and prejudicial against the Jews.

                                                             2.      In fact, Paul was so deeply grieved for the Jews that he said, “I could wish that I myself were accursed (anathema), separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren…”

a.       By no means was Paul wishing to be separated from Christ, but rather he was expressing how he would sacrifice himself if he could save his fellow Jews.

b.       He said “I could wish” this, knowing that such a wish was impossible, for his separation from Christ would not save them.  (In this is a lesson for those who decide not to obey the gospel because they do not want to condemn their unbelieving family members.)

B.      Paul described the Jews as recipients of all the advantages of being God’s people (Rom. 9:4-5).

                                                             1.      Paul acknowledged all of the privileges upon which the Jews prided themselves, and he also mentioned that it was through the Jews that the Christ had come.

                                                             2.      The sad truth is that none of these things were sufficient to save the Jews.  For the most part, they had rejected the only thing that could save them, which was faith in Christ Jesus.

III.   GOD’S PURPOSE

A.      If all of Israel was lost, then God’s word had failed.  This was not the case (Rom. 9:6-8).

                                                             1.      It was a fact that the fleshly nation of Israel had rejected Christ, but God did not define Israel in terms of fleshly descent.  God’s nation, His Israel, was spiritual in nature (1Pet. 2:9-10).

                                                             2.      To demonstrate that God’s choices are not strictly according to fleshly descent, it is pointed out that not all of Abraham’s descendents were children of God.  Rather, it was only those who descended through Isaac, the son of promise.

B.      In truth, the children of God are according to God’s promise and not according to flesh (Rom. 9:9-13).

                                                             1.      Isaac was not the only son born to Abraham, but he was the child that God had promised through Sarah.  This was by God’s choice and not man’s choice.

                                                             2.      Likewise, Jacob was chosen by God above Esau.  This was in order to serve God’s purpose.

                                                             3.      Fleshly descent from Abraham did not entitle Ishmael, and fleshly descent from Isaac did not entitle Esau.  It was God’s choice, rather than fleshly descent, that mattered.

C.      This is not unjust by God, for He has the sovereign right to rule as He pleases (Rom. 9:14-18).

                                                             1.      By virtue of being the Creator and Sustainer of all things, God may rule as He sees fit.

                                                             2.      Compassion and mercy are given by the will of God, not of man.

a.       Consider verse 16 in light of the example of Isaac, who willed that Esau should have the blessing, but it was God’s purpose for Jacob to have it (Gen. 27).

b.       Consider the example of Pharaoh, whom God hardened after he had hardened himself (Ex. 7:13-14, 22; 8:15, 32; 9:7, 12) to accomplish His purpose of demonstrating His power.

D.      Paul anticipated how someone would object to this truth, saying, “Why does He still find fault?  For who resists His will?” (Rom. 9:19-21).

                                                             1.      The irony of the question is that it answers itself by that which it argues.  God finds fault with those who do resist His will, for they have that ability.  The point that Paul taught is that God’s purpose will be accomplished whether or not men choose to comply with Him.

                                                             2.      The point of the potter and clay analogy is in the fact that the potter, God, makes different vessels from the same lump of clay according to His purposes.

a.       The material (clay) represents people.  From the Jews (one lump of clay), God chose some persons for salvation and some for destruction.  The same is true of the Gentiles.

b.       This is not at all to say that He predestined individuals to be saved or lost against their own will and ability to choose to obey Him.  However, God knew what His purpose was, and those who conform to His purpose were made for salvation.

c.        This takes away the argument of those who want to blame God for their own disobedience.  They cannot blame God, saying, “Why did you make me like this?”, for they are as they choose to be.

E.       What God has done is not unjust, but instead it reveals the riches of His glory and mercy (Rom. 9:22-24).

                                                             1.      God has every right to destroy sinners the instant they sin against Him.  However, He shows much patience and longsuffering as He endures “vessels of wrath prepared for destruction.”

                                                             2.      The reason for God’s patience is so that “He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy.”

                                                             3.      The meaning of this is that God has delayed His judgment upon all sinners in order to give those who will repent the opportunity to repent and be saved through Christ.

a.       Paul had already established in this letter that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23) and that “the wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23).

b.       Therefore, “vessels of wrath prepared for destruction” does not refer to all sinners, for not all will be destroyed.  It refers only to those who refuse to repent.

c.        The “vessels of mercy” are those sinners who obtain mercy from God through Christ, whether they are Jews or Gentiles.

d.       Peter gave a divine commentary on Paul’s writings regarding God’s patience in 2Peter 3:14-16, saying, “Regard the patience of our Lord to be salvation.”

F.       These things had previously been indicated through the prophets (Rom. 9:25-29).

                                                             1.      Verses 25-26 are quotations from Hosea 1:10 and 2:23, and they indicate that it was God’s plan long before the preaching of Paul to include Gentiles among His people and His children.

                                                             2.      Verse 27 is quoted from Isaiah 10:22 where God had revealed that not all of fleshly Israel would be saved, but only a remnant.

                                                             3.      Echoing the thought of verse 6 (“But it is not as though the word of God has failed…”), verse 28 indicates that God’s word will be executed thoroughly and quickly.

a.       These passages from the Old Testament prove that God was doing exactly what He had said He was going to do.

b.       The problem was that the Jews in their blind bias had neglected what God’s word revealed and had presumed their own version of God’s kingdom and salvation contrary to God’s word.

                                                             4.      Verse 29 is a quotation from Isaiah 1:9, showing how it was by God’s mercy that Israel even had a remnant to survive.

IV.    RIGHTEOUSNESS BY FAITH

A.      The Gentiles had achieved righteousness through faith in Christ Jesus, but the Jews had failed to achieve righteousness through works (Rom. 9:30-32).

                                                             1.      In the first chapter, Paul described the depravity of the Gentiles, but now he had declared how they had become righteous through faith in Christ Jesus.

                                                             2.      At the same time, Paul had also declared that the Jews had failed to become righteous even though they were pursuing a law of righteousness.

                                                             3.      The difference between the Jews and the Gentiles was in how they pursued righteousness.

a.       As shown in chapter 7, righteousness through the works of the Law was unobtainable because of the weakness of the flesh and the failure to keep the Law perfectly.

b.       However, righteousness through faith in Christ was possible.  Just as in Abraham, a Christian may believe God, and God reckons it to him as righteousness (Rom. 4).

B.      This is why Christ had become a stumbling stone for the Jews (Rom. 9:33).

                                                             1.      The quote in verse 33 is taken from Isaiah 28:16, and it is also quoted in 1Peter 2:8 in reference to Christ.

                                                             2.      Christ caused the Jews to stumble because He lay in their path as they pursued righteousness by works.  In Him, they learned that they could only obtain the righteousness of God through the gospel of Christ (Rom. 1:16-17), which they refused to obey.

V.      CONCLUSION

A.      In this chapter, we saw that Paul declared how it was God’s purpose to select His people from the Jews and the Gentiles according to His own will.

B.      In the next chapter, we will see how the Jews rejected God’s purpose for them.