In our studies of Romans 9:6-13 we have not been in a hurry and are endeavoring to come away with both a proper interpretation and proper application of the text. Since there is much disagreement and much confusion over this text, it is our responsibility before God and to men to know what it is talking about and give its proper interpretation. While this is true of the whole Bible it is especially true in those difficult places that cause men to stumble. The gospel of salvation by grace alone is a stumbling stone to many and Paul ended Romans 9 saying exactly that – “Just as it is written, ‘Behold, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, and he who believes in Him will not be disappointed’” (Romans 9:33).
At the heart of the controversy over the interpretation of Romans 9 is whether or not election is conditional or unconditional and whether or not it is national or individual. Election or “elect” is a word that means to choose or select. So when we speak of the elect of God we are speaking of the chosen of God or those whom He has selected. Since it is true that God chooses and selects, a truth forever established by His choosing of Jacob over Esau in order to bring the Christ into the world and fulfill His covenant with Abraham, then the question becomes on what basis did God make His decision? The answer to this question will determine whether or not election is conditional or unconditional and whether or not election is national or individual.
We have already established that God is sovereign in election. This truth is wonderfully illustrated in the words of our Lord Jesus Christ where He said, “No one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father” (John 6:65). So no man in and of himself has the heart to desire or the will to decide to come to Jesus apart from God’s sovereign election and supernatural education. This means that salvation is completely by grace based on the sovereign choice of God to have mercy on whom He will have mercy (Romans 9:15-16).
We have also already established the truth that God’s sovereignty in election means that election is unconditional and not conditional proving forever that salvation is by grace. In other words election isn’t based on anything or any cause within the man but is based solely on God’s good pleasure for the purpose of glorifying His grace (Romans 9:11, 18; Ephesians 1:5, 8-9, 11).
Remember that the Jews made the error of believing that election was conditional and that God based His choice of them on their physical ancestry from Abraham and their personal ability to obey the Law. If this were true then it would mean that all Jews and only Jews could and would be saved. Do you remember that the Jews had a problem with the truth that God would save men who were Gentiles? They also had a problem with the truth that God would condemn Jews who met the “conditions” of physical descent from Abraham and personal merit through the Law. This is why they thought God’s Word had failed (Romans 9:6).
The apostle Paul used the Old Testament Scriptures to prove that election is unconditional and that salvation is therefore by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. He showed how God chose Isaac over Ishmael unconditionally and how He chose Jacob over Esau unconditionally (Romans 9:7-13). This was to show that physical descent from Abraham didn’t guarantee or merit salvation and that physical descent from Isaac didn’t guarantee or merit salvation so that the proper and biblical conclusion would be that physical descent from Jacob (Israel) didn’t guarantee or merit salvation. Election unto salvation is unconditional – it cannot be earned or merited.
There are many who stumble over the doctrine of unconditional election which proves that salvation is by grace. So instead of honestly dealing with the text they teach that this passage isn’t dealing with individual election unto salvation but national election unto service. The problem with this interpretation is that it doesn’t deal with the truth that Isaac was saved and Ishmael wasn’t and that Jacob was saved and Esau wasn’t. It also doesn’t deal with the truth that Paul is explicitly speaking of election unto salvation even from among Gentiles (Romans 9:24). Paul wasn’t proving unconditional election unto service but unconditional election unto salvation which is precisely why the Jews thought that Paul was preaching against the people and against the Law for preaching the gospel of salvation by grace (Romans 2:17; Acts 21:27-28).
That this passage is speaking of individual election and not national election is made abundantly clear from Romans 9:6 – “For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel.” So the next time you run into someone who believes that election is national and not individual ask him why all Jews aren’t saved. If he says that election is unto service and not salvation ask him why Paul was willing to be separated from Christ and why Paul spoke of those who were the children of God and those who weren’t - from among the nation (Romans 9:3, 7-8).
Make no mistake about it, if Romans 9 is teaching national election whether it be unto salvation or unto service then it would mean that all Israel would either be saved or all Israel would serve and that anyone outside of the nation Israel couldn’t be saved or couldn’t serve. But Romans 9 is clearly teaching individual election unto salvation and that not on the basis of physical descent or personal merit. Election unto salvation is unconditional (not based on anything deserving in the man) and individual based on God’s sovereign and gracious choice. Salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.
Do you have a problem with God granting you salvation apart from any cause within you that would cause Him to grant it to you or do you rejoice that God is willing to save undeserving sinners based solely on His grace and sovereign choice? If you have a problem with God saving undeserving sinners according to His gracious choice then you have a problem with salvation being by grace and not by merit.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Monday, July 12, 2010
Unconditional Election Proves Salvation by Grace (Romans 9:6-13)
In Romans 9:1-5 the apostle Paul expressed his great sorrow over the lost condition of his fellow Israelites through their stubborn refusal to acknowledge and believe that salvation is by grace and not by physical descent or personal merit. The Jews wrongly relied upon their physical descent from Abraham (Romans 2:17) and their ability to personally merit God’s favor through the Law (Romans 2:17). This belief came from an improper interpretation of God’s Word which gave the Israelites a false assurance of salvation based on unreliable and unbiblical indicators.
If we will keep in mind that Paul’s letter to the Romans is the Holy Spirit inspired explanation of the Gospel of grace which was not only a defense that the Gospel is biblical but also a destruction of the speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, then we will better understand what is being revealed to us. Paul was accused of preaching against the Jews and against God’s Law (Acts 21:27-28) for preaching the truth of salvation by grace. This ran counter to everything the Jews had been taught by their apostate leaders and everything they believed God’s Word taught. If the Gospel of grace was true then the Jews reasoned that the Word of God had failed and that God’s promises were no good.
However, God’s Word had not failed and a proper interpretation of it showed God to be true and those who rejected the Gospel of grace as the ones that failed. Let me remind you that Paul had already proven that salvation was by grace through the life of Abraham in Romans 4:1-25. Paul proved that Abraham was justified by grace through faith and not by works in Romans 4:1-8. Paul proved that Abraham was justified by grace through faith and not circumcision in Romans 4:9-12. Paul proved that Abraham was justified by grace through faith and not the Law in Romans 4:13-17. And Paul proved that Abraham was justified by grace through faith in God’s ability in light of his own inability in Romans 4:17-25. So for the Jews to reject the God’s Gospel of grace they had to reject the means by which Abraham himself was justified.
The doctrine of unconditional election proves that salvation is by grace through faith and not of physical descent (Romans 9:6-9) or personal merit (Romans 9:10-13). Grace is not for the proud but for the humble for it is written, “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6). If you add any one of these false notions of physical descent or personal merit to the Gospel of grace then you have a false gospel. This was the overall failure of the Jews – they pursued salvation as though it were a privilege based on their physical descent and personal merit rather than by faith (Romans 9:30-32).
The Jews were wrongly relying upon false notions of salvation by physical descent and personal merit (conditional election) because of their improper interpretation of God’s Word. It was these false notions or ideas of salvation that the prophets, apostles, and the Lord Jesus had to do battle with in their day and which cost most of them their lives. Let’s establish this truth from Scripture.
Salvation is not by physical descent (Romans 9:6-9) – proven by John the Baptist, the Lord Jesus Christ, and here in our text by the apostle Paul.
John the Baptist dealt with this erroneous belief in Matthew 3:7-10 and Luke 3:8 where he told the Sadducees and Pharisees that they were a brood of vipers and that they were not to rely upon their physical descent from Abraham – “And do not suppose that you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father’; for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham” (Matthew 3:9).
The Lord Jesus Christ dealt with the erroneous belief that election unto salvation is based on physical descent in Luke 16:19-31 when He told the story of the rich man and Lazarus. In the story the rich man was a Pharisee who died and went to hell. This was unthinkable to the Jews and especially to the Pharisees. In the story we see that this rich Pharisee spoke to father Abraham and yet was in hell. This truth forever destroys the false notion that election unto salvation is based on physical descent.
The Lord Jesus Christ also dealt with this erroneous belief in a more direct manner in John 8:33-56. In this account the Jews brought up their physical descent from Abraham to whom the Lord replied that He knew that they were physical descendants of Abraham but that they were not spiritual descendants of Abraham – they wanted to kill Jesus and Abraham never did that but instead rejoiced to see Jesus’ day.
Salvation is not by personal merit (Romans 9:10-13). In Matthew 15:1-14 the Pharisees and scribes chided the Lord and His disciples for breaking the tradition of the elders in regard to the washing of hands. They thought that they were keeping the commandments of God when in reality they were unable to ever accomplish such a feat – a truth that the Lord brought out in that text. The final analysis was that the Pharisees and scribes were blind guides of the blind and both they and their followers would fall into the pit of hell.
In Matthew 19:16-22 the Lord dealt with the rich young ruler who wrongly thought that salvation was based on personal merit. He actually thought that he was able to keep the commandments and that he should be able to earn God’s favor.
In Matthew 23 the Lord pronounced woes on the Pharisees and scribes for their erroneous belief that salvation was by personal merit.
In John 8:33-56 the Lord crushed the false notion of salvation being by personal merit by showing man’s enslavement to sin. All of this illustrates that unconditional election proves that salvation is by grace and grace alone.
Those that rely upon anything other than the unmerited mercy of God for salvation will not be saved (see Luke 18:9-14). God gives grace to the humble!
If we will keep in mind that Paul’s letter to the Romans is the Holy Spirit inspired explanation of the Gospel of grace which was not only a defense that the Gospel is biblical but also a destruction of the speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, then we will better understand what is being revealed to us. Paul was accused of preaching against the Jews and against God’s Law (Acts 21:27-28) for preaching the truth of salvation by grace. This ran counter to everything the Jews had been taught by their apostate leaders and everything they believed God’s Word taught. If the Gospel of grace was true then the Jews reasoned that the Word of God had failed and that God’s promises were no good.
However, God’s Word had not failed and a proper interpretation of it showed God to be true and those who rejected the Gospel of grace as the ones that failed. Let me remind you that Paul had already proven that salvation was by grace through the life of Abraham in Romans 4:1-25. Paul proved that Abraham was justified by grace through faith and not by works in Romans 4:1-8. Paul proved that Abraham was justified by grace through faith and not circumcision in Romans 4:9-12. Paul proved that Abraham was justified by grace through faith and not the Law in Romans 4:13-17. And Paul proved that Abraham was justified by grace through faith in God’s ability in light of his own inability in Romans 4:17-25. So for the Jews to reject the God’s Gospel of grace they had to reject the means by which Abraham himself was justified.
The doctrine of unconditional election proves that salvation is by grace through faith and not of physical descent (Romans 9:6-9) or personal merit (Romans 9:10-13). Grace is not for the proud but for the humble for it is written, “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6). If you add any one of these false notions of physical descent or personal merit to the Gospel of grace then you have a false gospel. This was the overall failure of the Jews – they pursued salvation as though it were a privilege based on their physical descent and personal merit rather than by faith (Romans 9:30-32).
The Jews were wrongly relying upon false notions of salvation by physical descent and personal merit (conditional election) because of their improper interpretation of God’s Word. It was these false notions or ideas of salvation that the prophets, apostles, and the Lord Jesus had to do battle with in their day and which cost most of them their lives. Let’s establish this truth from Scripture.
Salvation is not by physical descent (Romans 9:6-9) – proven by John the Baptist, the Lord Jesus Christ, and here in our text by the apostle Paul.
John the Baptist dealt with this erroneous belief in Matthew 3:7-10 and Luke 3:8 where he told the Sadducees and Pharisees that they were a brood of vipers and that they were not to rely upon their physical descent from Abraham – “And do not suppose that you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father’; for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham” (Matthew 3:9).
The Lord Jesus Christ dealt with the erroneous belief that election unto salvation is based on physical descent in Luke 16:19-31 when He told the story of the rich man and Lazarus. In the story the rich man was a Pharisee who died and went to hell. This was unthinkable to the Jews and especially to the Pharisees. In the story we see that this rich Pharisee spoke to father Abraham and yet was in hell. This truth forever destroys the false notion that election unto salvation is based on physical descent.
The Lord Jesus Christ also dealt with this erroneous belief in a more direct manner in John 8:33-56. In this account the Jews brought up their physical descent from Abraham to whom the Lord replied that He knew that they were physical descendants of Abraham but that they were not spiritual descendants of Abraham – they wanted to kill Jesus and Abraham never did that but instead rejoiced to see Jesus’ day.
Salvation is not by personal merit (Romans 9:10-13). In Matthew 15:1-14 the Pharisees and scribes chided the Lord and His disciples for breaking the tradition of the elders in regard to the washing of hands. They thought that they were keeping the commandments of God when in reality they were unable to ever accomplish such a feat – a truth that the Lord brought out in that text. The final analysis was that the Pharisees and scribes were blind guides of the blind and both they and their followers would fall into the pit of hell.
In Matthew 19:16-22 the Lord dealt with the rich young ruler who wrongly thought that salvation was based on personal merit. He actually thought that he was able to keep the commandments and that he should be able to earn God’s favor.
In Matthew 23 the Lord pronounced woes on the Pharisees and scribes for their erroneous belief that salvation was by personal merit.
In John 8:33-56 the Lord crushed the false notion of salvation being by personal merit by showing man’s enslavement to sin. All of this illustrates that unconditional election proves that salvation is by grace and grace alone.
Those that rely upon anything other than the unmerited mercy of God for salvation will not be saved (see Luke 18:9-14). God gives grace to the humble!
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