Oct 12, 2009
Romans 10: The Limits of Knowledge
Continuing my series of meditations on the book of Romans…
Paul continues to explain the mysteries of Jews and Gentiles being in Christ, the place of the Jewish people now that Jesus is the Messiah, and the nature of salvation in Christ. Instead of keeping the law, ascending to heaven, or descending to hell, God has made salvation within easy reach. It’s on our lips as a confession that Jesus is the risen Lord.
When comparing the marks of God’s covenant people now with the marks of God’s covenant people before Christ, Paul makes the nature of salvation simple to grasp: believing in one’s heart gives right standing before God. Confessing with one’s mouth brings about salvation.
This is God’s plan for all people now, and Paul wanted to emphasize its simplicity and access. This is something for the Romans to meditate on and to share. In fact, God has been moving in this direction for quite some time. Through a series of OT passages Paul proved that the Jewish rejection of their Messiah was foretold long ago.
The problem isn’t that messengers failed to go out or that God didn’t communicate with his people. The Jewish people looked for God, but with the wrong zeal and expectations, missing God’s real plan when it was revealed. In fact, the biblical proficiency of the Jewish people should give all followers of Jesus pause today. If they could miss God’s plan after essentially having the Bible memorized, there is more to being God’s people than study and knowledge.
The expectations of the Jewish people prevented them from accepting God’s salvation. Ironically, the people without knowledge or expectations received the Gospel message. God showed himself to them, hoping that this transfer of the Gospel to the Gentiles would call the Jews back. The people who should have been demonstrating God’s work among the Gentiles switched roles because of their unbelief.
There is a sadness in Paul’s words here. He sees the zeal and knowledge of his own people, and their tragic rejection of the Messiah. Nevertheless, he places his hope not in their knowledge, but in the power of the Gospel at work in the Gentiles—hoping the Jews will become jealous of God’s favor and turn back to God.
