Where is Paul heading in this section of Romans? I think we have to keep in mind that he has a very clear aim: doxology. He delves deeply into God’s sovereignty in salvation in chapter 9. Yet does not eliminate man’s responsibility to respond to the gospel, which we see in chapter 10. He brings it all together in chapter 11, particularly by showing the mercy of God toward the Jews. Yet his aim in all this is not so much to offer us a systematic theological view of election or salvation or divine calling or the place of the Jews in the divine economy. Rather he aims for the glory of God!
Notice the last paragraph in chapter 11. After investigating these weighty matters and considering salvation from varied angles, Paul explodes with doxology in tribute to the glory of God in every detail of salvation.
Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things To Him be the glory forever. Amen.
It appears that the apostle is dazzled by the thought that God would save sinners through the redemptive work of His own Son! Salvation does not come through personal works of righteousness or else God would never have sent His Son. Even the aim in the Law was to continually serve as a reminder of the need for God’s provision of righteousness outside of us. The Jews missed this—at least for the most part. They sought to establish their own righteousness and so “did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God” (10:3). And what is this righteousness of God? It is Christ! It is union with Him by the grace of God! “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes” (10:4). We’ve noticed that this verse is pivotal to the balance of chapter 10. I want you to see this through the way that Paul uses three little particles: for, but, that.
The first “for” explains the Jewish attempt at righteousness. Rather than submitting to God’s righteousness in Christ, the Jews thought that the practice of law-righteousness would suffice. But they failed to live up to that standard just as any of us would (10:5). “But the righteousness based on faith speaks as follows.” God’s righteousness in Christ contrasts with the failed attempt at man-generated righteousness. “But” signifies the contrast. Paul first explains what the righteousness based on faith is not. It is not our attempting to ascend to heaven to bring Christ down as a Redeemer—God has already sent Him. Nor is it our attempting to descend into the abyss to bring Christ up from the dead—God has already raised the Redeemer from the dead. So it is not man trying to redeem himself. Again, he resorts to the contrast with verse 5 in his explanation (v. 8): “But what does it say?” What does he mean? He means, what does the righteousness based on faith say in contrast to the kind of failed righteousness by the law? Now he comes to the clause that answers the question by using “that” to introduce it. “That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Here is the most staggering declaration! It is not my works of adhering to the law that saves; it’s not rituals or church attendance or baptism or penance or living in the Christian community that saves. Christ Jesus the Lord saves—and He does so as we confess Him as Lord and believe in Him in His redemptive work. Verse 10 simply explains in more detail verse 9 (note introduction by “for”). How can Romans 10:9 be true? How can you and I, be counted as righteous, by confessing Jesus as Lord and believing that God raised Him from the dead? Does it not seem phenomenal, virtually unbelievable? You mean to say that it is not what I do but what Christ has already done that saves? How can this be?
Count on the righteousness of Christ as your very own through faith in Him. Does that not seem impossible? Since it is so contrary to everything in human nature we often struggle with whether or not this gospel can be true. Paul responds by using the little word “for” to answer four questions that affirm the trustworthiness of the gospel invitation. How can it be that God could save us through faith in Christ? As we’ve done with the other two parts of our study of 10:5-13, I want to investigate this with four questions.
Have you ever wondered this? Have you thought about your sin and unworthiness, and then the thought lodged in your mind: will God really come through for me? Has my sin stepped outside the range of His mercy? Can the work of Christ truly cover my sin and apply righteousness to me?
To answer this question, Paul quotes from Isaiah 28:16. He’s already used this verse in chapter 9:33. It’s a Messianic declaration of the coming of Christ through the use of metaphorical language. He is called “a stone, a tested stone, a costly cornerstone…firmly placed.” Then Isaiah declares, “He who believes in it [not in original, so better, in Him] will not be disturbed.” In 9:33, Paul joins this passage with Isaiah 8:14 that speaks of the Messiah as “a stone to strike and a rock to stumble over.” While some will stumble over Jesus Christ through unbelief, others will believe in Him. None who believe in Him will be disappointed or ashamed! The fact that this can be translated as either “disappointed or ashamed” covers two distinct areas of concern about whether or not God will come through for those who confess Jesus as Lord.
(1) First, what causes shame? It is the consciousness of our sin or guilt. When we know that we have done something wrong we do not want others to know. We certainly wish to hide it from God! We see shame first unveiled in the Garden. After creating Adam and Eve, the point is made, “And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed” (Gen. 2:25). They had nothing to hide, no reason to cover, no consciousness of wronging or defrauding each other. Their nakedness pictured innocence. But what happened when they sinned against God? “Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings” (3:7). Immediately upon sinning, they realized that they were no longer innocent. Shame covered them so they tried to hide their shame by sewing fig leaves as coverings. When God came calling Adam admitted the reason he and Eve had hidden from Him: “I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself” (3:10). Shame drives us into hiding—shame over our sin and rebellion and disobedience motivates us to get away from the light that exposes us.
But what of those redeemed by Jesus Christ: do they still need to be ashamed? “Whoever believes in Him will not be ashamed” [alternate translation]. He has borne our shame away at the cross. We have no cause to shrink back from the presence of a holy God because the reason for our shame has been removed by the death of Christ for us.
(2) Our translation opts for “disappointed.” That conveys something happening outside of us that lets us down. So the question might be posed, “Will God let us down?” “Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.” He will not let us down! Here is a statement of assurance that, as believers in Christ, we will stand before God without shame or disappointment. We have no cause to wonder if He is dependable. We have the promise of the God who cannot lie giving us certainty in the gospel (Titus 1:2; Heb. 6:18). Jesus Christ never disappoints! [cf. J.M. Boice, Romans, vol. 3, 1223]
Perhaps you struggle over whether or not you are really included among the redeemed of the Lord. Maybe you’ve thought, “Does God not already have a chosen people? Do the Jews not live in His favor while we, as non-Jews, do not?” Or maybe you are one that has such a low view of yourself that you think that you are an exception to the promises of God. God can save others, you think, but I just don’t belong. Look at my life; look at my struggles with sin. Everyone is much better than me; they’re more religious, more faithful, more obedient, while I’m constantly failing.
Listen to Paul’s response: “For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek.” Why is that such an important statement? When we read the first two-thirds of the Bible we may get the idea that God is for the Jews alone! That’s precisely the problem that happened among many of the Jews of Paul’s day. They thought that they alone were in God’s favor. But what did the Apostle do in chapter 9, as well as earlier in chapters 2-3, to remedy that kind of thinking? He showed us that salvation has nothing to do with ethnicity, class, or heritage but rather with the mercy of God. “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion” (9:15). Here’s the reality: those factors outside your control do not prevent you from becoming a Christian. You do not determine what family you are part of or what race or what heritage. That is determined for you. But none of those things can keep you from God. He does not make “distinction between Jew and Greek.” Your nationality or heritage does not put you into a better position to receive God’s favor. Each is equally in need of mercy!
But what of our sins, sinful habits, evil decisions, bad attitudes, wicked thoughts, and sinful reactions? Do not those kinds of things put us into a “no-save zone”? Does God not make a distinction between people that are brought up to live in a right manner as opposed to those that are purely heathen? That’s just the point that Paul makes. “For there is no distinction!” The Jews were religious, moral, and ethical people. Not that all Greeks were immoral or irreligious or unethical but there were substantial numbers among them that fit that category to a “tee.” Just think of the crowds chanting, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians,” in Ephesus for two hours! They were expressing devotion to not only an idol but also to one that represented immorality at its worst. Her shrine housed prostitutes, and to worship her invited worshipers into an immoral snare. But out of that setting God was pleased to save a number of Ephesians! In Corinth it was even worse! They were fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, effeminate, homosexuals, thieves, coveters, drunkards, revilers, and swindlers (1 Cor. 6:9-10). But God made no distinction between the religious Jews and the pagan Corinthians. “Such were some of you,” Paul wrote, “but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God” (v. 11).
We’re the ones that make the distinction: God does not. Our own prejudices, guilt, and low view of God’s mercy might cause us to wonder if we could ever belong to the redeemed but realize that attitude of heart does not belong to God. He welcomes sinners of all stripes into the family of the redeemed!
Maybe He will run out of saving virtue when it comes to me. You know, I’m used to coming up on ‘the short end of the stick.’ I’m used to missing out, not being chosen, not being included, not being recognized. I’ve lived my life being left out of where I’d like to be. Maybe Jesus lacks enough righteousness to cover someone like me that seems to be on the losing side in everything.
If that is the case, what will you trust for righteousness? Can you work harder to make yourself good enough to stand before the God who sees and knows everything? Can you engage in enough religious activities to raise your level of behavior to accord with God’s law? Do others have something going for them that you do not? Do they have an edge on God’s favor because of their standing in society or their religious outlook or the things they’ve achieved?
Listen to this verse again. “For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek.” Begin by recognizing that God does not look at your heritage or achievement or race as the determining factor of redeeming you. Here’s yet another “for” that explains. “For the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him.” There’s not one Lord for the Jews and another for the Greeks; one for the goody-two-shoes religious person and another for the down-on-his-luck pagan. The same Lord, Jesus Christ—dying for sinners, rising from the dead, seated at the Father’s right hand—the same Lord abounds in redemptive riches for all those calling on Him!
Here is one of our great motivations for doing international missions. Jesus is Lord of all people groups throughout the globe. No spot on the face of the earth flies under the radar of His reign!
Will He run out of righteousness when it comes to you or to someone from an unchristian background? This Lord abounds “in riches for all who call on Him.” He’s not speaking of material possessions doled out to the faithful. The context does not allow that in the least. He’s speaking of the kinds of things that are “imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away,” (1 Pet. 1:4) where thieves and robbers cannot reach, and where moths and rust cannot ruin (Matt. 6:19-20). His riches are eternal and “abounding…for all who call on Him.” In other words, He does not barely save or redeem with nothing to spare. His saving work is heaped upon us! He is no spiritual miser, scrimping when it comes to our need. He lavishes forgiveness, reconciliation, cleansing, restoration, and spiritual fullness. The well never runs dry! The fountain never stops flowing. My friend, there is enough and more than enough in Christ Jesus to clothe you in righteousness, adopt you into God’s family, and one day, seat you at His table where you will feast forever!
I would venture that a few among us have some nagging worry over this matter of election. You believe the doctrine of election. You see it plainly taught in Scripture such as we saw in Romans 9. Yet you wonder if you are part of that number. Maybe God has elected others around you but not you; or at least you think so. So you fret over that. It is true, as Peter wrote, that we are to “be diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you” (2 Pet. 1:10). That certainty comes by recognizing the evidence of the witness of the Spirit and the character of Christ in our lives. Yet even so, we can sometime so scrutinize ourselves as to be overly introspective and harsh, expecting near perfection if we would claim any kind of assurance. We must realize that while we tread this world below we are still in the process of sanctification. Full sanctification will be reached only when we stand before Him and “see Him as He is” (1 John 3:1-3). Meanwhile, we must ultimately, rely on the promises of God in the gospel. Instead of finding the focus of assurance in ourselves we must see it in Christ and His faithfulness in all that God gave Him to do for our redemption.
Are you one of those that struggle over whether or not you are one of the elect? Ultimately, election is God’s business not ours. He has pulled back the curtain on that doctrine to help us with our assurance but He has not disclosed every detail of it. But He has given us a responsibility toward Him and the gospel. It is not to figure out who the elect are! Rather we are told to call upon the Lord and be saved. “For,” there’s that word again offering further explanation of how verse 9 can be true. “For whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
This is the same verse that Peter used at his Pentecost sermon (Acts 2:21). It is a quotation from Joel 2:32, promising that in spite of the impending Day of the Lord, the one calling on the Lord “will be delivered.” It is an Old Testament gospel invitation that now Peter and Paul apply to their hearers. It is an appropriate invitation for us to apply as well. “This is the universal gospel offer,” as Boice pointed out [1230]. Let’s consider it.
(1) “Whoever will call,” reminds us of the universality of the gospel. It is the same gospel for Jews and Greeks, rich and poor, educated and uneducated, privileged and underprivileged. The gospel levels the ground for all humanity. The gospel invitation levels the opportunity for all to avail themselves of God’s provisions in Christ. It is not those who know themselves to be elect can call upon the Lord but rather “whoever.”
(2) “For whoever will call on the name of the Lord,” tells us something about those who are doing the calling. Martyn Lloyd-Jones points our three realizations. First, “it means that they realise [sic] that they are in trouble.” They are in such a situation of life that they cannot lift themselves out of it. It’s like the man who is drowning. He struggles and knows that he will soon go under for the last time; he’s conscious of it but can do nothing to lift himself out of it. Second, “they realise that they are absolutely hopeless.” That’s why they cry out for help and relief. Pride no longer stands in the way. An independent spirit no longer hinders. Third, “they realise their complete helplessness; they have no reserves, nothing on which they can rely” [Romans: An Exposition of Chapter 10, 242-243]. Have you been there? Are you there right now: in trouble, hopeless, and helpless?
(3) “For whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Limitation is placed on the invitation. It does give us room to negotiate our own way to God or to come up with our own idea of what constitutes Christianity or the gospel. “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Nor are we told to call on the name of the Lord and do other things in order to be saved. It is only Jesus Christ that saves and that only by His redemptive work. No other religion will do. Nor will it do to simply embrace Christian religious practices. It is Christ alone that saves.
(4) “For whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.” What does it mean to call on Him? The same phrase is used in several ways in Scripture [following J.M. Boice, 1234-1235]. It is used of worship as when “men began to call upon the name of the Lord” in acts of worship (Gen. 4:26). It is used of prayer as when Elijah challenged the priests of Baal, “You call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord, and the God who answers by fire, He is God” (1 Kings 18:24). It is also used for praise as we see in the Psalms. “I shall lift up the cup of salvation and call upon the name of the Lord” (Psa. 116:13). In the New Testament, we see it used synonymously with believing or trusting in the Lord. Ananias, when conversing with the Lord over his mission to lay hands on Saul of Tarsus, used the phrase “all who call on Your name,” as a synonym for those trusting in Jesus (Acts 9:14). Paul uses similar language in 1 Corinthians 1:2.
So what does it mean to call on the name of the Lord? It means that your whole being is focused upon the only One who can save you from God’s wrath. You look at Him and at what He has done to provide you deliverance from sin and wrath. You call upon Him to save you. In that act of calling, you are worshiping, praying, praising, and most of all, trusting in Him. There’s no formula laid out for us or a particular prayer to pray, rather, we’re just given a promise that is sure: “whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Have you seen your hopelessness, helplessness, and realized your need of Jesus Christ to rescue you from the wrath to come? Then call on Him. You have His invitation to do so. And You have His promise to save. Believe His promise and call on Him.
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