Video Transcript: Did God Reject Israel?

As we studied the book of Romans, we're in a big section of it that is sometimes considered  not all that important. The important parts of Romans are the parts that show us sin and  God's way of salvation and justification by faith, and the work of the Holy Spirit. And then if  you fast forward past chapters 9, 10 and 11, you get to the practical aspects of Christian  living. But these questions about Israel and the Jews, what's the big deal about that we're not  Jews. So we need to learn from those portions of Romans that the Reformation really learned  from and we might not want to spend quite as much time on the chapters that interest us  less. Well, I hope in a few moments that you'll see some very important reasons for continuing to pay attention to these chapters of Romans. But we will go back to Wittenberg. Wittenberg  was the place where Martin Luther in 1517 nailed his 95 theses challenging various church  practices and beliefs. And Luther emphasized very strongly the importance of being saved by  faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and not by our own efforts. And we rightly remember that great  moment and what happened in Wittenberg, the Wittenberg church, long before Luther had a  sculpture on it. And this sculpture remained through the time of Luther, and for centuries after him, in fact, it's still there today. It's a sculpture that shows a pig with two people wearing hats that mark them as Jews, sucking the pig's tits with another Jew holding on to the ear of a little piglet, and a rabbi peering under the tail of the sow. This was to portray their idea of the  Jewish people, and of what they thought of the Jewish people. And they took as disgusting an  image as they could because they knew that Jews were not fond of pigs and of pork and  anything dealing with pigs. Luther saw what was happening and what the attitudes were  towards the Jews of his time. And he said absurd theologians defend hatred for the Jews. What Jew would consent to enter our ranks when he sees the cruelty and enmity we recount them?  That in our behavior towards them, we less resemble Christians than beasts. If I had been a  Jew, and it seems such dolts and blockheads, govern and teach the Christian faith, I would  sooner have become a hog than a Christian. They have dealt with the Jews as if they were  dogs rather than human beings. They have done little else and derive them and seize their  property. Luther wrote these things, very shortly after he began the Reformation. If the  apostles who also were Jews had dealt with us Gentiles as we Gentiles deal with the Jews,  there would never have been a Christian among the Gentiles. When we are inclined to boast  of our position, we should remember that we are but Gentiles while the Jews are of the  lineage of Christ. We must be guiding our dealings with them, not my papal law, but by the  love Christian love, we must receive them cordially and perceive them to trek and permit  them to trade and work with us, that they may have occasion and opportunity to associate  with us. Here our Christian teaching and witness our Christian life. Isn't that a wonderful  breath of fresh air from the way Jews were being treated at that time, by many who called  themselves Christians. And Luther was quite confident that with good, pure doctrine of the  gospel, and with proper treatment, Jewish people would flock to Christ. And they didn't. Most  of them didn't. And Luther sounded a rather different tune. In his later writings, in 1543, he  wrote dear Christians, beware of the Jews. You can see how God's wrath is consigned them to  the devil. Thus, when you see a real Jew, you may with good conscience, cross yourself and  boldly say, there goes the devil incarnate, We're at fault and not slaying them set fire to their  synagogues or schools. I advise that their houses also be raised and destroyed. All cash and  treasure of silver and gold must be taken from them. They must be driven from our country,  we must drive them out like mad dogs. Jews are full of the devil shit, which they wallow in like swine. They idle away their time feasting and farting. The devil is emptied his stomach, he  stuffs and squirts them so full of pure devil's filth. Yes, it tastes so good to their hearts and  they guzzle it like sows, Jews are a base, whoring people that is no people of God. 400 years  after he wrote that the Jews of Germany were being rounded up and thrown into ovens. We  may want to pay attention to the whole word of God. And not just the parts we like. Well, was  Luther right, that the Jews were now no people of God, that God had cast them out utterly,  and that they ought to just be despised and wiped out? The apostle Paul asked that question.  The apostle Paul also was the one who had taught these wondrous doctrines of being saved  by faith in Jesus Christ had met with a lot of resistance and unbelief, and was troubled by that. What did he make of that? He says, I asked, then did God reject His people? By no means I am an Israelite, myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin, God did not reject 

His people whom he foreknew. As we've already seen, in Paul's writings in Romans, he said  that there were always among the Jewish people God's chosen, those whom he loved, and  foreknew in advance, and he did not reject them. And he did not reject his people as a whole.  And Paul's first argument simply is this I am a Jew. And where there's one, there's more, there  are Jews still today, who trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, Paul is saying, and therefore that's  proof, positive already that God has not utterly rejected His people. And the apostle knew  from the Old Testament scriptures, what God had said, for the sake of his great name, the  Lord will not reject His people, because the Lord was pleased to make you his own. The Lord  will not reject His people, He will never forsake his inheritance. And so Paul knew already on  the basis of the Old Testament scriptures, if you ask the question has God rejected Israel? The answer is no, because God had said he never would ever. And so when we think about  whether God has rejected his people, the first answer is just a flat No, never. No way can't be.  And so when we when we think of Jewish people who won't believe and that we can also apply it a bit more widely of people, various kinds of people who consider other or outsider or  different or foreign, or just plain unbelieving from a different religion, we must be very  cautious with the notion that God has just written off that particular category of people.  Because the Bible indicates that God is going to gather people from every tribe, and language and people and nation before His throne for salvation. And they're all going to be part of that  root. The children of Abraham, they're all going to be grafted in with that people of God. And  in light of all that, even when Jews don't believe, don't hate, show God's love, don't give up  and say, Well, God's just rejected them completely. You trust God's grace and God's grace  means that he has chosen in every nation, and he's going to bring them to Himself. If you're a Christian, and somebody else isn't, don't brag, fear God's sternness, because the only thing  that makes you a Christian is trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ. And that's the opposite of  bragging about how wonderful you are, and how you deserve something more than others do. And don't just presume that things are okay with you, or presume that another person is lost  or another people group is lost. don't presume any of that. Know God's plan. And God has a  great plan for Israel, and a plan for the nations. And when you think of unbelief, in others, be  careful that you're not imitating it and carrying it on yourself. Don't ignore God and His plan  and His grace and His gift in Christ. But enjoy God's feast. And we move on in Romans chapter 11. We find that one of the temptations when most Jews don't believe is to is to just think that it's over. And the danger is, is just to give up. Elijah faced that danger he had a pity party. And the apostle Paul writes about that. He says, Don't you know what the scripture says in the  passage about Elijah? How he appealed to God against Israel, Lord, they've killed your  prophets and torn down your altars. I am the only one left and they're trying to kill me. This  happened shortly after the big showdown on Mount Carmel, where God had sent fire from  heaven to eat up the offering that Elijah had offered and where the prophets of Baal had been wasting their time praying to their false God all day. And the people of Israel cried the Lord,  He is God the Lord, He is God. But then Queen Jezebel and the wicked king Ahab, they put out a contract on Elijah's life and wanted to kill him. So after that great high, and that great  triumph, Elijah gets down in the dumps, and feeling like he's the only one left. And that kind  of pity party can hit you, when the gospel doesn't seem to be doing well. And when God's  cause seems to be failing, and so Elijah says, Lord, just take my life, there's only one left.  Might as well make it zero, your project on Earth is over. And what was God's answer to it? I  have reserved for myself 7000, who have not bowed the knee to Baal. So too at the present  time, there is a remnant chosen by grace. If by grace then it's no longer by works, if it were,  Grace would no longer be grace. Back in that time, there were at least 7000 who have never  bowed to Baal and Paul says there are still people in Israel today who are chosen by grace.  And God's grace always has an impact. Elijah, of course, in his pity party forgot a few things.  He knew something he knew he wasn't the only one left, very shortly before that he had run  into a person named Obadiah. Obadiah happened to be the Chief of Staff of Queen Jezebel  and King Ahab. And he was a follower of the Lord. So there were people and Elijah knew it in  very unlikely places who were still faithful to God, and Obadiah himself told Elijah, I've hidden  100 of God's prophets, there's still at least 100 prophets left, that I protected and hid and fed.  So he knows not only that there's somebody right in the palace. But there's also other 

prophets besides himself. And he should have known too that God's grace always keeps a  remnant, and it may be a lot bigger than it seems. There were 7000, who never bowed to  Baal at all. And there may have been many others who had once bowed to Baal, but who  

would now come to the Lord because of Elijah's ministry, and because of God's great work on  Mount Carmel. Sometimes when you're involved in a public ministry, or in trying to reach  people, and either things don't go your way, or you get into one of those moods, you get the  feeling that you're the only one left, but you need to get over the pity party. And remember,  again, that God always has always will have that remnant chosen by grace, and that God is  still at work in his world, and that God has not forsaken his people. That's true of the Jewish  people. It's true of many other settings, in which we find ourselves, what then? what Israel  sought, so earnestly remember, we talked about zeal without knowledge, they were pretty  gung ho about being right with God that they kept trying to do it on their own, by following  their own rituals and relying on their own good deeds. What then what Israel sought, so  earnestly it did not obtain. But the elect the chosen did, the others were hardened, as it is  written, God gave them a spirit of stupor eyes, so that they could not see and ears so that  they could not hear to this very day. So there are the chosen, there are the hardened among  Israel. And still today, Paul says there is a remnant chosen by grace the elect have obtained  it. We support a ministry in the Ukraine, a seminary in the Ukraine, and that Seminary has a  professor there who is a Jewish Christian. And he's not only a professor at that seminary, but  he's the head of a Jewish congregation of worshipers of Jesus Christ has more than 1000  members. God has His remnant, everywhere. CS Lewis' wife, Joy Davidman, whom he married late in life was Jewish, and atheist and communist. If there was anybody you would just give  up on. You would say, Well, an atheist and a Jewish and a communist they pretty well got the  hardening mastered no salvation for such a person. And yet, she was saved by reading Louis's writings and, and later ended up marrying him. But another person I've mentioned before  Marvin Olasky, the editor of World Magazine is Jewish. He was a communist, and an atheist,  and a Jew as well prior to his conversion. So we need to always understand that God has  never completely cast off his ancient people whom he chose And we at the same time need to realize that there is a hardening. And this doesn't just harden part of Israel. But also the same impact is on anybody who's had the advantages of some knowledge of God and has turned  away from it. And David says, May their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block  and a retribution for them. May their eyes be darkened, so they cannot see and their backs be bent forever, there is a consequence to unbelief. If God allows somebody to continue in their  unbelief, you don't just trust gee, if you don't trust Jesus and follow Him, you don't just stay  the same and say, Well, maybe later, I'll think about it very often. In fact, always the gospel  will have an impact, it will either soften and transform, or it will harden, you become harder  and the blessings that God sends into your life and that you experienced growing up perhaps,  or in exposure to the gospel can actually make you worse. I read an article this week, the title  of the article was, Abortion is a more is Morally Good. Abortion is Morally Good. The author of  the article is a young woman in her early 30s. She has worked as a volunteer for Planned  Parenthood, she helped represent the case against Hobby Lobby when the case came to the  supreme court against that Christian business that didn't want to pay for certain things. But  she says she's an atheist, but she's really not anti religion. She just thinks that she should go  to court against Christian businesses, and says that a more abortion is morally good. For  name is Sarah Jones. She was homeschooled in a Christian family attended church every  week and graduated from Cedarville University. She had every she had all these advantages.  And I don't know what else may have happened in her life that's so hard and, and turned her  against Christianity. But that's not actually that rare, the most aggressive, anti Christian  people are very often those who were exposed to the Gospel, sometimes to a Christian  upbringing, and then turned away. So there as I say, in Sarah's case, there may be things that we don't know a lot about her. But the fact is that when you have major exposure to the  Gospel, or to the things of God, and then you turn away, you're not in the same condition. As  somebody who knew almost nothing about the gospel, you are hardened, and the table that  was set before you becomes a trap. You may have been at the Lord's table, you may have  been in church, you may have sat around the table with other believers, and it becomes a 

trap, if you turn against it. And so we each of us need to realize that privileges are not just  things you can discard and remain unaffected. If you discard great privileges you turn against. Well, again, I asked as the apostle did they stumble so as to fall beyond recovery. Not at all,  rather because of their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make Israel  envious, for if their transgression, means riches for the world, and their loss means riches for  the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their fullness bring? So he says, Did they fall in  order to just fall and in order to stay fallen? He says, No, even in their fall, there are some  purposes. In their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles. And that happens in at  least a couple of ways. One is simply this. When that crowd greatly transgress by saying  Crucify, crucify, what was the result? He was crucified. And salvation went out to the nations  because of Jesus death on the cross. Their transgression, led to great blessing for the nations.  Another kind of transgression that the apostle Paul before his conversion participated in was  cruelty and persecution. And that was a great transgression against Jesus and his followers.  And the Bible says that while the believers were in Jerusalem and they were enjoying God's  blessing and so on the gathered then this great persecution came and they had to scatter and some of them scattered to Antioch and they started telling Greek speaking people, the gospel and people who weren't Jewish by background started coming to Christ. It was the  transgression of the Jewish persecution, which scattered them, and brought more Gentile  people to the Lord Jesus Christ and the Apostle Paul. Said, this wasn't all an accident. It was  God's plan that transgression by many Jewish people and their leaders would bring about  salvation, and that their opposition and their transgressions would mean riches for the world.  Now, he says, let's use a little logic here, if the fall of Israel and the transgression of Israel  means that a whole bunch more people got saved, because God has this strange way of  bringing good even out of very bad things. What's going to happen when Jewish people in  their fullness are brought back to Christ, and brought back into fellowship with God, if them  being bad resulted in some amazingly good things. Think of what's going to happen when God brings in their fullness, and does amazing and wonderful things among Jewish people. So he  says they haven't fallen behind the recovery, their fall had purposes. And God is  accomplishing things through that and their fall is not final. God still has great things in store  for his ancient people. So the hardening of most Jews didn't mean that God totally rejected  Israel. Just to summarize it, their hardening is partial. Not total, there's still a remnant chosen  by grace. It's purposeful. It means gospel riches for the Gentiles. And it's temporary, there will be a great future recovery and fullness of Israelites brought to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ  and into fellowship with God. And then the apostle adds this I'm talking to you Gentiles. In as  much as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I make much of my ministry in the hope that I may  somehow arouse my own people to envy, and save some of them. He's, he wants Gentiles to  be saved, but he also has kind of a side wish that as Gentiles are saved, some Jewish people  will get envious and want in on it. I have some friends growing up. And whenever they had  chicken dinner at their house, they fought. They fought over who would get that special, very  best, most desirable piece. They fought over the neck. In our home, we were not so foolish.  We were much more rational, we fought over the gizzard. Now, you might ask, why would  somebody fight over the neck and the gizzard? There's a lot of parts of the chicken that are  way better than that. But they fought over the neck because there was only one. And they  wanted to get it over the brother, there's only one gizzard. And if somebody else wants  something, it tastes a whole lot better, and it becomes a lot more desirable. And the Apostle  Paul is kind of trying to use envy for good purposes. He says, I'm hoping that maybe envy the  fact that it's desirable to somebody else, even if Jews didn't desire this message of the gospel  just on their own. If they see that other peoples are desiring it, maybe they'll want in on it,  too. So he keeps preaching this enviable salvation in the hopes that it will arouse envy in  some and bring about their salvation, but not just in hope, and not just with hoping that a  little envy will work out that way. But he also has this long term knowledge from God, that  God is going to do some wonderful things among the Jewish people. He says for if their  rejection is the reconciliation of the world. What will their acceptance be, but life from the  dead? He's using that same logic again, he says, if they in rejecting Christ, just made  salvation go bouncing out there to all those nations, then. And if that means the world is 

reconciled to Christ, then when they accept Christ, and when they're accepted in their fullness into the Lord, what's that going to be the life from the dead? If the part of the dough offered  as first fruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy going back to the Israelite system of  sacrifice. If one parts holy, the whole part is going to be holy, if the root is holy, so are the  branches. And they say, you know, if ancient Israel was holy. That means that God still  regards them in some important sense as a holy nation, and as those whom he's going to deal with. And then when he mentions, so are the branches that bring something into his mind by  God's inspiration, and he starts talking about branches. So before we get into Paul's words,  just a quick picture, the grafting of a branch from one kind of tree into the branch of a  different of a wild tree into a more domestic Tree. And so you can take a branch, cut off an  area and remove that branch. And then you can take a chute from another, cut it off, and you  can put it in, in the place of that other branch. And it'll start sharing in the sap of the new tree that it's been put into, and start growing as though it belonged in that tree. The Apostle says,  Now if some of the branches and he's speaking of Jewish people here, if some of the branches have been broken off, and you Gentiles, though a wild olive shoot have been grafted in  among the others. And now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root, do not boast over  those branches, the ones that were taken away, if you do consider this, you do not support  the root. But the root supports you. He's writing to people in the Roman church, and he's  saying now some of you Gentiles, don't get your nose in the air and think you're more  important and better than Jews just because some Jewish people were removed from that  fellowship with God and you were brought into it through faith in Jesus Christ. The root is still  Abraham, and the people that God chose in Abraham, and you become God's people by being grafted into that people. You will say that branches were broken off so that I could be grafted  in granted. But they were broken off because of unbelief. And you stand by faith, do not be  arrogant and but be afraid For if God did not spare the natural branches, He will not spare you either. He says they were broken off because they wouldn't believe. And the only way you're  in is by trusting in Christ. If you forsake that trust in Christ and start bragging as though you  got grafted in because you're some hot shot, That's not faith, and God can remove you just as easily. Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God, sternness to those who fell, but  kindness to you provided that you continue in his kindness, otherwise, you also will be cut off.  And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in for God is able to grasp them in.  So he's saying that if somebody is, you know, part of the grouping of God's people, but  they're just presuming on it, God can cut them off. And just because somebody doesn't  believe now, doesn't mean that's their destiny forever. It's very possible that God can graft  them in again, all they got to do is turn away from the unbelief and start believing again. After all, if you were cut out of an olive tree that is wild by nature, he's talking again about the  Gentiles you were kind of a Wild Bunch and you were cut off from that situation. And contrary  to nature, were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more readily will these Jews the  natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree? So to just summarize that section on  grafting of branches, Israel is the root that supports every other nationality, connected to  Christ, God chose Israel to be a blessing to the nations, and it has been unbelief is what  breaks off branches. Faith is what connects branches. So you better focus on faith, rather than bragging and acting as though you merit anything. And Paul's final punch line is, hey, it's  easier and more natural for God to include a Jew than a Gentile. He's not saying that Jews are  better than Gentiles or anything like that. But he's saying that if you're tempted to think that  God has rejected his ancient people, and just cast them away, and he saved you, because you were easier to save, and had some sort of greater right than they did, who are you kidding?  It's easier for him to graft in the natural ones if that's what he wants to do than to graft in the  wild ones. So just consider when you're a member of that church at Rome, and you're a  Gentile tempted to look down on Jewish people, you better realize that you have been  tremendously blessed by God's grace, and God can just as easily save Jewish people again,  and you should never write them off. And obviously, as history unfolded in many places  become so viciously anti Jewish in your attitudes. And here's a text that we'll get into more in  our next message. I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery brothers. So that you may  not be conceited Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the 

Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved. We'll think more about what that  amazing statement is next time. But he obviously is not thinking that Jews are dogs, they're  swine. They're the offspring of the devil. They're goners forever. He's saying God has a plan,  and all Israel will be saved. When it comes to anti Jewish attitudes, I do wish that Luther was  ancient history 500 years ago, or that Hitler was ancient history. But in our own country, in  just the last year, there have been people murdered in synagogues, some of them by people  who believe in the theology of the first part of Romans, and don't seem to take to heart the  teaching of Romans nine through 11, about God's ancient people, at any rate, God has  tremendous promises and plans for the future. And that means friends, as we consider these  truths, if you run into Jewish people who won't believe don't hate them, just keep showing  them God's love. And that applies, as I mentioned before, to people who are other in some  other way, by nationality, by their religious heritage, by coming from a country that you  happen not to like or having customs that you're not fond of. The Christian attitude is not  please keep them away from us it is to show God's love in hope that God will lead them to the knowledge and faith in Jesus Christ. When things seem grim, don't give up trust, God's grace  that God always has chosen. And this applies again, not just to the Jewish people, but when  we think about the falling away of many, many in Europe, not all have fallen away. God still  has his remnant chosen by grace. When you see the churches in the United States shrinking,  and the category of nones and not nuns. But n-o-n-e-s, the nones who believe nothing or  belong to no religious group, when you see that category increasing, you don't just pull your  hair out and panic and say all is lost. God still has his people chosen by grace, you can be like  Paul, and you say, My heart breaks over those who don't believe and I pray for their salvation. And so we should but do not think, oh, no, God has lost. The church is done. In this area of the world, at least it's over. Don't have a pity party like Elijah. God has reserved for himself, those  who have never bowed the knees to any other God, and who have never given up on the one  living and true God. Don't brag. If God has saved you, and is keeping you in His grace, don't  think that you're a superior life form. Know that. God is gracious, and he's stern. And so he  he'll be stern with those whose faith or alleged faith turns into pride. don't presume that you  know where other people belong. individuals whom you know, who may be very offensive to  God or very offensive to you. You don't have a sneak peek at the book of life, you do not know what God will yet make of them. Don't assume you do know, God has plans for individuals  that we do not know. And some of them are much better than we dare to dream. And when it  comes to Israel as a whole, know God's plan for them, don't just look at trends, here or there.  God has a plan in which it will be said at the end all Israel will be saved. And in considering all  of this, about the relation of Jews and Gentiles and all of us together to God, don't ignore what God says. Enjoy God's feast. And here I'm reminded of Jesus parable that he tells him  Matthew chapter 22, he says there was a king who gave a great wedding banquet for his son.  And he, they always did invitations in a couple of different stages in that day. So those who  are invited were now notified. The time has come for the banquet come, the the meat's ready, the Feast is spread. And they didn't. The people who were invited just wouldn't come and they had various excuses. Some of them and others were downright nasty. They even murdered  and attacked the messengers who were bringing out the invitations. And so Jesus says, well,  the king sent out his forces and killed those people and those cities that refused, he  destroyed their city. And then he said, well, the A-list didn't want in. Let's send out invitations  to the B list. And so get out there just bring in people from all over the place. I want the  banquet hall full and the banquet hall is full And then, of those who come into the banquet  hall, there's somebody there who's not wearing wedding clothes. He didn't take the clothes  that were provided, and King said, what are you doing in here? And he says, Get him out of  here, throw him into the outer darkness, because he got in, he wasn't part of the A list he was part of the B list, but he still wouldn't take the clothes that were provided. And in a sense,  Jesus is saying much in story form, what Paul has been explaining here in Romans, that  invitations went out to many people from Jesus during his time on Earth, and he was rejected  largely by his own people. And their city was burned. The city of Jerusalem was destroyed and the people were scattered. And God's invitation went out to many others who previously had  no real right to it. They weren't A listers, they were B listers and C listers. And God brought in 

people from many other nations besides his own, but even if you're from one of those nations, and you're now part of the group, so to speak, you need Christ's robe for yourself. You need to know him for yourself, you stand by faith, and by His gift of righteousness or you don't stand  at all. That's what Jesus is saying through that story. And the apostle is saying the same thing  to us now. If you're a Jewish person, God still has plans and God can still save Jewish people if  

you're a Gentile person. Be glad for God's kindness, but also, fear is sternness. And don't  ignore His invitation. Don't insult his messengers. Come, enjoy his feast. We pray, Father, that you will guide us by your word that you will humble and sober us, we think, Lord of even  people who were mighty in intellect and in courage who could have terrible blind spots and  evils in their life and in their attitudes. And we pray, Father, that you will help us to realize  how terrible and deep the infection of sin goes. And we pray that you will continue to work on  us and transform us by your Holy Spirit. We pray, especially today that you'll transform us in  the area of our attitudes towards those who aren't part of our group in some way or other,  that we will realize that your plans for them are much greater than often our attitudes  towards them would indicate we pray for your ancient people the Jews for your salvation to  consider continue spreading among individuals whom you've chosen and we pray too for that  wonderful day when when a greater fullness is brought in. And when Israel as a whole can be  said to be saved and so we pray, Lord for that great day. We pray that we'll be faithful in our  own time to stand fast by faith, to love you with our whole heart and soul and mind and  strength to love others as you have loved us. We pray in Jesus name, Amen.