What Is God's Plan for ISRAEL: Romans 11:7-24

today we're gonna continue our verse-by-verse study through the book of Romans we're in Romans 11 and some of the issues we're gonna talk about today are there related to Israel in the church and there are important issues please trust me on this they matter what ultimately is God's plan for Israel in the future that that's one of the things we're gonna ask like what really is according to the scriptures what is God's plan for Israel in the future and is the church a replacement for Israel is it like Israel no more Church yes is that is that the scenario it'sit's not so well that's that question with the no but we'll do it with the with the teaching of Scripture verse by verse is the point and we'll also get a wonderful reminder about humility a big heavy point about humility as we get later on in the study this chapter of the Bible is debated contested and it is pivotal for understanding Israel because it's one of the clearest teachings about Israel post Christ post Messiah post rejection of Jesus what about Israel so I want to work to make it clear that's my point make this passage clear because people who don't understand Jewish and Gentile issues miss out on a large portion of the Bible so as you start to get familiar with these things even if you're hearing it for the first time and you're starting to just go I wasn't even know what this was even on my radar this Jewish Gentile stuff it wasn't really on my radar before well now that it is well the book of Hebrews is gonna make more sense to you right the book of Galatians is gonna make more sense to you the book of Acts is gonna make more sense to you the words and parables of Jesus are gonna make more sense to you so much of the Scriptures will just jump out to you and with more clarity now so that's why it's worth of the labor so Romans let's just read verses 1 through 6 to kind of get what we did last week this is like kind of by way of review and I'll just read through the passage to set the stage for us so it says in verse 1 of Romans 11 I say then has God cast away his people certainly not for I also AM an Israelite Paul speaking of the seed of Abraham of the tribe of Benjamin God has not cast away his people whom he foreknew or do you not know what the scripture says of Elijah how he pleads with God against Israel saying Lord they've killed your prophets and torn down your altars and I alone am left and they seek my life but what is the divine response say to him I have reserved for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal even so then at this present time speaking from Paul's perspective there is a remnant according to the election of grace and if by grace then it is no longer of works otherwise grace is no longer grace but if it is of works it is no longer grace otherwise work is no longer work there's so much in there and we did that we did that verse by verse I just wanted to set the stage for us right basically has got cast off Israel of course not look at me on Paul I mean I'm an Israelite in fact look at look at the story of Elijah when Israel the Northern Kingdom was in the midst of its greatest apostasy and even the Prophet the great prophet thought God it's over they've all reveled against you nobody loves you but me and then God says no no I have preserved people a seed of remnant within Israel and so even at this present time there's a remnant speaking of Paul his time now if at the moment after the rejection of Jesus there was still a remnant of faithful Israel I believe that there would still be today as well because we're certainly not at that dark moment um so that's the denial the denial in verses 1 through 6 the basic denial is God has not cast off his people and here I'll give you reasons like three reasons why that's verses one through six but then in verse seven he gets into what then that's the question what then well if God hasn't cast off as people then what is the point what is the thing that God is doing with Israel what's the plan verse seven what then Israel has not obtained what it seeks but the elect have obtained it and the rest were blinded Israel has not obtained this means Israel as a whole when it says here Israel I think he means Israel as a whole in in the in the big picture the majority of Israelites did not obtain what they sought but the elect a smaller group within that majority they did receive it Romans 10:3 talks about what it was that they didn't receive what they didn't get they were seeking but they didn't get it says for they being ignorant of God's righteousness and seeking to establish their own righteousness have not submitted to the righteousness of God we've taught through that already so the idea is this they wanted righteousness by works instead of by faith and that's why they didn't get righteousness so they didn't get what they were seeking because they sought it wrong but they saw was righteousness but sought it wrong but then this word elect comes up and I want to take a minute to talk about it because it's been relevant as we've been talking about some of the issues of between Calvinism non Calvinism which we I be a non Calvinist I wouldn't call myself an armenian a-- stick euler reasons but but this issue of election if you want a full teaching on that or a more detailed one i actually have a video online the title of the videos Calvinism arminianism election and predestination a bunch of big words so it must be a good video so there's a detailed teaching on that I won't do that tonight I just want to say a couple things about this word elect that we see in verse seven because here's the thing if you're a Calvinist you probably read verse seven and you see the word elect and you assume the entire doctrine of election is applying to this verse but I have a problem with that to me there's a problem when you put theological meanings on words and then you always read that word with that theological meaning you can't do it consistently now I was a younger believer younger in the Lord I thought the word justification always meant the same thing and the same thing was a careful theological definition of justification now sometimes it means a careful theological definition of justification other times it means something very different more of a general dictionary definition of the word so the same is true with the word elect the same is true for instance with the word saved there's times in the Bible where saved is used and is not referring to what you're thinking of as salvation it's like you saved me but you didn't save me save me so sometimes it's just the word so what we shouldn't do and I know this makes it harder work for us as we're reading our Bibles we shouldn't do is take a word that we use to summarize a doctrine like elect or justified or save or something like that and then read doctrine into every time the word shows up in the text you have to be open to the idea that sometimes the word just means the simple meaning of the word and usually it's pretty clear in the passage it's not hard work really it's pretty easy so this is a good principle to learn that way it doesn't become presumptuous I don't read my theology into the text I read the text for what it says and then I get the theology out of it so who are the elect in verse 7 that's the question who are the elect well the elect if I read the verse Israel has not obtained what it seeks but the elect have obtained and the rest were blinded in Calvinist theology I think that the elect here would refer to whoever's chosen from before time for salvation and then all the other doctrines of Calvinism Kalon come alongside like they're irresistible they resist ibly saved irresistible grace in a total depravity you know the perseverance of the saints all these different things are coming in alongside but here the word elect you know it means anybody remember what elect means this means chosen like I chose you that's the idea but who are the elect here in this context it's a portion of Israel I think the elect in verse 7 are Jewish people so Paul's saying in general Israel did not obtain what it seeks but the elect this remnant the smaller group within Israel did receive it he's not using the word to talk about every person who's ever been chosen for salvation or something like that specifically I think my understanding is this is a portion of Israel because there's a contrast between the elect and the rest in verse 7 Israel has not obtained what it seeks but the elect have obtained it and the rest were blinded the rest of what of Israel the elect of Israel received it the rest were blinded I'm gonna lob another grenade at Calvinism but not because of anything in me this mean or anything like that it just because I see it in the text right we're gonna get into the idea of blindness for a second and it says here's these here's these these two categories of Israel right the elect those who did receive it right then the rest were blinded now if Calvinism is true in total depravity holds then why does God have to anybody like do you have to blind dead people not really that doesn't make a lot of sense right if total depravity is quite true then there's no sense in which God must blind Israel this this doesn't seem to be needed it seems to be pointless it's like poking the eyes out of a dead body it's not effective in any way so Israel was blinded and we can we see them being blinded even as Jesus is teaching as it's like it's like happening real life real time in their lives rather than from birth so now there is a sense of the fall there's a sense of depravity and man but I personally do not think the Scripture teaches total depravity the doctrine itself although some pretty significant depravity is involved that's for sure you know Romans 7 and read read ah just read the Bible okay so moving forward here let's look at verse 8 just as it is written God has given them a spirit of stupor that word stupor because I know you use that word all the time right it means unable to think that's what it's talking about like an inability to think clearly about this issue that's the spirit of stupor so God has given them a spirit of stupor eyes that they should not see and ears that they should not hear to this very day and David says now he quotes the Old Testament here again let their table become a snare and a trap a stumbling block and a recompense to them the idea of a table becoming a snare is the idea of the blessings you're given end up tripping you up because you're not receiving them properly you're not you're not you're not hearing what God's doing for you so you were jet you basically you you take blessings and you turn that into a calloused heart and so a stumbling block and a recompense to them let their eyes verse 10 be darkened so they do not see and bow down their back always verse 8 here is from Isaiah 29 10 that's the passage being quoted Isaiah 29 10 and verses 9 and 10 when he says as David says that's from Psalm 69 verses 22 and 23 the idea behind these phrases is that these people are unable to get to the truth there have been blinded their their spirit of stupor that's upon them this is judicial this is what we call judicial hardening or hardening because of your actions and I can give you a few reasons why in Isaiah 29 if you read the context impact the passage in context which we're not going to take all the time to do tonight but I go ahead you have a Bible right so you could do this if you like Isaiah 29 you can read this spirit of stupor that comes upon them is because of their sin if you read the passage so it's a its judicial it's a consequence of sin in Psalm 69 the table becoming a snare all this stuff happening to them it's because of sin it's because of their in fact the passages need Psalm 69 it's because it's messianic there's Messianic qualities in the passage plus David himself is a messianic figure I should say a picture of the Messiah so the idea of Psalm 69 is here I am the anointed king of God and the people are rejecting me well because of their rejection of me let them become blind so there is this this real parallel to the experience of the first century Jewish world and their experience with Jesus now rejecting that Messiah and becoming blind that's also consistent with Romans 1 Romans 1 talks about how people would come increasingly bound by sin increasingly bound in slavery to their sins and increasingly spiritually dull not only given over to a debased life but being given over to a debased mind so that's that's the parallel that's there so there's and there's lots of examples in scripture I might point you to a video I put out I taught you guys called why God hardens hearts and that gets into more detail on that topic as well so we remember this point though blinding is judicial salvation is by mercy the believer should go into more and more light because they're in God's grace and they're walking in that grace and they're living in that light but the unbeliever or the rejecter of God's truth goes into greater and greater darkness and I've seen this have you not seen this there's people I know who I have a conversation with them about the Lord and they kind of get it but they reject it and years later we have the same conversation have you done this and they don't get it anyway and you're like how is it you understood this before and now you can't because there's a spiritual blindness that's upon that person's life because they rejected so they became blind I've seen this happen lots of times and it saddens me but I think we should take it as a warning to ourselves if there are things in which God is ministering to you listen receive take action on it it's not too late what a lie what alive from the enemy if God's like do this then it must not be too late because he's telling you to do it still and so there's things the Lord's ministering to you into your life to show you things to point things out to make change in your life listen because even as a believer I think that this can affect us to an extent where we grow kind of dull to the things that got we get calloused you know and those calluses can not only be in our heart sensing our conscience being sensitive to to failure or problems in our lives but it seems like it can also be on our minds and our ability to perceive just simple truths when it comes to God and Christianity following the Lord that we can also become calso I take it as a personal warning I really do that we should listen to the Lord and take heed to his voice and take action and don't comfort yourself by saying well a lot of other people are making the same mistakes as me so it's probably not a big deal but receive His grace for the failures of the past but don't be receiving His grace for the planned failures of the future that's not the way it works so let me mention this too even if a person is spiritually blind even if this scripture applies to them in the sense that there is a spiritual stupor they've been stupefied you're able to think they're no longer able to be clear in their hearts and minds about these truths that maybe even once they knew they're still hope for them turn to 2nd Corinthians chapter 3 and let's look at this this passage 2nd Corinthians 3 verse 14 through 16 this is Paul describing a Jewish person who previously rejecting Christ comes to faith in Christ and happens in that person's life so second Corinthians chapter 3 verse 14 and it says but their minds were blinded so there's that judicial hardening for until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament because the veil is taken away in Christ that's that spiritual blindness that veil it's saying that in fact the story is if you read the passage Moses would go in and he'd be there in the tabernacle meeting with God and he's getting the text of Scripture that he's writing out and stuff then he would come out of the tabernacle and his face was glowing he'd cover his face so that they interesting so they wouldn't see the fading of the glow so they didn't see the glow and they didn't see it fade away and so then it's an analogy is drawn towards this New Testament truth is that the law was glorious but it was a temporary glory meant to lead you to something else and that and the Jewish person who reads the law is not seeing this when they have rejected Jesus so that veil is not lifted as they that there's that I mean you read the text and you're like look this is about Jesus how do you how do there are Jews who love the Old Testament and they spend their time reading the Hebrew bottle studying carefully thoughtfully the Scriptures how do you not see Jesus man because the veil is not lifted but but it's not over it says because the veil is taken away in Christ in verse 15 even to this day when Moses is read Moses being the Old Testament a veil lies on their heart nevertheless when one turns to the Lord the veil is taken away so the person who has a spiritual blindness upon their minds and hearts they can turn to the Lord and that veil is taken away in Christ and then what happens well just ask any Jewish person who after knowing the Torah knowing the the Tanakh the entire Old Testament then they come to Jesus and they're like Jesus Jesus Jesus Jesus Jesus Jesus and they start seeing him everywhere in the text because the veil comes off and that there's this flood of knowledge that comes their way and it's beautiful so there are spiritual issues where there's blindness hardness of hearts that come our way but when we just how do you fix us just turn to Christ turn your heart to Christ turn your mind to Christ turn freshly to Christ you're not so hard that you can't be healed you're not so you're not so dumb that you get you can't be made smart again by the Lord so to speak spiritually foolish that God can't make you wise and that's like the promise of proverbs right to give the fool wisdom the book says I'm glad to hear that give us fools some wisdom so the veil comes up verse 11 as we continue Romans 11 verse 11 he says I say then speaking of those those Jews who did not receive and who were who were hardened have they stumbled that they should fall certainly not but through their fall to provoke them to jealousy salvation has come to the Gentiles now if their fall is riches for the world and their failure riches for the Gentiles how much more their fullness now I'm gonna have to give you guys some Greek tonight and it's not because I want to show off because I'm not that good anyways but because it's important for the text if we're reading the New King James Version and it I think incorrectly translates the different words as fall over and over again because he seems to say right in the beginning of verse 11 how they stumbled that they should fall mean being utterly destroyed like end of the Jewish people certainly not but through their fall wait wait what they didn't fall but they fell what is the same I'm confused well as we look at the actual Greek these are three different words multiple different words and they're used in different ways so let me explain in verse 11 have they stumbled that they should fall that would fall it's the word pesos in' which means to be destroyed utterly like a final utter destruction like that's it it's all over so what what is being denied Israel though they stumbled they are not destroyed you might say they're struck down but not destroyed right you might say they are they are definitely hurting but it's not over that's the point but then he goes on but through their fall it says in verse 11 through their fall that's a different word it's not pesos in its part up tamati which is sin or transgression so it really shouldn't be translated fall and you're not really gonna find other translations translating it is fall this is just the way they did it at that time sinner transgression so if I read it that way I go have they stumbled that they should fall be utterly destroyed certainly not but through their sin or through their transgression to provoke them to jealousy salvation has come to the Gentiles that makes more sense now if their fall is riches for the world others fall again so they did fall no that's again is par up to my the same same root word as the one before meaning sin or transgression so through their sin or transgressor does that make sense so that should clarify it but then it says and their failure and you might wonder what that word means and that word actually in this context it means lack through their lack that there's a shortcoming in the life of Israel right now I think we can agree on this they're missing their Messiah there's a so through their lack through their failure which you could translate as a lack or or failure you could but because of the next word fullness at the end of verse 12 I think it should be translated possibly as lack lack so let me let me read it to you that way now if their sin is richest for the world and their lack riches for the Gentiles how much more their fullness seek as fullness in lack correspond with each other so that context tells you how to translate a word and that seems to be saying if this give me failure or lack well you have fullness coming next so I think lack and fullness make more sense than failure and fullness does that make sense I hope that makes sense I hope you track with me on that okay so conclusion Israel is lacking in the number of saved Jews but they are not forsaken and there's this anticipation about their future what about their fullness hey man if God's even using their failures and their Falls and in this in real case their sin and their lack to bring the gospel of the Gentiles how much more will he will he bless their fullness so let me draw your attention to another word in English this time so we're back in English that was all the Greek for tonight have they stumbled that they should fall that you could put it this way was the purpose of their stumble their destruction was it like God's going you know what Israel I can't stand you anymore I hate you I want to watch you fall so he trips them to see them fall in a story that is that's what's denied the purpose of Israel having the stumble was not to lead to a final fall that's what's denied that's an example here it's gonna be example of Romans 8:28 God working all things together for good so if you just go back in time with me for a second to first century Israel you see a large number of Jews and you read this in the book of Acts Paul goes from place to place with the gospel he brings it always whatever city he goes he brings it to the to the synagogue first and he shares it with the synagogue the Jewish people when they reject some of them would receive but if they reject he then says fine I will go to the Gentiles and this happened City after City after City so what is God doing he's using the rejection of the Jews to bring the gospel of the Gentiles that's the point and here's Paul writing it he's talking about his own experience really of bringing the gospel to the Gentiles in fact they even say sometimes he goes from now on we'll go to the Gentiles like that's that's the quote of Paul it's what he does so why have they stumbled well to bring salvation to the Gentiles according to verse 11 right there salvation to the Gentiles this is like an unveiling of what God is doing through the hard circumstances of a large number of people rejecting Jesus he's using their rejection to bring the gospel to other people so God is working salvation even through people who are rejecting salvation and I just think that's a beautiful thing I don't always know what God's doing you know through the circumstances of life look maybe I could say that slightly more accurately I don't know what God's doing through the circumstances of life I really don't and I find that people who were obsessed about determining what God's doing through everything I don't mind asking the question I wonder what the Lord but but if you have to know and you're obsessed with oh that was the reason you'll probably find yourself getting frustrated I used to always try to figure it out and then I got I just got disappointed so many times in my own lack of wisdom that I gave up so it might be good to just to just at least notice this here's where the Bible tells us what God was doing and what was he doing bringing salvation to people he's working salvations through the hardships of these these these people rejecting Jesus so this is a nice glimpse verse 12 then it talks about their hypothetical fullness like here's the idea what would it be like if instead of largely the most Jews rejecting Jesus what if most Jews receive Jesus like what would that really look like that's what he's saying here well what would their fullness be like you're like man it'd be like you'd be like 144,000 Jewish evangelists or something is what it would be like it would be like these people who have been steeped in the scriptures and who have this tradition in this strength that would then be just brought right in with them into their faith in Christ in Messiah and there's boldness in this confidence and this stubbornness in a good way and I just I think it'll be glorious and I think it'll be so it'll be a such a blessing to the rest of us when we can interact more and more with saved Jewish people and I think you have a lot to teach us you know cuz we're all we're the foreigners getting plugged in and they're they're the natural branches and so there's what would their fullness be like I think that's it's he's excitedly talking about this now does this mean that there's a future time where this will happen I think yes and I think as we read the rest of the chapter this week and next week you'll see that this is something he's actually anticipating it's not just a possibility it's going to happen and he's excited about it and I am too so verse 12 it speaks about a hypothetical about the fullness of the Jews or the majority of Jews really believing in Jesus the Messiah and it will bring a wonderful blessing and and in verse 25 in particular and on we'll see how this is not a hypothetical only it's a reality so but let's keep plodding through verse by verse verse 13 he says for I speak to you Gentiles and as much as I'm an apostle to the Gentiles I magnify my ministry that was Paul's particular calling he was called specifically to minister to the Gentiles he would still go to the Jews first but the majority of his ministry was to Gentile people and that was his his calling and so he speaks to them now and says if by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are my flesh and save some of them those who are of his flesh are the Israelites so he goes I know I'm the apostle to Gentiles one of my goals in my mind is this the more Gentiles I see saved the more people there are witnessing to the Jews I mean he saw it all as salvation related it's like he saw everything in his life as being related to how it could expand the gospel and how it could grow the knowledge of Christ in the world and I think that's a noble trait and I like to have that as well he always had this stuff in the back of his mind Paul loved the Jewish people and I think there's there's a chance there's a chance that God might really love them too I think so and he still had hope for their salvation right because he's here talking decades after they rejected Messiah the temples about to be destroyed and here he's talking about Jews getting saved so if there's anybody out there who's lost hope for Jewish people you need to go back and read that verse again because he sees Gentiles as missionaries to Jewish people and guess what he sees Jewish people as missionaries to Gentiles because this is the body of Christ and we bring all in their jealousy is used here in particular that's interesting I think the idea is this is that they would see Gentiles in a real relationship with with Yahweh they would recognize that that these Gentiles are really following the dist Jewish Messiah and then they would be get provoked to want this Jesus to and that's the idea and think about this to like it let's say that you're a Jewish person imagine this for a second there are literally billions of people billions and billions of people's since the time of Jesus that have been worshiping this Jewish Messiah figure he's the most influential Jew to have ever lived and these people they don't just claim to worship and idolize him they're going around these Gentiles going around claiming they have a relationship with him they're going around and they're teaching each other your Old Testament your Hebrew Bible does this not provoke something in you at least to go and maybe I don't know read what this first century Jewish rabbi said and wonder why is it that so many people thought he's the Messiah that it just provoke them to jealousy is the idea to provoke them to dig in and say that there's something here this is so different than what some people have done in history which is consigning Jewish people to damnation persecuting hating calling them names stuff I won't even I don't even repeat this is so different instead Paul looks at them and says you are a mission field that's what you are you're a mission field not to be rejected and cast off a mission field now we can do this with not just Jewish people but with any group of people in fact the most modern example I see of this is the Muslims I find it really hard to get some believers to think that Muslims can actually be saved and they say crazy stuff oh well you know those Muslims can't be saved after all their religion lets them lie to you you think they're gonna fake believe in Jesus I think that's what the Muslims have been doing that's committing what's called shirk which is like the highest sin that you can commit to say that God has a son so I'm thinking if they say it they probably mean it seeing as how they're gonna be in a whole lot of trouble afterwards but there is sometimes a bitterness or a hatred towards a group of people that gets us to think that there forever blind forever darkened and forever unable to receive the gospel now we can also we can hold this to groups of people or individuals but I'm saying this look here's an example of a people that are judicially hardened by God who rejected Jesus to his face and Paul has nothing but hope for their salvation even knowing they are actually blinded right now still hopes for their salvation still thinks it can happen we should have the same attitude towards everybody verse 15 as we read a little further here it says for if they're being cast away as the reconciling of the world what will their acceptance be but life from the dead they're being cast away that that is the rejection of this messiah amongst a large number of Jewish people it's a reconciling of the world that is the gospel then goes out to the Gentiles as the result of that what will their acceptance be but life from the dead exactly if they can be brought out they can be brought in that's the idea that's the idea this would be revival revival in the Jewish world that's what Paul's talking about a Jewish revival a messiah revival Messiah you might call it or not I say revival because literally the words are life from the dead if that's not revival I don't know what is to revive to bring back to life the message is that the prodigal son can come home the prodigal son is still able to come home that's the message what a blessing how many people have you maybe talk to who thought they were too far gone and you're looking at them going have you not realized how wide opened the arms of Jesus were nailed on the cross and that he's able to accept you and embrace you even now there are people in the crowd who shouted crucify crucify who later got saved praise God when the worst of sinners comes to the Lord whether they have been a murderer rapist pedophile an abuser just a terrible human being in every way when they come to Christ for real and they're saved and their life has changed from the inside out they're given a new heart this is so beautiful and this is so glorious and that's the gospel that he's preaching and so he's just saying look just like we had to pull teeth to get some people to realize that you Gentiles could really be saved maybe we got to pull some Gentiles teeth to get them to realize how much God loves these Jewish people too that this is a it's a full gospel message when Israel was in the midst of his greatest apostasy there was still enough grace for them to come back home which means good news there's enough grace for you I want to get into these there's some analogies that come up and I like to I like to unpack them tonight and they start in verse 16 so it says for if the first fruit is holy the lump is also holy and if the root is holy so are the branches the first fruit would would often refer to an offering right and then the lump is holy so it would be the remainder like I offered some of the first fruit and then the lump of meal or basically that the lump of dough that I made from the stuff I didn't offer that is also holy so the operating of the first fruit and then the love these are two different metaphors the other one is about the root and the branches so it's an analogy about a tree and it's not really explained exactly in the text but let's let's dig in a little bit so the offering of the first fruit making the lump holy that was kind of understood at the time it was a it was the idea of a portion affecting the whole this portion is offered to the Lord but there's still something holy about this other portion and I think here the word holy is being used in this sense of set apart not wholly like righteousness and stuff like that but rather set apart I think that the point is that God's plan for Israel continues in spite of there being only a remnant of believing Jews because there was that initial call of God upon Israel and so then that call of God that first fruit of ancient Israel believers is because God has a future plan for them as well the promises he made to Abraham will in fact all be fulfilled the many unfulfilled promises to Israel throughout the Old Testament the prophets are yet to be fulfilled and we anticipate them so this is easy for us you guys have been brought brought up under this kind of teaching we believe that there is actually a future for Israel in the land which is much easier to believe now post 1948 than it was a hundred years ago two hundred years ago and people thought no we have to spiritualize that stuff because that's never gonna happen and then yet we go well maybe we shouldn't spiritualize things that you just don't have enough faith to believe like maybe we shouldn't do that so there's a few options people give for first fruit the lump refers to modern Israel I think from Paul's perspective and then it carries forward until the promises are fulfilled so it's gonna refer to the carrying forward but the but the the first fruit what was that a reference to it could and it's important that I do this I labor over what first fruit means here because it will help us understand what the root is in the second analogy so it could be three things Jesus God's covenant promises that's the phrase I hear or it could be ancient Israel meaning like Abraham Isaac Jacob these first people that were called of God I use the word Israel loosely the father's basically is referring to so some say it's Jesus because in 1st Corinthians 15 Christ is called the firstfruits from the dead or firstfruits of the resurrection and that's true but I think that's a different context I think that that's not in the context of an offering but in the context of a first fruit of the season you go out and you get like your first tomato out of the garden and you know there's more comin later and the same sense Christ he's the first one to rise from the dead so we know that we will rise to so that's it's a different context the word first fruit then there's God's covenant promises I've heard some say that and I see that Israel is related to the promises God's made to them that's true but promises aren't really a first fruit offering are they I mean how is how our promises an offering to God I don't understand that it doesn't make sense to me I almost feel like that's a way of avoiding saying that the lump or the first fruit is Israel so my interpretation would be that's ancient Israel and that's consistent with Jeremiah - let me read to you Jeremiah 2 verses 2 & 3 he says go and cry in the hearing of Jerusalem saying thus says the Lord I remember you the kindness of your youth the love of your betrothal when you went after me in the wilderness in a land not sown Israel was holiness to the Lord the firstfruits of his increase all that devour him will defend his Astra will come upon them says the Lord so we could see that this is connected to an Old Testament concept of Israel being and offering unto the Lord and Israel was set apart unto the Lord and therefore there's a maintained set of partners that God has planned for that nation for those people that's that's the simple thing it's saying so ancient Israel is the first fruit I believe and then modern Israel or continuing Israel into the future that's the lump that's the promises being carried forward then there's the root and branches analogy if the root is holy so are the branches can you guess how many options there are for what the root is 3 can you guess what they are Jesus God's covenant promises or Israel ancient Israel um so what exactly are we talking about here this is I think the same thing I think I'm gonna have following the same thing this is the root is basically ancient Israel the initial called ones of God and and then that will inform us on how we interpret the rest of the passage so is it Jesus um I don't I mean I see why we would want to say the root is Jesus because you want to say what really connects us is Jesus well that's true based on other scriptures entirely we don't need this analogy to say that exactly but if we're gonna be consistent with both analogies the root and the lump of brand the roots and the branches then I think we have to say ancient Israel modern modern believers and modern Israel so the branches I think refer to present-day Israel and the point would be this God is not done with Israel I think I could say this he who began a good work in Israel will be faithful to complete it that seems to be legit to me but then the analogy being laid out gets really detailed verse 17 through 21 let's just read through it and get the analogy and if some of the branches were broken off some of the modern Israeli Israelites broken off and you being a wild olive tree were grafted in among them and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree do not boast against the branches but if you do boast remember that you do not support the root but the root supports you you will say then the branches were broken off that I might be grafted in like the purpose of them being broken office so I could be grafted in well said because of unbelief they were broken off and you stand by faith do not be haughty or proud but fear for of God did not spare the natural branches he may not spare you either we'll just get into a little bit of this tonight and then we'll pick up next week on it cuz I'm gonna kind of pause in the middle here but here's the elements I see in the analogy there are the broken branches the grafted branches and there's the root and there's the partaking of the root and fatness of the tree so the picture that that we're seeing is this the the tree is Israel the branches are the are the in his day the modern Israel and so they had they had been broken off they rejected Messiah so they're taken off the tree you're no longer gonna be partakers of either the these promises that God has given to Israel and ultimately spiritually you're not really part of this then we're grafted in we're from the wild olive tree grafted in usually was the other way around they would graft in cultivated branches not wild ones but it's important for his analogy that it's this way it's really kind of intricate so we are grafted and we're Gentiles now are you still a wild branch well yeah I mean you're still a wild branch you're just on a cultivated tree that's the Gentiles we're still I'm not a Jew I'm still a Gentile but I'm grafted in and I'm receiving of the root and fatness I'm receiving of the blessings the spiritual blessings and promises so in a sense you could kind of say I'm connected to Israel I've attached myself to the Messiah we're like we're like that Gentile who came it says I will believe in the God of Israel but it doesn't necessarily make me a Jew but there are still natural branches and some of them are still receiving so the broken branches are unbelieving Jews notice the trees not gone the grafted branches or Gentile believers who are still Gentiles and we'll get more on that later and they partake of the root and fatness of the olive tree which means they get the blessings and salvation that comes through the Messiah through the promises of God and so that that is what Romans is largely about Jew and Gentile all saved the same way and then there's the boaster you will say branches were broken off that I might be grafted in like that was the point right they're broken off so I could be grafted in God picked me over them I must be better that's kind of the implication isn't it but the response is well said well well said that branches were broken off and you were grafted in but you're but but you forgot why they were broken off because of unbelief it's a faith issue this is why people get saved or not faith or not faith so you remember this that you stand by grace and you stand by faith because you could be broken off - now is that saying that you can lose your salvation I actually don't think we need to go that direction with this passage I think that what it's saying is this though God is doing a work amongst this Gentile group that work could fail because as generations go they begin to reject what they once received they lose faith and this we've seen happen over and over again you might have a denomination or a church that's really solid but over time gets further and further and further away we've seen this happen lots and lots through history often times new denominations crop up not because of weird beliefs but because the old group got weird and so we wanted to really be believers so we kind of broke off and said let's just keep the simplicity of the faith and a few generations later they said we're smarter than that now we're more clever than that now we don't need that and then they got weird and so then another group broke off and another group broke off and this kind of consistently happens I God keeping these faithful remnant of real believers who keep breaking off and - in their thing so be mindful of this be mindful of this because Gentiles corporately could also fall away churches can be broken off denominations can be broken off each generation of Christians this is important every generation of believers has to learn the gospel afresh and learn to stand and fight for the Christian faith which was once and for all delivered to the Saints we've got to restart the journey of learning each generation learning the text not just learning the Creed of my own fellowship but learn what it says if your church is solid your family is so strong your legacy is intact well that's what many of the Jewish people thought as well so take heed take the warning I know that you've got to be a follower of Jesus in your own life and have simple faith in the gospel so I would say guard yourself against pride and that's what we'll conclude today I'm going to pick up more of this stuff next week but for the sake of time I think we need to stop and we'll continue some of this analogy that's going on but the bottom line for us at the end here is to guard ourselves against pride that's the warning of Paul oh yeah you're saved Oh God's grace you gods bless you but don't be thinking this is because of you remember you're saved by grace and for a Christian to walk in humility is the most natural should be the most natural thing for a Christian to have we really ought to have a zero pride but I've found that pride can enter into every part of your life and it doesn't give you like notice to tell you it's coming it's like it pride is it's it's like a really you know it's like a really bad to dry it's like it's silent but deadly that's the idea that this is pride it comes in and you don't know it's there but other people do other people noticed but you don't because you just can't see it you just can't see it do you like that analogy I'm sorry it seemed appropriate at the time so the final word to us is this is there are consistent warnings against pride and in fact proverbs which you would say warns against being a fool more than anything but it does very clearly say that being proud is worse than being a fool so it's just to be thoughtful be mindful of ourselves walk in humility put on humility in all genuineness let's pray father we thank you for your word we thank you for the reminder tonight we pray that we would be able to remember the stuff that we've been learning in your word some of the difficult issues that we're kind of trying to plod through and understand that it would stick that things we hear but maybe don't fully grasp lord help us to understand them better when we see in this passage your heart of love and the hope for evangelism that you have towards even the hardest of hearts that encourages us Lord we pray let us have that heart to let us have that hope to point us towards people in our lives who seem hard point us towards them with hope we pray for their salvation we pray God that we'd be those who walk in humility who know how much grace you've given us so we would know how much grace is available to others in Jesus name [Music] [Applause] [Music]

Channel: Mike Winger

Views: 21,083

Rating: 4.8056679 out of 5

Keywords: Israel, what really happened to Israel, can Jews be saved, Mike Winger, BibleThinker, Bible Thinker, grafted, branches, natural branches, wild olive tree, the firstfruits and the lump, Romans 11, Romans 11:7-24, What is God’s plan for Israel, replacement theology, grafted in, election Romans 11:7, judicial hardening, provoke to jealousy

Id: GYR1qGQ79dQ

Length: 47min 41sec (2861 seconds)

Published: Mon Oct 23 2017