04/03/2022 – Day 035 – Romans 9 – 10 – To solve the unsolvable paradox: “In a forced choice between God’s sovereignty and man’s free will, I choose God’s sovereignty every time without blinking.”// 1 of 2
Ok, I ask pardon for repeat story(ies) for the presumable few readers that have followed this blog for the last two years. Years back, like decade+, I was having a theological debate / constructive discussion with two Christian brothers I will tag denominationally as “anabaptist”. They were tagging me as a “flippin calvinist” by suggesting the truth of that dreaded proposition: “predestination”. If one cuts out all the biblical references on “pre-destination”, you will at least have a much skinnier bible when you are done.
So, God was with me in my last attempt to convince them. I proposed: “We are saved by Jesus Christ alone, but we all must go through a judgment, so I realize I am taking a big risk here: “That being, I am giving God too much of the credit.” They broke out in laughter.
So the paradox expands further: Romans 12:2 clearly prescribes a pursuit of worshipping God with our minds. As a math lover, I would submit “God is in the math!” On the other hand, God forbid that we should try to “put Him in a box”, defining him with our human cognitive limits. Besides, I would submit: “It is not all about my salvation!” So , move onto something else : “take wonder at his unfathomable essence, His holiness!”
It is hard to miss Paul’s heart that is saddened by all within the nation of Israel who reject Him:
Romans 9:3: “For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from the Messiah for the benefit of my brothers, my countrymen by physical descent.” Whoa!
Check out this bible footnote to verses 9:13-14 , 21: “These verses may give the impression that God acts arbitrarily and apart from human cooperation, suggesting God disregards human freedom, and consequently could not hold people responsible for their actions. None of this fairly represents Paul’s point here. God’s gracious and merciful plan does not violate human freedom. To select Jacob over Esau reflects God’s choice to have the nation of Israel come through Jacob’s descendants, not Esau’s. In saying God ‘hated’ Esau, Paul did not imply that God excluded him from salvation.”
9:30-32: “What should we say then? Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained righteousness –namely the righteousness that comes from faith. But Israel, pursuing the law for righteousness, has not achieved the law. Why is that? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone.” (another paradox, but as we see remnant Jews will be saved as well at the end of the day.)
Romans 10: 9-10: “if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”
My bible (The Apologetics Study Bible) footnote reads: “Merely mouthing ‘Jesus is Lord’ and proclaiming that Jesus rose from the dead cannot secure salvation. Presumably the devil (see Jms 2:19) and many people (Matthew 7: 21-23) could meet these requirements and not be true followers of Christ. (Jimmy insert: Just reflect on how the devil’s minions have no difficulty in recognizing who Jesus is in biblical accounts)
Romans 10: 14-15: “But how can they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe without hearing about Him? And how can they hear without a preacher? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: How welcome are the feet of those who announce the gospel of good things!
BIble footnote again:
“Since salvation comes by confessing Jesus as Lord, Christians must preach this good news. But what about those to whom no preacher came? Paul did not deal with that question here. His concern centered on God’s message to the Israelites, to whom the message did go and who did hear, but who also, tragically, rejected the message (vv 16-21).
Two points remain. First, those who know the truth must spare no effort to proclaim it to others, for salvation is at stake. Second, the fate of the unevangelized rests in the hands of a loving and just God who will judge people on the basis of the light they received. (See article on “What about Those Who Have Never Heard about Christ? p. 1696.)
On that last note: I will follow with the link to the article just mentioned. Blessings to y’all’s day!
Soli Deo Gloria!