Romans 11:1-16 (Wednesday Evening Bible Study)

Romans 11:1-16

• How well do you take rejection?  Have you ever been rejected when you asked someone for a date?  
• Has God been rejected? How does God take rejection? At the end of chapter 10 it sure sounds like the Jews have continually rejected him.
• Romans 10:20-21 20 And Isaiah boldly says, “I was found by those who did not seek me; I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me.” 21But concerning Israel he says, “All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and obstinate people.”
• Day after day, year after year, generation after generation, God tried to call his people to himself and have a relationship with them. And how did his people respond? They kept disobeying God and arguing with him.  What the Jews reject and the Gentiles accept… that is the gospel and the work of Christ.
• If the Letter ended with chapter 10 it would seem as if God has given up on the Jews.
• In Chapter 11 Paul anticipates a few questions from His readers… What about the Jews?
  • What’s happened to them? After all their years of disobedience has God finally washed his hands of them and turned to the Gentiles?
  • Paul will give three reasons why God has not given up on the Jews.
    • The Remnant of Israel
    • Engrafted Branches
    • All Israel Will Be Saved
• Romans 11:1-6
• I ask, then, has God rejected his people? Absolutely not! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Or don’t you know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah—how he pleads with God against Israel? 3 Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars. I am the only one left, and they are trying to take my life! 4 But what was God’s answer to him? I have left seven thousand for myself who have not bowed down to Baal. 5 In the same way, then, there is also at the present time a remnant chosen by grace. 6 Now if by grace, then it is not by works; otherwise grace ceases to be grace.
  • What is the first question that Paul anticipates?
    • Did God reject his people?
  • How does Paul answer his own question?
    • By no means! 
  • What does he offer has proof?
    • See verse 1 He offers himself as proof not all Israel has been rejected.
  • Why does Paul bring up the story about Elijah?
    • Verses 3 & 4 What Paul is showing is that God has never totally left the Israelites. They left him several times, but God was always faithful. Even when things looked the darkest, like in Elijah’s day, God preserved a group who remained faithful to him. Even though it looks bleak, there is still a group, a remnant of Israel that has remained faithful to God.
  • What is special about this present time remnant?
    • Verses 5 & 6 They are chosen by grace… these are Christian of Jewish decent Paul is referring to. 
  • Are they part of the remnant because of their works?
    • No because of grace. Grace is both an attitude and action on the part of God.  God’s choice is that there would be a remnant of faithful Jews.  In Elijah’s day and in Paul’s day…both based on grace…God chose to make salvation available to any who were faithful to His revealed will. It is not based on something man works out it is God’s doing.
• Romans 11:7-10
• 7 What then? Israel did not find what it was looking for, but the elect did find it. The rest were hardened, 8 as it is written, God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that cannot see and ears that cannot hear, to this day. 9 And David says, Let their table become a snare and a trap, a pitfall and a retribution to them. 10 Let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and their backs be bent continually.
  • What were the people of Israel seeking so earnestly?  We find this answer in Romans 9:31
    • but the people of Israel, who pursued the law as the way of righteousness, have not attained their goal. 32 Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works
    • Romans 10:3 since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. 
  • The nation of Israel as a whole was seeking their “righteousness” right standing with God.
  • Who are the elect here?
    • Verse 7 Those Jews who responded faithfully to God’s will… for Paul‘s day it would be those Jews who believe the gospel and obey it. 
  • What happened to those who did not believe the gospel?
    • They were hardened…The Greek word for hardened means to refusal to serve. So they were hardened because of their rejection of salvation.
  • Was the rejection of most and the salvation of a few a surprise to the Lord?
    • See Verses 8 Paul quotes Isaiah 29:9 & Deuteronomy 29:4 This rejection was no surprise to God He predicted this would happen. 
  • Why would God give a spirt of stupor so they cannot see or hear?
    • This is judicial hardening based on their sin and rejection.
  • What is the quote from David asking for?
    • Verses 9 and 10 David is asking God to do punishing things to God’s enemies…God is not choosing some to judgment and others to salvation. Here it is based on how one responds to the gospel message. Rejection of the gospel brings about hardening of the disobedient . But for others God’s choosing of some according to grace will make up the remnant.
• Romans 11:11-12
• 11 I ask, then, have they stumbled so as to fall? Absolutely not! On the contrary, by their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel jealous. 12 Now if their transgression brings riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fullness bring!
  • Are Jews beyond recovery according to Paul?  
  • Verse 11 No they are not…their fall was not beyond recovery.  Their stumbling is seen as temporary
  • What did the Jews stumbling over the gospel bring about?
    • Think back in the book of Acts when the Church was made up of only believing Jews then persecution came what happened? The persecution came from the majority which rejected Jesus as Messiah. Many Christians left Jerusalem and took the gospel with them. It is seen over and over again in Acts, Jews reject,  gospel is  preached to Gentiles which respond.
    • Jewish rejection made possible Gentiles accepting the gospel.
  • What is Paul looking forward to here?
    • Verse 12 Jews accepting the gospel in large numbers
• Romans 11:13-16
• 13 Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Insofar as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, 14 if I might somehow make my own people jealous and save some of them. 15 For if their rejection brings reconciliation to the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead? 16 Now if the firstfruits are holy, so is the whole batch. And if the root is holy, so are the branches.
  • As an apostle to the Gentiles has Paul given up the Jews?
    • You might think that but that is far from the case.
  • What is Paul hoping his preaching the gospel to the Gentiles will bring about?
    • Envy in a good sense that the Jews will see what the gospel has done for the Gentile and desire to emulate in their lives.
  • Does Paul sense the difficulty of persuading his fellow countrymen?
    • Verse 14 “save some of them”
  • How is accepting the gospel, “life from the dead’?
    • Spiritually dead are made alive also those who die in Christ will resurrect to life.
  • What is meant by in verse 16 about the first fruits and the whole batch, the root and the branches?
    • Holy here means set apart or consecrated.  First fruits means there is more to come. The root and branches Abraham is considered the root and  Jewish people accepting the  gospel as  being the branches.  Some picture that what Paul is speaking about will come about in the future   that many Jews will respond to the gospel. The branches holy and connected to the root will have opportunity to respond to the Gospel.
• TAKE AWAY
  • Has God given up on the Jews?
  • Does Paul think the Jews will respond to the gospel in the future even though many rejected Jesus?
  • Does this mean every Jews will be saved?
    • No
  • Will the Jews be saved any differently than anyone else?
    • No they must respond to the gospel in faith 
  • To be chosen for grace what must we do?
    • respond faithfully to the gospel of Christ