Romans 9 - Introduction

Romans CHAPTER 9:

OUTLINE AND COMMENTARY-MARK DUNAGAN

I. INTRODUCTION:

'From the first, Paul had been writing with his Jewish kindred in mind. He had declared his gospel to be "the power of God unto salvation..to the Jew first, and also to the Greek" (Romans 1:16). He had demonstrated how much the Jew needed the righteousness which the gospel revealed. He had shown, from the Jewish Scriptures, the way of righteousness by faith. He had answered the various objections which. Jew might make to. righteousness which was "apart from the Law". It was absolutely necessary, then, that Paul should deal with the historic and pathetic situation in which the Jews, as. nation, were rejecting the righteousness which God had provided..'

'It was of the essence of Paul's argument that the gospel which he (and his fellow-apostles) preached was no innovation. It was attested in the Hebrew Scriptures; it was the fulfillment of God's promise to the fathers; it proclaimed that God's way of righteousness through faith, by which Abraham had been blessed, was still open to all who believed in God as Abraham did. How came it, then, that it was pre-eminently Abraham's descendants who refused to believe the gospel? Surely, had Paul's claims been valid, the Jewish people would have been the first to acknowledge them? Such objections were no doubt voiced, and Paul could appreciate their force, although he was well aware of the fallacy which they involved. Yet it was. paradox, not to say. scandal, that the very nation which had been specially prepared by God for this time of fulfillment, the nation which could glory in so many unique privileges of divine grace (including above all the messianic hope), the nation into which in due course the Messiah had been born, should have failed to recognize Him when He came, while men and women of other nations which had never enjoyed such privileges embraced the gospel eagerly the first time they heard it. How could this be harmonized with God's choice of Israel and His declared purpose of blessing the world through Israel?'

II. THIS SECTION AND PREDESTINATION:

The Calvinistic Doctrine of Predestination argues:"By predestination we mean the eternal decree of God by which he determined with himself whatever he wished to happen with regard to every man. All are not created on equal terms, but are preordained to eternal life, others to eternal damnation; and, accordingly, as each has been created for one or other of these ends, we say that he has been predestinated to life or to death." "God, by his eternal and immutable counsel determined once for all those whom it was his pleasure one day to admit to salvation, and those whom, on the other hand, it was his pleasure to doom to destruction..those whom he dooms to destruction are excluded from access to life by. just and blameless but at the same time incomprehensible judgement."

Thank God that the above isn't true! These three Chapter s (9,10,11), teach anything but predestination. Free-will and the consequences of one's free-will are found throughout. (Romans 9:32; Romans 10:2; Romans 11:20-23)"His own precious Son said (John 5:40 'Ye will not come to me that ye may have life'; Matthew 23:37 'How often would. have gathered your children..and ye would not...'; Matthew 11:28 'Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and. will give you rest'.) Was he playing word-games? If his Father had eternally consigned these people (irrespective of their longings and choosing) to eternal death and torment, the Christ was only tantalizing the damned when he offered them life! There is. Man who protests such horrific doctrine as Calvinistic reprobation, the man is Jesus Christ."

III. OUTLINE OF CHAPTER 9:

I. Paul's Sorrow for his people: Romans 9:1-3

II. The Blessings and Privileges of the Jew: Romans 9:4-5

III. Physical ancestry was never the sole basis for obtaining God's promises: Romans 9:6-13

IV. God's right to condemn or bless clearly stated: Romans 9:14-23

V. Those that responded to God's Mercy: Romans 9:24-29

VI. The Jewish rejection of Mercy: Romans 9:30-33