Mutual grace

Romans 11:7-15; 5/25/2025; BCBC/IOUC; Rev. Paul Wang

Introduction

After talking about the “remnant,” Paul wanted to clarify the relationship between the Israelites and the Gentiles. Of course, Paul’s purpose was still to enable the Israelites to wake up and quickly receive the gospel. Let’s look at the first point: 

 The confusion of hardening         

 When the gospel came to the Israelites, their attitude was one of rejection.  They even went so far as to crucify Jesus Christ, creating the greatest tragedy in history.  First, the confusion of hardening.  The Greek word for hardening in the scripture is πορος (poros), which means hard-heartedness and the verb is “to make insensitive.”    In fact, it is not difficult to understand the meaning of this word.   Just ask ourselves, what is our attitude towards the gospel today?  With feeling or indifferent?  Do you feel or not feel the sacrifice of Christ?  God chose us in Christ Jesus before the creation of the world.   Who are we?  It’s very simple, we are the chosen ones!  Are you one of the chosen ones?  Ask yourself whether you have a feeling for Christ, the gospel, the church, and the Lord’s great commission!  Do you have it? This has been true from Isaiah to the early church and even more so today!        

Secondly, man’s disobedience is his retribution.  When we read verse 8, it is often difficult to understand.  We may wonder, how could God “give them a spirit of stupor”?  Moreover, it is recorded in the Bible and has many references in the Old Testament.  Deuteronomy chapter 29 verse 4 is the earliest record: “But to this day the Lord has not given you a heart to understand or eyes to see or ears to hear.” Starting with Pharaoh, the drama of God hardening his heart has been played out over and over again.  If one plague is not enough, there will be two, three, four, until ten, and even all the way to the Red Sea.  If people can stop at ignorance, they will not die.  However, once Satan arouses man’s foolishness, it is difficult for him to calm down.  At this time, man’s disobedience is his retribution!        

Finally, bending down is not humility.  The heart is more deceitful than all else; who can understand it?  If a person’s mind is not filled with the Holy Spirit, it will be filled with greed and pride.  What’s worse is that you live in darkness but use a flashlight to shine on others.  This was the case with the Pharisees, whom Jesus accused of being hypocrites.  They wear long robes, walk on the streets, use long prayers as a cover, and find fault with others everywhere.  Not only that, they are also very polite, such as bowing and showing humility.  The “bending” that Paul refers to here is the retribution given by God, referring to their short-sightedness and confusion in the spiritual world.  They cannot see far, they cannot read the Psalms, they cannot understand the Proverbs, they cannot comprehend the book of Gospels, and they do not know eternal life.  Let’s look at the second point: 

Encouragement of gentile believers  

We were originally Gentiles, wild branches, but were grafted into the true vine by God.  This should be one of the seven most wonderful things God has done!  Creation of the heavens and the earth, selection of the Israelites, incarnation of Christ, salvation of the Gentiles, salvation of the whole house of Israel, judgment of all things, new heaven and new earth!  First, stumbling is not falling.  If you stumble, you still have a chance to stand up again, but falling means eternal destruction.  Of course, from stumbling to falling, it ultimately depends on their attitude toward Christ.  The Israelites never dreamed that they would fail the test of Jesus Christ, the cornerstone.  God’s will was to save, but the Israelites chose to reject the gospel.  Including Pilate, who heard Jesus say that He came to bear witness to the truth.  However, Pilate waved his hands in confusion and asked, “What is truth?”  He, like the Jews at that time, had missed out on God.  The difference is that Pilate fell and never had another chance.  However, God considered the Israelites to have stumbled, and there was still grace for their entire family to be saved.        

Secondly, trespass also becomes an opportunity.  This is the limit of human wisdom and ability.  For God, “Rather, through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous. (Romans 11:11)”  It was clearly their fault, but God, who loves them forever, turned decay into magic and curse into blessing!   On the one hand, God wanted to take this opportunity to bring the gospel to the Gentiles; on the other hand, God wanted to encourage His own chosen people, the Israelites, to work hard and strive to walk the heavenly path and enter the narrow gate because they saw that even the Gentiles were saved!  Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, never ignore or underestimate people’s mistakes, for they may be used by God to serve as an encouragement to yourself or others.        

Finally, all things work together for good.  God’s vision is not man’s vision, and God’s perspective is something man cannot fully understand.  When Queen Jezebel’s power overwhelmed the prophet Elijah, the prophet’s vision was covered by worry and fear, and his future and direction were obscured.  So what to do?  There is only one way left: escape!  We may not be able to believe that a man who was more powerful than four hundred and twenty false prophets of Baal would be afraid of a woman, an evil woman, even though she was a queen.  When God’s comfort came to Elijah, God opened his view.  It turns out that there were seven thousand people who did not worship Baal!  Today, God’s servants are being thrown into prison and tortured by the Antichrist regime for upholding their faith.  God allows their testimonies to be an encouragement to us today, and to create thousands and thousands of elite soldiers of the Kingdom of Heaven who refuse to bow to the Antichrist!  Let’s look at the third point:

Transcendence of resurrection from the dead  

Have you ever wondered what the difference is between New Testament believers and Jews?  Although the Old Testament and the New Testament are different,   the New Testament is actually contained in the Old Testament.  What the Jews could not accept the most was precisely the resurrection that we consider most precious, that is, the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.  First, look forward to the fullness of the elect.  Since the difference is the understanding of resurrection, the key to preaching the gospel to the Israelites is to help them understand Christ’s resurrection.  Although we do not know how to enable them to know Christ’s resurrection, making them full is the command of the Bible today.  David said, ”Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!  May they be secure who love you! (Psalm 122:6)”  Reading this passage may also help us understand why God has blessed the United States for so many years because of its help to the Israelites.  It’s not because everything about the United States is good, but there is at least one thing that is worth emulating and learning from by other countries in the world, and that is to pray for peace for Jerusalem!        

Secondly, hoping to encourage my fellow Jews.  From the records in Romans, it is not difficult to discover Paul’s love for his compatriots!  This is a very precious sentiment and is also blessed by God.   他說：He said: “in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them. (Romans 11:14)”  It is not difficult to find that Paul’s love for his fellow Jews is based on the truth of the gospel. That is to say, Paul’s purpose was to “save some of them”!  Therefore, the feelings in Paul’s heart are definitely not the so-called patriotism.  It is true that Hudson Taylor loved the Chinese.  He said that if he had tens of millions of pounds, he would give it all to the Chinese without hesitation.  Many Chinese people were very excited, saying, “Hudson Taylor loves us Chinese so much!”  “Unexpectedly, Hudson Taylor went on to say: It’s not China, it’s Christ!        

Lastly, isn’t it resurrection from the dead?  Paul concluded: “For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead? (Romans 11:15)”  In fact, whether the Israelites were abandoned or accepted, it became a grace option for the salvation of the entire Israelite family.  It didn’t matter that the Israelites were rebellious, disobedient, and unwilling to accept the gospel.  God used their disobedience to save the Gentiles and even to reconcile the world to God!  One day, God will save all of Israel, and we will experience the same excitement that Christ experienced when he rose from the dead!  I believe this is the greatest miracle God will perform in the last days, that the entire Israelites will be saved! 

Conclusion

Well, thank the Lord!  It is the gospel that works together with our hearts, enabling all who believe in Him to experience God’s mighty grace together!  What about the hardening of the Israelites?  God used it to save the Gentiles.  Gentile believers were encouraged by the gospel and experienced God’s power to make all things work together for good, which enabled the Israelites to experience the power of Christ’s resurrection, so that the whole house of Israel to be saved and God’s will of choosing all those who believe in Him in Christ, which He did before the creation of the world, to be fulfilled!        

Let us pray……   

7 What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, 

8 as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.”

9 And David says,“Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a retribution for them;

10 let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and bend their backs forever.”

11 So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather, through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous. 

12 Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion[b] mean!

13 Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry

14 in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them. 

15 For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead?