#1643 Romans 10 Part 1 My Heart's Desire

 

Brothers, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation. 2 For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. 3 For not knowing about the righteousness of God and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God. 4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

5 For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of law: “The man who does these things shall live by them.” 6 But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will go up into heaven?’ (that is, to bring Christ down), 7 or ‘Who will go down into the abyss?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).” 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, 9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, leading to righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, leading to salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes upon Him will not be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him, 13 for “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10: 1-13 LSB

Romans 10: 1-13 Their Salvation

V. 1 Brothers, my heart's desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation - Paul writes disbelief but not the people. He is not just sorrowful, but he goes to the only One Who has the power to convince the heart of anyone. Prayer is Paul's response, and should be ours for the lost of any people. MacArthur points out that though Paul was called as the apostle to the Gentiles that did not diminish his continual entreaties to God for Israel to be saved. 

…14And now he is here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on Your name.” 15“Go!” said the Lord. “ This man is My chosen instrument to carry My name before the Gentiles and their kings, and before the people of Israel. 16I will show him how much he must suffer for My name.”… Acts 9: 14-16

1First of all, then, I urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgiving be offered for everyone— 2for kings and all those in authority— so that we may lead tranquil and quiet lives in all godliness and dignity. 3This is good and pleasing in the sight of God our Savior,… 1 Timothy 2: 1-3

…21“Believe Me, woman,” Jesus replied, “a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22You worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23But a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for the Father is seeking such as these to worship Him.… John 4: 21-23

V. 2 Zeal for God but not according to knowledge - This sounds like Paul's own testimony as Saul. He was religious, fervent, eager to keep the law of the Pharisees, and went after what he saw as the opponents to God with zeal. People can sound confident, sincere, and be outwardly intense, even animated in the proclamation of what they believe. Paul went so far as to kill Christians because he thought they were infidels. He lacked the "knowledge" (understanding) of Who Christ really was, and so he treated His followers as apostates. 

…5circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin; a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; 6as to zeal, persecuting the church; as to righteousness in the law, faultless. 7But whatever was gain to me I count as loss for the sake of Christ.… Philippians 3: 5-7

12I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, that He considered me faithful and appointed me to service. 13 I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a violent man; yet because I had acted in ignorance and unbelief, I was shown mercy. 14And the grace of our Lord overflowed to me, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.… 1 Timothy 1: 12-14

V. 3 For not knowing about the righteousness of God - That is the righteousness that comes through Christ, as it is unattainable by human effort.  They tried to establish a righteousness of their own which was only acceptable within their social bubble, and they lowered the bar so low that it no longer reflected God's law or pointed to His righteousness which can only be grasped by faith. 

…2“The scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3So practice and observe everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. 4They tie up heavy, burdensome loads and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.…

…5All their deeds are done for men to see. They broaden their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels. 6 They love the places of honor at banquets, the chief seats in the synagogues, 7the greetings in the marketplaces, and the title of ‘Rabbi’ by which they are addressed.… Matthew 23: 2-7

V. 4 For Christ is the end of the law righteousness - This is the stark contrast. Their works pointed to themselves and their system. God's law, and the sacrificial system, pointed away from them to Christ. Christ would have to come and live the life that was pleasing to the Father in order to fulfill all righteousness. Their hope would have to shift from their own tainted works to belief in His perfect work. 

Paul means that belief in Christ as Lord and Savior ends the sinner's futile quest for righteousness through his imperfect attempts to save himself by efforts to obey the law. J Mac from Study Bible Note

i. “Christ did not come to make the law milder, or to render it possible for our cracked and battered obedience to be accepted as a sort of compromise. The law is not compelled to lower its terms, as though it had originally asked too much; it is holy and just and good, and ought not to be altered in one jot or tittle, nor can it be. Our Lord gives the law all it requires, not a part, for that would be an admission that it might justly have been content with less at first.” (Spurgeon) - E Word

V. 5 The man who does these things shall live by them - This is a reference going back to the OT, so if you are going to practice these things, seeking righteousness through the law, then you have to be perfect in it.

…4You are to practice My judgments and keep My statutes by walking in them. I am the LORD your God. 5Keep My statutes and My judgments, for the man who does these things will live by them. I am the LORD. 6None of you are to approach any close relative to have sexual relations. I am the LORD.… Leviticus 18: 4-6

9So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith. 10 All who rely on works of the law are under a curse. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.” 11Now it is clear that no one is justified before God by the law, because, “The righteous will live by faith.”… Galatians 3: 9-11

Vs. 6-8 The word is near you - It is not earned by some quest or perfectly keeping the law, the former is useless and the latter is impossible. Believing either is to make light of Christ's perfect work and sacrifice. It wasn't far from them at all, or to anyone reading this now, Paul is proclaiming that word, the gospel, so believe. 

…12It is not in heaven, that you should need to ask, ‘Who will ascend into heaven to get it for us and proclaim it, that we may obey it?’ 13And it is not beyond the sea, that you should need to ask, ‘Who will cross the sea to get it for us and proclaim it, that we may obey it?’ 14But the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you may obey it.… Deuteronomy 30: 12-14

VS. 9-10 That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved - See, it was right in front of them. Jesus is Lord, which means you are not. Belief in His resurrection isn't just the acknowledgment of a super natural event, but a fulfillment of prophecy and to show that Christ's payment satisfied God's justice. It is the believer's great hope. 

ii. Wuest, quoting Robertson on Jesus Christ is Lord: “No Jew would do this who had not really trusted Christ, for Kurios in the LXX is used of God. No Gentile would do it who had not ceased worshipping the emperor as Kurios. The word Kurios was and is the touchstone of faith.” - E Word

d. Believe in your heart: Mere intellectual agreement with the facts of the cross and the resurrection is not enough. You must believe in your heart; and even that belief is not enough without accompanying action: confess with your mouth.

i. “We believe everything which the Lord Jesus has taught us, but we must go a step further and trust him. It is not even enough to believe in him as being the Son of God, and the anointed of the Lord. But we must believe on him… The faith that saves is not the believing of certain truths – not even believing that Jesus is a Savior – but it is to rest on him, to depend on him, to lie with all your weight on Christ as the foundation of your hope. Believe that he can save you; believe that he will save you; in everything leave the whole matter of your salvation with him in unquestioning confidence. Depend on him without fear as to your present and eternal salvation. This is the faith which saves the soul.” (Spurgeon) - E Word

V. 11 Will not be put to shame - It was always by grace through faith. This is a quote from Isaiah.

…15For you said, “We have made a covenant with death; we have fashioned an agreement with Sheol. When the overwhelming scourge passes through it will not touch us, because we have made lies our refuge and falsehood our hiding place.” 16So this is what the Lord GOD says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; the one who believes will never be shaken. 17I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the level. Hail will sweep away your refuge of lies, and water will flood your hiding place.… Isaiah 28: 15-17

Vs. 12-13 Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved - This call recognizes Jesus as Lord, as God has revealed Himself to us in Scripture. It is not just a call into the dark to any god, it is a call to the only true God. We also saw earlier that it is a call to the One Who raised Jesus from the dead. Whoever is a blessed thing, meaning it is not limited to a culture or nationality. We are all one fallen race in Adam and all those who believe can be made alive in Christ. 

…44It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being;” the last Adam a life-giving spirit. 46The spiritual, however, was not first, but the natural, and then the spiritual.…

…47The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven. 48As was the earthly man, so also are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven. 49And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so also shall we bear the likeness of the heavenly man.… 1 Corinthians 15: 44-49