Chapter # 11 Paragraph # 3 Study # 2
January 20, 2019
Humble, Texas
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Thesis: What God actually did in response to "Israel's" persistence in evil and His reason for so doing is bound up in His Larger Plan.
Introduction: In our last study we considered Paul's embrace of God's method for bringing "Israel" into the "salvation" that He originally promised. We saw that it was a personally dangerous method for Paul in that it consists of "provoking jealousy" in Israel by "exalting" the impact of the Gospel among the nations. The provoking of jealousy almost always initially results in hot anger and murderous rage even as Moses admitted in Deuteronomy 32 and as Paul quoted him in Romans 10:19. It is this hot anger than generates the danger for anyone involved in "provoking jealousy".
However, we also saw that sometimes in the aftermath of violent emotions, a "godly sorrow" sets in and brings with it the "repentance" that leads to salvation (2 Corinthians 7:9-10). Since Paul began this section of his letter to the Romans with a powerful claim to be willing to be accursed from Christ for the sake of his kinsmen according to the flesh, we know that he did not fear the initial anger of the jealous (9:1-3). And we know from this text, in the context of his embrace of the divine methodology of "provoking jealousy unto eventual repentance", that he was taking a somewhat "long" view of the Larger Plan.
For our study this evening I want to point out Paul's view of both "Israel" and "The Larger Plan". His view of "Israel" was that it began with the initial seed of Abraham (Isaac) as a "son of promise"; it continued with the second born of Rebecca (Jacob/Israel) as another "son of promise" born in spite of the barrenness of his mother; it developed from there into an amalgamation of twelve tribes and eventual offspring "as the sand of the sea" wherein two strains of "offspring" developed ("children of promise" and a greater number of "children of flesh"); it was eventually degraded by the overwhelming preponderance of the "children of the flesh" until it reached a point of an enormous national apostasy that resulted in the crucifixion of the Messiah by "Israel"; it was dispersed in judgment by God for approximately 2,000 years and then was regathered as a national entity, but yet in unbelief; it is projected to come into a time of trouble such as has not been from the foundations of the world with the result that the "children of flesh" will be winnowed out by the activities of the Coming Beast; it will eventually become what it was at first (a "nation" made of only those who are "the children of the promise) and in the national condition of being a nation of "all Israel now saved" (Romans 11:26); and, finally, Messiah will establish the Kingdom of God on the earth with its pinnacle, the nation of Israel.
With this view of "Israel" in mind, we can look at how Paul wraps up this part of his presentation of God's use of "salvation to the nations" as an effective method for bringing "Israel" back to its original state.
- I. Verse Fifteen.
- A. This is a repetition of the argument presented in 11:11-12.
- 1. The focus is upon God's "surprising" reaction to "Israel's" persistent unwillingness to turn to God.
- a. The expected reaction is rooted in "Justice".
- b. The surprising reaction is rooted in "Grace".
- 2. The essence of God's surprising reaction is that He "reduces" Israel's status as His primary object of Love to being simply "one of many".
- a. Thus, there is no "final pushing away" as 11:1 emphatically declares.
- b. But there is a "partial casting from" as 11:11-12 and 15 admits.
- B. This is a restatement of 11:11-12 in slightly different terms.
- 1. In the prior statement the issues are "salvation" dissected into two possessors of "riches".
- a. The "world" receives the "salvation" of the "riches" because of God's response to Israel's transgression.
- 1) The entire "world" comes under the dominion of the Kingdom of God with His Lord and Christ sitting upon the throne.
- 2) The "recovery" of the entire "geography" of this created "world" is accomplished ("all things are submitted to Him" as Hebrews 2:8 and 1 Corinthians 15:24 anticipate.)
- b. The "nations" receive the "salvation" of the "riches" because of God's use of a "grace" methodology in contrast to "Israel's" insistence upon a "legal" methodology.
- 1) The "sheep nations" of Matthew 25:32-33 are ushered into their inheritance of the "riches" of Messiah's Kingdom.
- 2) These "sheep nations" receive by grace what Israel rejected in favor of works.
- 2. In this present statement the plan is presented in terms of the future "riches" to the "world".
- a. God's casting away of national Israel with its preponderance of apostates within brings "reconciliation" of the world to God wherein He places them in positions of favor within His Kingdom.
- b. God's receiving of the nation with all apostates winnowed away brings "Life from the dead" to the world (this is the resurrection of Revelation 20:4).
- II. Verse Sixteen.
- A. This is the rationale behind the Larger Plan.
- B. This rationale is stated by means of two agricultural metaphors.
- 1. If the "firstfruit" is "holy", so also is the final harvest (assuming the winnowing of the chaff).
- a. The "national plan" began with the promise of a great nation to Abraham and had its initial "fruit" in "Isaac" as the first of the "children of promise".
- b. Then this "national plan" was developed through many stages to the final stage of "the salvation of all Israel" as the culmination of many "children of promise" being brought to glory (Hebrews 2:10).
- 2. If the "root" is "holy", so also are the branches (assuming the pruning that is to be addressed in the next paragraph).
- a. Abraham, "the believer", was the original "root".
- b. All, who afterward were characterized by both descent from Abraham and participation in the faith of Abraham, became the "holy branches".