Chapter # 11 Paragraph # 5 Study # 3
May 5, 2019
Humble, Texas
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Thesis: There are two primary "standards" involved in God's dealings with humanity.
Introduction: As we have worked our way through Paul's revelation regarding the reason for the way things are at his point in history, we have noted that there has been a major shift in the way things were done in the past as concerning God's focus upon Israel. Paul's opponents have used his promotion of this "shift" to condemn him as a heretic worthy of death.
But, Paul's argument is that his opponents are ignorant of God's Larger Plan which, though a "mystery" during the period when God was working through His Plan in regard to Israel, yet had some basis in the records of the writings of the prophets of Israel (his "quote" is from Isaiah).
The "mystery", hinted at by Isaiah 50:20-21, is that a time of partial hardening was to come upon Israel so that there was a need for the promise contained in Isaiah's prophecy. That prophecy was set within a context of "No Justice". The verses are set within the context of Israel's tragic and enormous elevation of injustice so that "...there is no justice in their goings..." (59:8), "Therefore is justice far from us..." (59:9), "...we look for justice, but there is none..." (59:11), "...justice is turned away backward..." (59:14), and "Yahweh saw it, and it displeased Him that there was no justice..." (59:15). They are also set within a context of "vengeance" so that "...He put on the garments of vengeance..." (59:17), and "According to their deeds...He will repay...", "...recompense to His enemies; to the islands He will repay recompense..." (59:18). It is at this point that 51:20-21a comes into play and Paul's argument is solid: God's Larger Plan involves a period of partial hardening of Israel that will be ended when The Deliverer comes forth out of Zion.
Now, our study this evening will focus upon how Paul argues his case in respect to the current realities of Jewish hatred for the Gentiles and the Gentiles' "return attitude" toward the hateful Jews.
- I. The "Admission".
- A. There is a word in Paul's statement in 11:28 that both the translators of the Authorized Version and the NASB chose to not translate.
- 1. This word is "men", and it is said, by the Logos Library System, to be an "emphatic particle" that "shows affirmation or concession".
- 2. By not translating it, our translators fail us: there is something "emphatic" in Paul's words that does not come across as "emphatic" and there is something of "affirmation or concession" that does not come across as either "affirming" or "making a concession".
- B. This word, in Paul's statement, is clearly "concessional": it ought to have been translated with something like, "Now, I admit...", and it should have been regarded as an emphatic admission because it has much to do with the faulty, and dangerous, attitude that has been developing in the hearts and minds of Paul's Gentile converts.
- C. Thus, we are dealing with an emphatic concession by Paul.
- 1. The "admission" is that, indeed, the Jews have shown themselves to be "enemies" of the Gentiles who have believed in the Jewish Savior, Jesus of Nazareth.
- 2. This "admission" shows that Paul is still dealing with the Gentiles' faulty and dangerous "attitude": it shows that they are using the Jewish hatred as a basis for their "boastful, high-minded, wisdom" as if it was a valid basis for their "attitude".
- D. There is a root of Paul's emphatic concession.
- 1. The term "enemies" signals a very powerful antagonism that reaches to the desire to kill.
- 2. Such antagonism has to have a "root".
- 3. According to Paul, this "root" is what he calls "the standard of The Gospel".
- a. The phrase "the standard of The Gospel" is found in the grammatical structure of the words translated "As concerning the gospel" (Authorized Version) and "From the standpoint of the gospel" (NASB): kata plus the accusative form of the noun.
- 1) Robertson says that this grammatical structure indicates the presence of a "standard", to which the word "standpoint" in the NASB points.
- 2) What it means is that we need to take a "stance" so that our viewpoint is governed by the "point" at which we "stand" (an illustration is Balak's attempt to get Balaam to curse Israel by taking him from one "point" of view to another: Numbers 23:13).
- b. The named "viewpoint" is "The Gospel".
- 1) As a "standard", the Gospel's focus is upon The Cross.
- 2) From the "viewpoint" of The Cross, there are two major issues that must be taken into account.
- a) First, and primary, is the driving commitment by God to provide a way for fallen men to enter into, and possess, the enormous benefits of Eternal Life.
- b) Second, and secondary, is the driving commitment by God to deal justly with both Sin and sinners.
- 3) From this dual-focus of the "Standard", the Gentiles need to be clearly aware of one basic fact: it is precisely because of God's dealings with the Jews as "sinners" that the Gentiles have access to the promises of The Gospel (11:11).
- a) Awareness of this basic fact pulls several things into focus.
- i. The Gentiles have nothing of which to boast because they had nothing to do with God's decision to favor them in order to provoke Israel to jealousy.
- ii. The Gentiles have nothing of which to be high-minded because God did not turn to them because of some "greater morality" on their part, but because He intended to use them to turn Israel back to His salvation.
- iii. The Gentiles have nothing of wisdom to explain their blessed status because they have that status in spite of their "ignorance" of a major element in God's Larger Plan (ignorance does not lead to wisdom).
- b) Thus, to treat the Jews as "enemies" in the traditional way is altogether an unfounded fault.
- E. There is an even more fundamental root of Paul's argument.
- 1. There is another "standard".
- a. It is called "the standard of The Election".
- b. This "Standard" brings us to another "point of view".
- 1) This point of view brings 9:11 back into play: "election" is the foundation of the "purpose of God".
- 2) This point of view also brings 11:6-7 back into play: "election" is of "grace" so that there is absolutely no room for the three-fold fault of the Gentile attitude.
- 2. This "standard" identifies those who are currently "enemies" as "beloved ones".
- a. This means that the Gentiles, to be in harmony with God, must shift away from both the identity of "enemies" as well as the attitudes that have developed from that perspective.
- b. This means that the Gentiles are in great need of the larger picture: the Jews are to be considered "the Beloved of God" because they yet have a future in God's Larger Plan.