Romans 15:4 "For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope."
Get up early in the morning and witness the sunrise. Stay up late at night and behold the colors of the sunset arrayed against the far, untouchable horizon. The magnificence of the immense universe declares the wonderful handiwork of our Creator God. It forever tells of the amazing work of His creative hand.
It speaks to every single person who has ever lived on this terrestrial globe… of a caring God, Who, in the beginning, created the heavens; formed the earth and spoke, fashioned all that was made in those six astonishing days of creation.
Not one person could be indifferent to the heavenly glories of the day-time sky and the countless wonders of the stunning night-time sphere… as we gaze on the sun and moon and countless array of twinkling stars, which God in His own grace placed into the heavens on the third day of creation.
And God placed them there for signs and seasons… for endless days and for years. They were created to shed their radiant glow and life-giving warmth onto the earth. They were fashioned to rule the day and establish the night, as a perpetual reminder of God’s eternal goodness and His immeasurable greatness.
I need no other encouragement or motivation to know with all of my heart and with all of my soul and all of my mind and strength – to 100% believe in God.
Psalm 19:1-6 Authorized (King James) Version
Psalm 19
To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. 2 Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. 3 There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. 4 Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, 5 which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. 6 His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.
The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.
Psalm 19 is one of the more well-known, beloved psalms—it’s been one of my favorites for as long as I can remember. After studying it a bit more closely, I came away with not only a better appreciation of the psalm itself, but for the true glory of God, which is the David’s whole reason for writing the psalm.
In this psalm, David sits down against the whole backdrop of his native land, from sunrise to sunset he contemplates everything which is before him, listens to what all of creation says about the glory of God, what the Scriptures teach us about the righteousness of God, and how we ought to respond in our prayers.
The Heavens Declare the Glory of God
David opens his psalm by observing the ceaseless speech of creation to glorify God:
1The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
2Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.
The ESV has a great English version of Psalm 19, but there is always a lot lost in translation, no matter how faithful you can be to the text.
Look at the tremendously vivid verbs David selects to describe how creation announces the glory of God:
“The heavens declare the glory of God…” would be more literally translated recount, because it’s the word used for actual counting and numbering. When you say that someone recounts a story, however, there’s a sense that they are including every part of the story, bit by bit. All of the heavens have not merely declared the glory of God; they are enumerating every single wondrous detail of God’s glory.
“Day to day pours out speech…” is a very good word equivalent, because this word is used in Proverbs 18:4 to describe a flowing river.
“Night to night reveals knowledge…” property means “breathes out.” The exhaled breath of the night’s speech forms a gentler parallel image to the rushing water of the day’s speech.
Overall, the point of the first two verses is to declare the ceaselessnature of creation’s speech. There is never a silent moment during day or night when creation ceases to pour forth and breathe out its unified witness to God’s glory.
So, we might ask a brief question at this point: Why don’t we hear it? Is this speech bottled up in some kind of soundproof area so that we can’t hear it?
Not at all. Over the next few verses, David insists that the reach of creation’s voice is universal, so that there is no one who fails to hear it.
Creation’s Voice Praises God Through All the Earth
David continues his psalm:
3There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard.
4Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun,
5which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
6Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
Notice the insistence on the reach of creation’s voice:
“There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard” (v. 3)
“Their voice goes out through all the earth” (v. 4)
“Their words [go out] to the end of the world” (v. 4)
The course of the sun “is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat” (v. 6)
If creation’s single message is to announce the glory of God, and if creation’s voice reaches to the ends of the earth and beyond—so that there is absolutely nothing hidden from its reach—question then, how is it that we go through our lives mostly numb and oblivious to what creation is shouting at us at all times?
Certainly, there are points in life where a sunrise or a sunset catches our breath, or where we experience the overwhelming joy of looking out across a region of mountains after hiking to the top of one of the peaks, or perhaps where we are humbled to feel small in comparison to the vastness of all the world’s oceans.
But I believe that David clearly (heavenly) has something more in mind here.
All of creation is always declaring to us God’s glory. Every single microscopic organism and every furious tornado recounts the detail, creativity, and power of our Creator. For those who have eyes to see. for those who have ears to hear, let them be thoroughly still, to hear this sermon of praise to our God in heaven.
Why Christians Should Love God’s Creation
If this is true, then here are a few things we should consider in response.
First, this probably means that most of us need to get outside more often—and I’m thinking primarily about myself.
I’d much prefer to be in the artificially created comforts of my heated and air-conditioned home, sheltered from the rawness of nature, but I should probably consider how that short-circuits my ability to understand God.
Creating a carefully tamed environment to live out my days probably is not the single best teacher for understanding God as he is.
Second, this is a great motivation for Christians to pursue science, especially younger Christians who are trying to decide what to do with their lives.
In the current intellectual climate, many Christians are inherently suspicious of science, but Psalm 19 gives us a firm theological foundation for doing science, because science is the systematic exploration of God’s glory in creation.
In point of fact, the scientific revolution would never have happened without Christianity, because it was Christian theology that drove many of the first scientists to desire to discover horizons, exploring God’s world more closely.
The confusion today is that too many scientists actually promulgate a kind of philosophy (or even a religion) which takes as its first principle the belief that Psalm 19 isn’t true—that creation has nothing to do with proclaiming the glory of God. But as Bible believing Christians, I pray we know differently. Our science enlarges possibilities, expands our reach, view of God rather than shrinking it.
Finally, we need to make a mental note to allow ourselves to listen to creation’s praise of God. We are so busy in our lives that we fail to notice some spectacular beauty and wonder and terror within creation most of the time. Every second of every minute of every hour of every day and every night Creation is preaching to us a sermon every day of the week, if we would but listen to it – we’d know God!
As Christians, we should love creation, because creation is God’s handiwork.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Heavenly Father, when I look into the heavens and see the splendour of Your handiwork and the glories of Your creative power, I am moved as was David to proclaim Your glory and to declare the wonderful works of Your mighty hand. But when I look to the cross of Calvary and see Christ: – born, died, buried and resurrected to life… so that by faith in Him I might be reconciled back to God; be forgiven of my sins and become Your child and heir – I am lost in wonder love and praise, speak to me again and again, enlighten, illuminate me once more. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! AMEN.
It can be really easy to get caught in the trap of wanting more and getting more. We might be saving for those new shoes, a new phone, and trying to get a new car or the home we have always wanted for ourselves and our families.
We will motivate ourselves to work very hard; we will encourage ourselves to sacrifice very much with the fervent hope our return of investment will be what we hoped. Getting things can seem really important at times, however, the Bible challenges us, encourages us to not make getting the main priority in our life.
Instead, the Bible encourages us, it motivates us to live differently. Instead, the Bible encourages and motivates us to be radical givers. And the awesome part about being a giver is God rewards those who give. So, when you give, you’re not throwing away your time or money. Everything you give to God is always given back to you in many ways. God wants to reward you for your giving.
So, decide, perhaps today to make giving a habit in your life. Choose to begin to give and see how God will provide and reward you for your faithfulness to give.
Rabbi Jesus repeatedly teaches us about radical graciousness and generosity, he sums it up with two simple principles: 1) Our blessings will be based on our willingness to bless others, and 2) our measure of treating and judging others will be the basis used for how we are treated and judged by others and by God.
In other words, God has been radically gracious with us; and we can either share that graciousness or abuse it. Grace is wonderful and free until we take it off the market and out of circulation in our relationships. If we stymie, hold, or remove God’s grace from circulation, it becomes damaged and lost with us. This stern warning reminds us again how seriously God takes our generosity with others.
Luke 6:37-38 Disciples’ Literal New Testament
Do Not Judge or Condemn Others. Pardon And Give to Them
37 “And do not be judging[a], and you will never be judged. And do not be condemning, and you will never be condemned. Be pardoning, and you will be pardoned. 38 Be giving, and it will be given to you. They[b] will give a good measure— having been pressed down, having been shaken, running over— into your fold[c] [of the garment]. For with what measure you measure, it will be measured-back to you”.
The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.
The First Law of Christian Giving
The man, Rabbi Jesus said to those disciples; Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
This morning as I studied for this devotional offering, I made an interesting discovery. Although this saying of Jesus is very well-known, it is not often discussed. In looking through several commentaries, I generally found not more than one or two sentences devoted to this verse. And I couldn’t find any based entirely on Luke 6:38. In general, I observed verse 37 always attached.
I find that intriguing since most of us have known these words for many years.
If you attended Sunday School as a child, you probably memorized these words.
Perhaps you have them cross-stitched and framed in your kitchen or you may have them on a plaque on or above your desk. Many people who don’t know much about the Bible have heard this phrase: “Give and it will be given to you.”
This verse isn’t as famous as the Golden Rule, but it’s close.
Yet we rarely examine these words closely. They have become a proverb or a Christian motto that we repeat without thinking. This morning I would like to discuss what these words really mean and how they apply to our lives today.
Luke 6:38 is a call for “Christian liberalism.” That in itself is unusual because many churches are quite conservative in their theology. We make no bones about what we believe in almost every area. We are unashamedly conservative when it comes to the great moral issues of the day. We are not moderate nor are we middle-of-the-road. We are strongly conservative in doctrine and morality.
All that is well and good, but it doesn’t encompass every aspect of the Christian life. There are time and places where liberalism ought to be the rule of the day. One of those areas is 100% Radically Encouraged, Radically Motivated Christian giving. In our text Jesus calls on his disciple to be liberals in the area of giving.
I. The Promise Jesus Made
Let’s begin by taking a look at the background of this promise.
Luke 6:27-36 NKJV
Love Your Enemies
27 “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. 29 To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either. 30 Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back. 31 And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.
32 “But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. 35 But love your enemies, do good, and lend, [a] hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. 36 Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.
It helps to know that this is part of the famous Sermon on the Mount. You can find the longer version in Matthew 5-7; the shorter version is found in Luke 6.
Our text is part of a larger section that begins in verse 27 and stretches through verse 38.
All 12 verses deal with the area of human relationships, especially the vexing question of how to deal with difficult people.
I read, pray, and understand these “Beatitudes” primarily in two ways:
The man, Rabbi Jesus is encouraging us, and trying to motivate us to be
First as: “Radically Motivated Love in Action”
Second as: “Radically Motivated through acts of Christian Kindness.”
Jesus begins with 5 staccato commands:
Love your enemies (27)
Do good to those who hate you (27)
Bless those who curse you (28)
Pray for those who mistreat you (28)
Give to everyone who asks you (30)
His teachings climax with the Golden Rule in verse 31: “Do to others as you would have them do to you.”
In Jewish law this was often found in the negative, “Do not do to other what you do not want done to you.”
However, by now stating the command positively Jesus offered a revolutionary, pro-“God” active way of encouraging, motivating and treating others. We are not simply to avoid retaliation; we are to treat others as we want to be treated.
The next few verses give us 5 encouraging reasons for these radical commands:
1. You must go beyond what sinners do 32-34
2. You will win a great reward from God 35
3. You will prove to be the sons of God 35
4. You will reflect God’s character 36
5. You will be treated as you treat others 37
To Market, To Market
That brings us to our key verse.
In order to grasp the meaning, we need to know that it is set in the context of a Middle Eastern market where the buyers and sellers would haggle together or prices, quality, and amount.
It is a scene often repeated in Third World countries today.
Farmers bring their grain—wheat, corn, barley—and spread it on a mat on the ground. Potential customers examine the grain, they make an offer, and the haggling begins. When a price is finally set, the customer offers his container—usually a large bowl or pot—and the seller uses a scoop to fill the container.
It’s exactly at this point that the process becomes really fascinating. In Jesus’ day there were basically four stages of measuring grain for a given customer:
First, the seller fills the container to the top.
Second, he presses the grain down and fills some more.
Third, he shakes the container so the grain will settle and then fills some more.
Finally, he fills the container until it overflows.
The seller would catch the overflow grain and pour it into the pouch of his robe.
That pouch acted as a kind of carry-all bag so the man or woman could bring food home from the market.
In short, Jesus is describing a situation that took place every time a person went to market. It’s unusual to us because everything we buy at our supermarkets is already precisely measured, vacuum sealed, and wrapped up with shrink wrap.
It’s also very carefully labeled on the outside “Contents sold by weight not by volume.” But in Jesus’ day grain was sold by volume not by weight. That’s why the verse mentions that the grain was pressed down and shaken together.
What Does It Mean?
With that as background, we may ask the simple question:
What precisely is Jesus teaching us here about Christian giving?
I think there are two simple answers to that question.
1. When you give, God gives back to you
2. God uses the same measure you use!
Or to put it in modern terms …
If you are stingy, God will be stingy in return!
If you are generous, God will be generous in return!
Before I go any further, let me say that I realize this teaching may not be often heard, preached or taught in all church circles. For diverse various reasons this teaching is more likely to be found in other kinds of evangelical churches.
You may in fact wonder if I am interpreting this verse correctly. Before you jump to any conclusions, Let’s take a look at the most famous teaching in the New Testament regarding Christian giving, 2 Corinthians 9:6-11.
Remember this:
Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. That’s a principle drawn from the farm. Sow a little, reap a little. Sow a lot, reap a lot.
Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. That’s the application to all of us. When we give our offering, we do not have a gun to our heads as the plates are being passed. That would not be legal, and it would not be moral or ethical.
We want people to give because they want to, not because they have to.
Four “Alls”
And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. Notice the word “all” is repeated 4 times in one verse.
“All grace”—that’s the source
“All things”—that’s the extent
“All times”—that’s the duration
“All that you need”—that’s the result
This is God’s promise to those who dare to become generous givers.
You will have everything you need.
Maybe not everything you want, but God will not let generous givers go unrewarded.
As it is written:
Psalm 112:8-9 NIV
8 Their hearts are secure, they will have no fear; in the end they will look in triumph on their foes. 9 They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor, their righteousness endures forever; their horn[a] will be lifted high in honor.
Now he who supplies seed to the Sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.
You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.
Here God makes a very plain promise.
If you need more seed, he’ll give it to you. God will make you rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion.
Have you ever heard an appeal for money and felt like you wanted to give, but just couldn’t afford it? Perhaps the call came from a ministry or mission you greatly respect or from a school you support or from a church you greatly love.
Perhaps you know of a need and wish you could do something about it.
“You Go First!”
What do you do when you are running short on money but see a need and you want to get involved? I believe the answer is clear. You give whatever you can and trust God to take care of you. It may not be a lot. Indeed, it may be very small. The amount doesn’t matter. What matters is the attitude of the heart.
Both in Luke 6:38 and 2 Corinthians 9:6-11, God specifically promises to take care of generous givers. And he promises to give back to you in accordance with the measure of generosity you use in your “heart” giving in the first place.
In essence, God says, “You go first.” We don’t like that. We want God to go first.
We say, “You give me the money and then I’ll give.”
God says, “I’ve given you, my Word. Isn’t that enough?”
“Well, your Word is nice, but I’d like some cash to go along with it.”
To all our bargaining, God says, “Trust me. You give and I’ll take care of you. And I promise you’ll never be disappointed.”
II. The Principle Behind the Promise
Now that we (prayerfully) better understand what Luke 6:38 means, it’s very important to understand the principle behind the promise.
Everything Jesus says rests in the character of God. When Jesus said, ‘It will be given to you,” he based that promise on the truth of who God is.
He is a generous, benevolent God who loves to give good things to his children.
Because it is in his nature to give, he will always give more to us than we will to him. This to me is the First Law of Christian Giving. You cannot out-give God
In just a few weeks we will gather to celebrate Pentecost.
As we each prepare our heart, consider the first three verses of Psalm 103—The Thanksgiving Psalm—from the King James Version:
“Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.”
I love that last phrase. What a wonderful command for celebrating this season of the year: “FORGET NOT ALL HIS BENEFITS!”
If we’ve forgotten them already, David lists five of them for us in verses 3-5.
1. He forgives all your sins
2. He heals all your diseases
3. He redeems your life from destruction
4. He crowns you with love and compassion
5. He satisfies your desires with good things
Soon, as we get closer to Pentecost, I hope to begin an interesting bit of Bible study. Taking my concordances and commentaries, I will attempt to list all the things the Bible says that God encourages and motivates his people to give.
I may never finish the study because the list is too long. You would have to read the entire Bible verse by verse to find everything that God gives his children.
But I do pray God grants me the gift of His wisdom and time to at least make “substantial headway, edifying His Kingdom,” in the spread of His Gospel.
A Short List of God’s Gifts
But here’s a short list of God’s gifts I pray I can give some justice to:
victory, peace, hope, life, success, what is good, wisdom, knowledge, understanding, strength, health, discretion, wealth, honor, power, love, children, a heart to know him, songs in the night, joy in the morning, answers to prayer, food to the hungry, water to the thirsty, rest to the weary, good gifts to those who ask, eternal life, living water, all things, a spirit of unity, the new birth, the crown of life, the light of heaven, and the Word of God.
It will require a good deal of stretching myself where I have not been before.
But I am encouraged and motivated by my Savior’s radically generous words.
And what is his greatest gift? Is it not found in the greatest verse, John 3:16?
“For God so loved that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” God so loved that he gave. The whole truth of the gospel is in those six words.
That’s the Kind of God He Is
Have you ever wondered why God loves sinners? Or have you ever looked in the mirror (especially after doing something really radically backwards) and then saying, “If I were God, I wouldn’t love a person like me.”
Most of us have had that experience because most of us have fouled up in a major way and felt ashamed and embarrassed many times. Deep inside we doubt God’s love for us because we know the truth about who we really are.
Why does God love people like you and me?
I know of only one answer to that question.
He loves us because that’s the kind of God he is.
It’s in his nature to love sinners and (I saw this reverently) he could not stop loving us even if he wanted to. His love for us is so eternal and his character so faithful that his love does not depend on anything we say or do. He loves us just the way we are because that’s the way he is.
Four Facts to Remember
How does this truth about God’s character apply to motivated Christian giving?
Let me suggest four answers.
1. You can’t out-give God
2. God will be no one’s debtor
3. He invites us to trust his Word
4. He challenges us to put him to the test
When God says, “You go first,” we say, “No, you go first.” “But I did go first,” he replies, “I went first when I gave my Son to die on the cross for you.”
God’s Goodness and Our Giving
What does all this have to do with our giving?
You may agree with everything I have just said, still wonder what this has to do with highly encouraging, highly motivated, highly ‘generous’ Christian giving.
I will offer these two answers to that question.
1. Generous givers are not the people with a large bank account, but the people with a large view of God.
Mark 12:41-44 NRSV
The Widow’s Offering
41 He sat down opposite the treasury and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. 42 A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. 43 Then he called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I tell you; this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. 44 For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
We often look at people who give generously and think, “They must be rich.”
But it is not so. Poor people are often very generous and rich people can be very stingy. Generosity has nothing to do with how much money you have. But it has everything to do with your view of God, whether you believe the tomb is empty
If your God is big, you will be generous. If he is small, you will be stingy.
If you struggle with your giving, it may be because your God is too small. The bigger your God, the emptier the tomb, the easier it will be for you to give.
2. When we give generously, we do so because we truly believe God will reward us one way or the other.
Note what the text says, “Give and it will be given to you.” Not might be given or may be given or could be given but will be given.
Our only problem comes with our interpretation of the nature of God’s reward.
Too often we focus on money or material gain as if there were the only way God could reward us.
But 2 Corinthians 9 speaks of receiving a bountiful “harvest of righteousness.”
God’s blessings are often material, but his absolute best blessings cannot be added up on anyone’s pocket calculator.
Luke 2:25-32 NRSV
25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; [a] this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. [b] 27 Guided by the Spirit, Simeon[c] came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, 28 Simeon[d] took him in his arms and praised God, saying,
29 “Master, now you are dismissing your servant[e] in peace, according to your word; 30 for my eyes have seen your salvation, 31 which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.”
So how does God reward his generous children?
–Might be with money
–Mighty be with answered prayer
–Might be with deep inner joy
–Might be with new friendships
–Might be with more opportunities to give
–Might be with a new revelation of His power in our lives.
–Might be with amazing miracles
–Might be with the peace that passes all understanding.
-Might be with HIS vision of a Tomb that is Undeniably EMPTY!
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Lord, my guide, my guardian and my teacher, I’m often confused when I need to make important decisions about my work, my relationships, my health, or finances. Show me the way I should go when I don’t know which way to turn. Help me remember to come to you, rather than trying to figure everything out on my own. Guide me along the best pathway for my life. Advise me and watch over me. Help me to listen to your guidance and not resist it. I thank you that your unfailing love surrounds those who trust you. Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
1. Ye servants of God, your Master proclaim, and publish abroad his wonderful name; the name all-victorious of Jesus extol, his kingdom is glorious and rules over all.
2. God ruleth on high, almighty to save, and still he is nigh, his presence we have; the great congregation his triumph shall sing, ascribing salvation to Jesus, our King.
3. “Salvation to God, who sits on the throne!” Let all cry aloud and honor the Son; the praises of Jesus the angels proclaim, fall down on their faces and worship the Lamb.
4. Then let us adore and give him his right, all glory and power, all wisdom and might; all honor and blessing with angels above, and thanks never ceasing and infinite love.
Hebrews 10:19-25Disciples’ Literal New Testament
Therefore, Let Us Approach God in Full Assurance of Faith and Hold on Without Wavering
19 Therefore, brothers, having confidence for the entering of the Holies by the blood of Jesus— 20 which fresh[a] and living way He inaugurated for us through [b] the curtain, that is[c], His flesh— 21 and having a great Priest over the house of God, 22 let us be approaching God with a true heart in full-assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled[d] from an evil conscience, and having our body washed[e]with clean water. 23 Let us be holding-on- to the confession of our hope without-wavering, for the One having promised is faithful. 24 And let us be considering[f] one another for the provoking love and good works, 25 not forsaking the gathering-together of ourselves as is a habit with some, but exhorting[h]one another, and so-much more by-as-much-as you see the day drawing-near.
The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.
Ye Servants of God, What Exactly Are We Doing with our Life Which Points to Jesus?
When you get up in the morning and you face a day, what do you say to yourself about your hopes for the day? What do you do to motivate yourself? When you look from the beginning of the day to the end of the day, what do you want to happen because you have lived? What difference do you want your life to make?
If you say, I don’t even think like that, I just get up and do what I’ve got to do, then you are cutting yourself off from a basic means of grace and a source of guidance and strength and fruitfulness and joy.
It is crystal clear throughout the Bible, including this text from Hebrews, that God means for us to aim consciously at something significant in our days.
Gods revealed will for us is that when we get up in the morning, we don’t drift aimlessly through the day letting mere circumstances alone dictate what we do, but that we aim at something — that we focus on a certain kind of purpose.
I’m talking about children here, and teenagers, and adults — single, married, widowed, moms, every age, every season of life and every walk, every trade.
Aimlessness is akin to lifelessness. Dead leaves in the back yard may move around more than anything else — more than the dog, more than the children.
The wind blows this way, they go this way. The wind blows that way, they go that way. They tumble, they bounce, they skip, they press against a fence, but they have no aim whatsoever. They are full of motion and empty of real life.
God did not create humans in his image to be aimless, purposeless wanderers, like a mound of lifeless leaves blown around in the backyard of life. He created us to be motivated, purposeful — to have a focus and an aim for all our days.
And this is not the least bit oppressive. It’s not slavery. It’s not depleting.
To find what we were made for and to do it with all God’s might (Colossians 1:29), is freeing (Galatians 5:13) and energizing. Jesus said, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me” (John 4:34). Food! Aiming day by day to do what we were meant to do is like eating: it gives and nourishes life and energy, rather than taking it away. You will eventually die if you do what you were meant to do.
You and I may be young, or we may be old. That is God’s choice, not ours. But when live and die doing what we were meant to do, we live, die well and full.
Ye Servants of God, what do we consider the Aim, Focus of Our Lives as Christians?
Would you please consider with me what these verses from Hebrew teach us about the aim and focus of our lives as Christians?
I fervently pray God may use them to bring crystal-clear focus to your life. He may use them to blow away all the confusion and fog, the excuses and fear, and shall give a lucid, bright, crisp, spring-morning clarity to the aim of your days.
1. Ye Servants of God, Embrace Your Living Hope
First, verse 23 says, “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.”
Now that is not something you do with your hands or your feet. You don’t go to the kitchen to do this, or to the den or across the street or to the office or to school. This is not done where anyone can see. This is an affair of the heart.
Embrace your living hope.
Hold fast to your living hope.
Be a hopeful, hope-filled person. Hope in God.
Because God has made promises to you, and he is faithful.
He has promised to write the law on your heart (Hebrews 10:16) and work in you what is pleasing in his sight (Hebrews 13:21);
He has promised to remember your sins no more (Hebrews 10:17);
He has promised that we will be perfected for all time by a single sacrifice (Hebrews 10:14);
He has promised never to leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:59);
He has promised to bring good from all our pain (Hebrews 12:10).
And so, Ye Servants of God, believe with all your heart God keeps his word.
But that does not provide you with a sufficient focus for the day?
God did not create you to curl up under the covers and hope in God all day in bed. Without some effect on your life, hope in God would be invisible and bring no public glory to God’s power and wisdom and goodness and trustworthiness.
If the act of hoping in God were all that he created you to aim at, then verse 24 would be wasted words.
But they are not.
God created you first to hope in him, and then to make that hope visible by the effect that it has on your life. And that effect is given in verse 24, and it is to be the aim of your daily life. This is why God wakes everyone up in the morning.
2. Ye Servants of God, Motivate yourself to Motivate others – Stir Up Each Other to Love and Good Deeds
Let’s read it. Verse 24: “Let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds.”
Here is the focus for our life. Here is what we aim at from morning till night as a Christian. Notice carefully: it is not what you might expect. It is not: consider how to love each other and do good deeds. That would be Biblical and right.
But it’s different: “Consider how to stimulate each other to love and good deeds.” Focus on helping others become loving people. Aim at stirring up others to do good deeds.
And of course, the implication would then also be that if others need help and stirring, we do too, and so we would be aiming at what diverse sorts of ways we can think and feel and talk and act that will likewise stir each other up to love and to do good deeds. The true aim of our lives is not just loving and doing good deeds but likewise helping to stir up others to love and to good deeds.
3. Ye Servants of God, Consider Each Other
But let’s be more precise. There is something in this text that is very hard to bring over into English.
The word “consider,” (“Let us consider how to . . .”) is used one other time in the book, namely, Hebrews 3:1, where the writer says, “Consider Jesus.”
That is, look at him; think about him, focus on him, study him, let your mind be occupied with him.
“Jesus” is the direct object of the verb “consider.” “Consider Jesus.”
Consider what? Consider Jesus. Well, in Hebrews 10:24 the grammar is the same: the direct object of the word “consider” is “one another.” Literally, it says, “Consider the Savior Jesus Christ in one another.”
Ye Servants of God – God’s Call for Everyone
Consider one another. But this is almost impossible to bring over into English with the rest of the sentence, because it would be so awkward.
It would have to go something like this: “Consider one another toward the stimulating of love and good works.” Now that is terrible English — good Greek word order but terrible English. The best we can do, it seems, is to say, “Consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds.”
But I want you to get this nuance of the original so you can feel the force of this as a daily aim and focus for your life.
Literally, this is God’s call on each of us to consider one another, that is, to look at one another, think about one another, focus on one another, to study one another, to let your mind be occupied with one another. And the goal of this focus on others is to think of ways of stimulating them to love and good deeds.
I ever so strongly urge you to hear God’s word in Hebrews 10:24. When you get up in the morning, Consider — think about, ponder, deliberate, meditate, mull over — other people, with this conscious goal: what can I do today so that they will be stirred up to radical, random, Christian acts love and to good deeds?
Now there is a reason to live and a focus for every day that will never be boring.
Every day is new and different. People change. Their circumstances change. You change. But the call remains the same: consider, consider, consider these people you will be around today.
What are they like? What am I like? What will the situation be like?
What helps a person become more loving?
What is the origin of genuine good deeds?
This is a reason for living that is focused enough to be practical and big enough to last a lifetime.
Ye Servants of God, Motivate yourself to Get Together, to Encourage One Another in God.
So, let’s look at the text to find the answer to how we go about this. Verse 24 gives the focus and aim: “Let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds.” Then verse 25 gives us instructions how. It says, “not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but also encouraging one another.” Two things. First, don’t neglect to get together.
Second, encourage one another.
When I was growing up, I heard this text referred to most often as an argument for regular attendance at worship services. “Do not forsake the assembling of yourselves together — come to church regularly.”
And that is not a wrong application of the text since one of the most important kinds of encouragements and exhortations we get is from our preaching and our sharing, fellowship and talking of God’s word in the power of God’s Spirit.
(Hebrews 13:22 calls the book of Hebrews a “word of encouragement.”)
But in the context, the kind of coming together in view seems to be one where the members “encourage one another.” Verse 25 is explicit: come together and encourage one another. The “one another” implies that there is something mutual going on. One is encouraging another, and another is encouraging one. Each is doing or saying something that encourages.
If you ask what that corresponds to in our church, I would say the closest thing is the small groups — which is why I regard this ministry as so utterly crucial.
I am a great believer in preaching. There is something about the word of God that begs to be heralded and trumpeted and exulted over — as well as discussed and taught. But I have no illusions preaching is enough in the life of a believer.
The New Testament — and especially this book of Hebrews — calls us again and again to a specific kind of mutual ministry that involves all the believers in encouraging others.
So, I ask you to take stock of your life: Where are you in verse 25?
There are two groups: those who gather to encourage each other, and those who have formed the habit of not gathering.
See that little phrase in verse 25: “Not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some.” Non-participation in a fellowship group can be habit-forming and rather nonproductive to God’s Kingdom aims.
How are we doing?
Ye Servants of God, Consider What Kind of Encouragement Motivates & Stimulates?
Which leaves one last question remaining for us to ask ourselves:
What kind of encouragement stimulates others to love and good deeds? It’s not obvious to some that this question has anything to do with God.
Lots of people think that love and good deeds are a good thing to seek after, and many would say that encouraging others is the way to do it — and they might not even be Christians. Or they might be Christians who put little focus on God.
For example, I have repeatedly read where one church was described like this:
“While [the pastor] spoke of sending out missionaries, the feeling was that his congregation existed to heighten only to edify the self-esteem of its members.”
Whether or not that’s an accurate description of that church, the point is this: a lot of churches would try to stimulate love and good deeds that way.
But it’s not even close to being the biblical way.
The key to encouraging love biblically is given in verse 23: “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.”
The key to love, in the New Testament — the kind of love that magnifies God and not man — is hope rooted in the faithfulness of God. Embrace your hope! Cherish your hope! Because I know God is faithful. He keeps all his promises.
Without this kind of faith and hope, sustaining us day by day through all the disheartening frustrations and crushing disappointments, we would not have any strength or energy or joy to stir anybody up to love and good deeds.
But if we bank on God, not on ourselves, we always have that extra something encouraging and hope-giving to say, namely, “God can be absolutely trusted, God can be utterly trusted. I have no strength, but God can be 100% trusted.”
Ye Servants of God, Do This All the More
Make the aim of your life to consider others — study them, know them, figure them out — to the end that you stimulate them to love and good deeds.
Be sure that you do this by getting together often with other believers for the specific purpose of encouraging each other.
And let the heart of that encouragement be reminders of how great our hope is in Christ and that God can be trusted.
And as you see the end of the age drawing near, verse 25 says, do this all the more, not less.
Why?
As Jesus said, “Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end, he shall be saved” (Matthew 24:12).
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Heavenly Father, thank You for loving me so much that while I was still dead in my trespasses and sins, Christ completed His finished work on the cross… so that by grace through faith in Him, I might have forgiveness of sin and life everlasting.
Thank You, my Savior, for those who taught me about the Lord Jesus and who demonstrated the love of Christ in their own lives – provoking me to love and good works in my own life. Help me to be so in tune with You that others may be provoked unto love and good works through my witness, as Christ lives in me and I in Him. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! AMEN.
May the Word of God speak unto “Our Excuses and Our Mighty Mouths”
All of us attempt to justify our actions at one time or another with excuses. When people give an excuse, they give a reason or explanation to defend or justify an action or an inaction, a fault or offense; Usually we will give others a reason for NOT doing something, or a reason why something went wrong.
“Excuse” comes from the Latin meaning “out of cause”: We offer a cause or a reason for not doing something that we should…. we give a bizarre “excuse.”
Billy Sunday, the baseball star turned evangelist who lived from 1862 – 1935, said that “An excuse is the Skin of a Reason, Stuffed with a Lie.” Today, we are going to look at a few excuses Apostle Paul states Israel used for not believing.
Romans 10:15-21Disciples’ Literal New Testament
15 And how may they proclaim if they are not sent-forth?— just as it has been written[a] [in Isaiah 52:7]: “How beautiful are the feet of the ones announcing-good-news–of good things!” 16 But[b] they did not all obey the good-news, for Isaiah says [in Isaiah 53:1], “Lord, who put-faith-in our report?” 17 So[c] the faith[d]comes from a report-hearing[e], and the report-hearing through a word[f]about[g] Christ.
But It Is Not As Though Israel Did Not Hear
18 But I say[h]— it is not that they did not hear[i], is it ? On the contrary: “Their voice went-out into all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world” [Psalm 19:4].
And It Is Not As Though Israel Did Not Know
19 But I say— it is not that Israel did not know[j], is it? First, Moses says [in Deuteronomy 32:21] “I will provoke you to jealousy over what is not a nation. I will provoke you to anger over a nation without-understanding[k]”. 20 And Isaiah is very bold and says [in Isaiah 65:1] “I was found by the ones not seeking Me. I became visible[l]to the ones not asking-for Me”. 21 But with-regard-to Israel He says [in Isaiah 65:2], “I held-out[m] My hands the whole day toward a disobeying[n] and contradicting[o] people”.
The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.
The most meticulous and thorough presentation of the glorious Gospel of Christ is found in the book of Romans. It also meticulously details man’s own depravity, humanities estrangement from God and man’s reconciliation back to God. The book of Romans could be called the seedbed for all Christian doctrine… giving us a systematic, step-by-step teaching of the fundamentals of our faith.
Paul pounds home the truth that God’s gracious offer of righteousness is by faith. He points out that it is equally accessible to Jew and Gentile alike… for all are sinners and have fallen short of the Glory of God (Romans 3:23).
All have the sentence of death over their heads.. and without exception, all of us need a Savior. Paul points out that no-one, Jew or Gentile alike, is exempt from God’s condemnation for all have sinned and are in need of a Savior – all need to be justified by grace, through an abiding faith in the Son of God – Christ Jesus.
It baffles the mind of those that have taken up God’s free gift of salvation.. that His offer of reconciliation should be quickly, summarily rejected by so many.
It is astonishing that so many refuse to believe on His name and be rescued from condemnation and an eternity in hell.
And yet throughout the old and new testaments we discover with no small amount of astonishment.. the foolish depravity to which the human race has fallen and man’s arrogant refusal to accept God’s free gift of salvation.
Prophets like Jeremiah grieved at the unbelief in the heart of man when his call for Israel to return to the Lord was treated with such blind, malicious contempt.
Isaiah mourned at the hardness of men’s heart, when he wrote:
LORD: who has believed our report?’
Who has believed the saving message that God has tried to deliver through so many prophets?
Who has believed the word of the Lord and who is willing to admit that there are none that are righteous – not even one.
How few see the need to turn from their sins and believe on the Word of the Lord – and the gospel of grace?
In the first part of chapter 10 of Romans, God tells us what happens to a heart that calls on, believes in, and confesses the name of the Lord Jesus Christ .
We concluded with the prophecy which was first fulfilled in Christ and now is fulfilled in us as the Church in Romans 10:15: “Just as it is written, “HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS (the Gospel) OF GOOD THINGS!” (Quoted from Isaiah. 52:7)
The Lord Jesus set His feet on this earth from His Heaven and proclaimed the Gospel in His Life, Death, Resurrection and Ascension.
His Ministry of miracles and healing proved beyond the shadow of a doubt, that no one but God could do those things! He proved over and over again HE WAS MESSIAH, THE ONE PROMISED from God, who would DIE FOR OUR SINS.
But, still, there was disbelief, there was unacceptance of the Gospel message.
Excuse #1: A Hearing Problem?
WHO COULD POSSIBLY REJECT THE Power and Clarity of the GOSPEL of God’s Grace in Jesus Christ?
Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit continues in Romans 10:16: “However, (UH-oh!) they did not all heed the good news; for Isaiah says, “LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT?”
The truth is that VERY FEW believed the report. Israel killed the prophets who preached God’s Word, and then they killed THE ONE, the LORD JESUS, which the prophets had foretold. But that does not change the way that God works:
Romans 10:17 “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.” 18 But I say, surely they have never heard, have they?”
Paul is saying: With such clear and powerful prophecy, could it at all be possible that Israel never heard the MESSAGE of the Gospel? Could it be possible that MOST of Israel had a “self-centered” hearing problem? Can Israel honestly stand up and give the excuse: We didn’t hear the message of salvation?
Paul responds with the second half of verse 18: Indeed they have; (NO WAY! NO EXCUSE; THEY HAVE HEARD THE MESSAGE) “THEIR VOICE HAS GONE OUT INTO ALL THE EARTH, AND THEIR WORDS TO THE ENDS OF THE WORLD.”
Here Paul quotes Psalm 19:4: “Their sound has gone out through all the earth, And their utterances to the end of the world.” Psalm 19:1 begins: “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.” Day and night, CREATION SPEAKS LOUDLY AND CLEARLY of the Glory and the power and the work of the Almighty God.
The excuse does not stand because Creation sings the Father’s song:
Romans 1:18-23Disciples’ Literal New Testament
God’s Wrath Is Upon All Sin
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness[a] and unrighteousness[b]of people holding-down[c] the truth in[d] unrighteousness.
Because God Revealed Enough of Himself In Creation For The World To Be Without Excuse
19 Because the thing known of God is evident[e] in[f] them, for God made it [self] evident to them. 20 For His invisible things— both His eternal power and divine-nature— are clearly-seen, being understood since the creation of the world in the things made, so that they are without-excuse.
And Having Known This Truth About God, The World Did Not Honor Him As God
21 Because having known God, they did not glorify Him as God or give-thanks, but became futile in their thoughts, and their senseless heart was darkened.
They Turned From The Glory of The Immortal God To Their Crafted Images of God
22 While claiming to be wise, they became-foolish 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for a likeness— an image of a mortal person and of birds and of four-footed-animals and of reptiles.
If you go back to the beginning of Romans, read Romans 2-3, you find that NO ONE IS RIGHTEOUS and there is not one single usable excuse, and everyone is liable! No one can say: I don’t believe because I never heard.
Excuse # 2: Lack of Understanding?
Here’s excuse number two:
Romans 10:19 “But I say, surely Israel did not KNOW, did they?”
OK let’s bury deep the first excuse: We can admit Israel heard the word, but maybe they just didn’t UNDERSTAND (know) the Word. Could that be valid?
That they heard it but didn’t understand it? Could Israel’s excuse be that over the long course of years, “we just didn’t understand the message of salvation?”
“First Moses says, “I WILL MAKE YOU JEALOUS BY THAT WHICH IS NOT A NATION, BY A NATION WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING WILL I ANGER. (YOU)”
Paul’s response comes from:
Deuteronomy 32:21-22 New American Standard Bible
21 They have made Me jealous with what is not God; They have provoked Me to anger with their [a]idols. So I will make them jealous with those who are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation, 22 For a fire has flared in My anger, And it burns to the lowest part of [b]Sheol, And devours the earth with its yield, And sets on fire the foundations of the mountains.
In essence, Israel caused God to be jealous by going after other gods, so God’s hope is to arouse jealousy within them, not by rejecting them, but by drawing other people outside of Israel to come to His Salvation.
How could anyone possibly not understand the message of salvation?
Not only did God give Israel the general revelation which He gave to EVERY CREATURE on this planet, but He gave to them HIS WORD and LAW, and they still disobeyed and followed other Gods.
We looked at the first part of Psalm 19 where the theme of God’s General revelation in creation is explained.
If you look at the second half of Psalm 19, you hear that Israel received the Perfect WORD and LAW of God, and they STILL rejected God.
So both of Israel’s excuses are groundless: They HEARD and UNDERSTOOD and still rejected God’s Grace. God’s response is heard in Roman 10:20:
Romans 10: 20 And Isaiah is very bold and says, “I WAS FOUND BY THOSE WHO DID NOT SEEK ME, I BECAME MANIFEST TO THOSE WHO DID NOT ASK FOR ME.” (from Isaiah 65:1: “I permitted Myself to be sought by those who did not ask for Me; I permitted Myself to be found by those who did not seek Me. I said, ‘Here am I, here am I,’ To a nation which did not call on My name.”
The overwhelming majority of the nation of Israel both heard and understood the message of God’s salvation of justification faith, but did not believe God’s promise, and when His Promised ONE arrived, they rejected and crucified Him.
They would NOT admit they needed God’s salvation nor submit by faith and grace. They were offended by the hearing and understanding of God’s Word and Grace and by a righteousness which comes by faith.
They were quite content to remain in their own self-righteousness and sin.
Their response to Deuteronomy 32 was basically: “Go ahead, give your grace to the Gentiles; at least we have our Judaism and we’re happy with that! We don’t want or need anything else.”
Romans 10:16 Disciples’ Literal New Testament
16 But[a] they did not all obey the good-news, for Isaiah says [in Isaiah 53:1], “Lord, who put-faith-in our report?”
What a disheartening thing to know that not everyone will accept Christ Jesus as Lord. Eventually they will confess this with their mouths (Philippians 2:11) but the timeframe to accept this gospel message is while we are in the world.
Christ came to redeem the world, although he knew, not everyone would accept him.
John said,
John 1:11-13 Disciples’ Literal New Testament
11 He came to His own things, and His own ones did not accept Him. 12 But all who did receive Him, He gave them— the ones believing in His name— the right[a] to become children of God, 13 who were born not of bloods[b], nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of a husband, but of God[c].
Jesus came first to the nation of Israel and proclaimed peace between them and God. However, they received him not.
Paul says the same thing in today’s passage,
“not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our message?” (Romans 10:16).
Isaiah foretold that the Israelites would reject Jesus.
Paul is quoting from Isaiah 53, which is a passage about Jesus. This is one of the most powerful chapters in the entire Old Testament.
It foretold everything Jesus would suffer on the cross. Isaiah starts out this beautiful word with saying,
“Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. (Isaiah 53:1-3).
Christ knew that his own people would reject him and esteem him not. Yet he still came to redeem them, what a marvelous thing.
Why did the 1st Century Israelites reject Jesus?
For us, in 2022, we can look back through the Hebrew (Old) Testament with Jesus as our filter and identify every passage that was spoken about him. We can even read these passages out loud to others without telling them where they were found and the listener can tell you that it is talking about Christ, often the assumption is that the passage is actually the New Testament.
However, the Israelites read these same passages but looked for something entirely different than what Christ turned out to be.
They were looking for a warrior king and not a servant.
When the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, that Word fell on deaf ears, fulfilling what Isaiah prophesied about them.
” ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’ Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise, they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” (Isaiah 6:9-10).
Jesus spoke about the same truth in the parable of the Sower of the seed.
There are four kinds of soil to sow and depending on the condition of the soil is whether or not the seed grows and bears’ fruit. Jesus spoke this parable to this nation and when the disciples asked him what was meant by it, he quoted this passage in Isaiah. He spoke to them in parables because of the condition of their heart which kept them blind and deaf to these amazing truths. If their heart would have been ready to hear it, he would have turned and healed them.
The Israel of the 1st Century in this case was the first kind of soil.
The farmer went out to sow seed, but it fell upon the path and the birds ate it up quickly. When Jesus told this parable to the disciples, he explained…
“This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved” (Luke 8:11-12, Mark 4:13-18).
Jesus told in Matthew’s version the reason the seed is quickly stolen,
“When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path” (Matthew 13:18-19).
Now the condition of the soil made it easy for the seed to be eaten up by the birds, because the soil fell upon a path. A worn path is hard and compacted. In many cases it is impenetrable by something like a seed. For a seed to germinate it has to get down into the soil. But when it falls upon hard ground germination is not possible. The seed can be easily eaten because it is lying upon the surface.
Jesus said the seed was the word of God and Satan comes to steal it. If we don’t understand the word and the word falls upon deaf ears and the condition of the heart is impenetrable than stealing the word takes no effort.
In this case, 1st Century Israel was the first kind of soil. They were expecting a Messiah that was entirely different than Jesus, so their notions blinded them to the truth of God’s word.
Like Isaiah said, their hearts are calloused, their ears dull and their eyes are closed (Isaiah 6:10). As Jesus spoke to them, Satan walked right behind him and picked up the seeds of eternal life that he spoke.
They allowed him to steal the word of God that had the power to save them because they had not prepared their hearts to receive it.
What a discouraging thing this must have been.
But this stands as a warning for us.
Paul said in the very next verse of Romans 10 that “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17).
This is how faith comes, by hearing the gospel and believing and receiving it.
This message comes from Christ and just like the hard condition of the heart blocked the words of life, the fourth kind of soil received it with gladness and produced an abundant crop.
“But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown” (Matthew 13:23, Mark 4:20, Luke 8:15).
When called, separated by God, we will always have our excuses to either act on that calling or not act on that calling. Invariably, our first choice is to reject the Word of the Lord as Samuel did, but with help and guidance from others, we will respond to God as He needs, requires us, to respond. (1 Samuel 3:1-10)
The Word of God is the Word of God. The seed is the seed, but the condition of the soil determines the abundance of the crop or even whether it sprouts at all.
Praise God the message of salvation continues to be equally efficacious for Jew and Gentile alike, and in his epistle to the Roman followers, the Apostle Paul presents in minute detail every aspect of God’s righteous condemnation of sinful man… and his gracious offer of reconciliation through the death burial and resurrection of Christ our God and Savior.
Let us undertake to read, mark, learn, inwardly digest its truth and tell others the message of reconciliation and redemption – although sadly the are likely to be those who do not obey the message through pride, unbelief and rebellion.
This is a good word for us today; we can hear the Word of God; we can prepare our hearts to receive the Word of God, then speak of them. It is my prayer that we keep your heart soft and pliable before the Lord ready to receive his word.
Be the fourth kind of cultivated soil and receive this word with gladness. Let this seed penetrate and germinate in your heart yielding much eternal fruit, amen.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
God, from the beginning, you were the word. You sent your only son to save us all and he even allowed himself to be tortured and crucified to obey you. Bless me with the gift of understanding and of unshaken faith in you. Let me know the meaning of your words in the Bible and how to live accordingly. Open up to me the door of my heart and fill me with your light and understanding. Amen.
Father, thank you so much for Your Word, that we have the record of what You have to say to us as permanently recorded. And as we now open these pages of Scripture, we ask that Your Holy Spirit would be the Instructor, the Teacher.
I pray that You would bless these readers, that You would build them up in their faith as we look into Your Word. I pray for those who are going to come to the moment when they read these words of devotion, that You alone would meet with them right where they are. So, put Your hand upon me strongly for good, use me now to teach Your Word. I pray this in my Savior Christ’s name, Amen.
Romans 10:14-15 Disciples’ Literal New Testament
This Is Why God Sent Forth His Messengers With The Report About Christ
14 How then[a] may they[b] call-upon the One in Whom they did not believe? And how may they believe the One Whom[c] they did not hear? And how may they hear without one proclaiming? 15 And how may they proclaim if they are not sent-forth? — just as it has been written[d] [in Isaiah 52:7]: “How beautiful are the feet of the ones announcing-good-news–of good things!”
The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.
All right my brothers and sisters, we are still in Romans chapter 10. So, I hope your Bible just automatically flops open to the book of Romans right now.
My pages in Romans are about to come out right now as we have proceeded from verse one till right now. I already had them once re-stitched back in, but that is a good problem to have. Romans chapter 10 is critically important to us.
We are in Romans chapter 10, and to put a title on this lesson, it is “Gospel Preaching,” gospel preaching. And we are going to look at verses 14 through 17 this morning as we keep working our way through the book of Romans, and I think you will see why I am calling this devotional effort, “Gospel Preaching.”
Beginning in verse 14,
“How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!’
However,
they did not all heed the good news; for Isaiah says, ‘Lord, who has believed our report?’ So, faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”
The central idea of these verses is the preaching of the gospel.
And the importance of the preaching of the gospel cannot be overstated.
From cover to cover throughout the entire Bible, God has sent waves and legions of preachers to preach the gospel. It is God’s primary means to get the Word of God out. It is by the preaching of the Word.
The prophets of old were gospel preachers. Moses was a gospel preacher. David was a gospel psalmist. Isaiah was a gospel preacher. Jeremiah, Ezekiel were gospel preachers. And as we come to the New Testament, it is just more the same. John the Baptist was a gospel preacher. Jesus Christ Himself was a gospel preacher. God had only one Son and He made Him a gospel preacher.
Jesus for three years trained gospel preachers, and He sent them out to preach the gospel. Peter was a gospel preacher. On the day of Pentecost, he just picked up where Jesus had left off. Stephen was a gospel preacher. Paul was a gospel preacher. John was a gospel preacher. And when you trace church history, the greatest eras of church history are when God has raised up gospel preachers, and the low valleys of church history is when God has withheld His preachers.
So, the passage that we have before us in some ways is a snapshot of the entire Bible. And in some ways, it is a snapshot of the entirety of church history. So, we are not surprised as we come to these verses to read what Paul states, the chief importance of gospel preaching.
It is what the Puritans used to refer to as the primary ordinary means of grace.
There are many other means of grace.
The means of grace comes through one-on-one witnessing. It comes through parents teaching their children the gospel. It comes through counseling. The gospel comes through singing. The gospel comes through teaching venues.
But those are secondary to what is primary, and what has always been primary from the beginning of the Bible to the end of the Bible and throughout church history has been the preaching of the Word of God.
So, as we look at these verses, and I know most of us reading here today are not preachers, but you are dependent upon preachers, and this is a very important passage in your spiritual life. And there are some readers here today who are even praying about, “Has God called me to preach His Word?”
So, this is a very relevant passage.
So, I want you to note first as we walk through this text, the necessity of gospel preaching, the necessity of gospel preaching, and we see it in verse 14 and the beginning of verse 15.
Now, let me comment on this verse and a half before we begin to look at it.
What we have here is a series of questions.
It is a series of four rhetorical questions. A rhetorical question is really a statement. A rhetorical question raises a question, and the answer is so obvious that the one who raises it does not bother to answer it because the answer is self-evident.
That is what we have here. And in these four questions, they all begin with the word “how.” You will see the word “how” mentioned four consecutive times, and they are all linked together. They are inseparably linked like links in a chain. And what Paul does is Paul starts at the end and works backwards to the front. So, what he is arguing for here is the necessity of gospel preaching.
So, the first question is at the beginning of verse 14 and he says, “How will they call on Him in whom they have not heard?” The answer is obvious. No one can call on the name of the Lord until they have believed in the Lord.
Now, “call.” “How will they call on Him?” That is synonymous with saving faith, and it is mentioned in the previous verse, verse 13,“Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.” And it is mentioned in the verse previous to that at the end of verse 12 that “He is Lord of all abounding in riches for all who call on Him.” So, that is synonymous with saving faith. That starts at the end, the connecting point when someone calls upon the name of the Lord.
Now, to be distinguished is the word “believed” at the end of that question, because here Paul uses “believe” in a way that is less than saving faith. He uses it here really for just head knowledge. No one can call on the name of the Lord with saving faith until they have the head knowledge about Christ.
Really, it is to believe about Christ. That is how Paul is using the word here. It is to be distinguished from “call on Him.” In order to call upon Christ, you must know about Christ. You must know who He is. You must know why He came into this world. And more than just know it, you must be persuaded of it. You must be convinced of it by really the work of the Holy Spirit inside of your heart.
And so, believing the facts about the gospel precedes calling upon the name of the Lord. Saving faith never takes place within an intellectual vacuum.
There must always be the cognitive facts of the gospel, the absolute truth of the gospel that Christ Jesus came into this world to save sinners, that He is the virgin born, sinless, crucified, sin-bearing Savior who was buried, who was raised on the third day, who ascended back to heaven, who is seated at the right hand of God the Father.
And as verse 13 says, “And whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” You must believe that in your heart before you can call upon Him for salvation. That is where Paul begins his series of questions here. “How can you call on Him in whom you have not believed?” And the answer is “You cannot.”
So, now with the second question, he will take another step backwards. And he will then say, “How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard?”
Again, the answer is, “They cannot.” No one can believe the facts of the gospel until they hear the facts of the gospel. And so, preceding believing the facts of the gospel, you must hear the facts of the gospel.
And it is interesting he doesn’t say, “In whom you have not read,” but “whom you have not heard.” And again, the emphasis is it is expected that the gospel would primarily go out preached in order to be heard, not so much written in order to be read, but preached in order to be heard.
Martin Luther, during the Reformation, once said that the church is not to be a “pen house,” but to be a “mouth house.”
In other words, it is not to be a reading club, though obviously we read our Bibles and we read books that help us understand the Bible, but the tip of the spear primarily when you come to church is not to have someone read something to you; it is to have someone preach something to you.
The gospel is designed in the genius of God to be heralded, to be proclaimed, because there is an energy level and a depth of convictions that comes when the Word of God is to be preached.
And so, the highest rung on the ladder for how the gospel is to go out, it is to be preached and it is to be heard. And so that is why Paul continues to make this emphasis: “How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard?” And the answer again is a negative. No one can believe the facts about the gospel until they have heard the facts about the gospel being preached from the pulpits.
Now, I want to show you something here in that question that would easily escape our looking at this, but to be very specific, this does not say that they heard about Christ.
Please note how it reads in your Bible. It actually says that they actually heard Christ. Now, that is an important distinction because in every act of preaching there is really to be two preachers, one who is seen, but One who is unseen.
And when the written Word is preached, it is actually the living Word, Jesus Christ, who is speaking through this Word.
And for someone to call on the name of the Lord, you must actually realize it is Jesus Christ Himself who is speaking through His written Word and that the authority of Christ Himself is coming through the preaching of the Word of God. You are not merely hearing a man; you are hearing Jesus Christ Himself!
Now, you see the man and you hear the man, but behind the man stands Jesus Christ. And in reality, though you are not hearing the audible voice of Christ, you nevertheless in your heart are hearing the authority of Christ Himself and you are hearing the truth of Christ Himself.
You are hearing more than a man. You are hearing Christ Himself. And I trust that even this moment as I am teaching this that God is giving you ears to hear Christ Himself speak through the pages of His Word as I am opening this up.
This isn’t me speaking. This is Christ Himself who is speaking, and that needs to be brought to your attention as we even look at that question. You must hear more than a human preacher. You must hear Christ Himself who is calling out and who is speaking to you. And I would say to you, with all humility, Christ is speaking His Truth right now through me to you by means of His written Word.
But when people stand up with an open Bible and they read our passages and they explain the passages and then they exhort with the passages, Christ is in that, He is speaking through His written Word.
So that is the second question that Paul raises, “How will they call on Him in whom they have not believed?”
And the answer is that they cannot. But if you truly believe and if you truly call on the name of the Lord, you discern the power of Christ in that message.
Now, the third question.
And Paul is working his way backwards to the beginning.
And the third question is, “How will they hear without a preacher?”
And this underscores that God has chosen to work through means. He has chosen to work through human means.
God could have it written in the skies. God could have gospel tracts dropped out of the clouds. God could send legions of angels. But that is not how God has chosen to work.
God has chosen to work by raising up incredibly fallible, undeniably weak human instruments so the power belongs to God and the power does not belong to the frail human instrument. The power is in the message and the power is in the Holy Spirit who is working through the message through a very weak vessel.
So, look at the third question. “How will they hear without a preacher?” And the answer again is a negative. They cannot hear Christ preach through His written Word except there be a preacher who takes the written Word and opens it up and proclaims it.
Now, “preacher” here is really in a verb form, and it really literally is translated “without one preaching.” And it is a Greek word. It is the most prominent Greek word in the New Testament for “preaching.” It is a Greek word kerysso,and it actually means to lift up the voice and to announce and proclaim and to declare.
It would be much like what we would think of a town crier who would be going through the streets of a town and lifting up his voice so that everyone can hear.
The word does not mean “to share.” The word does not mean “to talk.” The word means actually “to announce and proclaim.”
And it is drawn from the culture of the day where Caesar had his heralds in the palace, and Caesar would issue to his heralds his imperial decree. And he would then dispatch and commission his heralds to go throughout the Roman Empire.
It was the only way of communication. And they would go into the towns. They would gather the people around them. They would cup their hands, lift up their voice, and say something like this, “Hear ye, hear ye this day. Rome has won a great victory. Rome has annexed another kingdom into the Empire.”
There was to be no negotiation. They were not allowed to withhold any part of the message. They were not allowed to add any of their own personal opinion or perspective to the message.
Or today, the message would be something like this, “Hear ye, hear ye, this day,” as the people gathered around. “Caesar has a son. There is an heir to the throne of Rome.”
As soon as the message was given, as he represented Caesar in each of these cities, he was then to report back to Rome. He was to go back into the palace, and he would give an account of himself to Caesar, had there been a full disclosure of the message that had been entrusted to him.
And if they were faithless or feckless and tried to tone down the message or withhold any part or add anything to it, it would cost them their life, and they would be immediately executed. That is the very word keryssohere.
Beautiful Are the Feet of Those Who Bring Good News—Romans 10:14-15
The good news is not just good news, it’s great news.
The nuance of the Greek for the word gospel literally means that this news is ‘almost too good to be true’.
In our world when something seems too good to be true, it usually is.
But this is not the case with the gospel of Jesus Christ. This news is true and incredible. And Paul reminds us that beautiful are the feet of those who bring this good news and announce it to the world.
Throughout the book of Romans, Paul refers to the gospel as his gospel. This is because this revelation came directly to him by Jesus.
He said in Galatians, “I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ” (Galatians 1:11-12).
Paul wrote so extensively about the gift of God’s grace offered to mankind through the person of Jesus Christ that he claimed this gospel as his own.
He lived and breathed this message because it was the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes (Romans 1:16).
Paul was set apart, called and ordained to be a minister of the gospel by the will of God. This is an amazing thing when you realize that before his conversion he literally hunted and killed Christians.
He considered himself the chief of sinners but after he experienced God’s incredible grace and mercy, he knew that this good news wasn’t too good to be true, that is why he said,
“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:13).
In today’s text from verses 14 and 15, Paul is reminding us that this news has to be passed on and received before its power is released.
People cannot look to Jesus for eternal life if they don’t believe in him. They can’t believe in him unless they have heard about him, and they can’t hear about him unless someone tells them.
People need to be sent before anyone can call upon the name of the Lord and find salvation.
This may seem like a quandary but to use a baseball metaphor; the bases are loaded. God has sent messengers of the gospel forth to preach the good news throughout the entire world.
We merely have to step up to the plate and start swinging and hitting the ball.
The first thing to consider is that this gospel message originated with God.
John said, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him” (John 3:16-17).
God sent his Son Jesus to save the world. This is the good news for which Paul was in chains. God initiated and provided the means whereby we can be reconciled to him. Sin stood in the way, but God sent Jesus to bridge the gap.
Paul said in Corinthians, “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation” (II Corinthians 5:18-19).
God was the one speaking peace over the world through the blood of Christ.
He sent Jesus to save the world. His feet were beautiful!
Secondly, after Jesus died to pay the penalty for our sins and was raised again to life to secure our justification before God, he then turned around and sent us to spread this message of reconciliation.
We call this the Great Commission.
“Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:15-18).
He won back all the authority and power that was transferred to Satan in the fall, and look what he did, He gave it back to us. He commissioned us to be the beautiful feet that preached the good news around the world.
What a remarkable thing this is. God has entrusted us with the words of life.
We have the power over death through the blood of Jesus and we have been equipped and assigned to share this wonderful news with the world.
Paul said, this news was
“the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16).
We are entrusted with a tremendous thing.
God trusts and believes in us to fulfill this great commission.
Isaiah said, “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God reigns!” (Isaiah 52:7).
What an incredible thing to share with those around us.
God’s brand of peace towards mankind, his love for us, his gift of grace and his overwhelming mercy.
We have the words that bring life and Jesus has placed His faith in us to share it.
Paul said, “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17).
The Messiah of reconciliation came from the very lips of Christ himself.
God was not holding mankind’s sins against them, and He came to bring us peace with God.
It’s almost too good to be true but the fact remains that it is true, and God calls our feet beautiful because he has sent us forward so to proclaim this message!
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
As we are gathered here today, we ask you, our living God, to shower onto us your wisdom and knowledge. We pray that as we listen to your word, we may have the ability to clearly see what God has called us to do. We seek to live to fulfill your purpose so that we can see your kingdom. Illuminate our eyes and reveal to us your glory alone. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
Take any empty cola 2L bottle sometime and fill it half full of water. Then, take some vegetable oil and fill it the rest of the way. Then try to shake it with all of your might and strength so it will become all mixed up. What happens? The moment you stop shaking, it begins to separate from one another, doesn’t it? What is the moral? The moral is, by their very nature, oil and water do not mix.
The same is true with Godliness and worldliness. For many ages many people have remarked that there was too much world in the church. I agree. But if that is even minimally true, it’s true because there is too much world in each of us.
You might say “well, we live here, and we need to be in the world.” We might need to be in the world, but does so much of the world have to be within us?
In Ephesians 2:19, we are told that we are each citizen and members of God’s household. We are no longer citizens of this world, and as the song says, “This World is Not My Home, I’m Just a Passing Through.”
Since we belong to God; since we are citizens of heaven working as ambassadors here on earth; we need to focus more on God and less on the world, but to do so, we need to make sure that we really believe in God, and not just “think we do.”
Well, perhaps now is as good a time as any other to ask ourselves;
JUST WHAT DO WE BELIEVE OF GOD’S PROMISE OF SALVATION FOR ALL?
Romans 10:8-13 Disciples’ Literal New Testament
8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”, that is, the word of[a] faith which we are proclaiming, 9 that[b] if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord and you believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is believed with the heart resulting-in righteousness, and it is confessed with the mouth resulting in salvation.
The Scripture Says Faith Leads To Salvation For Both Jew And Greek
11 For the Scripture says [in Isaiah 28:16] “everyone putting-faith upon Him will not be put-to-shame”. 12 For there is no distinction between both Jew and Greek— for the same Lord is Lord of all, being rich toward all of the ones calling – upon Him. 13 For “everyone who calls-upon the name of the Lord will be saved” [Joel 2:32].
The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.
When I was going to school, I had a physics professor who was teaching us about the law of the pendulum. We all know what a pendulum is, right? It swings from side to side, and it always decreases in the length of its ark with every swing.
I remember vividly the professor had nailed a rope to the wall just above the blackboard. To this rope, he had attached a baseball. He asked how many of us really believed in the law of the pendulum and we all raised our hands.
With that, he pulled the rope to one side and marked where it was on the board.
Then he let go of it and every time it swung back to his side, he put another mark where it stopped. The end result was that he had many marks, all closer to the center than the one before, proving the law was true. He asked again how many of us really believed in the law, and we all raised our hands once again.
Then he took us to the auditorium, where he had hung a thick nylon cord from the rafters just above the stage. Attached to this chord was a 50-pound weight.
He asked for a volunteer. He had a chair sitting on the side of the stage and he had the man who volunteered sit in it. He then took the gym weight, which was hanging in the middle of the stage and carried it over to about an inch from the boy’s face. He asked him again and again and again if he believed in the law of the pendulum, and the boy, starting to get a little worried by now, said he did.
With that, the professor let go of the weight and it swung clear to the other side of the stage, and then began to come back. I do not believe I have never seen anyone move so fast in my life as that young man trying to get out of the way.
Did he believe in the Law of the Pendulum, or did he just think he believed?
This is not a particularly long devotional, rather it is particularly short, but I felt I should talk about the true belief Christians have, at least, should have.
The first thing we need is…
1. A BELIEVING HEART
In JOHN 1:7, we are told that Jesus came so that all men might believe. That is how we come to believe, through Jesus Christ. Without Jesus there is no belief.
That is confirmed in JOHN 20:31, when it says that by believing in Jesus Christ, one may have life in His name.
In order to be a real Christian, and in order to receive eternal life, we must be real believers. We must have a burning in our hearts to be with Jesus; to know more about Him; and to know Him more.
Remember the story about the young man who sat on the chair wondering and waiting for the 50-pound gym weight about to swing back towards his face?
There are many Christians who have the same type of faith in their belief in Jesus. They think they believe, say they believe, but when push comes to shove, and Jesus “swings back their way” they get out of the way as fast as they can.
Remember when Peter told Jesus he would follow him into death if necessary?
A few verses later, we see where Peter denied Jesus three times.
Peter was just like that young man on stage, too. He thought he believed, but when he was pushed, he moved his chair away from the table just as fast as he could physically move it. And we cannot have faith unless we really believe.
Everybody believes in something. Everybody has to believe in at one thing.
What is it that you believe in? And how much do you really believe in it?
It is very easy to think you believe when there is no risk involved. It is more difficult to truly believe when you risk losing something very important.
Just like the student, we need to know the basics of what is offered to us. He needed to know what the law of the pendulum was, and we need to know what the law of salvation is. It is eternal life in heaven, with God who is our Creator.
Once we understand what is offered, we are ready to find out …
For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, declares the Lord.’
Why are we so fully and completely intent on taking God’s Word and trying to change and shape it and transform it to fit our desires instead of just accepting His word as the law we should live by? But by our works is how we live, isn’t it?
We must earn the respect of others and earn promotions at work. We can sing about the best things in life being free, but when it comes to the things of this world, it all has to be earned. And that is how most people come to think about going to heaven; it must be earned by what titanic efforts we put into our life.
The Israelites had a believing heart, but what they believed in wasn’t helping them. They believed they had to follow all the laws of the Old Testament to get into heaven. They were just like the people today; good and earnest people who have an incomplete picture when thinking about their relationship to heaven.
Those who believe in works or some other way of getting to heaven besides believing in Jesus are not bad people. They are wonderful people who have the right heart, but their heart is misdirected. The trouble with works getting you to heaven is that you have to be in 100% compliance – in everything, all the time.
That, in itself, is impossible for us to do. That is the same thing as saying you can never make any mistakes. Not one of us could live up to that expectation.
Mark Twain once said that if doing good was what got us to heaven, you could not get in, but your dog could. Like Paul says, you cannot be good enough to get into heaven any more than you can stand on top of earth and touch the stars.
The Bible is very clear in what we should believe in. It does not mince words and it uses no metaphors to explain it. Pure and simply this, we each need to 100% believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, sent to be our ONLY way to heaven. He is our Redeemer and our Savior. He is THE path, not ONE OF THE paths.
So, we need a believing heart, we need to realize just what we really believe in.
Once we have these down pat, (at least believe we do) we are then ready to …
3. STOP RUNNING AWAY
The student restless sat in the chair, and when the weight started swinging back his way, he quickly jumped out of his chair and ran away. He believed, but he believed only until he believed he had to risk losing something, like his head.
Many Christians are the same way, too. They will all go to church and do all the things, and they will continue to do that until a serious challenge comes along.
With our finite minds, we must have certain logical steps to take us into Christian maturity. God knew this, so we find His instructions in the Bible.
In MARK 9, we read Jesus healed a demon-possessed boy and then the boy’s father came up and said, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief.”
We are much like that boy’s father.
We all believe, but we also sometimes … don’t fully believe. In other words, we believe with our intellect, but we do not believe with our whole heart. We need to do like the boy’s father did and ask Jesus to help us have a bit more belief.
We need to do the same thing Jesus told Thomas about the scars in His side. In the last part of JOHN 20:27, Jesus said, “Stop doubting and believe!”
We have a natural tendency to run away before we commit. We see that all the time with people who say they are Christians but will not go to anybody and tell them about Jesus. I believe that being non-committal towards Jesus is a sin. If we do not know Him here, I truly believe He has promised to not know us there.
Let me ask you a question. Picture yourself at your wedding. You are standing there, and the minister asks you if you will take your fiancé for better or worse, etc. What do you think would happen if you just looked around, and walked out?
What do you believe now? Do you believe you might have hurt your fiancé?
If the minister asked you if you took that person to be your spouse, what do you think the response would be if you were to simply remain absolutely silent?
Again, do you think or believe you would hurt your fiancé? Do you think or do you believe you would be helping yourself? No, you would be doing far more damage to that person and to yourself than you could ever possibly calculate.
That is the same with your relationship to Jesus. Many people freeze up when asked to state their relationship to Jesus. Many people would actually rather deny Him than take the risk of having somebody mock them by confessing Jesus. Isn’t that what Peter did on the exact night that they arrested Jesus?
‘… if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord”, and believe in your heart that God raised Him, you will be saved.
Now, before we go any further, let me say we must believe in Him, and we must confess Him. And, if we confess Jesus as Savior Lord, we have Him in our hearts, doesn’t it make sense we would also be striving to do what He wants us to do?
In ACTS 2:38, we are told to repent and be baptized. It means just that.
Stop running! Get on B.A.S.E. with God.
BELIEVE – ADMIT – SURRENDOR – EXPRESS
Believe that Jesus is Lord.
Admit to yourself that He is your Savior.
Surrender your heart to Him today.
Express Him to others around you.
The young man who sat in the chair on the stage had a decision to make.
He could trust the truth, or he could run when it got uncomfortable.
We have that same choice to make today.
We can choose to actually have a genuinely believing heart; then ponder and study what it is we actually believe; then stop running long enough to cement our relationship with Christ or contemplate Jesus in our path then run away.
The problem with running, is that one day you will have no other place to run to, and you will find yourself in that long line, waiting to be judged one-on-one with the Lord. When you find yourself standing there, what are you going to feel like when He looks directly at you, into your eyes and soul and says, “NEXT”?
I personally believe the only ETERNAL option we have today is to be absolutely sure we are ETERNALLY protected against everyone of tomorrow’s onslaughts.
Do we really believe in the revealed truth contained within the Word of God?
Do we believe we are protected by the Blood of the Lamb of God?
Do we believe we would you like to be protected by the Blood of the Lamb?
Do we think we should better prepare ourselves for the reality of Salvation?
Is it a good a time as any to ask yourself –
“What exactly do I believe – Is there is no other name under heaven …?”
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Father, my Guide, illuminate my mind so I can understand how you want me to live. Your Word tells me people of integrity who follow your instructions are joyful. You have said those who obey your laws and search for you with all their hearts are blessed and happy. I want joy! Holy Spirit, please guard me against allowing evil to influence what I believe and do. Help to me walk only in your paths. May my actions consistently reflect what you have said is right and good. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
In the back of my mind, I have always wondered but never questioned, can a person be saved without a public demonstration, such as walking down an aisle, raising their hand, standing, kneeling at an altar, or signing a commitment card? Romans 10:9–10 is often used to indicate that a “public profession” is essential to salvation. Having a clear understanding of these verses is vital.
Romans 10:8-10 Disciples’ Literal New Testament
8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”, that is, the word of [a] faith which we are proclaiming, 9 that[b] if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord and you believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is believed with the heart resulting-in righteousness, and it is confessed with the mouth resulting in salvation.
The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.
As in all serious Bible study there are three things we always want to do:
Study thecontents of the passage. To do this, we ask, “What is in the verse or verses under consideration?” We want to be careful not to overlook anything.
Study the contextof the passage. What is the setting of the verse or verses I am studying? What is the subject? What has the writer been discussing? To whom is he speaking?
Study all other related passages. This involves a disciplined study of the topic under consideration as it is discussed throughout the Bible.
If we are serious about knowing what the Bible teaches, we dare not be in a hurry. Rushing to a conclusion without the careful and prayerful study of the Scriptures nearly always proves to be disastrous. Folks tend to resort to hurry-up methods when preparing for a Bible class or in “working up” a sermon.
Whenever we approach the Bible in that way, we are trivializing it, and will one day give an account before God for such a slipshod treatment of His holy Word.
Now let’s discuss Romans 10:9-10.
Verse 9
9 that[a] if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord and you believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
Considering the Contents
I have concluded that the key word in Romans 10:9 is “and”.
The word “and” in this verse is a translation of the Greek word kai. Depending on the context and the author’s purpose, kai may be variously translated. It has more than one use and more than one meaning in the New Testament.
Kai is usually translated “and” when it is used as a simple connective word.
For instance:
Matthew 2:11 Disciples’ Literal New Testament
11And having come into the house[a], they saw the Child with Mary His mother. And having fallen down, they paid homage to Him. And having opened their treasure-chests, they offered gifts to Him— gold and frankincense and myrrh.
All four occurrences of kai in this verse are used to connect each thought.
We see it used this way in John 16:13Disciples’ Literal New Testament:
13 But when that One, the Spirit of truth, comes— He will guide you in all the truth. For He will not speak from Himself, but He will speak whatever He will hear. And He will declare to you the things coming.
Finally, it is important to note that kaiis used at times when the Holy Spirit wants to give some additional explanation to what has just been said.
When used in this way kai is generally translated “even”, as in 1 Corinthians 2:10: “For the Spirit searches all things, even [kai] the deep things of God.” In this instance “all things” particularly includes “the deep things of God.”
Now, how does all of this apply to our verse from Romans 10:9?
Simply this: I believe kai in Romans 10:9 should be translated “even” — so that it would read: “That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, even believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Applying this usage, “confess with your mouth” is further explained to mean “even believe in your heart.”
What has brought me to this conclusion?
Two things primarily (other than the actual contents of the verse): context and the testimony of all other Scripture on the same subject of salvation.
I will try to illustrate.
Considering the Context
The emphasis in Romans 10 is twofold:
righteousness by faith in contrast to righteousness by works (especially the works of the Law), and the recognition of Jesus as Lord, that is, His deity.
Righteousness by faith
Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved. For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
Romans 10:1-4
The Lordship (deity) of Christ
That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus [literally, Jesus as Lord] … For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Romans 10:9, 10:12-13
These were the very two things the Jews of the day refused to do: yield to a by-faith righteousness provided by God through Messiah Jesus (see Romans 9:30–33) and recognize the full deity of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Also, in the context it is essential for us to notice that in Romans 10:9 Paul places confession with the mouth before believing in the heart which follows the order stated in verse 8.
The word is near you, even in your mouth and in your heart (that is, the word of faith which we preach).
Romans 10:8
But in verses 10 and following Paul gives the order of actual experience, and we see that believing comes before confession.
This is verified in verses 13–15:
For whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent?
Romans 10:13-15
The “confession” in verses 9 and 10 is the “calling” in verses 13 and 14.
Notice the order as we work our way backwards from verse 15 to verse 13:
How shall they preach unless they are sent? Which comes first, the preaching or the sending? The sending.
How shall they hear without a preacher? Which comes first, the hearing or the preaching? The preaching: otherwise, there is nothing to hear.
And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard?
Which comes first, the believing or the hearing? The hearing comes first, as stated in verse 17. Without the hearing there is nothing to believe.
How shall they call on him in whom they have not believed?
Which comes first, the calling or the believing?
The believing. The mouth confesses what the heart has already believed. So, the call of verse 13 is a call to the Lord (not necessarily to people) springing from a heart that already believes.
Considering the Testimony of All Scripture
The united testimony of Scripture on salvation is that God offers salvation to the lost on one condition and only one condition — belief in Christ.
To be justified we must have God’s righteousness credited to our account:
But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness.
Romans 4:5
In the first five chapters of Romans, God carefully explains that salvation is by faith in Christ, plus nothing else. This agrees with 160 New Testament verses.
After giving the most detailed explanation of salvation by faith found in the Bible, Paul would not then teach there is something more that must be done for one to be saved; namely, verbal confession.
There is also the further testimony of those who were genuinely saved but who did not publicly declare their faith.
They were, at least for a time, secret believers.
Nicodemus is described as he who “came to Jesus by night” in all references to him in the Scriptures (John 3:1–2, 7:50, 19:39).
He did not actually demonstrate he had already believed in Christ until after Christ’s crucifixion when he brought the weight of spices for Jesus’ burial.
Joseph of Arimathea, “being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the Jews” (John 19:38). We must accept this testimony of God’s Word as being valid.
The “MANY” in John 12:42:
Nevertheless, even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue.
John 12:42
Some choose to declare these were not genuine believers, but who shall we believe, men or God?
The verse says they “believed in Him with their whole heart.”
So, public confession of Christ, though expected by God and normal for the believer, it is not a condition for receiving eternal life, nor is it the subject of Romans 10:9–10. Public Profession of belief was quite literally dangerous in those first century times. “Lest they should be put out of the Synagogue!”
The subject of this verse? “Private, inward Profession of Belief in Him.”
Then absolute trust and belief and sight and hearing and judgment of God!
King David’s Prayer from Psalm 139:23-24 (Amplified version)
23 Search me [thoroughly], O God, and know my heart; Test me and know my anxious thoughts; 24 And see if there is any wicked or hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way.
God’s Sovereignty over our hearts 1 Samuel 16:6-7 (Amplified Version)
6 So it happened, when they had come, he looked at Eliab [the eldest son] and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before Him.” 7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees; for man looks [a]at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
Let those who have eyes to see – those who have hearts which beat – Pray –
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Mighty God, your Son is my Lord and my Savior. I love him and praise him for his redeeming sacrifice. I thank him for his conquest of the grave. I marvel at his sacrificial and triumphant grace. Jesus is Lord. I know it sounds sweet in your ears, so I say it again, Jesus is my Lord. Thank you for being so great that you would be so sacrificial. In the name of my Lord and Savior, Jesus the Son of God, my heart and my soul quietly shout and offer to you these thanks. Amen.
Salvation is not difficult, but simple. Salvation is not inaccessible, but readily available. It is as near as your mouth & your heart. If you would believe in Jesus with your whole heart, and confess Him with your mouth, you will be saved.
Your heart has been created with a truly amazing capability. Your heart has been given the capacity to believe, and most wonderfully, to believe in God. It is in the heart that faith springs up, dwells, and works (Acts 15:9).
It is unbelief in the heart that draws men away from God (Hebrews 3:12). It is into the heart that God sends the Spirit of His Son (Galatians 4:6) and it is in the believing heart that Christ Himself dwells (Ephesians 3:17).
You need a heart of faith because the place of faith is the heart. How can you have a believing heart? How can your heart be made true and pure?
In our text we have God’s gracious offer of salvation in Christ and the provision of righteousness by faith in His word. God speaks into your heart because your heart is not only the center of your physical-psychological life, but also the very center of your spiritual life.
God opens your heart to speak faith into your heart by His written Word. God builds and molds and shapes faith within the heart of men and women through our receiving, believing and obeying the word of God.
Let me repeat this again because it is that important – Now God’s Word to us is not distant, but always nearby. Salvation is not difficult, but simple. Salvation is not inaccessible, but readily available.
It is as near as your own mouth and your heart. If you would believe in Jesus with your heart, and confess Him with your mouth, you will be saved. And once the Lord Jesus is in your heart you have His righteousness reigning/abiding in your heart also. Let this sink into your souls.
Romans 10:6-9 Disciples’ Literal New Testament
6 But the righteousness of faith speaks[a] as follows: “Do not say in your heart, “Who will go up into heaven?”, that is, to bring[b] Christ down, 7 or “who will go down into the abyss?”, that is, to bring[c] 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[d] faith which we are proclaiming, 9 that[e] if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord and you believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.
What an amazing thing to know in your inner most being that you are saved. Through faith in Jesus, your inner man is 100% sealed, sanctified, redeemed.
This transformation into a new creation in Christ happened in your born-again spirit. There was a change on the inside of you when you put your 100% trust into Jesus as your Savior.
Unlike relying on the Law to bring you into right relationship with God, you trusted in Him to provide for you the righteousness that comes by faith alone. This righteousness changes the way we look at the world. No longer do we have to look to heaven or ascend into the deep to find God, because the word of faith proclaims that He is in our mouths, in our hearts and very near all the time.
In our carnal nature it is impossible to live in fellowship with the Lord. This is why trying to be good enough on our own merit will never work.
We set ourselves up for failure if we try to live this way. God understood this and this is why he never intended for us to work for our salvation.
Sin had destroyed us, and the Law helped us to recognize it.
Isaiah said, “The LORD looked and was displeased that there was no justice. He saw that there was no one, he was appalled that there was no one to intervene; so, his own arm worked salvation for him, and his own righteousness sustained him” (Isaiah 59:15-16).
Even God looked around for one that could represent mankind on his behalf to save the world from themselves but there was no one because sin has destroyed us. So, Isaiah said, his own right arm (Jesus) worked salvation for us, and it was His righteousness that sustained him so he could defeat sin once for all. In the same way He broke the power of sin over us.
Through faith in Jesus, we have been translated from the kingdom of darkness, held under the power of sin and death, into the kingdom of his dear son (Colossians 1:13).
We are free from the bondage that sin held us in and born again with a new spirit inside us. We are a completely different being than we once were (II Corinthians 5:17).
That is why we do not have to look for God, instead we simply know that his presence is always with us, His word in is our mouths, and His righteousness and precepts are written on our hearts.
It makes quite a difference in how we live when we understand this truth.
This becomes a reality when we get a revelation of who we are in the spirit.
When we see ourselves as God sees us, we live like who we are instead of living by what we see. This is why God gave us the Holy Spirit, so he could lead us into all truth (John 14:26, John 16:13).
He didn’t want us to have to rely on the physical aspect of life to interpret these things. Instead, he wanted us to know and experience him in a personal way. Jesus told the women at the well in John 4, that “God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24).
God gave us His Spirit so that we could commune with him spirit to spirit bypassing the natural realm. We do not have to have someone teach us these things because God has made them real inside us.
An amazing thing was what the prophets foretold concerning the New Covenant through Christ Jesus,
Jeremiah said,
“This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the LORD. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” (Jeremiah 31:33-34, Hebrews 8:10-12).
This is the word of faith. God is written himself on our hearts; we don’t need to look anywhere else for him. He dwells inside us, so close that he is in our minds, our hearts and overflowing from our lips.
Paul was quoting from Deuteronomy 30 in today’s passage. This passage immediately follows the law, but this chapter shows that it is man’s heart that God wants, this was always His intent.
The chapter ends with an amazing call to his children that still applies to us today,
“This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the LORD is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob” ( Deuteronomy 30:19-20 ).
God said, choose life and you will live. We know that life only comes through Jesus. He is the way to the Father. Through him, he gives us the capability to love the Lord, listen to his voice and hold fast to him. He is our life, and he incredibly blesses us as we walk with him.
Today, I encourage you to choose life so that you may also live. I am so thankful that God has provided a way for us to remain in fellowship with him at all times.
I am blessed to know that his faithful love and his faithful word flows out of me and that I am never without him. This is the word of faith that I proclaim today, may you be blessed by this revelation of God’s wonderful plan for you, Amen!
In the name of the God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
O God may the faith within us get out, onto our lips, into our feet and hands, through our hearts.
May what we sing and pray here in this place, get past our inhibitions and into our actions this week.
May the passion for your Gospel burn within our hearts, so that we cannot be silent in the face of deception or injustice.
If old-fashioned ways of sharing faith do not ring true to us, then let us persist until we find ways to tell our story that reveal Your presence in our lives.
Help us, God, please help us to just get it out, not arrogantly, but as our humble confession of what we believe. Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
Travel back to your days in High School or College English Literature class.
Recall a poem by Robert Frost titled,
“The Road Not Taken” (1951)
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I–
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Robert Frost talks about living life in two different ways.
As the narrator of the poem, he chose to live a different way than most people: one perhaps more challenging, and one perhaps requiring more of a personal investment and commitment than the other.
One way is a legalistic way. It’s the way of rote obedience, of diligently following all the rules, of faithfulness to religious expectations to a fault.
The other way of having a relationship with God involves faith.
It involves believing in the love of God in such a way that can’t be known by the mind but can only be known by the heart.
Now I’m the kind of person that can handle just about anything, as long as I know what’s coming, what to expect.
Car repairs, medical procedures, home improvements – it doesn’t matter. I believe I can deal with almost anything if I know what’s going on and what’s about to happen. I’m a person that likes to do my research and be informed.
But being informed, doesn’t address all of my needs. That the doctors know what medical procedure I need to have done, and can explain it all to me, doesn’t make the physician care for me on a personal, intimate level. The expertise of my personal mechanic doesn’t address my concerns and anxiety.
I can read up on my medical condition, I can take a class in automotive repairs, but it doesn’t change the fact that I still have a problem and doesn’t mean the doctor or mechanic will raise themselves up, be my Savior in my time of need.
Paul talks about two ways of knowing, and only one of those-knowing God by heart rather than by mind, knowing God by faith- is one able to truly know God.
I know exactly how to “live in the world” by “heart.”
I also know its exact “message” of “salvation.” by “heart.”
The Question is – Do I know how-to live-in God’s Kingdom “by heart?”
Do I know God’s message of Salvation “by heart?”
Romans 10:5 Disciples’ Literal New Testament
The Law Requires Performance; True Righteousness Comes By Faith In Christ
5 For Moses writes [in Lev 18:5] as to the righteousness of the Law that “The person having done them will live by them”.
The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.
There is a difference between the righteousness that the Law offers and the righteousness that comes by faith. Paul started out chapter ten by saying the Israelites were zealous for God, but their zeal wasn’t based upon the truth of Jesus and because of it they sought to establish their own righteousness based upon the law (Romans 10:2, Romans 10:3).
Then in verse 4 made an amazing declaration that Christ was the end (the aim, the goal) of the law so we could be righteous and holy by faith (Romans 10:4).
Thinking about this for a while, this is truly an amazing truth, but difficult to accept unless one’s heart is in alignment with this truth from God’s word.
Our relationship with God has always been based upon a heart change even at the time that the Law was given this was the objective.
Moses warned the Israelites when he gave them the law the man who obeys them will live by them (Leviticus 18:5). It wasn’t based on Ten commandments; it was more extensive and based on over four hundred laws and precepts.
If you religiously followed one law, then you had to follow all laws. Moses warned them about this. However, he also understood that this revelation of God’s decrees was simply intended to get them to practice God’s presence, get ready for the coming of the promised Messiah and not to be a means to an end.
It outlined everything Messiah would be, it showed us how He would be the one true, perfect sacrifice before God in our stead. Moses warned that if anyone was set upon hyper trusting in the law to save them, they would soon discover how completely impossible it was. If you live by the law, then you will die by the law.
James said the same thing,“For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it” (James 2:10).
The Law is an all or nothing thing. So, in that sense it is impossible to live by it because of the sinful nature with which we were born.
Fortunately for us we do not have to live this way because “but the righteous will live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4).The Amplified Version of the Bible put it in this way, “but the [rigidly] just and the [uncompromisingly] righteous man shall live by his faith and in his faithfulness” (Habakkuk 2:4 Amplified).
Meaning that our faith in Christ is how and what we must live by, and this faith fulfills the law in our own hearts and souls. Because the law looked forward to Christ and made him its bullseye. Jesus brings us into relationship with God and inevitably our hearts and our souls changes and aligns to His in the process.
What does Jesus say about the Law?
Questioned about it by the Pharisees and Scribes, Jesus quickly responded,
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments” (Matthew 22:37-40).
Fulfilling the first commandment can only be accomplished with true lasting heart change. We cannot hope to love God with all of our hearts when it is only perceived and acted upon as an exercise in being an intellectual ritualistic thing.
To love God takes every ounce of our being we can only do this when our heart is aligned to his heart. This only happens when we experience the love of Christ. John said, “we love because he first loved us” (I John 4:19).
Our love is a natural response to His love towards us. We can all 100% love him with everything we are because through grace alone we are a redeemed and holy people. By loving God in this way, we fulfill the intent of the law because we are looking to become dependent on him for everything, not relying on ourselves.
In the same way, because of His love pouring out of us we can love others where before we couldn’t. TBT, we can love others more by accident than on purpose.
This is because we are living our lives from a real change of heart that focuses on God for everything. It is not a self-centered thing. Love flowed from the cross and overflows into our hearts and we have become like Him through the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit.
Paul encourages us with the same thought elsewhere,
“The entire law is summed up in a single command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Galatians 3:14).
“Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law.” (Romans 13:8).
This love is based upon Christ who is the end of the law (Romans 10:4).
Today, my heart and my soul are indescribably thankful that Moses foresaw the coming Messiah and insightfully challenged the Israelites to look beyond and then forward to Messiah in faith instead of living by the dictates of the Law.
I am unbelievably thankful Christ has come in the flesh to redeem mankind. By trusting in Jesus, you are 100% saved and 100% loved and equipped to love one another. May the truth of this revelation of Jesus Christ bless you today, Amen!
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
let us Pray,
All Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory. You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
Throughout the long course of Paul’s letter to the Romans he wrote extensively about how the Law could not justify us before God. Rather he is trying to teach the true intent of the law which, from the beginning, was to point us to Christ.
After building his case against mankind in the first two chapters, Paul wrote in Romans 3, “But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference” (Romans 3:21, Romans 3:22).
He showed that this way had always been God’s plan from the very beginning.
Both the Law and the Prophets of God testified about Jesus as the means for justification. We were never supposed to cling to the Law to bring us into right relationship with God. The Law was meant to condemn us; this is why Paul said in Corinthians “the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Corinthians 3:6).
Then went on to call the Law the “ministration of death”because that is what it was (2 Corinthians 3:7). It only brought us death. It accused us before God, it showed us our guilt before God, and it magnified our sin before God. It could never justify us, instead it silenced us and held us accountable (Romans 3:19).
But do we really grasp what it means to say; “Christ is the End of the Law?”
Romans 10:4 English Standard Version
4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. [a]
The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.
Do we genuinely know what Romans 10:4 really means? Because of the great misunderstanding of this verse, a lot of Christians missed its real meaning. Join me now as we try to discover what it means for Christ to be the end of the law.
Christ is the end of the law.
That is what Romans 10:4 says.
However, a lot of people believe this verse proves we don’t have to keep the law.
Is this what Romans 10:4 really mean?
Let’s try to sort it out and try to find out what God, through Paul is teaching us.
Examining the Greek word
Romans 10:4 tells us:
“For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”
To better understand this verse, we need to look into the original Greek word of “end.”
According to Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionary,
the word “end” in Romans 10:4 came from the Greek word, “telos,” which means, “to set out for a definite point or goal).”
Now, compare this definition to Thayer’s Greek Definitions where it says telos means “termination, the limit at which a thing ceases to be (always of the end of some act or state, but not of the end of a period of time).”
Thayer also defines it as “the end to which all things relate, the aim, purpose.”
Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words include variations in meaning such as “‘the aim or purpose’ of a thing.”
Looking into these diverse and various meanings, telos can mean the “end” or the “aim or goal.”
What does Romans 10:4 mean?
Now, we must ask, which one of these meanings does Paul really intend to use?
Most Christians would say telos means “the end” and thus, Romans 10:4 tells us that Christ is the end of the law. They conclude that the law ceases from being effective and that all we need is faith.
In short, faith voids the law.
However, I believe this understanding runs contrary to what the Apostle Paul says in the same letter, Romans 3:31:“Do we then make VOID the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.”
What does Romans 10:4 mean when it says, “Christ is the end of the law?”
Paul clearly tells us that faith does not negate the law of God. He goes on to say that instead of putting an end to the law, we, as Christians, should establish it!
Obviously, the main purpose of Paul in Romans 10:4 isn’t to end the law, but Christ is the aim of the law.
1 Timothy 1:5 English Standard Version
5The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.
Notice how telos is properly translated in I Timothy 1:5:
New King James Version – Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith.
New Revised Standard Version – But the aim of such instruction is love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and sincere faith.
New American Standard Bible – But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from a sincere faith.
New English Translation – But the aim of our instruction is love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith.
English Standard Version – The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.
That should be enough to tell us the word telos doesn’t entirely mean the end or put a stop, but rather it can be translated as “goal,” “aim,” and “purpose.”
So, back to Romans 10:4, this verse can and should be properly translated as:
“For Messiah [Christ] is the goal of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”
What is the true meaning of Romans 10:4?
Because of the wrong interpretation of most Christians, it is really possible they have missed the genuine magnitude of Paul’s real message in Romans 10:4.
In English, when we say, “end,” it can mean objective or goal.
You probably heard of the famous but wrong belief of Sergey Nechayev, the 19th century Russian revolutionary, “The end justifies the means.”
In this expression, we understand the word “end” here means goal, purpose, or aim. How do we know?
Because the main reason why Sergey said this is he believes as long as the “end” or goal is morally acceptable, whatever means you use would also be acceptable.
Of course, we know that’s incorrect, but the point I’m getting to get at here is that the English word “end” varies in meaning and you need to get the context to know its real intention.
In the same way, Romans 10:4 tells us that Christ is the end [the goal, the aim] of the law. We need to dig deeper to get the context to know its real meaning.
In the initial verses of Romans 10, we read:
“Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved. For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God” (Romans 10:1-3).
Paul was saying here that Israel is zealous, but they are doing it with the wrong understanding. For many Jews during the time of Paul, they are trying to earn their salvation by keeping the law of God.
Now, please try to understand, it doesn’t mean it is wrong for them to keep the law, but their motivation and their purpose were misguided. They thought that by themselves, by their works, they can earn salvation and gain God’s grace.
That’s why the Apostle Paul needed to explain to them that they need the sacrifice of Yahshua or Jesus Christ to be cleansed of their sins.
By believing and accepting the sacrifice of Yahshua, they can now submit to the “righteousness of God” instead of establishing their “own righteousness.”
When Paul wrote in Romans 10:4 the Messiah is the goal or aim of the law, Paul was pointing them, and us today, in 2022, to Yahshua.
He was saying to all who would believe, we must make it our goal, our aim to develop the mind, character of our Savior and Master, Yahshua the Messiah!
That’s the deeper truth and the critically important point of Apostle Paul here.
He was not trying to abolish the law in Romans 10:4, but rather,he was teaching that our ultimate goal in keeping the law is to become more and more like Yahshua.
Remember, Yahshua is the living Word of God.
He is the perfect representation of how we must keep the law, what our motivation should be in keeping the law, and what the law really teaches.
So, when we obediently follow God’s laws and commandments, bear in mind that we keep them to help us develop Christ’s character, mind, and wisdom.
Understanding the implications of this profound truth will completely free you in every sense of the word. We are called to a higher goal, a higher aim, to live a life of freedom and this also includes after we come to Christ. Many understand salvation by grace, but no sooner than they come to accept the transformation of Christ’s salvation they put on the yoke of slavery again.
Many start out accepting this grace that Christ offers only to return to the Law as a means to live. We pick it up again to dictate the Christian life instead of living in the freedom to which we were called.
As Christians the Law is not for us it was nailed to the cross with Jesus. We do not need it as a basis of how to live because we have the Holy Spirit as our guide to lead us into all truth (John 14:26, John 16:13-15).
God said, through the Apostle Paul that “Christ is the end of the law …” (Romans 10:4), and this rings true especially for Christians.
Today I am so thankful my righteousness came through Christ. I am glad that he has cancelled the written code that stood and accused me. He has become the end of the Law and the aim in my life so I can live by faith. Today, I pray we all understand this blessed truth and experience this freedom in our life, Amen!
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Heavenly Father, thank You for sending the Lord Jesus Christ to be the end of the Law to all who trust in Him as Saviour. I confess that of myself I can-do no-good thing but praise Your holy name that I can do all things through Christ, Who has become my righteousness, and in Whose name I pray. AMEN.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 