The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my mind and heart in Romans 10:19b-21,
"First, Moses says, 'I will make you envious by those who are not a nation; I will make you angry by a nation that has no understanding.' And Isaiah boldly says, 'I was found by those who did not seek me; I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me.' But concerning Israel he says, 'All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and obstinate people.'"
In chapters 9-11 of Paul's letter to the Romans, God's activity with the nation of Israel and how that effects his involvement with other nations occupies Paul's thoughts. Paul is dealing with the considerable difficulty of explaining to others why it is his gospel message is true and authentic since Israel as a nation had rejected Jesus Christ.
In Romans 11:1 Paul is careful to point out that not all Jews had rejected Jesus Christ, as he himself was a Jew of high pedigree: a Pharisee from the tribe of Benjamin. Elsewhere he speaks of being tutored by none other than the great rabbi Gamaliel, Acts 22:3. There he says he was thoroughly trained in the law and in Philippians 3:5 he calls himself a "Hebrew of Hebrews". He was just as zealous for God as any of the Jews of his day. Not just Paul, but the entire early church had been comprised of Jews who had placed their faith and trust in Jesus Christ. The disciples and apostles of Jesus Christ, as well as all of the earliest believers, the folks at the birth of the church on Pentecost in Acts 2, were all Jews.
Nevertheless, the nation of Israel as a whole had rejected Jesus Christ as her Savior. This presented Paul with a challenge as he took the gospel message to the various Gentile nations that made up the Roman Empire. Why should the Gentiles embrace Jesus Christ when the mother-ship, Israel, the nation to whom Jesus Christ was born and the primary focus of his ministry while here on earth, rejected him? It is in this milieu that Paul talks of the activity of God among the nations.
In Genesis 11:1-9 we read of the post-diluvian people who had come together to build an edifice to establish themselves as a global community. God's comments on this are captured for us in this passage. He expresses his concern that mankind had begun this effort, Genesis 11:6 and so he scattered the people of the earth by confusing their language. We read, "From there the Lord scattered them over the face of the whole earth." Genesis 11:9. In Acts 17:26-27, Paul explains why the Lord had done this, "From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us."
God is the one who has determined the times and places that peoples live. Paul tells us it is God's purpose, his intent that within the framework of the nations and empires of history he has created, he will draw mankind to himself. Not through peaceful coexistence as some imagine God's purposes, but through the furnace of fear and desperation that can open a hard heart to reach out to him for help and refuge. Paul explains in Romans 8:20-21, "the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God."
Some have misquoted the company of the "heavenly host" at Christmas time as saying "Peace on earth" with the arrival of Jesus Christ's birth, Luke 2:14. The point being that Jesus came so that mankind would get along with one another if we would all just follow his teachings. Surely, that was why Jesus Christ came, right? What was actually said by that heavenly host was, "... on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." This is not peace among peoples, but peace between God and those to whom God's favor rests-- those of faith. In Matthew 10:34, Jesus said, "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword." And, in Luke 12:49-51, "I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! ... Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division." It is not God's intent the nations of the earth live in peace and harmony with one another. It is the very conflict among the nations of the earth that God uses to draw men to himself as they seek deliverance and refuge from a fearful world.
Here in this passage of Romans 10 we see God in his workplace. In verses 19-21 we read among the nations he fosters anger and envy with the purpose of drawing men to himself. This is not the message most bring into their reading of the Bible. However, if we let the Scriptures speak for themselves, we find God busy at work, using the most amazing things to draw us all to himself. "God our Savior... wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth." 1 Timothy 2:3-4.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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