Introduction

Something about kids that is both amusing and frustrating is their inability to find things. It’s time to leave, and you tell a kid to go find his shoes. He comes back a couple minutes later and says, “I don’t have any shoes.” So, you walk him to his bedroom, and right there in the middle of the floor are 3 pairs of shoes. “How did you miss that, son? They were right there.” He sincerely says, “I don’t know.”

Of course, sometimes I’m not much better. A couple weeks ago, I couldn’t find my belt. I looked everywhere, and I couldn’t find it. A few days later Heidi and I were in our bathroom, and she said, “Is that your belt?” There it was on the dresser, plain as day. I’m sure you know the feeling. “How did I miss that? It was right under my nose.”

Most of the time, we can laugh about it later, but today’s passage tells a tragic story about a whole nation that missed something important even though it was right under their noses (read text).

This passage tells the story of how Paul’s own people, the Jewish nation had missed the greatest gift imaginable—God’s offer of salvation in Christ. It’s a tragic tale. It’s also a sober warning for us. “Is it possible that I may also miss God’s greatest offer?” And once you are sure that you have not missed it, this passage should drive you to grieve for those who are still in darkness and to go after them with the same evangelistic zeal that Paul models. Paul gets to these challenges by making two major assertions. First…

I.  Salvation is by faith, not works (vv. 1–4).

I’d like to divide vv. 1–4 verses into 3 challenges. First…

Pray for the salvation of the lost (v. 1). We know Paul is specifically talking about his fellow Israelites because 9:31–33 just lamented the fact that most of them had stumbled over Jesus and rejected him.

He wasn’t the Savior they were looking for because he came in humility as a sacrificial lamb not as a conquering king. And his gospel doesn’t glory in our achievements; instead, he demands repentance faith, and humble dependence on him. So, the Jews stumbled over Christ.

Therefore, Paul begins in v. 1 by expressing his passionate desire that God would bring revival among the Jews. And this passion drove him pray.

His testimony is very significant on the heels of chapter 9. Afterall, Paul just argued that God’s sovereign will determines who will be saved. He went so far as to say that God is free to make some people for mercy and others for destruction and that we have no right to get mad at God for his sovereign plan. We must submit by faith.

Sadly, many people have used Romans 9 to excuse apathy and laziness regarding sharing the gospel. And plenty of others refuse to believe in election because they are convinced it is irreconcilable with evangelistic zeal and aggressive evangelism.

So, please notice that Romans 10 immediately follows Romans 9. God’s sovereignty did not dampen Paul’s passion for the lost or his efforts to reach them. Why? He understood that God’s secret will is God’s secret. I don’t need to stress over God’s sovereign purpose. That’s God’s responsibility.

Instead, I must focus on my responsibility, which begins with passionately praying for the lost. The Bible teaches that our prayers are a vital link in evangelism. Paul talks everywhere about his prayers for the lost, and he urges the churches to join him.

So, I hope that you are zealous for the salvation of sinners, and it drives you to pray. And not just for nameless, faceless people out there but for people that you know and that you are trying to reach. Every Christian should be able to rattle off a good list of people whose souls we long to see saved.

Pray for their salvation. Prayer doesn’t just change you; God works through our prayers. James 5:16 says, “The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.” Are you taking advantage? Are you regularly praying by name for the people in your circle of evangelistic influence that God would save them?

It’s a vital spiritual discipline, and it is a powerful tool. Take advantage. Then go after them with the same gospel zeal that bleeds throughout this chapter. So, Paul begins with his burden for Israel. Then he follows by explaining why they had tragically rejected the gospel. The 2^nd challenge of vv. 1–4 is…

Pursue the only hope of salvation (vv. 2–3). Paul is describing the Jews, but sadly, their story has probably been repeated billions of times. It provides a sober warning for all religious people to make sure you seek salvation in the right place. Israel’s story also offers a helpful window into other people’s hearts, as we seek to reach them with the gospel.

Paul begins by complimenting the Jews for their “zeal for God.” That’s helpful perspective because we can sometimes paint every unbeliever with a broad, dark brush. “They’re all just arrogant, haters of God.” The Bible says that in some sense they are, but an unbeliever can still have tremendous, if not misguided, religious zeal.

Paul was a prime example. He testifies, ^“You have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it; and I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen, being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions” (Gal 1:13–14). Paul thought he was pleasing God by persecuting the church.

But our text warns that sincerity and religious zeal alone do not make you acceptable to God. People today need to hear this. We live in a culture that assumes pursuing any sincere passion is a good thing. And many religious people are truly committed to their faith. They really believe it, and they are trying to do right. They assume, “God surely won’t turn me away if I have such a strong zeal.”

But v. 2 says that having a “zeal for God” is not enough. Not if that zeal is “not in accordance with knowledge.” In other words, being sincerely wrong doesn’t change the fact that you are wrong.

So, what is the foundation of your spiritual confidence? Are you banking your soul on what you feel is true? Or is your confidence rooted in the clear statements of Scripture? I hope you can give Bible reasons why you know you are saved. If not, you need to hear what the Bible says, and make sure your confidence is anchored in truth.

Then v. 3 explains how the Jews and many others ignorantly chose the wrong path (v. 3). You might be thinking, “Wow, Paul is talking about my Uncle Dave or my cousin Sarah!” This verse describes so many people. It’s built on a contrast between two kinds of righteousness—God’s righteousness and man’s righteousness.

Paul’s Jewish contemporaries were consumed with “establishing their own (righteousness).” What’s that mean? It means they believed the purpose of religion is to make myself a good person. We observe religious traditions, we pray, we obey laws, and we do good deeds to make ourselves righteous. And if I do enough, God will accept me, he will bless me, and someday he will take me to heaven. That’s what most Jews believed, and it’s what most of the world’s religions teach.

But God says you can never be righteous enough to earn God’s favor (3:9–12, 19–20). Therefore, what is so tragic about Paul’s Jewish friends and about so many others is that they expend all their effort on a fool’s errand. They can’t possibly establish their own righteousness. And neither can you. You may be a wonderful person, but you will never be worthy of inheriting eternal life. Please accept what the Bible is saying.

And compounding the tragedy is the fact that this pursuit of my righteousness blinds people to a far better righteousness—the “righteousness of God.” Of course, God is perfectly righteous. But Romans 3:21–22 clarify that Paul is talking about something more than God’s attribute of righteousness (read). Paul says that the “righteousness of God” is something that God gives as a gift. What does that mean?

Specifically, Jesus perfectly obeyed God’s law during his life on earth. He died to pay the penalty for our sin, and he rose from the dead. Because he is worthy, and because he paid our debt, God credits his righteousness to those who believe on him. So, God’s righteousness is a gift you can receive by faith.

It’s awesome. It seems too good to be true. So, why doesn’t everyone receive it? The reason is pride and stubbornness. Sinners are so consumed with establishing their own righteousness that they won’t admit that they can’t do it. So, receiving God’s righteousness takes great humility. Notice that v. 3 says you must “subject (i.e., submit)” yourself to God’s righteousness. You must admit that you cannot earn it yourself and humbly rely on God alone to save. This brings me to the 3^rd challenge…

Receive salvation by faith (v. 4). I’ll just note that there’s a lot of debate about the finer nuances of v. 4, but I believe that considering vv. 2–3, the basic meaning of v. 4 is clear. When I humble myself and believe the gospel, it is the “end” of trying to establish my own righteousness before God.

I stop trusting my works, and I start resting in Christ’s finished work. I become like a child in my heavenly Father’s hands. I have simple confidence that his grace is enough, and his love is sure. So, I rest in him.

Are you resting in Christ like that? Or are you bound and determined to earn his favor? Don’t be stubborn and proud and foolishly miss his salvation. Right there in your seat, you can admit your sin and receive Christ as your Lord and Savior. I hope you will do that now.

And reading this story should drive every Christian to share the gospel. You know someone who is headed toward hell because they are determined to establish their own righteousness. Pray for their salvation and plead with them to bow before the righteousness of God. So, the first major assertion of our text is that salvation is by faith, not by works. The 2^nd major assertion is…

II.  Salvation is near, not far (vv. 5–8).

Verses 5–8 once again contrast righteousness by the law with righteousness by faith. So, notice first…

Law relies on works (v. 5). This verse loosely references Leviticus 18:5, which states, “So you shall keep My statutes and My judgments, by which a man may live if he does them; I am the Lord.” Then the chapter proceeds to list a bunch of immoral relationships that Israel must avoid.

It’s obvious that Moses is not promising eternal life to anyone who keeps all these laws. Rather, they will “live” in the sense that they will remain in the land of Canaan, and God will prosper them.

God makes this clear when he says, “You are to keep My statutes and My judgments and shall not do any of these abominations…(for the men of the land who have been before you have done all these abominations, and the land has become defiled);so that the land will not spew you out, should you defile it, as it has spewed out the nation which has been before you” (Lev 18:26–28).

So, the promise concerned temporal blessing. So, what is Paul’s point in our text because he is clearly focused on eternal life. Is he saying that someone could earn eternal life by keeping the law? No, he just said that the Jews were wrong to seek salvation in the law. As well, Romans 4 was clear that in every age, people have been saved by grace alone through faith alone.

Rather, he is simply pointing out that the Law was a system of works, and God’s blessing was based on obedience. If they obeyed God’s Law, he would be near them and bless them. If they disobeyed, God would abandon them and curse them.

Sadly, even though Christ has come, many people still try to relate to God the same way. They show up at church and give to the poor because they want God to bless them. If life is hard and money is tight, they assume they must have offended God, and they need to regain his favor. Religion is a big game of bargaining with God to get what you want and to avoid his wrath.

But any religious system that depends on human righteousness is doomed to fail. In fact, God and Moses both warned Israel that they would fail even as they gave the law (Deut 31:16–18). God isn’t very optimistic, is he? He proved to be right. Israel rebelled, and God sent them into exile.

But Deuteronomy 30 promises that this will not be the end of the story 30:1–3). God says that someday he will regather the nation. But that’s not all. God will bring about a massive and unprecedented revival among Israel (30:6–8). God will circumcise their hearts and inspire them to obey.

Jeremiah 31 looks forward to this day as well and calls it the New Covenant. Someday, God will transform Israel from the inside out. God won’t just give them the Law; he will give them a new heart to obey it.

Notice what the end result will be in vv. 11–14. Someday, God’s Word will come near to Israel. Of course, that has not yet happened. But Romans 11 say that it will. God will fulfill his promise to Israel.

However, our text quotes the passage we just read to make the point that Christ has already radically changed how we relate to God (vv. 6–8). This is another complicated quotation from the OT. That’s because Deuteronomy 30 doesn’t say anything about Christ’s incarnation or resurrection. So, scholars have spent a lot of time debating what Paul is doing here and how he uses Deuteronomy 30.

I am not going to walk through every issue; instead, I want to stay focused on the point that I believe Paul is making, which I believe is faithful to the intent of Deuteronomy 30.

Remember that earlier in the chapter, God promises to bring about a great revival among the Jews someday through the New Covenant, and the verses Paul quotes are saying that in that day, God’s Word will be near, in the hearts of the Israelites.

Paul is saying that Christ is the key to this radical spiritual work. He lived a perfect life, he died for our sins, and he rose in victory. And his victory has made salvation and this radical heart change available to all who believe.

Again, God gave the New Covenant to Israel, and someday God will fulfill it for them. But everyone who believes on Christ enjoys that promised forgiveness and new life today. We live in a new and far better age. So, the gospel is radically different from the Law. Whereas the law relies on works…

Faith relies on grace. This is the point of the contrast between v. 5 and vv. 6–8. When I believe the gospel, I stop relating to God based on works. Instead, grace dominates everything. The Christian doesn’t have to chase God down, earn his attention, and fix his wrath. No, God came to us in Christ. Christ addressed our sin, and he saved our souls.

It’s hard to overstate how radical this change is. Resting in the gospel doesn’t just change my course a few degrees; it’s a 180! Works and grace are completely different ways to relate to God.

And what is so awesome about this passage is that this wonderful grace is not unattainable. So many people look at the Bible like I used to look at my syllabi on the first day of a seminary semester. My teachers would lay out everything that I had to complete over the next four months, and it felt so overwhelming that you almost wonder what’s the point. How will I ever get all of this done? A lot of people see the commands of Scripture as this sort of boundary between them and God. “I can’t possibly obey all this. I’ll never get to him.”

But our text says that Christ’s life, death, and resurrection have brought a relationship with God near. I don’t have to reach him because he came to me. All I must do to attain this relationship is stop trusting in my works and start trusting in him. Look at what v. 9 promises (read).

Next week, we’ll walk slowly through the details of this verse, but I think we can see that God does not demand some impressive feat to be saved. This salvation is very near and very attainable. Verse 13 simply says, “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Have you done that? Maybe you have spent your whole life trying to measure up to God and not quite sure if you will ever make it. Understand that you will never make it on your own, but you don’t have to. Salvation is near. Christ is calling you right now to believe. 2 Corinthians 6:2 says, “Behold, now is ‘the acceptable time,’ behold, now is ‘the day of salvation.’” Don’t wait, and don’t think that you need to clean up a few things first. Just come to Jesus and rest in him. You can obey v. 9 right there in your seat. If you have questions, we want to talk with you afterwards. Please, believe on Christ alone for salvation.

And if you saved, I hope that pondering this gospel compels you to go share it. It should break our hearts that so many people that we know are still trying to earn a relationship with God when God has brought salvation near through Christ. Who has God put in your life that needs to receive this message? Pray for their salvation because God can change anyone.

Then how can you go after them very soon with the gospel? How can you start a conversation? Maybe you can share how God changed you. Maybe it starts with a tract or a simple invitation to church. Maybe you invite them to do a Bible study with you. Don’t just hope to get there someday. Salvation is near. We need to urge peop