Fully Devoted: The ChurchSample

Romans, Part 5: What of Israel?

The last movement we’re going to look at in Romans takes place in chapters 9-11. Once again, we come to a place where the debates around what Paul “really meant” have been running for far longer than any of us have been alive. Our goal is not to try to settle all of those debates. Our goal is simply to do the best we can to embrace the power of these words and allow them to propel us forward in our journey of becoming fully devoted followers of Christ. 

The first major movement of this letter (chapters 1-4) was written to show the Weak and the Strong that both were under the condemnation of sin. The second major movement (chapters 5-8) brought us to the solution for sin, death, and condemnation. That solution is the gospel: the good news that the Kingdom of God is coming on earth as it is in heaven, and everyone has been invited in. Jews and Gentiles. The Weak and the Strong. Through Jesus, a new family has been created where the grace and love of God have overcome the power of sin and death. The fourth and final movement of this letter (chapters 12-16) brings all the pieces together in a series of instructions written to help form the divided Roman Christians into a united Church. 

But what about this third movement? How does it fit into the bigger picture of what Paul is trying to accomplish? 

The big question Paul is answering in these chapters is: “What of Israel?” This was a question many of the Jewish Christians would have been asking. Since the beginning, the Jewish people had occupied a special place as God’s chosen people. And when Jesus, the Jewish Messiah, established the Church, it was very Jewish. But in the years since, the ethnic makeup of the Church had shifted dramatically, because more and more Gentiles were putting their trust in Jesus and becoming Christians. 

Because of this, many of the Jewish Christians would have felt their status as God’s chosen people being threatened—leading to the fear that the inclusion of the Gentiles meant the exclusion of the Jews.

Throughout these three chapters, Paul explains how God bringing in the Gentiles is not God pushing out the Jews. Rather, God’s inclusion of Gentiles was always a part of the plan, and He will always remain faithful to His people. 

But, if that’s the case, then shouldn’t all of the Jewish people, or at least more of them, have become Christians? 

Paul begins answering this question in chapter nine. It’s here that we read about God’s “election.” Now, at this point in the letter, it can be easy to read into Romans our own assumptions about who gets saved and how they get saved, but it’s important to remember that this piece must be understood within the greater context of Romans. The focus of this passage isn’t on answering “how salvation works.” It’s meant to offer hope to the Jewish Christians that God has not abandoned His people or given up on His promises.

Near the end of chapter 11, Paul directs his attention to the Gentile believers. He warns them not to “consider yourself to be superior to those other branches.” Remember, Paul’s goal in this letter is to unify the Weak and the Strong. The last thing he wants is for the Gentile believers to assume they are better than their Jewish siblings. On the contrary, Paul says, “Do not be arrogant, but tremble,” because in the same way that they were grafted into the family of God through faith in Jesus, so too will the Jewish people be grafted back into the family through faith in Jesus. 

This whole movement is born out of Paul’s compassion for the Jewish Christians. The questions they are asking are the same questions he had to wrestle with when he became a Christian. They are questions that likely kept coming up every time he traveled to a new place to preach the gospel, plant churches, and make disciples.

Paul desperately wants the Jewish people—his people—to respond to the gospel and trust in Jesus. He wants them to experience the grace and redemption that God is offering them. And he’s heartbroken that many of them have rejected the very Messiah they’ve been waiting for. 

From here, we get back to where we started: the final movement of this letter, chapters 12-16, the portion of the letter where Paul applies the truth of the previous movements to the challenges the Roman Christians are facing. He urges them:

… offer your bodies as a living sacrifice … Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind … Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud … Do not be conceited … If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Romans 12:1-2,16,18 NIV

Because this is the way of Jesus: a way that leads to life, freedom, and peace. This is the gospel. 

… the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. Romans 1:16 NIV 

Journaling Questions 

• What verse or verses stuck out to you in today’s reading? Write them in your journal. 
• Have you ever experienced a fear of including someone because you thought you would be excluded? Describe that experience. 
• How has Paul’s letter to the Romans helped you better understand the way of Jesus? What’s one thing you are taking away this week? Share that with someone. 

Memory Verse

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2 NIV