Episode Transcript
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Our scripture reading this morning is from
the book of Romans, Chapter Nine,
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reading from verses one to thirteen Romans
Nine, beginning at verse one. I
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am telling the truth. In Christ, I am not lying, my conscience
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bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit
that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief
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in my heart, for I could
wish that I myself were accursed, separated
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from Christ, for the sake of
my brethren, my kinsmen according to the
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flesh, who are Israelites, to
whom belongs the adoption as sons and the
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glory and the covenants and the giving
of law, of the law, and
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the Temple Service and the promises.
Those are my are the fathers, and
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from whom is the Christ according to
the flesh, who is over all God
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blessed forever? Amen. But it
is not as though the word of God
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has failed, for they are not
all Israel who are descended from Israel.
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Neither are all children, because they
are Abraham's descendants. But through Isaac,
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your descendants will be named. That
is, it is not the children of
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the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are
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regarded as descendants, for this is
the word of promise. At this time
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I will come and Sarah shall have
a son. And not only this,
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but there was rebecca also, when
she had conceived twins by one man,
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our Father Isaac or, tough though
the twins were not yet born and had
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not done anything good or bad,
in order that God's purpose to the to
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his choice, might stand and be, and because of works, not because
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it works of him who calls.
It was said of her. The older
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will serve the younger, just as
it is written. Jacob I loved,
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but Esaul I hated. Thus this
reading, the God's holy word, our
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text for exposition and hopefully applied to
our understanding of the Gospel of grace,
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is is Romans Chapter Nine, which
is one of my favorite chapters in the
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in the Bible. It troublesome to
some are those that do not like that
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particular chapter, but also there are
so many answers that we can find in
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it. The chapter is a textbook
for predestination, but also justification, and
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it is foundational for the five soulas
of the reformation that are well known to
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many of us. In summarizing some
of the things of our belief, total
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depravity, unconditional election, limited atonement, irresistible grace, perseverance of the saints.
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All of these good things are touched
upon. But before you doze off
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with all this listening to things that
might be important here, let me try
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to show you where the rubber meets
the road in these things. If you
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were to take a survey all people
leaving churches in our surroundings here after the
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service. I'm always liking people to
take surveys. It never gets done but
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it can tell us sometimes if we
take it at times. But if you
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were to go out and ask people
see out the area, how were people
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saved in the Old Testament Times,
the majority would have the wrong answer,
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or at least that's what I've found. I know of no such survey being
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taking, but my experience is clear. How were people saved in the Old
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Testament Times? If you have the
wrong answer or waffle here on your answer,
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excuse me. We've got some work
to do. This is a spiritual
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life and death issue. It is
just that question which the final paragraph of
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the Westminster Confession of faith, Chapter
Eleven addresses. But we weren't prepared to
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go there necessarily, but you certainly
may if you like. But the back
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of the Aminals, but chapter eleven, paragraph six, says this for more
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confession of faith. The justification of
believers under the Old Testament was, in
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all these respects, one and the
same with justification of believers in the New
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Testament. Now we need to give
some clarity in that as we deal with
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it. Are you aware of how
many people don't know that and if we're
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asked, would probably give a wrong
answer? Or again, that's been what
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I've found. Excuse me, I'm
having trouble with the wind up here.
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As we get to the heart of
the matter, let me sit three verses
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for moments. Nine High Lot,
highlighting the heart of our focus in this
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Romans chapter nine versus exume me,
versus eleven and twelve, for though the
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twins were not yet born and had
not yet done any thing good or bad,
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in order that God's purpose according to
choice, his choice, might stand
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not because of works but because of
him who calls. It was said that
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the older will serve the younger,
just as it is written Jacob I loved
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and Esau I hate. You see
this as well in Galatians three, but
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we won't take time to go there. Let me just know it again.
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In Romans for versus three to five, as we're in the book of Romans.
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Romans for versus three to five.
For what does the Scripture say?
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And Abraham believed God and it was
reckoned to him as righteousness, a favor.
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Now the one who works, his
wages is not reckoned as a favor,
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but as want what is due.
But to the one who does not
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work but believes in him, who
justifies the ungodly, his faith, is
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reckoned as righteousness, just as David
also speaks of blessings upon the man to
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whom God reckons righteousness apart from the
works, to apart from works. Now
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you see that this shows up in
various parts of the of the Bible.
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What we're getting at this morning in
terms of how people are saved in general.
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In Romans for the apostle then goes
on to use Abraham as a classic
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example. This is one that is
so clear in the Bible and example of
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one who has saved by the shed
blood of Jesus, one who is justified
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by faith and Christ alone. Romans
Romans four, versus three through five,
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that I already read that. Yes, I think I did. Yes,
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I already that. Sorry. So
the basic and yet so misunderstood. It
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is taught that the chapters of the
Covenant and the mediator, is in the
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Westminster Confession of faith, but here
in chapter eleven six of the confession,
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it's explicitly stated. Also. Well, many miss this truth, and yet
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it is so misunderstood. It is
taught in the chapters of the Covenant and
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the mediator and the Westminster Confession,
but here at l eleven six of the
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confession it's explicitly stated. Now many
miss the truth because they think that there
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are at least some Decei inidence of
Adam who are able to save themselves by
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works of the law. Such an
arrant view misses both the sovereignty of God
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in salvation, especially the election of
sinners in salvation, and also the centrality
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of Christ alone in salvation. Today, what I want to emphasize the doctrine
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of divine election as it pertains to
this paragraph of the confession, and the
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me as mediator, as Christ the
mediator for any center, Old Testament or
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New Testament, and try to sort
that out in case it's needed. Now.
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The first thing I want to set
before you is a clarification how issue,
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how this issue of the confession of
faith, Chapter Eleven six. I'm
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sorry I don't have that more distinctly
before you in now, but it is
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in the back of your hymnals.
But how on the what basis were persons
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saved during the Old Testament? It's
an interesting question to ask to people because
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many do not get it. No
bonified Christian today denies that we are saved
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by faith in Jesus Christ as our
Savior. That's the essence of Christianity.
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Many Non Christians teach otherwise, but
not. Ortho lacks Christianity. But there
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are those who may themselves be Christians
Trust in Christ for their salvation, who
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firmly believe that Old Testament Salvation is
on other grounds. And if you gave
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the air of that view a name, it would be dispensationalism, popular eyes
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by Sei schofield through his reference Bible, rampant in many fundamentalist circles, associated
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with institutions like Moody Bible Institute and
Dallas Theological Seminary, and many Baptist and
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independent churches. But it's a view
that deals with the two different testaments as
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a key matter and, according to
schofields and Biblical theory, history is divided
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into dispensations throughout all of history and
those and those, and in each dispensation
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God tests people in a different way. There's not a uniformity between creation to
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now in terms of how one is
saved from that view. Now, the
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the justification of believers in the Old
Testament was in all respects of being,
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in all these respects, one and
the same with justification of believers in the
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New Testament. Again, I'm quoting
from from our confession. As well as
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stating what I hope is will is
or will be obvious to us. There
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are usually three types of errors that
are made in in this whole topic and
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just to summarize them so we know
what basically we're dealing with here. First
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of all, some say that Old
Testament persons were saved by being Jews.
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They presume the promises of God given
to Israel were given collectively and mechanically.
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They ignore the necessity of faith or
the curse on unbelievers. But this view
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was common in Christ Day. Paul's
treatment of God's promise in Romans nine shows
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how widespread such a false view was. But were or are all Jews saved
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in Christ's Day? Both the old
testaments and Old Testament. Both old and
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new testaments deny it. Jesus explicitly
denied that one is saved merely by being
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a biological descendant of Abraham. Most
of you have probably been through that,
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that episode the it's regarding Abraham's situation. But a second erroneous view, just
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going ahead through what some give,
is probably the most widespread of all.
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It is at old speed. Old
Testament people were saved by keeping the law
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superficially. It may look that way
to a newcomer, but it boggles my
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mind how popular this view is among
people. If the Scotaled Bible were the
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dispensational teachers is added as footnotes to
the Holy Bible. Schofield compares the dispensation
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of law with that of grace.
In these words, and I quote,
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the point of testing is no longer
lead legal obedience as a condition of salvation,
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but acceptance or rejection of Christ.
He's right on the now but wrong
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on the Old Testament. Time you
see how readily this fits the human desire
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to achieve one's own salvation. You
talk to people that aren't very well versed
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in the faith and maybe have some
claim to it but don't really quite get
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it. And you ask what they're
trusting in, they'll start talking about the
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good things they've done. It happens
all the time. And the point of
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testing is no longer legal obediences as
a condition of salvation. It never was
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the nesting with legal obediences, but
the acceptance or rejection of Christ. One,
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in terms of the Old Testament,
expectations us in the actual coming of
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the Lord Jesus Christ. Who is
that answer? But the second view then
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places that on keeping of the law, which is a normal answer most people
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get if they don't know the right
answer. A third arrant view is that
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the old pit testament people were saved
by keeping the sacraments, that is,
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by performing sacrifices and by keeping the
sacraments, so to speak, or the
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rituals, I should say, as
specified in the livitical code. And though
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that's totally contradicted in God's word,
this view, in one way or another,
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is closer to the real issue.
It's not the real issue, but
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it's closer to it because at least
the sacrifice is pointed to the answer,
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even though it was not the answer
itself. Sacrifices do not save any more
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than baptism or the Lord's supper saves
today in our age. There's a common
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thread in all three of these.
However, these views that are erroneous a
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common thread. They all seem man
in some way saved because of who he
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is or what he does. That's
that's the big choice. That is in
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this view, neither of which is
helpful at this point. But the in
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such a false way of salvation that
is rejected of our confession. Against this
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backdrop, the scriptural teaching is very
clear and we need to turn to the
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law of God to go there,
as are our next main point at this
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level. The leads us next to
but the Bible's teaching about the law of
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God. How does the law of
God fit into this particular issue? We
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look back in the Old Testament and
obedience was an important thing. It always
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is, but we can also very
much get it wrong the law of God.
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How does it fit that a mass? That's a massive study, but
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a few essentials can be drawn out
here. One of the chief characteristics of
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sin is to deny one sinfulness.
That's that's one of the most common sins.
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We say no, I'm not a
sinner, I'm all right to affirm
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we are basically good. Oh how
often you get that? When you're asking
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some of them about what their hope
of being in heaven one day they started
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talking about well, not so bad. Fact, I'm pretty good. I
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take care of my family, I
do this, I do this, I
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do this, very common answers.
The chief characteristics of sin is to deny
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our sinfulness and stress our goodness.
And a sinner does not want to admit
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his sinfulness, let alone his total
depravity, like those crazy calvinists. Who
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wants to say that these babies,
newborn babies, have a sin essence to
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their being even at birth, that
they have the filthiness of sin already up
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on their hearts? And you can
talk to people who have small children and
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they will vout, kick you out
of their house if you would be to
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suggest this, as I cannot help
but think of Doctor Gershner's famous phrase of
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Vipers and diapers. But they cannot
take the aspect that now children, that's
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where our sin is. It would
inherited from Adam. We all have it.
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Total depravity. Our confessions say there
are people that leave reform circles when
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the doctrine of total depravity comes into
discussion. They do not want to accept
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that there's not goodness within them.
Well, the primary use of the law,
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if you study it seriously, was
to was to reveal sin, to
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expose us as sinners and show us
how terribly needful we are, to a
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way of dealing with that sin.
The sinner does not want to admit how
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sinful he is. Most people typically
think God grades on a curve and they
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think they're high enough to make the
grade and everything's okay. They don't realize
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that they can bring nothing in their
own that is truly righteous. Only the
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covering of Christ righteousness can cover us. So the law was not a way
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of salvation. It was a way
of telling us what kind of sinners we
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are. And one of the chief
characteristics of sin is to deninye sinfulness.
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Now, many will say the law
is there to teach us to do good
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or be good. Well, the
law is a pattern about holy living.
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It describes what is holy in God's
eyes. But the problem is that we
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are not good and the law is
to reveal that fact before we can make
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any headway in our life with our
Savior, Jesus Christ. The law is
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to convince us that we are sinners
that were desperately in need of a savior.
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The Law does indeed restrain sin.
It shows us what is right living,
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but it cannot make us good persons, and its chief purpose is to
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reveal our need. And if we
don't not understand that kind of total need
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we have, we will not make
very good progress in a walk with a
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savior. Thus why God is honored
by the use of the law. Of
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course it's righteous. It condemns unregenerate, reprobate sinners and leaves them without excuse.
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And while God is glorified in the
use of the law which directs us,
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the central focus of the law is
seen from a perspective of God's plan
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of Redemption, in revealing our sin
and causing us to flee to the savior.
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When our eyes are open and we
see what and who Jesus is and
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how, that is everything in terms
of what Christianity and our salvation is all
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about. Exodus Twenty begins. I
don't know when it was. It was
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a long time ago, but I'll
never forget when, preacher, professor,
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I don't know where, even where
it was at the time, but that
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made this point, which is so
obvious. We all know the ten commandments,
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all about them and, to certain
extent, at all. But the
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thing that was brought home to me
on that particular time was in exodus twenty.
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It begins, I am the Lord
your God who brought you out of
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the land of Egypt, out of
the House of slavery, and you see
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how we come into that, ultimately
through the history of salvation. But because
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of this, I am the Lord
your God, because of this I am
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gracious, because I delivered you.
Therefore, you shall have no other gods
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before you, none. God is
everything in this. That's the first and
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he said, because I am the
Lord your God, you shall have no
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other gods before you, and that
suddenly had power in those words for the
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first time to him, as I
realized, God's really sounds mad here if
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you get the right kind of person
preaching this to you and you begin to
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think, wow, you shall have
I mean, that's it's not just reading
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mored you shall have no other gods
before me. It's an eternal creator and
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judge of all that's saying this because
I am gracious, because I delivered you.
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Therefore, you shall have no other
gods before me. You shall not
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make for yourself an idol, etc. Tonight we're going to talk about some
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idolatry in making idols, by the
way. But in this light we find
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that the law includes not merely the
prohibitions before which we stand condemned, but
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the promises, the promise of perfect
salvation as being what God does bring to
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us. And when God gave the
law, remember, he also gave con
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instructions concerning sacrifices. He knew we
needed that. When God chose Moses as
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the lawgiver, he also chose Aaron
to be a high priest. It is
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as though God, as he thundered
out, you shall not of the deathlog
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rather than just kind of reading through
it, but I know you will fail
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and keep the to keep the law
perfectly. And so this is the way
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of redemption. Christ only came next, Moses, is the lawgiver, Aaron
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and the high priest, to help
show us that there was another part to
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all of this. Now the Gospel
was present in the Old Testament of law.
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The Old Testament Saints understood that that
was coming. They didn't have all
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the pieces that we have, but
it was there. The sacrifices the Old
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Testament pointed to Jesus Christ, the
lamb of God, the sacrifice to remove
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our guilt and sin, taking it
upon himself, and then to go one
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more step down this road, the
how of Old Testament Salvation. We move
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from the fact of salvation in the
Old Testament and the context of Old Testament
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law concerning the how of the Old
Testament. How did this take part there?
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Well, the key to understanding this
question is election. I was amazed
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the time when, I hope,
found out the election has something to do
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with the whole issue of law and
how we fit into getting out of that
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mess. Salvation is in the old
as well as the New Testament Times.
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was to whom God chooses, or
chose, by the way, that the
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sermon to the bulletin didn't have room
for the sermon title here. All the
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way, it was old testament salvation, whom he chooses, was a conclusion
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of that title. By the way, Old Testament Salvation whom he chooses.
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That's the short answer that we're moving
to now to Israel. Was Given the
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promise that Christ would come. The
sacrifices pointed to Christ. It is here
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we begin to focus on Romans nine
and see how this all comes together.
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And an answer. We should note, by the way of prefacing this,
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that Paul in Romans, for devotes
an entire chapter to showing that Abraham,
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the father of the Jewish nation,
was saved by faith apart from the law.
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This in itself answers the proximate question, or the immediate how of Old
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Testament Salvation, but it raises the
question of why Israel as a whole is
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not responding to God's offer in Christ
as Abraham did to Israel was given the
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promise of Christ that he would come
and they had sacrifices, the appointed to
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Christ, and understood that but did
not believe. That's Israel's glory that they
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had the law given to them as
well as the answer. But Israel,
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that is Israel's glory, not the
political kingdom nonsense of modern Israel. Should
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should have believed. Yet in the
earliest evangelists went forth with their message,
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Israel was largely rejecting the savior,
while the gentiles were believing it. Why?
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How does this harmonize with the Old
Testament promises? Is God taking back
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his promises that he made to Israel? Is God rejecting his people or,
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more to the point of our discussion. Had the way of salvation changed?
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Paul then begins his argument by showing
that it was always the case that some
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were saved and others were not.
The reference point, the key to the
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answer, there is seeing the spiritual
descendants are being spoken of here, Romans
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nine, versus six and seven,
woman's nine, verses six and seven.
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But it is not as though the
word of God has failed, for they
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are not all Israel who are descended
from Israel. Neither are all children because
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they are Abraham's descendants. But to
Isaac, your descendants will be named spiritually
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viewed, not all descendants were true
descendants. It's as simple as that.
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And one sense, not all are
sons of promise. Some were saved,
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some were not saved. Paul next
shows that those who are truly Abraham's spiritual
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seed become only that way by God's
sovereign election. Romans nine, verse eight,
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that is, it is not the
children of the flesh who are children
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of God, but the children of
promise are regarded as descendants. And again
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this is wrapped up a lot with
with Abraham's historical situation. Jews past Jews
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and gentiles past and present are saved. The save by the same way,
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by God's electing grace, focused on
the work of Christ on calvary. Jews
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and gentiles past and present are are
saved in the same way as we think
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of today, but in a different
context or different format a bit, but
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the same essence. was there that
God chose those whom he would say I
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will have mercy. On whom I
will have mercy. The historical evidence of
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Abraham confirms the doctrinal emphasis of Paul. What was Abraham when God called him?
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He was not a Jew as we
understand Jew. I hope you realize
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that that he was not it.
The historical evidence of Abraham confirms the doctrinal
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emphasis of Paul. In all as, he was not a Jew as we
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under standard. God called Abraham when
he was simply one of the Semitic people's
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on up in mid east, Middle
East or mid Asia area, who worshiped
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idols and all the other things that
non believers, non Christians, would,
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would be doing. Abraham's salvation was
apart from merit in him, for he
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didn't seek God at all. In
fact, his salvation came because God sought
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him and elected him to salvation.
He just didn't know the automatically become Abraham
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on the scene. Here it's a
story Belhim, that of a savior who
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was making him as a father of
the faithful. In that sense, this
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great truth is corroborated in several places
in scripture. For example, in Joshua
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Twenty four he delivers the his final
charge to the people. He reminds them
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of their pagan past and God's deliverance
and their corresponding obligation to serve Jehovah because
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of all that preceded this. In
Joshua Twenty four two, Abraham is specifically
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mentioned in this context. I won't
go back there to take the time now,
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but Joshua four two if you want
to see it. But I'm looking
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here at a copy I put down
of Isaiah fifty one, which I think
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is a very helpful passage for us, where the same thing is being mentioned.
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And as Isaiah fifty one, beginning
of verse one, listen to me,
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you who pursue righteousness, who seek
the Lord. Look to the rock
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from which you were hewn and to
the quarry from which you were done.
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Look to Abraham, your father,
and to Sarah, who gave birth to
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in to you in pain when he
was but one. I called him,
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then I blessed him and multiplied him. Neither their ancestry nor their pursuit of
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righteousness will commend Israel to God.
Salvation is of the Lord. We are
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chosen by grace. Is Still Grace
alone, no matter which way you come
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at this. The Apostle Paul also
speaks of the theme elsewhere. He denies
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that Abraham was saved either by keeping
the law or by observing sacrifices, her
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sacraments. In galatians three, he
shows that Abraham lived four hundred and thirty
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years before the law was given.
And in Romans for Abraham is declared to
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be righteous by God through faith before
receiving the right of circumcision. Okay,
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one can begin to hear the critics
say now Abraham was called to according to
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God's grace. God needed to start
somewhere. But after Abraham, salvation was
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by birth. They come back to
this kind of thing. By physical descent
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from Abraham, salvation is to the
Jews. They are chosen to frequent argument.
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All Abraham's descendants, therefore, would
be saved. But you see,
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that's just what Paul is writing against. Back in the ninth chapter of Romans,
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the Jews were arguing that they had
a special relationship to God, but
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Paul is calling attention to what is
obvious to those not blinded by sin,
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who were open. Abraham had more
than one son, and from that fact
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God will teach us the important lessons
and about salvation. There was, of
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course, Isaac, the child of
promise. Abraham had more than one son
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and apart from that fact, God
will teach us a lot about our salvation.
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What about what about Ishmael? Isaac
was a child of promise. To
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what about Ishmael? Was it not
clear that God had chosen Isaac rather than
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Ishmael, thereby proving that salvation as
a result of God's free choice, not
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just from whom you are born?
Did that not teach us that, whatever
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we might think, it is obvious
that God does not give everyone the same
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privileges? So Paul says, in
Romans seven nor are all children, because
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they are Abraham's descendants. But to
Isaac descendants will be named, and of
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course, Abraham that the passages on
him teach of how it was those who
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had the spirit of Abraham, the
true inner conversion, if you will,
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of Abraham, that made them his
children, not just the biological birth of
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him. However, it seems that
there are those who said Isaac did not
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prove Paul's point on this. After
all, Isaac had been born of Abraham
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and Sarah, therefore a son of
two good Jewish parents, but Ishmael had
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been born of Abraham and Hagar Hey
guard, being Sarah's Egyptian slave girl,
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before getting two mixed up. We
won't get into the whole history here,
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but the point is Ishmael was of
mixed blood. Because of that son of
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Paul's argument failed. Some thought it
failed. It it just needs to be
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pure blooded Jew then that not a
half pread. That's the only problem with
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us. Other argument. Well,
Paul will answer this objection, or better,
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God will answer it through Paul.
By moving on to the next generation.
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There, in the case of Isaac's
to son, two sons, Jacob
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and Esaul, God made a choice
between the sons, be between the sons
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of a Jewish mother or between the
same Jewish mother. Moreover, lest one
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introduced the age factor and privilege that
goes to the elder son. The two
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boys were twins and even then,
condre to custom, the elder will serve
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the younger the age factor was of
no thus totally removed from it. But
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there's more in all of this.
In order to that, no one can
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argue that God chose one of the
one the basis of his character or moral
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choices, that is, that Jacob
was a better person than Esaul. God
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announced his decision while the children were
still in Rebecca's room, before either of
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them had an opportunity to do anything
good or bad. Is this not the
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point of chapter nine of Romans through
verse thirteen? Let me read it again,
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Chapter Nine, beginning verse nine,
for this is the word of promise.
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At this time I will come to
Sarah, and Sarah shall have a
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son. And not only this,
but there was rebecca also, when,
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also when she had conceived twins by
one man, our Father Isaac, and
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had not done anything good or bad. And order that God's purpose, according
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to his choice, might stand not
be cause of works, but because of
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him who calls, it is said, of her, the older will serve
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the younger, just as it is
written, Jacob, I loved, Esau,
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I hate. God made a choice
between the sons of Jacob and Esaul.
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God made a choice of the same
Jewish mother. Moreover, lest one
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introduced the age factor, the privilege
of the for the two sons or twins,
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and even between them they can con
contrary to custom, the elder shall
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serve the younger. The age factor
is thus totally removed. But there is
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more in order that one can argue
that God shows, on the basis of
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his character or more moral choices,
that is it. Jacob was a better
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person, God announced in his decision, while the children are still in Rebecca's
390
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roomb and which. So we go
through all of these things that speak to
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the text verse of Chapter or Verse
Thirteen of the Chapter here, I'm sorry,
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verse eighteen, or text verse.
So then he has mercy on whom
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he desires and he hardens whom he
desires. This is this is the sort
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of the the grand finale of what
is there. God chooses to those and
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those alone, whom God chooses.
If anyone is saved, therefore, it
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is because of God's sovereignty, whom
God choosing, he predestines that person to
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eternal life. You can't the thing
that this comes down to. If you
398
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can reflect back, maybe on some
of you, some of the things I
399
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said, I think the last time
I had the privilege to be here about
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the fact that you cannot regenerate yourself, that in itself we come into the
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world dead in Sin. We cannot
regenerate ourself. So from the very beginning
402
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God is guiding and directing this,
and this may sound like a lot about
403
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nothing, but if we do not
defend the election of God, the glory
404
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of God, the power of God, the sovereignty of God and doing all
405
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of these things, we will be
back to going our own ways of righteousness
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getting us to heaven rather than what
God has said he will do. If
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he brings gives us life, he
gives us faith, we better know that
408
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would he gave it to us.
We did not give it to ourselves,
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and that's why this chapter nine of
justification and predestination, both those pieces coming
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together, is so important. Well, it's a long way around, but
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I think it's important to realize that
we don't get messed up when we're talking
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and trying to tell other people about
the Gospel, that we get the mistaken
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of trying to make it a work's
righteousness thing, even sometimes without realizing what
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we're doing by bringing us into it. Primarily, God is the one that
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saves us and we need to be
sure that people are aware of that,
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that they might seek God. But
God is the one who is sovereign and
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we need to understand and live by
that. Let us look to God in
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and prayer.
