-13-
Seeking the Lost
Romans 10
Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved.
In the previous study we noted that Paul was in great anguish and distress regarding Israel. He said that he could wish himself 'accursed' from salvation … if that is what it would take to bring Israel to Christ and eternal life. Now he adds the words that it is his prayer to God. I really do not think that He is blaming God for not electing them in the first place. It would appear that he is asking for something that is actually possible.
If we are to follow Paul's example when it comes to seeing our own loved ones come to faith in Jesus, we see that winning them to Jesus must involve prayer. And before prayer … there must be a motivating force. And very simply, that is a 'heart's desire'. How does a person come to the place where we are in great agony over the eternal condition of our loved ones?
Perhaps it must start by grasping what God's word has to say about heaven and hell and faith. When it comes to having a burden for the salvation of our family and loved ones, I am reminded of this verse: Ps 126:6 He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.
This verse is not talking about actual olden-day farmers sowing fields with wheat. How do we know that? Because as a farmer went out to 'sow' he would have no reason to weep. Unless of course, the wheat he was throwing onto the ground represented the very last of their supplies, and now they would have to lives on next to nothing until harvest.
No, this passage is talking about putting out great effort at a great cost, all the while hoping that it will pay off in the end. This verse promises that it will pay off. We will come in to heaven at last, carrying our sheaves with us!
Here is another encouraging verse: Da 12:3 And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.
We need to be wise and realize that our loved ones may never come to Jesus unless we come to the place where we weep and call out to Jesus for help as we do our best to keep sowing the seed.
2-4 For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.
We do NOT hear Paul saying, “But they are trying so HARD to please God. Surely God will not send them to hell!”
Let's think about this in terms of our own experience. Although God has sent us, the church, into all the world to make disciples … our first concern is always those who are closest to us. Here are a few examples: If you accepted Jesus after you were married and now find yourself with a non-christian spouse, you have children who have not openly confessed Jesus as Lord, or you have daughters-in-law or sons-in-law who have not received Jesus as Saviour … or your daughter or son is dating an unbeliever … or perhaps you have come to Christ but your parents have not. All of these people have an eternal soul. Once that person dies, there is no second chance.
Do you have loved ones that do not love the Lord? How often do you think about it? You can say … 'I try not to think about it. It bothers me too much.'
Or perhaps you have been grasping at straws, so to speak. We try to remember something this loved one said that was somewhat positive concerning Jesus and we think, “I hope and I trust that they are OK with God. I heard them say, more than once, 'O my God!', so that shows they believe in God, right?”
I have a friend whose children have not turned out to be followers of God at all. Both children prayed to receive Jesus while in Sunday School. They would have been between the ages of 5 to 7. Both have gone the way of the world. But my friend clings to one thing … they prayed to receive Jesus as Saviour. He and his wife cling to that and will not pray for their salvation. I spoke to him about it. I asked him, what if the salvation prayer did not 'take'? What if they did not understand what they were doing … or were coerced into it in some way? Why not pray for their salvation anyway?
But he refuses. He says he cannot allow himself to go the place where he doubts if they are saved. He says he just could not stand the thought.
Jesus said that we are not to judge, but He did say that we are to be fruit inspectors. He said, “You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.” Mt 7:16-20
So what should we do? We must think about our loved ones, examine the fruit of their lives and the words of their mouths and let it weigh on our hearts as Paul did. This will bring us to say, like Paul “My heart’s desire and prayer to God for my loved ones is that they may be saved”
Paul says that the Jews did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own. And he says that they did it with great 'zeal'. On the outside … it would look pretty good. The fruit would look very nice. So what was missing? Two things.
1. Perfection. Paul says, Ro 10:5 For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them. And James adds this:
Jas 2:10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.
So even though there was good fruit … for good works to save you, you have to be totally good. Perfect. And they were not. And the second thing that was missing ...
2. Love for Jesus. Joh 1:11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. I was surprised to see a verse like this one in the Old Testament: Ps 2:12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.
Moving on we will examine verses 6-13
But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim:
Faith does not 'question'. Faith believes. Paul begins with the negative, Do not say... and the thought is this; The virgin birth … really? That can't happen. And also, Raised to life after three days? Impossible!
Then Paul says, “ The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart” This is the message of hope for our loved ones. They CAN believe. God has but faith to believe in their mouth and heart. We must encourage them to use it.
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile —the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
The wonderful, incredible, matchless grace of Jesus is available to all. Praise His name!
Our hearts desire is that our loved ones come to faith in Jesus, embrace Him, love Him. But how is this going to happen? Paul's asks and answers questions that are in a logical sequence:
How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? 14-15a
Twice the word 'preach' is mentioned. But the word is not what you might think. In this case 'preach' has nothing to do with a sermon or a minister. The word simply means 'to proclaim'. It applies to any of us who are willing and obedient enough to approach a loved one and share the gospel with them.
The last question and answer brings it right down to us. Before we go, we need to realize that we are sent. That means that God is behind us. He has our back. And when we go, we have his approval; As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news! 15b
But what about results? What guarantees do we have that our loved ones will be saved? We have no guarantees.
But not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our message?” Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. But I ask: Did they not hear? Of course they did:
“Their voice has gone out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.”
In Paul's case he points out that they all heard … but they have not all believed. He adds a reference that states that the message went out to the ends of the earth. And we have to believe that … and then try to understand it. Generally this is true. God's word is even evident in the creation. But Jesus said, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Mt 24:14
When we proclaim the gospel to our loved ones, it has to be more than 'general'. We need to pray for and make opportunities to make it clear. We need to proclaim it. But they need to believe it. They need to understand it.
But how can we bring them to this point? In the following verses we have the assurance that God is able to do things in the background that we most certainly cannot.
In verses 19 – 20:
Again I ask: Did Israel not understand?
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.”
This is God doing something particular. He is going outside of Israel and doing something designed to reach the heart of Israel and bring them to faith. God is going to make the Jews envious, even angry when they see outsiders claiming to be 'in the kingdom of God'.
In the next chapter Paul says this: “I take pride in my ministry in the hope that I may somehow arouse my own people to envy and save some of them”.
We began this chapter with Paul telling us that he prays for the salvation of his people. But Paul knows how to pray and what to pray for. He understands that God is able to work on the Jews from the outside by making them envious. So Paul prays … 'Lord, let me be a part of that. Use my ministry in such a way that I will provoke them to envy … so that some of them, at least, will be saved.'
How do you pray? Let's not leave it general but seek the Lord that He will show us ways to reach our loved ones with the gospel.
The next verse, at first sight, sounds a bit sad.
But concerning Israel he says, “All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and obstinate people.” 21
We ask ourselves, When will our son, our daughter … turn their heart to Jesus? Will they wait until it is too late? But we can never give up. In this verse it is the Lord that is being referred to. He is the one who has been waiting, 'All day long'. He is waiting for our loved ones to come to Him. He never grows weary. He never sleeps. And because He is waiting for them, we need to be faithful in proclaiming the gospel to them … over again, and then we need to wait with God. The reality is that some of our loved ones may never accept Christ. But we can never give up praying for them.
In the next Chapter Paul will talk about the ones who did respond. He refers to them as a 'remnant'.
In the previous study we noted that Paul was in great anguish and distress regarding Israel. He said that he could wish himself 'accursed' from salvation … if that is what it would take to bring Israel to Christ and eternal life. Now he adds the words that it is his prayer to God. I really do not think that He is blaming God for not electing them in the first place. It would appear that he is asking for something that is actually possible.
If we are to follow Paul's example when it comes to seeing our own loved ones come to faith in Jesus, we see that winning them to Jesus must involve prayer. And before prayer … there must be a motivating force. And very simply, that is a 'heart's desire'. How does a person come to the place where we are in great agony over the eternal condition of our loved ones?
Perhaps it must start by grasping what God's word has to say about heaven and hell and faith. When it comes to having a burden for the salvation of our family and loved ones, I am reminded of this verse: Ps 126:6 He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.
This verse is not talking about actual olden-day farmers sowing fields with wheat. How do we know that? Because as a farmer went out to 'sow' he would have no reason to weep. Unless of course, the wheat he was throwing onto the ground represented the very last of their supplies, and now they would have to lives on next to nothing until harvest.
No, this passage is talking about putting out great effort at a great cost, all the while hoping that it will pay off in the end. This verse promises that it will pay off. We will come in to heaven at last, carrying our sheaves with us!
Here is another encouraging verse: Da 12:3 And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.
We need to be wise and realize that our loved ones may never come to Jesus unless we come to the place where we weep and call out to Jesus for help as we do our best to keep sowing the seed.
2-4 For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.
We do NOT hear Paul saying, “But they are trying so HARD to please God. Surely God will not send them to hell!”
Let's think about this in terms of our own experience. Although God has sent us, the church, into all the world to make disciples … our first concern is always those who are closest to us. Here are a few examples: If you accepted Jesus after you were married and now find yourself with a non-christian spouse, you have children who have not openly confessed Jesus as Lord, or you have daughters-in-law or sons-in-law who have not received Jesus as Saviour … or your daughter or son is dating an unbeliever … or perhaps you have come to Christ but your parents have not. All of these people have an eternal soul. Once that person dies, there is no second chance.
Do you have loved ones that do not love the Lord? How often do you think about it? You can say … 'I try not to think about it. It bothers me too much.'
Or perhaps you have been grasping at straws, so to speak. We try to remember something this loved one said that was somewhat positive concerning Jesus and we think, “I hope and I trust that they are OK with God. I heard them say, more than once, 'O my God!', so that shows they believe in God, right?”
I have a friend whose children have not turned out to be followers of God at all. Both children prayed to receive Jesus while in Sunday School. They would have been between the ages of 5 to 7. Both have gone the way of the world. But my friend clings to one thing … they prayed to receive Jesus as Saviour. He and his wife cling to that and will not pray for their salvation. I spoke to him about it. I asked him, what if the salvation prayer did not 'take'? What if they did not understand what they were doing … or were coerced into it in some way? Why not pray for their salvation anyway?
But he refuses. He says he cannot allow himself to go the place where he doubts if they are saved. He says he just could not stand the thought.
Jesus said that we are not to judge, but He did say that we are to be fruit inspectors. He said, “You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.” Mt 7:16-20
So what should we do? We must think about our loved ones, examine the fruit of their lives and the words of their mouths and let it weigh on our hearts as Paul did. This will bring us to say, like Paul “My heart’s desire and prayer to God for my loved ones is that they may be saved”
Paul says that the Jews did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own. And he says that they did it with great 'zeal'. On the outside … it would look pretty good. The fruit would look very nice. So what was missing? Two things.
1. Perfection. Paul says, Ro 10:5 For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them. And James adds this:
Jas 2:10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.
So even though there was good fruit … for good works to save you, you have to be totally good. Perfect. And they were not. And the second thing that was missing ...
2. Love for Jesus. Joh 1:11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. I was surprised to see a verse like this one in the Old Testament: Ps 2:12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.
Moving on we will examine verses 6-13
But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim:
Faith does not 'question'. Faith believes. Paul begins with the negative, Do not say... and the thought is this; The virgin birth … really? That can't happen. And also, Raised to life after three days? Impossible!
Then Paul says, “ The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart” This is the message of hope for our loved ones. They CAN believe. God has but faith to believe in their mouth and heart. We must encourage them to use it.
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile —the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
The wonderful, incredible, matchless grace of Jesus is available to all. Praise His name!
Our hearts desire is that our loved ones come to faith in Jesus, embrace Him, love Him. But how is this going to happen? Paul's asks and answers questions that are in a logical sequence:
How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? 14-15a
Twice the word 'preach' is mentioned. But the word is not what you might think. In this case 'preach' has nothing to do with a sermon or a minister. The word simply means 'to proclaim'. It applies to any of us who are willing and obedient enough to approach a loved one and share the gospel with them.
The last question and answer brings it right down to us. Before we go, we need to realize that we are sent. That means that God is behind us. He has our back. And when we go, we have his approval; As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news! 15b
But what about results? What guarantees do we have that our loved ones will be saved? We have no guarantees.
But not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our message?” Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. But I ask: Did they not hear? Of course they did:
“Their voice has gone out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.”
In Paul's case he points out that they all heard … but they have not all believed. He adds a reference that states that the message went out to the ends of the earth. And we have to believe that … and then try to understand it. Generally this is true. God's word is even evident in the creation. But Jesus said, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Mt 24:14
When we proclaim the gospel to our loved ones, it has to be more than 'general'. We need to pray for and make opportunities to make it clear. We need to proclaim it. But they need to believe it. They need to understand it.
But how can we bring them to this point? In the following verses we have the assurance that God is able to do things in the background that we most certainly cannot.
In verses 19 – 20:
Again I ask: Did Israel not understand?
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.”
This is God doing something particular. He is going outside of Israel and doing something designed to reach the heart of Israel and bring them to faith. God is going to make the Jews envious, even angry when they see outsiders claiming to be 'in the kingdom of God'.
In the next chapter Paul says this: “I take pride in my ministry in the hope that I may somehow arouse my own people to envy and save some of them”.
We began this chapter with Paul telling us that he prays for the salvation of his people. But Paul knows how to pray and what to pray for. He understands that God is able to work on the Jews from the outside by making them envious. So Paul prays … 'Lord, let me be a part of that. Use my ministry in such a way that I will provoke them to envy … so that some of them, at least, will be saved.'
How do you pray? Let's not leave it general but seek the Lord that He will show us ways to reach our loved ones with the gospel.
The next verse, at first sight, sounds a bit sad.
But concerning Israel he says, “All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and obstinate people.” 21
We ask ourselves, When will our son, our daughter … turn their heart to Jesus? Will they wait until it is too late? But we can never give up. In this verse it is the Lord that is being referred to. He is the one who has been waiting, 'All day long'. He is waiting for our loved ones to come to Him. He never grows weary. He never sleeps. And because He is waiting for them, we need to be faithful in proclaiming the gospel to them … over again, and then we need to wait with God. The reality is that some of our loved ones may never accept Christ. But we can never give up praying for them.
In the next Chapter Paul will talk about the ones who did respond. He refers to them as a 'remnant'.