Romans 10:1-21- Salvation to All Who Would Believe

Explanation- The heart of Paul is with his Israelite brethren, and his desire is to see them saved. Certainly, they hold a zeal for God. They are fervent about keeping commandments, performing rituals, and making offerings, but these are not according to righteousness. Or in other words, these men believe themselves to be saved on the basis of these works, rather than the righteous life of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ that God prescribes. In turn, they have sought to establish their own path, and as we know from Jesus’ own words, ‘…he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber.’ Sadly enough, Israel, in their seeking another way, have become thieves and robbers because they do not seek to come to God through faith in Jesus Christ.

Even when Moses spoke of the Law, he made it clear that the one who seeks to keep the Law must keep all of it, or else he has kept none of it. James highlights this concept when he says that, ‘whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.’ This just further expresses that no man can ever be justified through the works of the law. This should not be an unfamiliar concept to the Jewish people. The truth of God has come near to them; it is not something that must be fetched from far away, but Christ dwelt in their midst and expounded the Law of God perfectly to them. Rather than a life of works, faith is the means of salvation. Confessing that Jesus is Lord and believing in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead is the key to the kingdom. There is no difference between the Jew or the Greek, but God’s salvation has been extended to all who would believe, for the one who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

But how does this take place? How does one believe? Certainly, they must hear of Christ, and there must be a preacher in order for them to hear, and if there is a preacher, then he himself must be sent. This is the means by which God calls those whom He has foreknown and predestined. When one of these hears the words of truth, then the Holy Spirit moves upon their heart and activates regenerating faith.

Application- The wisdom of God is excellently displayed through the work of salvation. He has predetermined all of the means by which a man might be saved, and He executes these means in power and brilliance. Through the foolishness of preaching, God activates faith in the heart of the elect. The Spirit is active in performing this regenerative work, and the believer becomes justified before God. This acting of the Spirit causes the believer to testify to the truth of Jesus Christ and His resurrection and creates in him a desire to share this good news with all those who will hear. Thus God always His laborers in the field. We are the workmen of God, and by His grace, we labor in His strength to see men saved. This should give us great hope and encouragement in our evangelistic efforts specifically because we know that we cannot fail (or more accurately, God cannot fail)! God’s word will accomplish that which He desires to accomplish. No seed is sown in vain; it is both working life and peace to the elect and death and damnation to the reprobate. Whatever the case may be, we can trust that God is working all things together toward His desired end.