Cu – Witnessing to the Jewish Community 10: 8-15

Witnessing to the Jewish Community
10: 8-15

Witnessing to the Jewish community DIG: What is Paul’s tone in this passage? What is Paul’s point in saying, “How beautiful are the feet of those announcing good news about good things?” What do our thoughts and words have in our response to salvation? What is the promise to those who believe and profess Yeshua as Lord? If, unexpectedly, you found yourself in a situation where you had the opportunity to lead someone to the Lord, could you use the Romans Road to salvation to do it? If not, what do you need to do?

REFLECT: Have you publicly acknowledged Yeshua as your Lord and Savior? Have you been immersed? If not, why not? Do you, or your place of worship, witness to the Jewish community where you live? How can they trust in Yeshua Messiah if they don’t know He’s Jewish? Most Jews today think Jesus is Catholic. This is a real issue today, especially in the Church. Why is it often difficult for people to follow Yeshua Messiah?

Some people are exposed to the message of salvation through Yeshua Messiah hundreds of times but never really hear it. The Good News is lost to them among the many other messages that provide little purpose or hope. Others seem to respond the first time they hear about Him. Who told you about Yeshua and the gospel? What was your initial response?

If you acknowledge publicly with your mouth that Yeshua is Lord and trust in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be delivered.

Paul was aware that he was walking on holy ground with his writing. The Jewish history he used to illustrate the LORD’s amazing plan of grace for the whole world was the same history the Jewish people used as proof of being God’s exclusive people. Paul felt great love for his fellow Israelites. He even wished he could take their place under the judgment of Ha’Shem if it would ensure their understanding of the gospel. In this next portion of his letter, Paul begins to highlight ADONAI’s ongoing plans for Isra’el, His chosen people.²⁶⁸

What, then, does [God’s Word] say? “The Word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (Deuteronomy 30:14a) in order to give us the means by which it is applied to us (10:8a). To many Christian “theologians” who think that the Torah offers only works-righteousness and not faith-righteousness (and Jewish critics of the B’rit Chadashah who wrongly, but understandably, suppose that they can rely on such Christian commentators to understand the B’rit Chadashah correctly) say that in 10:8, Paul intentionally stopped short of quoting the second part of the verse: nor is it beyond your reach (Deuteronomy 30:11b), because he knew it was beyond their reach. In other words, these “theologians” think Paul knew something that Moshe didn’t, namely that no one was capable of keeping the 613 mitzvot of the Torah; and that therefore he extracted phrases from context and gave them the opposite meaning from the one they have in their original setting. Can Jewish critics be blamed for calling Paul deceptive, if this is what he did? No. Paul certainly was no deceiver, as he himself protested when he was accused (First Corinthians 9:20-22; Second Corinthians 4:2). Rather, in this d’var (a short talk on topics relating to a parashah, the weekly Torah portion) he is referring [God’s Word] in the Deuteronomy passage to God’s requirement that Isra’el is to trust in the Messiah when He comes, the prophet like me whom Moses wrote about (see the commentary on Deuteronomy Dk – A Prophet Like Moses). Furthermore, even though he doesn’t quote the words: nor is it beyond your reach, he implies them by including them in his d’var in 10:8b-10. This is not deception but midrash exposition.²⁶⁹

The Jews were ignorant of the channel of salvation: The Romans Road is a way of explaining the Good News of salvation using verses from the book of Romans. It is a simple yet powerful method of explaining why we need to be saved, how God provided salvation, how we can receive salvation, and what are the results of salvation. We start by saying: For all have sinned and come short of earning the glory of God’s praise (3:23).

That includes you and me, doesn’t it? Most people feel that being good gets you into heaven and being bad keeps you out. That simply is not true; for all have sinned. What would you say sin is? I think we can agree that we are both sinners; now let’s define sin. Some have said, “I’m not perfect,” or “I have made some mistakes.” But what do you think the Bible means by sin? Well, the Bible says that everyone who keeps sinning is violating Torah . . . indeed, sin is violation of Torah (First John 3:4). Have you ever disobeyed your parents? Have you ever misused the name of God? Have you ever told a lie? This is what sin is. It’s breaking God’s Torah.

The Bible is clear about this. Isaiah declared: ADONAI’s arm is not too short to save, nor is His ear too dull to hear. Rather, it is your own crimes that separate you from your God; your sins have hidden His face from you , so that He doesn’t hear (Isaiah 59:1-2), and all of us are like someone unclean, all our righteous deeds are like menstrual rags (Isaiah 64:5a). In King Solomon’s prayer when dedicating the Temple, he said: There is no one who doesn’t sin (First Kings 8:46a), and later at the end of his life, he reiterated: For there isn’t a righteous person on earth who does [only] good and never sins (Ecclesiastes 7:20). This applies equally to pagans who have never heard anything of God (see Ak – The Pagan Gentile), to good, moral people (see Ao – The “Good” Person), and to the religious Jew (see At – The Religious Jew).

The question of why this is true, and how it comes about, that everyone sins (in other words, original sin) is discussed by Paul later in his letter (see Bm – The Consequences of Adam). But the truth of this verse, which epitomizes Bad News (see Aj – The Universal Need of Mankind), is basic to understanding the sinful nature of mankind, and the Good News that God offers the only solution to the problem through the faithfulness of Yeshua the Messiah.

The second leg of our journey on the Romans Road to salvation teaches us the consequences of our sin: For the wages of your [sin nature] is death (6:23a). The wages of work is money, but the wages of sin is death. In other words, what I earn – the penalty, the punishment of sin – is death. Death is separation. The Bible speaks of two kinds of death, that is two kinds of separation. The first death is separation of the body and the soul. If I were to die right now my body would fall to the floor, but my soul, the real me, would go somewhere else. But the Bible speaks of another death, one it calls the second death. This is separation of the soul from YHVH. Now, the penalty of sin is death, spiritual death, and separation from the LORD. To put it simply – hell. All this is really bad news. But there is good news.

The third verse on the Romans Road to salvation picks up where Romans 6:23a left off: But the gift of God is eternal life (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Ms – The Eternal Security of the Believer) in Messiah Yeshua, our Lord (6:23b NIV). And since we can do no works to gain our salvation, we can do no works to lose salvation.

Dear Loving Heavenly Father, Praise Your great merciful love which opened the door to heaven by Your giving Yeshua’s righteousness. He made the One who knew no sin to become a sin offering on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God (Second Corinthians 5:21). You gave your righteousness to all who love and follow Yeshua as their Lord. They said: Put your trust in the Lord Yeshua and you will be saved (Acts 16:31).

Thank You that salvation is not given because of works, so it cannot be taken away because of works. Works are not the key to salvation. It is the love that prompts the works that is important. Works done without love will not get any reward. The fire itself will test each one’s work – what sort it is. If anyone’s work built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss (First Corinthians 3:13c-15a). You graciously gave us your righteousness thru our faith/trust, not by our works. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not from yourselves – it is the gift of God. It is not based on deeds, so that no one may boast. (Ephesian 2:8-9). Faith springs from love that trusts you completely. Faith is forsaking all and trusting in Him!

How great is your love that you call us Your children! See how glorious a love the Father has given us, that we should be called God’s children – and so we are (First John 3:1)! We love You back and desire to please You in all we do and say and think. Though there are many trials on this earth, they will soon be over.  For I consider the sufferings of this present time not worthy to be compared with the coming glory to be revealed to us (Romans 8:18). We will spend all eternity in heaven with You our wonderful Father, worshiping and praising You! I love You! In Yeshua’s holy name and power of His resurrection. Amen

The fourth verse on the Romans Road to salvation declares: God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us (5:8). We were spiritually dead and unable to make the first move toward God because we inherited Adam’s [sin nature] that rebelled and separated us from Him. So, YHVH made the first move toward us by sending His one-and-only Son to die in our place for the payment for our sins. We stand before the Son of God, guilty of sin, and facing a death penalty. But Yeshua, as judge (John 5:27), comes down from behind the seat of judgment, takes off His judicial robe and stands beside us. It is there that He says to us, “I will take your place. I will die for you.” And if you were the only person in the world, He still would have died for you. The penalty for sin is death, but Messiah died and paid for sin so we do not have to go to hell. Messiah’s resurrection proves that Ha’Shem accepted Yeshua’s death as the payment for our sins.

Here, the point that Moses was making in Deuteronomy 30:14 above is now applied to Messiah on the last stop on the Romans Road to salvation. “The Word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the Word of faith we are proclaiming: That if you confess with your mouth, “Yeshua Messiah is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved (10:8b-9). The Greek word for acknowledge publicly is omologein, and is usually translated to confess, but literally meaning to say the same thing – in this case, to agree with what God has revealed in His Word about Himself and His Son.²⁷⁰

Many people confess that Yeshua is both the Son of God and Lord of the universe. But Paul is speaking of the deep, personal, permanent conviction that, without any reservation or qualification, will acknowledge . . . Yeshua as Lord, that is, will confess the Messiah as the believer’s own personal sovereign, ruling Lord, in whom he trusts for salvation and to whom he submits and obeys. James teaches that even demons acknowledge the truth about YHVH (James 2:19). People may be aware of their sin, be under deep conviction about it, and even have a great emotional sense of guilt from which they long to be delivered. But they do not repent and forsake the sin that causes the guilt, nor do they trust in the Savior who can forgive and remove the sin. Speaking about such people, the writer to the Hebrews gives one of the most sobering warnings to be found in Scripture (see the commentary on Hebrews Bb – Once Fallen Away, It is Impossible to be Brought Back to Repentance).²⁷¹

An important consequence, especially for Jewish people, of acknowledging publicly that Yeshua is Lord, is that there are no “secret believers.” Or people who believe that Yeshua is the Messiah but do not tell their family or friends, and have little fellowship with other believers. True, trusting in Yeshua is often a process and not an instantaneous event, and during this period a person may not yet be ready to give a reasoned answer to anyone who asks you to explain the hope [they] have within [them], with humility and fear (First Peter 3:15). If this person is in touch with other believers and being taught properly, this period should rarely be longer than a few days to a few weeks. In unusual cases it could last a few months, but it should never take years. Without exception, those who fail to acknowledge their faith publicly are aborted in their spiritual growth; and in the end, Yeshua will not acknowledge them: Moreover, I tell you, whoever acknowledges me in the presence of others, the Son of Man will also acknowledge in the presence of God’s angels. But whoever disowns me before others will be disowned before God’s angels (Luke 12:8-9).²⁷²

Paul clearly teaches that true belief in Messiah’s lordship and in His resurrection comes from the heart. The Jews considered the heart to be the core of personhood and the residence of the soul, the deepest, innermost part of mankind – where thought, will, and motive are generated. That is why the ancient writer warned his fellow Israelites, “Above everything else, guard your heart; for it is the source of life’s consequences” (Proverbs 4:23).

Here, Paul echoes that belief when he says: For with the heart, one goes on trusting and thus continues toward righteousness, while with the mouth one keeps on making public acknowledgement and thus continues toward deliverance (10:10). It is therefore, the heart that determines our eternal destiny.²⁷³ You don’t get to heaven by what you do; you get to heaven by what you believe in your heart. Isra’el misunderstood the place of this saving faith. And, unfortunately, so do most people today.

The Jews were ignorant of the universality of salvation: Because most Jews strongly rejected the idea that God’s grace extended to Gentiles, they were willingly ignorant of the full measure and extend to His provision for redemption. Because they were God’s chosen people, they believed they were also His only saved people. They knew that Ruth, a Moabite, was the great-grandmother of David (see the commentary on Ruth Bd – Coda: The Genealogy of David), and therefore in the line of Messiah. But they insisted that those Gentiles who converted to Judaism, and blessed by God, were the exceptions rather than the rule.

But Paul declares that YHVH’s extending His salvation to all Gentiles was nothing new. For the passage quoted says that everyone who rests his trust on Him will not be put to shame (Romans 10:11; Isaiah 28:16). ADONAI had always been calling Gentiles (everyone). In fact, Isra’el was to have been His witness nation, a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (Exodus 19:6), to preach salvation in the true God to the rest of the world. ADONAI had said to Abram long ago: By you all the families of the earth will be blessed (Genesis 12:3c).

The barrier to salvation, therefore, is not racial or cultural but personal rejection of the God who offers it. In the modern state of Isra’el, most Jews, including many who are secular, still strongly resent and oppose Messianic witnessing in their country. Although they consider all other religions to be false, they are particularly fervent in their opposition to Messianics. Like the Jews in Jerusalem who mistakenly thought Paul had brought Gentiles into the Temple and defiled [their] holy place, Jews in Isra’el today view Messianics as defiling their holy Land, and are specifically against the Torah and against [their] place (Acts 21:28). And they make little or no effort to convert Gentiles to Judaism.

Nothing could have been more devastating to Jews than when Paul reminded them, “That means that there is no difference between Jew and Gentile – ADONAI is the same for everyone, rich toward everyone who calls on Him.” Those whose greatest pride was in the belief that they were far superior to all other peoples could not tolerate that humbling truth. Proclaiming the same message to the believers in Galatia, Paul wrote: There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor freeman, neither male nor female, for in union with the Messiah Yeshua, you are all one. Also, if you belong to Messiah, you are the seed of Avraham and heirs according to the promise (Galatians 3:28-29). Then, to prove his point, Paul quotes Joel, who centuries earlier had declared to Isra’el the extent of saving grace when he said: Everyone who calls on the name of ADONAI will be saved (Romans 10:12-13; Joel 2:32).²⁷⁴

The Jews were ignorant of the universal preaching of the gospel: Paul then begins a debate with an imaginary non-Messianic Jewish opponent, by saying: But how can [the Jewish people] call on someone if they haven’t trusted in Him? And how can they trust in someone if they haven’t heard about Him? And how can they hear about someone if no one is proclaiming Him (see the commentary on Acts Bb – An Ethiopian Asks about Isaiah 53)? And how can people proclaim him unless God sends them? – as the TaNaKh puts it, “How beautiful are the feet of those announcing good news about good things” (Romans 10:14-15; Isaiah 52:7)! In other words: there is no calling without faith; there is no faith without hearing; there is no hearing without preaching; there is no preaching without sending. But this universal offer of salvation to both Jews and Gentiles is the very thing that Jews today have stumbled over. Next, Paul shows that it isn’t that they haven’t heard, it’s just that they haven’t all paid attention to the Good News and obeyed it.²⁷⁵

Life Lessons: ADONAI’s perfect plan involves a two-part response from us: internal belief and external behavior. We accept with our hearts and confess with our mouths. Genuine faith always involves both the inside and the outside. It is not just a public formality or a private belief – it’s both. And once it begins, it continues. The internal response connects us with ADONAI, while the external response confirms our belief and gives others the opportunity to experience the same benefits of the Lord’s plan that we have received.²⁷⁶