This week, Spain’s prime minister asked the head of the secession-minded Catalonia region the question that no one can seem to answer: Did he declare independence or not?...Clarifying Catlonia’s position is critical to map out Spain’s next move – including possible harsher measures against Catalonia if it now sees itself as a new nation. The head scratching came a day after Catalonia’s president, Carles Puigdemont, told the Catalan parliament in Barcelona that Catalonia had the right to be an independent country following last week’s referendum that backed secession from Spain. (http://nationalpost.com/news/world/spanish-prime-minister-asks-catalonias-president-did-you-declare-independence-or-not) In essence, the people of Catalonia, seek to be lords of their own destiny.
In Romans 10, the Apostle Paul shows how the desire for personal lordship will disappoint. Using the example of the Jews of his day, in the Rom. 10:1-3, Paul stresses how this desire is ignorant of the person of God, in particular His perfect holiness and righteousness. Consequently, they also were ignorant of the divine standard of holiness that He demands of people. Although law points us in the right direction, it provides no power to achieve its demands. It was never meant as a way to merit God’s favor. Its role was to reflect the character of God in terms of ethical goals. The Jewish legalists had perverted the divine intention of the law and made it into a way to gain God’s favor based on personal merit. (Mounce, R. H. (1995). Romans (Vol. 27, p. 208). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.).
Paul has been so clear throughout Romans (Rom. 3:23 et. al.) that personal merit falls shorts of God’s standard of acceptance yet people continually seek lordship over their own destiny. They desire to be their own bosses, their own rulers and lord of every aspect of their lives. The problem with this aim, revolves around power. Unless we have the ability to affect these desires, the goal of individual lordship will disappoint. There is only one in the universe who has the power to achieve what He desires: Christ the Lord.
The fact that Jesus is Lord is seen through:
1) The Antithesis of God’s Righteousness (Romans 10:4–5), 2) The Availability of God’s Righteousness (Romans 10:6–8), 3) The Acquisition of God’s Righteousness (Romans 10:9–10)
The fact that Jesus is Lord is seen through:
1) The Antithesis of God’s Righteousness (Romans 10:4–5),
Romans 10:4-5 4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. 5 For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them. (ESV)
Because of that arrogant self-satisfaction and self-righteousness, Jews were blind to the marvelous truth of the New Covenant, that Christ is the end of the law for righteousness. The Greek word used here, telos, often translated “end,” could refer to a goal, result, or termination. Thus, Christ can be understood as the law’s fulfillment, in the sense that His death and resurrection achieved God’s purpose for the law.( Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ro 10:4). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.) Paul’s …did not think of Christ and the law as two altogether unrelated entities; on the contrary, he saw the closest inner connexion between them. Christ is the goal, the essential meaning, the real substance of the law. It is therefore only as one sets one’s eyes on Christ, that one can see both the full significance of that graciousness of the law which comes to expression in this citation of Deuteronomy and also the full seriousness of its imperatives. (Cranfield, C. E. B. (2004). A critical and exegetical commentary on the Epistle to the Romans (p. 524). London; New York: T&T Clark International.) For those who sought righteousness by the law apart from Christ, “they stumbled over the stumbling stone, just as it is written, ‘Behold, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense’ ” (Rom. 9:32–33; cf. Isa. 8:14–15; 28:16). Just as Jesus Christ, “the stumbling stone,” had declared early in His earthly ministry, the manmade self-righteousness characterized by the scribes and Pharisees was repugnant to God and would qualify no one to “enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:20). To the Pharisees who criticized Him for eating with “taxgatherers and sinners,” Jesus said sarcastically, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick” (Matt. 9:11–12). In other words, those who think they are already righteous and acceptable to God will be ignorant of God’s true provision for righteousness. This is the basic problem with humanity.
Please turn to Philippians 3 (p.981)
Jews in New Testament times, and anyone who seeks to earn God’s favor by works seek to fulfill the law by their own efforts and thereby attain a righteousness acceptable to God. But Paul declares that Christ is the only end, the only fulfillment, of perfect, divinely acceptable righteousness.
Paul explained to the church at Philippi the regard of his own works that the law shows: Philippians 3:4-11 4 though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. 7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— 10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. (ESV)
• Until a person acknowledges their own unrighteousness in light of divine and perfect righteousness, they will see no need for a Savior to liberate him them sin and provide them with God’s own righteousness. No preacher, teacher, or evangelist can faithfully or effectively present the gospel if they do not first convince their hearers of their damning unrighteousness apart from Christ.
In Romans 10:4, Paul is saying that belief in Christ as Savior and Lord brings to an end the sinner’s futile quest for righteousness through their own imperfect attempts to fulfill the law. When a sinner receives Christ, they also receive the gift of Christ’s own righteousness. Paul here uses the term law in its most general sense, as representing the totality of God’s commands and requirements under the Old Covenant, including such things as observance of the temple sacrifices and the feasts. Those who try to please God and thereby attain salvation through legalism or religious ritual—even behavior and forms commanded by Him—pursue an absolutely vain quest, because the best righteousness fallen individual can hope to achieve on their own is worth no more than “a filthy garment” in God’s eyes (Isa. 64:6). Paul has already proclaimed that “by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin. But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe” (Rom. 3:20–22).The glorious truth of the gospel is that God “made Him [Christ] who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21).
Being willfully ignorant of Christ and His righteousness, the Jews, and all those who seek works righteousness, cut themselves off from redemption. Because Israel was ignorant of God’s holiness and of His provision for salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ, she was also ignorant of the place of faith in God’s plan of salvation. Because they relied on their own works–righteousness, Jews saw no need for faith. As Paul already had pointed out, “Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone,” Jesus Christ (Rom. 9:31–32). Consequently, they cut themselves off from Christ and thereby also cut themselves off from the righteousness that He imparts to everyone who believes in Him. To reject Christ is to forfeit the perfect righteousness that only He can provide. Believers receive as a gracious gift from God what they never could have achieved by their own efforts. Everyone who believes in Him, signs, as it were, the new and eternal covenant that Christ sealed with His own blood (cf. Heb. 12:24; 13:20), thereby making His righteousness our own. The term “believes” (pisteuo) is translated by three English terms, “believe,” “faith,” and “trust.” It is PRESENT TENSE, which speaks of continuing belief. It is not merely the acknowledgment of facts (theology, historical details, gospel information) that receives the gift of God’s grace through Christ (Utley, R. J. (1998). The Gospel according to Paul: Romans (Vol. Volume 5, Ro 10:4). Marshall, Texas: Bible Lessons International.)
To verify the place of faith in God’s eternal plan for believer’s redemption, Paul reminds his readers in verse 5 that Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them/that righteousness (cf. Lev. 18:5). In other words, whoever relies on their own obedience to the law is held accountable for everything that the law requires. Quoting again from Deuteronomy, Paul testifies that “as many as are of the works of the Law are under a curse; for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law, to perform them’ ” (Gal. 3:10; cf. Deut. 27:26).
The righteousness which is based on law demands absolute perfection in every detail of the law. For that reason, James says, “Whoever keeps the whole law, and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all” (James 2:10). In other words, if such were possible, a person who failed in only one point of the law would remain just as lost as a person who failed in every point of the law. Anyone who is not utterly self-deceived realizes the impossibility of never stumbling even in the smallest way. And the foolish person who does presumptuously rely on his own obedience to the law will attain only the imperfect and unacceptable righteousness that their imperfect obedience merits. In God’s sight, such righteousness is wholly unrighteous and can never remove sin or earn divine favor. “That no one is justified by the Law before God is evident” (Gal. 3:11).
In Romans 10:4-5, Paul is saying: the person who pursues salvation by trying to keep the law will be judged on the basis of that effort. Second, it is impossible to keep all the law. Finally, the inevitable failure of worksrighteousness results in eternal damnation. The law both demonstrates and incites people’s natural lawlessness and releases God’s wrath. The law justifies no one, redeems no one, provides mercy for no one. By the law, people are left to their own resources, all of which are imperfect, sinful, and powerless to save, which necessitates salvation by faith.
Illustration:
While the law is valid, the law does not solve our sin problem. The law is like a mirror. When you go into your bathroom mirror, you see the hair that needs to be combed, the face that needs to be cleaned, or the tie that needs to be straightened. The mirror reveals what is wrong that needs to be made right. The mirror does not actually comb the hair, wipe the face, or straighten the tie. It is only there to reveal, not to fix.
The mirror is like the law. It’s a reflector. It shows you what’s wrong. It shows you what you really are. But the law can’t fix your problem. The law can only reveal your problem. It can show you sin. It can show you dirt and grime. But what the law could not do, Christ did. Christ fixed it. Many people today think that in order to be made right with God they have to perform some religious work, like keeping a law. The problem is that, even on their best day, we cannot satisfy the demands of a perfect God. [Law, Purpose of; Self-Sufficiency, Danger of] Rom. 7:7; James 2:10. (Evans, T. (2009). Tony Evans’ book of illustrations: stories, quotes, and anecdotes from more than 30 years of preaching and public speaking (pp. 183–184). Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers.)
The fact that Jesus is Lord is seen through:
2) The Availability of God’s Righteousness (Romans 10:6–8)
Romans 10:6–8 6 But the righteousness based on faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); (ESV)
Please turn back to Romans 3 (p. 941)
In Romans 10:6, Paul makes it clear to whom the righteousness of God is available to. Before he explains how so many have become confused about the nature of the law to obtain righteousness in verse 7, he presents a clear summary in verse six about how righteousness is available to all through faith: “The righteousness based on faith”.
In Romans 3 he explained:
Romans 3:21-26 21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. (ESV)
• Here Paul simply and clearly explains how the righteousness of God is accredited to the account of the one who puts their trust in Christ (v.22). The Law (v.21) pointed to the need of a savior for it demanded perfection, and v.23 clearly states how “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. Our sin, separates us from God and His righteousness, therefore we need someone who is without sin, Jesus Christ, to redeem us. The shedding of His blood (v.25) paid the penalty of sin and (v.26) shows how God’s righteousness was fulfilled. This righteousness, once again is available to all who do not trust in their own righteousness, but (v.22) put their faith in Christ and His righteousness.
For those who did not understand the purpose of the law, and thought that it enabled one to achieve the righteousness of God, in Romans 10: 6–7, Paul clarifies citing Deuteronomy 30:12-14 “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ (that is, to bring Christ down), 7or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead)”. Simply stated, we do not have to go to Heaven or into the world of the dead to find Christ. He is near us. Nor does salvation belong to the elite who have taken mystical journeys to Heaven or Hell. For those who knew something of the Scriptures (as the Jews knew the Law) the saving word was on their lips and heart. That is, the gospel of Christ—the word of faith—was (and is) available, accessible, and simple (Hughes, R. K. (1991). Romans: righteousness from heaven (p. 187). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.).
Continuing his personification of “the righteousness based on faith” in verse 8, Paul asks,
“But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we proclaim/are preaching). In other words, people do not have to ascend or descend to find it, because God’s way of salvation had already been clearly and abundantly revealed. His chosen people had been engulfed in and surrounded by the word of faith that Paul was now preaching. Even under the Old Covenant people could receive God’s grace simply by receiving it in faith. The use of Deut. 30:12–14 in Rom. 10:6–8, therefore, demonstrates that righteousness by faith should be contrasted with righteousness from the law (Schreiner, T. R. (1998). Romans (Vol. 6, p. 556). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.).
Illustration: Law and Faith
Rabbi Shammai, in the third century of the present era, noted that Moses gave us 365 prohibitions and 248 positive commands in the law. David in Psalm 15 reduced them to eleven; Isaiah 33:14–15 made them six; Micah 6:8 binds them into three; and Habakkuk 2:4 reduces them all to one, namely.” The righteous shall live by his faith.” (Green, M. P. (Ed.). (1989). Illustrations for Biblical Preaching: Over 1500 sermon illustrations arranged by topic and indexed exhaustively (Revised edition of: The expositor’s illustration file). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.)
Finally, the fact that Jesus is Lord is seen through:
3) The Acquisition of God’s Righteousness (Romans 10:9–10)
Romans 10:9–10 9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. (ESV)
The way to be saved and to secure the righteousness God requires is the supreme essential. There is great confusion in much of the church today about God’s way of salvation, but it is the same as it was when Paul wrote to Roman believers: It comes through confession and belief. “Confess” (?µ??????, homologeo) when used of sin means to say the same thing about it that God says; when used in the creedal sense, as here in v. 9, it means to say the same thing that other believers say regarding their faith.( Harrison, E. F. (1976). Romans. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Romans through Galatians (Vol. 10, p. 112). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.).
• In essence, the confession here is agreeing with God about what our need is and His provision for it. When we come together, we say the same things about it.
Salvation and its attendant righteousness are acquired or appropriated by confession and by faith. Following the order of verse 8, which quotes Deuteronomy 30:14, Paul speaks first of confession, which is with the mouth, and then of faith, which is of the heart. In verse 10, however, he mentions them in reverse order, which is the chronological order of redemption. First, with the heart one believes and is justified/granted righteousness; second, with the mouth one confesses and is granted salvation. Paul has been speaking about true and false righteousness. False righteousness is based on the law (Rom. 10:5), which is impossible for one to fulfill. True righteousness, on the other hand, is based on faith in Christ (vv. 6–8), who bestows His own perfect righteousness on those who believe in Him. It is therefore of great significance that in verse 10 Paul equates justification/righteousness and salvation. Only the person who is righteous before God is truly saved. Those two truths represent the positive and the negative sides of God’s redemptive grace. The positive side reflects His own perfect righteousness, which He graciously imputes to and bestows on those who believe in His Son, Jesus Christ. The believer is simultaneously declared righteous (justified) and made righteous (regenerated). (cf. Phil. 3:8-9) The negative side of God’s work in the believer is salvation, divine deliverance from the sin that separates fallen person from holy God. Righteousness has to do with what we become, and salvation has to do with what we escape. The first has to do with the eternal life we receive but do not deserve, the second with the eternal punishment we deserve but do not receive. The first relates to entering into blessedness, the second relates to escaping cursedness. Unfortunately, those two aspects are often out of balance in evangelism and personal witnessing. When deliverance from sin and hell is made paramount, God’s gracious bestowal of His righteousness through justification on believers is left in the shadows. Consequently, unbelievers who have been repeatedly asked by Christians, “Are you saved?” might well give an ear to the gospel if they were asked instead, “Have you been made holy in Christ?” On the other hand, when God’s love and grace are presented to the virtual exclusion of the need for salvation from sin and its judgment, cheapening of the gospel is almost inevitable. Another contrast between the two verses is that, whereas verse 9 is a personal invitation to believe, focusing on the individual (you), verse 10 presents gospel truth concerning people in general.
Scripture never approves, much less commends, contentless faith, a “faith in faith” as it is often described. Paul here specifies two truths that must be believed in order to be saved. The first is that Jesus is Lord, the second that God raised Him from the dead. Many people acknowledge that Jesus is both the Son of God and Lord of the universe. But Paul is speaking of the deep, personal, abiding conviction that, without any reservation or qualification, will confess… Jesus as Lord, that is, will confess that Jesus is the believer’s own sovereign, ruling Lord, in whom alone one trusts for salvation and to whom one submits. Those who come to Christ by faith are acknowledging that they have placed themselves entirely and without reserve under his authority to carry out without hesitation whatever he may choose for them to do. There is no such thing as salvation apart from lordship (Mounce, R. H. (1995). Romans (Vol. 27, p. 209). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.) Contrary to much teaching today, Scripture never separates Christ’s lordship from His saviorhood. Lord is from kurios, which signifies sovereign power and authority. In the book of Acts, Jesus is twice referred to as Savior but ninety-two times as Lord. In the entire New Testament, He is referred to some ten times as Savior and some seven hundred times as Lord. When the two titles are mentioned together, Lord always precedes Savior. And even if, as some erroneously contend, Lord were simply a synonym for God, the very term God by definition includes the idea of sovereign authority, that is, of lordship. (John MacArthur Jr. The Gospel According to Jesus [Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1988].)
Please turn back to Romans 1 (p. 939)
The second truth that must be believed in order to be saved is that God raised Him [Jesus] from the dead. There are many important truths about Jesus that Christians are to believe. The New Testament makes clear, for example, that Christ became incarnate, that He was conceived by the Holy Spirit to a mother who was a virgin, and that He experienced every kind of temptation while living a sinless life. But the truth of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead was the supreme validation of His ministry. The dual truths of the Lordship of Christ and His resurrection from the dead are the central elements of the Gospel. If we deny His lordship, we deny His ability to save and the Father’s resurrection from the dead. People must believe the resurrection of Christ because it proves that He accomplished their salvation on the cross. To believe that God raised Christ from the dead is to identify ourselves with the One who purchased our redemption on the cross and rose to share His eternal life with those for whom He is Lord and Savior. Had Jesus not been raised, sin and death would have been victorious over fallen humanity, who then would have had no hope of attaining the perfect righteousness that God requires ((1 Cor. 15:14–17; 1 Pet. 1:3–4). The resurrection was the Father’s final stamp of approval on His Son and the final feature in the provision of salvation for those who trust in Him. The resurrection divinely certifies that Jesus is the Messiah, the only Savior, the sovereign and sinless Lord, the sacrificial Lamb who paid the price for our redemption, the judge of all, the conqueror of death, and the coming King of kings. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the very center of the Christian faith. Apart from the resurrection Christianity would be little more than a well-intentioned ethical system. (Mounce, R. H. (1995). Romans (Vol. 27, p. 209). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.)
In Romans 1 Paul explained this in his purpose for writing Romans:
Romans 1:1-6 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh 4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, 6 including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ, (ESV)
• Paul recognized his calling and salvation (v.1) as a “servant/slave” of Jesus Christ. Salvation is recognizing who is in charge, who has the right to have sovereign control over our lives. Paul ties all these concepts together from (v.2) the prophets, and (v.3) Davidic lineage. Those who are truly saved from the wrath of God show that the redemption is actually accomplished through the obedience of faith (v.4) to Jesus Christ our Lord. This obedience (v.5) is a testimony to the nations that (v.6) one truly belongs to Christ.
Romans 10:9-10 both clearly state that true belief in Christ’s lordship and in His resurrection comes from the heart. The biblical term “believe” (pistis) involved (1) personal trust (Hebrew), (2) intellectual content (Greek), and (3) an ongoing volitional commitment (cf. Deut. 30:20).( Utley, R. J. (1998). The Gospel according to Paul: Romans (Vol. Volume 5, Ro 10:9). Marshall, Texas: Bible Lessons International.)
Heart, is mentioned to emphasize the internal aspect of this belief. “Heart”, used in its broad sense, to indicate the whole person, the conscious self with every spiritual, intellectual, rational, and volitional capacity. A heart belief, or a heart response to the Gospel, is a whole person response. It is not just intellectual belief about Jesus, but total commitment to Him (Richards, L. O. (1991). The Bible reader’s companion (electronic ed., p. 746). Wheaton: Victor Books.).
It is with the mouth that one confesses, Paul says. Homologeo (confess) has the root meaning of speaking the same thing, of being in agreement and accord with someone. The person who confesses Jesus as Lord (v. 9) agrees with God the Father, and that confession mixed with genuine trust brings salvation. Confession is the outward manifestation of this critical inner response (Moo, D. J. (1996). The Epistle to the Romans (p. 657). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.)
The requirement that we must be holy as God is holy, should drive us to the one who fulfills that requirement. Our failings every day show our need for a saviour. The wonderful news of the gospel is that Christ perfectly fulfilled the righteous requirements of God’s law and if we confess our sins and sincerely believe that He is our personal Lord and saviour, we will receive His perfect righteousness and be saved from the wrath that is to come. If you haven’t done so, now is the time. If you have, then confess this to those who need to hear it and live in such a way that the world knows this truth.
(Format Note: Some base commentary from MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (1991). Romans (Ro 10:4). Chicago: Moody Press.)
