In Scott Brown's sermon, 'The Wisdom of God in Salvation,' based on Romans 11, the central theme is the status of Israel and the mystery of God's election. The sermon argues that God has not rejected Israel, emphasizing the existence of a remnant chosen by grace. It highlights the distinction between physical and spiritual Israel and explores the concept of divine election and grace, asserting that salvation is not based on human effort but on God's mercy. The sermon also discusses the role of provoking Israel to jealousy through the salvation of the Gentiles, illustrating how this dynamic is part of God's plan. Brown emphasizes the reliability of God's promises, urging believers not to be deceived by appearances and to trust in God's sovereign timeline. Through various biblical examples, including the Apostle Paul and Elijah, the sermon reinforces the idea that God's word remains true, and His plan for Israel and all people is ultimately for His glory. Brown calls for believers to live lives that provoke others to seek genuine faith, and he concludes with a doxology praising the depth of God's wisdom and knowledge.

Good morning. We will be reading this morning out of Romans 11. I say then, has God cast away his people? Certainly not, for I also am an Israelite. Of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.

God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel, saying, Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life. But what does the Divine Response say to him? I have reserved for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal. Even so, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace, and if by grace then it is no longer of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace.

But if it is of works, it is no longer grace, otherwise work is no longer work. What then? Israel has not attained what it seeks, but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded just as it is written. God has given them a spirit of stupor, eyes that shall not see, and ears that they should not hear to this very day. And David says, let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a recompense to them.

Let their eyes be darkened so that they do not see, and bow down their back always. I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Certainly not. But through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles. Now if their fall is riches for the world and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness?

If I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry. If by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are my flesh and save some of them, For it is there being cast away, for if there being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? For if the first fruit is holy, the lump is also holy, and if the root is holy, so are the branches. And if some of the branches are broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them become a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.

You will say then, branches were broken off that I might be grafted in. Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear, for if God did not spare the natural branches, He may not spare you either. Therefore, consider the goodness and severity of God on those who fell severity, but toward you goodness if you continue in his goodness otherwise you also will be cut off and they also if they do not continue in unbelief will be grafted in and God is able to graft them in again.

For if you were cut off out of the olive tree which is wild by nature and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these who are natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree. For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved. As it is written, the Deliverer will come out of Zion and he will turn away ungodliness from Jacob. For this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins.

Concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sake. But concerning the election, they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. For as you were once disobedient to God, you have now obtained mercy through their disobedience, even so these also who now have been disobedient, that through the mercy shown you, they may also obtain mercy. For God has committed them all to disobedience, that he might have mercy on all.

O the depth and the riches both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God, how unsearchable are his judgments and his ways past finding out. For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has become his counselor, or who has first given to him, and it shall be repaid to him. For of him and through him and to him are all things, to whom be the glory forever. Amen. Dear Lord Jesus, I pray that we would not be proud.

I thank you Lord first for saving us who are not a people, Lord. I thank you for your grace and your kindness toward us, Lord. I pray that you would be with Scott as he comes to preach the word, that you would speak through him, Lord, and that we would have ears to hear. In Jesus' name, amen. This morning we have a great privilege to walk through one of the most controversial passages of scripture that we can read and there are so many blessings here.

What we'll do today is give a survey of Romans 11 And then we'll continue on next week with some of the details. The status of Israel and her people are controversial issues today. They're not just controversial in the church. They're controversial outside the church. We learned this in year 2000 when Hillary Rodham Clinton had reported her giving to her campaign in New York and The New York Times reporters ran across an entry called the American Museum Association, and they looked it up, and it was actually the American Muslim Association.

The Clintons had changed the spelling of the word in order to cover up the fact that they were receiving money from an organization like this. So this issue is not just a hot issue in the church. It's a hot issue everywhere. And Mrs. Clinton was not wanting to offend the gigantic Jewish population in the state of New York and so she had this entry mangled a little bit and but no one no one can deny the unusual experience of the Jews in the world.

Their roles in banking and industry are legendary. Their massive holdings in the entertainment industry are astounding. Think of how this people has survived over the years. Like think of it this way, when the Jews entered the promised land they drove out the Hittites and the Amorites and the Jebusites and all the other kind of ice you can imagine. How many Hittites have you ever known?

Has anybody ever met a Hittite? How about Jebusites? Do you have any Jebusite friends out there in this world? Have you ever met an Amorite in business? No, I don't think so.

But you have met Jews. Where are these people? Well, they're gone. But the Jews are not gone. They are still here in many different religious strife.

So no nation in the history of the world has survived so long, in spite of the genocides, the pogroms, the deportations, the persecutions, and all those kinds of things. These things are just absolutely undeniable. When I was in college, I took a course called The History of the Jews. And this Christian professor gave us books to read that over and over presented the astounding proposition that this is the only people that have lasted for 2, 000 years. And it's true.

So when we come to the issue of Israel, as we do here in Romans chapter 11, we need to understand that it is territory of controversy and there's mystery here. We're told here in the text that there is mystery. I think that means that we won't understand everything about it. We can understand some things and we will engage in those here, some of them today. But there are also in the midst of these mysteries things that are very, very clear.

One of the things that I think that this passage is teaching us together as a people is this. Don't be fooled by appearances. What is God doing? There are mysteries out there. And God has a timetable for the Jews as he has for all people in the world.

He has a timetable for your life and your sons and your daughters lives. He has a timetable for every nation in the world. He raises up and he puts down kings and kingdoms and he also has a timeline for the Jews. And he has a glorious result that is spoken of here in this passage of scripture. And this is why Romans 11 ends in a doxology, one of the most wonderful passages of scripture that rises up and praises God.

Oh, the death of the riches. If you want to know what this passage is about, Romans 11, just go to the last few verses and you'll know what it's all about. It's all about the glory of Jesus Christ, the beauty of his ways, the amazing power of the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, to from every tongue and tribe and nation wrap up all under the Lord Jesus Christ and sum everything up in Christ. That's what this passage is all about. You might disagree about Israel and their status.

There are about three popular views of Israel. Well, whatever view you have of Israel, One thing we must do is we must end up where the apostle ends up in the last several verses. Oh, the depth of the riches of the glory of God. What is happening here? God's word is being proved true.

This question was asked in chapter 9, has God's word failed because the Jews have rejected the gospel? The answer is absolutely not. God's word has not failed. Why would he answer that question? Well, If the Word of God has failed for Israel, then has it failed for me?

Is there one promise that I can't count on? Is there anything in the testimony of God's Word that is unreliable? No, none of it is unreliable. And The disobedience of the Jews does not prove the unreliability of the Bible. In fact, it does the contrary.

It proves the perfect reliability of all of the testimony, all of what the prophets have said about what would happen to the Jews. One of the great principles I hope that we walk away from Romans 11 is this. Maybe you can't figure out exactly the status of the Jews today, but here is something that you can figure out. Don't prejudge what you see in this world. The Jews are disobedient, the Jews are off in the weeds.

What does that mean? We don't know, but we do know this, that we're not qualified to prejudge the status of any people. God knows. Don't be fooled by surface disturbances because God is sovereign. God's word has not failed.

And so I pray this would be our experience today when we get to the end of all of this, that we would be full of praise. Now, I was reading this last week in the biography of David Brainerd. David Brainerd was preaching to the Indians one day, and he said that as he had preached, he said There was an agreeable melting that took place among those Indians. He said this, there was at this time a very agreeable melting that spread through the whole assembly. And I pray that that would be our experience today.

That as we look at these things, there would be a melting of our hearts before the greatness of God. That somehow we would be available to be aware of the beauty of His great plan, not just for the Jews, but for all of us, because His plan for the Jews is consistent with ours in this sense, that all the hairs of our heads are numbered, that he knows our names, that he has taken our tears and put them in a bottle, that he knows he does care for his people. He will accomplish His will for all of His people. And so I pray that there would be an agreeable melting. You know, when David Brainerd spoke to those Indians, they were just savages.

And I don't think we're really any different than that. And that there would be with us a melting before Almighty God that we would end up our time here today in praise and that we would say oh the real the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God how unsearchable are his judgments and his ways past finding out. Now, let me give you a little bit of a survey that gets us to where we are here in Romans 11. Where are we? We're in Romans 9 through 11.

That's where we are. And in Romans 9, we've heard the question, has the Word of God failed? No, the Word of God has not failed. God is sovereign in salvation, For it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy. Yes, as difficult as it is for human ears to hear these words, God says, Jacob I loved and Esau I hated.

And this is the sovereign hand of God at work in election. God has elected from the earth those who would love Him. They would not be saved because somehow they wised up one day and they have finally understood. They did all the study and the research and the wisdom, the wisdom from their own soul rose up and they finally realized that Jesus was Lord. No, no.

We are saved by grace alone. There is no human work or effort in it at all. There's not one thing that we can bring to God. We've been talking about how we like to smuggle our character into our salvation, how inappropriate and silly that is. Because it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.

And so we come to what I think is the Rosetta Stone of this whole issue of Israel, chapter 9 verse 6. They are not all Israel who are Israel, not the circumcision of the flesh that means anything, but the circumcision of the heart. There are two Israels in this text. There is a physical Israel, and then there is a spiritual Israel. I think that is perfectly clear.

And Jacob who believes in his heart is an example of believing Israel. Esau, who has a physical lineage in Israel but has no part in the kingdom of heaven is another example. So we move from chapter 9 which declares the sovereignty of God. Then in chapter 10 we find this, it's an amazing contrast. We we see the the work of God in salvation and then we see what man does to bring the gospel into the world.

And that how will they hear without a preacher? And the emphasis of chapter 10 is the mighty work of God through his people as they pray and as they preach the gospel. And that's chapter 10. It's the human side of it. And then we find in chapter 11 a shift from individual people, and it comes back and looks at the whole nation.

And it asks the question, does God have a future for the Jews? I'll just give you the answer. No, God is not finished with the Jews. There is something in their future that relates to the greatness and the beauty of their salvation. But the Jews have been a stiff-necked people, they've rejected their God, and we'll read here of what will happen to them.

So today we're going to survey Romans 11, and then next week we're going to penetrate into some of the more difficult questions. But today, I want us to take a step back and look at the broad picture of what's in Romans 11. And we won't get too caught up in all the details. A lot of times, In order to understand what a passage of scripture is saying, you have to step back and say, hey, what is so clear here? What is undeniable?

What can you jump on with all of your weight and shout it from the housetop? So that's what we're going to do here this morning. It's a little bit like jumping over hurdles. If you're standing right next to the hurdle, you can't get over it, but if you get back and you take a run at it, It's more acquirable. And so that will be our approach here this morning, is that we will take a step back and look at some of the broad themes here.

And we can disagree about the exact status of Israel, but we can't agree on this. That salvation is by the merciful act of divine election. That the purpose of God, according to election, might stand, not of works, but of him who calls. Now, whatever you believe about Israel, this you must believe about all men, because it's so clear here. So let's move into this text.

You have an outline before you. I've divided this text into three sections. And they hang on three questions. Again, we see this refreshing practice of the apostle, how he asks a question, and then he answers the question. And it's a very helpful way of instructing us.

And so in verses 1 through 11, we have the question and the answer, has God cast away the Jews? Verse 1 says, I say then, has God cast away his people? Well, if you're wondering about that, the answer is right ahead. Certainly not. May it never be.

Again, Paul uses the strongest negative language that he can in the Greek. And he does this 10 times in Romans. May it never be the same term. It's this strong, mighty, shall we sin that grace may abound? No!

He says it again right here. Has God rejected the Jews? No! Absolutely no. He's pounding the table in this use of language here.

And then he gives several examples to illustrate how strongly he feels about it. And of course, when you feel strongly about something, what do you begin with? You say, I think. Well, that's what Paul does. He says, how about me?

He starts with himself. And he says, for I also am an Israelite of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not cast away his people whom he foreknew. So he first uses himself an example. Has God rejected Israel?

Exhibit A. How about me? No. God has not rejected Israel. I'm the Hebrew of Hebrews.

I can out-Hebrew any of you. And I am saved by the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. If you think that God has rejected his people, look at what I am and look at what I used to be. I was a persecutor of the church and now I've been saved by the grace and the mercy of Jesus Christ. So Paul gives himself as this first exhibit.

And he's answering this first question, has God cast away his people? By the way, there are six questions in this text, And we won't cover them all very carefully here, but Paul continues this pattern. And so he gives himself as an example. And then we find next the example of Elijah. He says, well if I'm not enough, let's go back to someone of greater esteem than I, Elijah.

Let's take Elijah. If you think God has rejected Israel, then let's use Elijah as an illustration here. And in verses 2 through 4 we read this. And I would just hope that you could follow me in this text if you have a Bible. Let your eyes fall here on verse 2.

Or do you not know what the scripture says of Elijah? Paul is constantly going back to the Old Testament to prove his point. How he pleads with God against Israel, saying, Lord, they've killed your prophets and torn down your altars, and I alone am left and they seek my life. But what does the divine response say to him? I have reserved for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.

So he's referring to 1 Kings 19, where Elijah meets the prophets of Baal, one of the greatest stories, one of the most exciting events in all of history. And the point is this. Elijah misunderstood the situation. He felt alone. He said, Lord, only I am there.

That was not true at all. And Paul's saying, in the same way that it wasn't true for Elijah. It's not true here God has not rejected Israel. There are thousands Paul saying hey look there are thousands and thousands who have come to faith No, God has not set his people aside. Elijah thought he was the only one.

Not true. If you think God has set aside Israel, not true. There are thousands that have not bowed their knee to Baal. And then in verse 5 he says, even so, even so, that's a critical term in this text, even so, At this present time, there is a remnant according to the election of grace." Wow, you mean there was election of grace in the days of Elijah? Yes, even so.

This election that is taking place today took place in the days of Elijah. He's saying that is this. OK? That election in the days of Elijah is this same kind of election with the Jews today. And he says there's a remnant.

There's a remnant here. There is a body of people. This is so encouraging to contemplate the doctrine of the remnant. Because God works through, he works through remnants whom he elects. And you know, if there is no doctrine, if there is no election of God, there would be no church today.

None of us could possibly be here. Think of all of the blessings of the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. None, none are possible except that God would be sovereign to change a man or a woman or a boy or a girl's heart. There is no way there could be a people for God's own possession on the earth unless he would elect them. Were we wise enough to wake up?

No. He woke us up and he elected us and poured out his grace. This, it was divine intervention that creates the remnant. We should never be discouraged to be part of a remnant because God has done it this way. This is the wisdom of God in the world.

For some reason he takes a subset of society and he rescues them and he uses them in his own way and in his own timing. And we can take great, great comfort in the fact that we might not be the majority in this earth, but God will perform his will. The people of God hardly ever seem to be a majority in the world. I read a very interesting article this last week. Someone was commenting on the resurgence of reform theology and reform thinking in the church today.

And then the first part of the testimony was, isn't it encouraging that there's really a return to doctrine in the church today? And then he said, but let's not fool ourselves here. Let's not fool ourselves. We're still a very small group. And he said this.

He said, do you realize that the entire budget of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, which is really pumping out reformed pastors, a real center of reformed thinking there at Southern Baptist Seminary under the tutelage of Al Mohler. He says, you realize that the entire budget of that seminary is $40 million? Do you realize that Joyce Meyer takes $90 million in every year for her program? He says, let's not think that we're just so big, because we're not. We're little.

And that's the point. There is a remnant that God preserves in this world. And never underestimate what God is doing through a remnant. God protects his remnant by his sovereign grace. And he multiplies the work of the remnant by his sovereign grace.

So we see this example of Elijah and then we also see another example. He just, he does, Paul's doing what we've constantly seen him do. He piles up one evidence after another. Exhibit A, me, the Apostle Paul. Exhibit B, Elijah.

Exhibit C, the remnant. And then we come to another, the elect in verse 10. Look at verse 7, I'm sorry. Verse 7, what then? This is one of Paul's six questions.

What then? Israel has not obtained what it seeks, but the elect have obtained it. And the rest were blinded, just as it is written, God has given them a spirit of stupor eyes that they should not see and ears that they should not hear to this very day and David says let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a recompense to them. Let their eyes be darkened so that they do not see, and bow down their back always. So here we find that Paul is giving another example.

And he's taking Old Testament passages to prove that this spirit of stupor that's upon Israel was prophesied, that we shouldn't be shaken by it at all. It is something that has been spoken of. There are three things here. The spirit of stupor. Now, don't you love that word stupor?

It's so graphic. It really says so much. When you just don't get it, you just don't get something. And before you're saved, you're in a spirit of stupor. You can hear, you can hear the gospel preached a thousand times.

If you're in a spirit of stupor, you won't hear it. Only God can take one from stupor to enlightenment. We have many friends who are in a state of stupor, and we should not be angry with them at all. We should be so gracious to them. We should understand that there is a spirit of stupor that's hanging over them, and they are completely helpless, hopeless, without God coming and opening their eyes.

And it's our job to love them with the love of the Lord Jesus Christ, to give them all of the happiness of His great kingdom, and to give them what the Bible says to read the Word of God to them, and perhaps someday the stupor would be removed. But it wouldn't be because of our great understanding. It wouldn't be because of our great arguments that would win them. It would be God coming and taking away the spirit of stupor. It's so appropriate for us to pray, oh Lord, take away the spirit of stupor from this earth.

That's what Paul did at the beginning of chapter 10. He says, oh, my prayer, my desire for Israel is that they would be saved. Paul knew that only God could remove the stupor, but he still prayed with all of his heart. The doctrine of election and prayer and evangelism are not mutually exclusive. They go hand in hand.

With Paul, they're inextricable. He preaches the doctrine of election out of one side of his mouth, and he falls to his knees and cries out to Almighty God. He says, God, let me be cursed for my brethren. I love my brethren. His mouth is not shut by the doctrine of election.

His mouth is open. There's more joy. There's more freedom to preach the gospel. And that's what we see here. But Israel, A, is in the spirit of stupor, and they can't see.

Their eyes do not see. And their ears do not hear. The mind, the eyes, and the ears. Those are the three things that he brings out. Aren't these our three greatest problems?

Our eyes, our minds, and our ears. We get in so much trouble with these things, these three things, and at the same time, there is so much grace for each one of those members of our bodies as we submit them to Him, as we present our bodies as a living sacrifice, eyes, ears, and minds unto Him. And He will enlighten by His own grace. So there's no hope for Israel unless God opens their eyes. That's one thing we learned about Israel.

There is no hope for them until God does it. So he gives this exhibit of the members of the body, the three great blessings and enemies of man, the ears, the eyes, and the mind. And this is the territory of the battle against evil and the devil is constantly attacking us through those those means and so Paul brings this exhibit so you see the exhibits he's just proving no God has not set aside Israel something has happened to their mind and their eyes and their ears and guess what God did it he he has done it and then we come to the second major question among the six did Israel fall This takes the section from verses 11 all the way to verses 32, this is a long section, And he's going to answer this question, did Israel fall? I say then, verse 11, have they stumbled that they should fall? And again he uses that word, certainly not, Absolutely not.

Don't you love men of passion like the apostle Paul? He would communicate clearly, and he doesn't pull back any punches. He lets it go. And he says, certainly not again, and pounds the table with it. He says, certainly not, but through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles.

Now, this word, provoke, to jealousy, also appears in verse 14. Do you see it? You see it in 11, to provoke them to jealousy, and then in 14, you see it again. And this concept is something we should understand. God determined that there would be a source of provoking of Israel.

And what would be that source? The salvation of a filthy Gentile. The salvation of a pagan. Somebody who did not have the law. Somebody who did not have the promises.

Somebody who did not have the promises, somebody who did not have the prophets, somebody whose life was all messed up by the world, somebody who looks like, walks like, thinks like, and acts like a pagan that gets saved. The dogs, the goyim, the undeserving get saved. And it's designed to provoke the Jews. Now, isn't that interesting that God would do that? Now, how does this provoking work?

How would you provoke a Jew? Well, here's how to provoke a Jew. To have a person who has a bad lineage, who had a bad family, who had a bad father, bad mother, a bad life, crummy philosophy, being educated like a pagan and then they're saved by grace and what happens when you are saved? You are cleansed, you are washed, you are being renewed and so now you have a dog who's actually acting like an angel. That's what you have.

And you have the purification of a person's life presented before a Hebrew. So you have on the one hand a Hebrew, They keep all the laws, they make all the sacrifices, they do all the feasts, but they're dead inside. They have no hope, they have no joy, they're just going through the motions. And then all of a sudden, here's this person who's not going through the motions. They have genuine prayer.

They have a smile on their face that's real. They're not just doing works. There's something wonderful about it. God has come and He has anointed them with the oil of gladness above all their companions. The Lord Jesus Christ has come.

The refreshment of the gospel is there. The Jews didn't have the refreshment of the gospel. They had dead works. They were just going through... They were just trying to be nice people.

And so, you have all these nice people who are being upstaged by these dogs, and their lives are full of genuineness. It's genuine worship instead of this fake stuff that's been going on in the temple. True service toward God instead of just turning the temple into a household of thieves. And something genuine is breaking out. And we all know when something is genuine.

God knows that the Jews will see that something real is happening. And so they see, the Jews see something real happening in someone's life and it provokes them. And it may provoke them to criticize them, but it will also provoke many of them to see how phony they've been all their lives, to see that they've built their lives on dead works. And there's something greater, that God always desired a broken and contrite heart. Wouldn't that be wonderful to have a broken and contrite heart?

Here you meet a Gentile who's been saved and he has a broken and contrite heart. He has been humbled by God. He's not like everybody else in the temple and that's provoking. Now God has designed his world so that the children of faith would be provoking not just Israel but everyone. We should be provoking.

We should have lives that cause chatter. But why? Because of the real things, because of true faith, because of the joy of the Holy Spirit, because of the kindness of God upon us and our families. You know, I can certainly see it. I can see the kindness of God in the church upon the families of those whom God has saved.

There is blessing, and it is a beautiful thing, but it's also a provoking thing. And that's what God was doing with Israel. He was provoking them to jealousy, verse 11 and verse 14. And then, and how do they provoke? Well, they provoke by their connection with real life.

They're grafted in. The Jews realize they've been broken off. They realize it's dead religion. But they see something of life that there's been a branch grafted in. And now that branch has life, life, true life.

Jesus said, I am the vine and you are the branches. And there's this nourishment coming through the true vine. And God is working nourishment and grace into his people through the vine. And so the Jews see how broken off they are and how disconnected they are from real relationship with God and how that's not true with the Gentiles. Their prayers are real prayers.

They have the ring of truth. They have true joy in their hearts from their salvation. And it's real. And that's the provoking. And so Paul, in his very consistent style, says, did all Israel fall?

No, no, they didn't all fall. And also, they are being provoked and some of them are returning. That's the point that he's making. So this is an annihilation, a jealousy, something that you want. That's what provoking is.

I mean, that's what jealousy is. You want that. You want that real thing that's out there. And then we come to this amazing section that speaks of the goodness and the severity of God, verses 22 to 32. Therefore consider the goodness and the severity of God.

On those who fall, severity, but toward you, goodness. If you continue in his goodness otherwise you will also be cut off. And they also, if they do not continue in unbelief, they will be grafted in. For God is able to graft them in again. Now isn't that interesting?

You're broken off as Israel and you can be grafted in again. That's the grace of God for Israel. And then he speaks of this cultivated olive tree and how much more this grafting will bring blessing to them. And then he says that blindness in part has happened to Israel. Listen to these words.

Blindness in part has happened to Israel until all the fullness of the Gentiles has come. What's the fullness of the Gentiles? It's the salvation of the Gentiles. It's the number of the Gentiles increasing. And there's at some point where this fullness is complete.

There are enough of them. There's enough saved Gentiles. And then look at this. And so all Israel will be saved. As it is written, the deliverer will come out of Zion.

I love the language that Jonathan Edwards uses to explain this proposition that all Israel will be saved. He says, Jewish infidelity will be overthrown. The Jews in all their dispersions shall cast away their old infidelity and shall have their hearts wonderfully changed, and abhor themselves for their past unbelief and obstinacy. They shall flow together to the blessed Jesus, penitently, humbly, and joyfully, owning Him as their glorious King and only Savior, and shall with all their hearts, as with one heart and voice, declare His praises unto other nations. Nothing is more certainly foretold than the conversion of the Jews.

And so there is this salvation. Something will happen. God is waiting. You would hope that God would do it yesterday, but he apparently has not done it. And then we come to this final interpretive key to all of it.

What should you come away with this saying? What is the main proposition that should be in your mind? And here it is, verses 33 to 36. Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God, how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out. For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has become his counselor, or who has given to Him, and it shall be repaid to Him.

For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen." Well, that's what we should come away with from this. And it should humble us that we don't understand everything about the Jews, because we don't understand everything about them. But we do know this, that God will keep all of his promises to his people, to all generations. So let me just list some applications from this.

I think first of all that we should be able to say as clearly as Paul, God has not cast away the Jews. May it never be. And therefore, we should not be fooled by appearances in this life. God's timing is different than ours. You may be concerned about the timing of some promise of God toward you.

Don't be concerned about it. God will keep His promises in His own time. And He will be faithful to every one of his promises. God knows what he is doing. There is mystery here in this world.

We can't answer all the questions. If we could answer all the questions, then we would not be creatures made in the image of God. We would be God. And we are not God. And our understanding is not great enough to grasp it all.

I personally don't believe that in the same way that you can grasp the doctrine of the sovereignty of God in your little brain you cannot grasp all of what is said regarding God's plan for Israel and all the nations and all the peoples of the earth. We can't understand how it all works together but one day we will see. How do you understand the 1040 window where millions have never ever heard the gospel how do you understand that I don't know I but in here but this I do know we should we should pray for laborers to go and we should send and we should preach the gospel to all the nations that we know But how will God wrap all this up? All these confusing questions that come to our minds? We don't know.

But don't be fooled by appearances in this world. But be convinced of what God has said. And then also I just want to lay out a word of encouragement regarding what it means to be a remnant. We are, the People of God are remnant. It's interesting, in my reading over the last few years, I have bumped into different authors throughout the centuries.

And some of the early church fathers, John Calvin, some of the Puritans later on, they say a really similar thing and I don't know if it's true. But here's what they say. They say, in this world it may be 1% who are truly elect. Now I don't know if that's true or not, But some of the greatest men who have ever lived seem to believe that. And what does that mean?

It means that the people of God will be a small number, and we shouldn't let that discourage us. This seems to be the case that God uses a remnant for His glory in the world. And of course we can't understand why He would do that because isn't that so contrary to our own sense of things? We would never do it that way. But who is known, the mind of the Lord, who is able to be his counselor?

And then here's a word of advice. And I hope that you don't take this wrongly. But here's the word of encouragement. Be bold that God would magnify your ministry. Be bold that God would magnify your ministry of provoking.

That you would be the most provoking people that you possibly could be. Provoke, brothers and sisters. Provoke them to jealousy. By what? By your faithful, trustful heart toward God, your genuine life lived out there.

Paul said, he said this, I say this on the authority of the pattern of the Apostle Paul. He says, I magnify my ministry if by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are of the flesh and save some." Paul would say, be in their face. Don't be behind the door in your closet, hidden away so that no one in the world can be provoked. Provoke with all your soul. Don't be hidden away in your household alone.

That would be a tendency that would not, that would restrict the provocation that God desires in the world, mix it up with this world, and provoke them to jealousy by the reality of your faith in Jesus Christ. You don't have to fake them out. You don't have to be somebody you're not. But someone who is a genuine, humble follower of God, who trusts in the grace of God alone. You know, there are so many people in this world who think that Christianity is trusting in how good they are today.

It just happened. I was amazed. I had lunch with a man in this community this week and we were talking and we were sitting in his truck and we were talking about a lot of different things and then we both knew someone who had just died. I didn't know the person had died and he said to me, boy, you never know. I said, yeah, that's exactly right.

And I said, Where are you parked with Jesus Christ? And he said, well, I've been a good person, but I'm not like you. That's what he said. The people of this world think that if they're just a good enough person, he thought I was a good person. What an absolute travesty that he could think that.

No. But the whole world thinks that. They don't know that we are sinners. Every single one of the people of God are worthy to be cast into hell forever. They don't know that.

And how will they be provoked unless we're there to provoke them to let them see that there is a depth the worst sinner you know is sitting right next to them and has been saved by grace. So here's it. So let me just repeat the exhortation. Be bold and pray that God would magnify your ministry and provoke. That's what Paul did.

That's the pattern that we see here. Don't be afraid of provoking and upsetting those who are dogs today, but will be sons someday. Well, I trust that God would have mercy on us and he would give us an agreeable melting, as happened when David Brainer was preaching to those Indians that he said he said this he said this after after he walked away he said after this public service I withdrew I was so tired from the labors of the day and and then he said this he said and the Indians continued praying among themselves for nearly two hours. These exercises appeared to be attended with blessed quickening influence from on high. I could but I could not earnestly wish that numbers of people had been present at this session to hear these things which I'm sure must refresh the heart of every true lover of Zion's interest." And then he says this, And I trust this is us.

This would be us. We savages here in this room who've been rescued by the grace of God, that we would be like those savages, to whom Brainerd said, to see those who very lately were savage pagans and idolaters, having no hope and without God in this world. Now, filled with the sense of divine love and grace and worshiping the Father in spirit and in truth as numbers here appear to do. It was not a little affecting, especially to see them appear so tender and humble and lively and fervent and devout in this divine service that had been delivered to them that day. May it be so among us that we would say, oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom of God.

Let's pray. Oh, Lord, thank you for your plan, which is so far beyond ours. We could never conceive of it and it offends us because in our sinful understandings we don't know your mind, but we praise you that you are Almighty that you will save every single soul that you desire to humble the pride of man and To bring us to this place of saying oh the death of the riches now as we Are together today that we would glory in your riches. In Jesus' name, Amen.