Romans 9:27-33
27 Also, Isaiah,
God's prophet, said this about Israel's people: ‘There are so many of
Israel's people, nobody can count them. They are as many as the bits of sand on
the shore of the sea. But God will save only a few of them.
28 The Lord God
will finish his work quickly. He has warned his people what he will
do.And he will punish them completely.’
29 Isaiah had already said
this: ‘The Lord of great power has let some of our children live. If he had not
done that, no descendants would remain. We would have become like the
people in Sodom and Gomorrah.’
30 So, we must think about
what all this means. The Gentiles were not trying to become right
with God. But some of them have now become right with him. God has accepted
them as right, because they have believed in Jesus Christ.
31 But Israel's people tried to
find a law that would make them right with God. But they failed to
become right with God.
32 They failed because they
refused to believe in Christ. Instead, they were trying to do certain things so
that God would accept them. Because of that they fell to the ground. Their feet
hit the stone which causes people to fall.
33 It says this in
the Bible: ‘Look, I am putting a special stone in Zion. That stone will
cause people to fall to the ground. It is a rock that will make them fall
down.But anyone who believes in him will never be disappointed.’
Discussion:
1. According to verses 27-29, will all Israels be saved?
2. Who are the Gentiles mentioned in verse 30? Are we included?
3. According to verse 30, why are the Gentiles able to attain
“righteousness”?
4. In verse 31, why does the Israels pursuit of righteousness through the law become a hindrance
to obtaining righteousness?
5. What is “a special stone in Zion ” mentioned in verse 32? Why does this “a special stone in Zion ” prevent the proud Israels from obtaining righteousness?
6. Share your personal experience: Why is it so difficult to share the gospel with proud individuals?
“a special stone in Zion ” :“Stumbling Stone”:
Romans 9 discusses the fact that
God chose to show grace to those who believe in Christ. The proud Jews could
not accept the humble Jesus, because He came from a place that the Jews
despised. This was a stumbling stone. His message embarrassed the religious
elite, which also became a stumbling stone for them. His message was that
salvation comes by faith, not by works. This was another stumbling stone for
the self-righteous Jews, who believed they were good enough to be saved by
their own good deeds. Furthermore, the gospel was equally offered to the
Gentiles, which was yet another stumbling stone for the Jews, who were
prejudiced against non-Jews due to their pride.
