I. TEXT: Romans 9:30-33
30 What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness of faith; 31 but Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness.[a] 32 Why? Because they did not seek it by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law.[b] For they stumbled at that stumbling stone. 33 As it is written:
“Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense,
And whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”
II. Study Questions
1. What was the purpose of Israel and the Jewish people?
2. What was God’s plan for salvation?
3. Why did Paul relate Jesus as the stumbling stone?
30 What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness of faith; 31 but Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness.[a] 32 Why? Because they did not seek it by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law.[b] For they stumbled at that stumbling stone. 33 As it is written:
“Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense,
And whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”
This is the glorious message of the Gospel, that the saving knowledge of the grace of God through Jesus Christ has been revealed to the Gentile world. The purpose of God for Israel was not limited for them to be the chosen race alone, but they had a role to play in the plan of salvation, they are chosen by God to make Him known to the world (Please listen to our previous sermon series called “Story of His Glory“). In the Old Testament, we find over and over that Israel has failed to carry out the mission, to be the representative/priest, by neglecting their call and serving pagan gods. They were exiled but returned to the land of promise for God’s sovereign plan to be fulfilled, but through their rejection of the Messiah, in 70AD, Jerusalem was destroyed once again and Jews were once again exiled. For 2,000 years, the land of promise was at the disposal of nations and people groups (Romans, Byzantines, Muslim & Crusaders), while Jews mourned for the land.
Many will wonder why the Jews returned to the land of promise only to be exiled again, this time for 2,000 years. First, God’s plan of salvation had to be fulfilled through Jesus, the Lamb of God. Next, through the sacrificial substitutionary atonement, resurrection and ascension, Gentiles would be included in God’s sovereign plan of salvation. As part of God’s plan, Israel was chosen to be the vessel for the coming of Messiah (this is a vast topic related to the covenant of God).
When Paul wrote the letter to the Romans (57AD), he saw the evidence of God’s plan revealed through the salvation of the Gentiles, there were floods of new believers entering into Christian fellowship while his Jewish brothers were rejecting the Suffering Servant (Isaiah 53). The Gospel was not Good News to the Jews, but had become the stumbling block to their faith of works. This does not mean Jews totally rejected Jesus the Messiah, since the first converts (his disciples) were Jews, and the thousands who came to know Jesus at Pentecost (Acts) were Jews. Paul, as a person of Jewish descent, had compassion and a desire for his brothers and sisters to know Jesus as the Messiah (like he did), but seeing that Jesus had become a stumbling block (like he was previously), mourned for them and hoped for the revelation of Jesus to all Jews.
City Life Starter 
Leave a Reply