Eternal God that you you there's a lot of things you could have said, but you chose to put this in your book tonight So help us to get the best we can and apply it to our lives. We'll thank in Jesus name. Amen. Let's read Romans 11 I Say then not now. Let's go to 7 10 21, but to Israel he sayeth All day long I've stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people. He was saying there, you know what? I'm going after a people that don't seek me. I'm going to bring the Gentiles into this thing, which would cause a Jew to ask the question, well, is he all through with Israel then? Is he all through with us? which many, many people believe. It's called replacement theology. The church has replaced the nation of Israel. And so Paul, as his manner is, and as your manner should be when you prepare to preach, teach, witness, instruct, what questions are they going to ask? What questions would they ask? Therefore, a lot of times you'll hear a preacher preaching and he'll say, You ask, well what's that have to do with it? He's assuming what you're going to ask in his preparations. Paul does it over and over and over again. So he answers a question before they ask it. I say then, hath God cast away his people? That's going to be the physical seed of Abraham, Israel. God forbid. For I am an Israelite of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not cast away his people which he foreknew. Watching up what the Scripture saith of Elias, how he maketh intercession to God against Israel, saying, Lord, they have killed Thy prophets and dig down Thine altars, and I am left alone, and they seek My life." Now, won't it be something when we get to heaven and say all those prayers that you thought you were in the situation you were in and you really weren't in that situation. But what saith the answer of God unto him? I have reserved myself 7,000 men who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal. Even so then, at this present time also there is a remnant, according to the election of grace. And if by grace, then it is no more works." See that? Mutually exclusive. Otherwise, grace is no more grace. It cannot be both. But if it be of works, then it is no more of grace. Now there's a bunch of folks running around saying praying to receive Christ is a work. Joe Mediciera dealt with this in one of his meetings. He went down there. By the time he walked out of this church, the pastor had him lost. He said, did you pray when you got saved? Yeah. Would you pray as the Lord? You're not saved. That's very, very popular down in the Southland and different places because that's a work. Well, if He said, whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved, and grace is not works, it must not be a work. It must be an act of faith. Of course, when you're talking about works with these Jews, it's always that law. But if it be of works, then it is no more of grace. Otherwise, work is no more work. What then? Another question. Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for. And I'll tell you what he's seeking for. He's seeking for righteousness. So the nation of Israel is seeking for righteousness, but she's not obtained it. But the election hath obtained it." So the election must be different than Israel. And it is. The election is those, and we'll go over this, that come to God through Jesus Christ. Israel is just the nation of the physical seed. Hath obtained, okay, and the rest were blinded. That's important. If Israel replaced, if the church replaced Israel, what are you going to do with these verses? Would you say seven? Let's put church for Israel. What then? The church hath not obtained that which he seeketh for. But the election, the church hath obtained it and the rest were blinded. The church was blinded. What would you do with all this? According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see and ears that they should not hear unto this day. And David saith, let their table be made a snare and a trap and a stumbling block and a recompense unto them. Let their eyes be darkened that they may not see and bow down their back always. I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Is God all through with them? Is it over? God forbid. But rather, through their fall, salvation has come to the Gentiles." Class, what's the three groups of people? Jew, Gentile, Church of God. 1 Corinthians 10.23. Jew, Gentile, Church of God. Because the Jews rejected, because the Jew fell, salvation comes to the Gentiles. God forbid, through their fall, salvation has come to the Gentiles. Watch it come back around now. "...for to provoke them to jealousy." Now, if the fall of them the Jew, be the riches of the world and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles, and I think spiritually and physically we'll look at that, how much more their fullness. If when they fell it did something good for the Gentiles, how much better when they return to God? How much more their fullness. For now He changes now. For I speak to you Gentiles, insomuch that I am the Apostle of the Gentiles. Funny, he's the apostle of the Gentiles writing a book to the Romans, a letter to the Romans and the religion up the road there. They've got Peter being the big guy at Rome, but really Paul was the Roman bishop, sort of, if you so to speak. How much more of their fullness? He says, I magnify my office fourteen. If by any means I may provoke to emulation, to effort, to moving, to envy somewhat, them which are my flesh, that's the Jew, and might save some of them. For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, if because they got cast off the world could get in, what shall be the receiving of them be? What shall the receiving of them be? But life and the dead. For if the first fruit, that's them, be holy, the lump is also holy. And if the root, that's them, be holy, so are the branches. And if some of the branches are broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree, boast not thyself against the branches." That's anti-Semitism. That's hating Jews. That's they killed Christ so we kill them. See? He said you better be careful because you were just grafted in. We'll look at that in a bit. 18, boast not thyself against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee. You're boasting against the root. They're at the foundation. Thou wilt say then, the branches were broken off that I might be grafted in. Well, because of unbelief, they were broken off. And thou standest by faith. Be not high-minded, but fear. But if God spared not the natural branches, Israel, take heed lest He also spare not thee. Behold, Therefore, the goodness and severity of God..." How's that for a balance? "...on them which fell, severity, but toward thee, goodness. If thou continue in His goodness, otherwise thou also shall be cut off." Gentiles. "...And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be grafted in. For God is able to graft them in again." He broke them off. He grafted you in. And He can graft them in again too if He wants. And He will. For if thou were caught out of the olive tree, which is wild by nature, and were grafted contrary to nature into a good olive tree, you were a Gentile, you were a dog, you were no good, you were painting grease on your bodies and chanting, and you follow your history and your heritage and all that way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way back, and the Gentiles were really messed up. You were wild. They were the good olive tree. How much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree? If He grafted you in, do you think He won't graft them in again? For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits, that blindness important, in part, This happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in. He just said, I'm done with them until I'm done with you, and then I'm going to pick back up on them. And so all Israel shall be saved, as it is written. There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob. For this is my covenant unto them, which I shall take away their sins. And concerning the Gospel, they are enemies for your sakes. but is touching the election, they are beloved for the Father's sake. They were His elect nation. For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance. He's not going to change His plan. For as ye in time past have not believed God, yet now have obtained mercy through their unbelief, even so have these also now not believed that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy. for God hath concluded them all in unbelief that He might have mercy upon all." Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God. How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out. And we use that verse a lot, preachers do, in the Word of God and all that. But you're going to see tonight the way Paul is just overwhelmed with the plan of God in this situation. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, or who hath been His counselor, or who hath first given to Him, and it shall be recompensed to Him again. For of Him, and through Him, and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. Alright, let's go through this. Romans 11. Let's review 9. Chapter 9, remember, we're not talking about individuals here. We're talking about people groups. Jew and Gentile. Jew is saying Gentile can't be saved. Paul is saying don't tell God who He'll save. He'll elect who He wants to elect. He'll choose who He wants to choose. And he's concluded all under sin and he's choosing Jew and Gentile. Chapter 9. Chapter 10, righteousness by faith. They were going about to establish their own righteousness. Chapter 11, the future of Israel in relation with the Gospel. Chapter 9, the remnant of Jews saved in the church age by grace through faith. Now remember, in this dispensation, in the church age, there is no difference. Jew doesn't get special treatment because he's a physical seed. There's not a man-woman. There's not bond-free. There's not Jew-Gentile in Jesus Christ. Spiritually, we're all equal. Chapter 10, most of the Jews, however, are trusting self-righteousness. Yet there's going to be coming up a remnant. Chapter 11, the future restoration of Israel. And the real Israel. Remember he said they're not all Israel that are Israel. The real Israel is the Jews that trust Jesus Christ, and that's who we're going to see out in the future. Alright? Objectives of Romans 11. To understand how God has not totally rejected His people, Israel. To warn anti-Semitics and replacement theologians And this is why we need to study this. And you say, I don't care. Well, you must not get into it much. And you should care because if you adopt this theology, you lose that pressure of how shall they hear without a preacher. You lose that pressure of how shall they preach except they be sent because if God's elected them, It's irresistible, the grace anyways. Why should I embarrass myself? It really doesn't matter. They're going to get saved anyway. And there's a whole lot of people in an independent Bible-believing Baptist church that believes in authority, inspiration, and preservation of a perfect Bible. Talk to John Skomsky sometime if you want to see how they're out there. And they are out there. And they will circular reason and tie you up in knots. And you ought to have an answer to give every man. Alright? This is why Paul says, whoo! To see God's strategy to save both Jew and Gentile through rejection and ultimately hardening the Jews. Alright? Election is not dealing with individuals in salvation, but rather people groups. That's important. Jew versus Gentile. In summary, God has not rejected His people. Alright. Evidence supporting this. Paul himself. Verse 1. Well, if He cast off everyone else, He hasn't cast me off. Right? That's one evidence that God has not cast off His people. Look at my credentials here. I'm of the seed of Abraham of the tribe of Benjamin. There is a remnant just as in the days of Elijah. And that's what we talked about Sunday. He said in the Scripture, He maketh intercession to God against Israel, saying what He said, and God said, no, there's a remnant. Just like there was a remnant back there, there's a remnant of people that believe today. And we're well aware of that. I mean, the early church, Pentecost, all those Jews were saved, right? It was all Jews. Every church. I'm not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God and the salvation to the... Say it again? One more time. Jew first. So Paul, as his manner was, went into those synagogues, reasoned, and he says, you see how many thousands of Jews there are which believe. Alright? So there's a lot of people saved. So to say that God's all through with Israel would be a stretch. Alright? A remnant according to grace, not works. Verse 5, even so, at this present time, just like in the days of Elijah, this present time there's a remnant. according to the election of grace." Now, it's just a remnant. Joe, what's a remnant? Now, I'll tell Joe, hey, you got any remnants about 35 feet long? The remnant is not the majority. The remnant is a small, a small piece, a small group, a small leftover. There is a remnant according to the election of grace. Now let's look at verse 7. What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for. Now go back to chapter 10 and verse 3. And we see Israel, but then we see the election. Look at 10.3. "...For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness." So he shows two groups here. He shows Israel and he shows the election. "...The election hath obtained it." The rest were blinded. You know who's elected? Those that believe on Jesus. Anybody want to help clean up after church day? If you stay and help, we'll go for abbots after. Who's elected? Everybody that chooses to stay and clean the church. You're all elected to go for it. Isn't this simple? See, you don't have to... stack up a thousand whosoever will verses and get in a big debate with someone that's going to stack up a thousand foreknowledge predestination election verses. Really, it's as simple as you want to go for ice cream, make the decision to stay and help clean up. Did I predestine who was going to go for ice cream? Absolutely. Is it determined before we even start who is going to go for ice cream? Yes. Have I predestined that some are not going to go for ice cream? Absolutely. Can anybody go for ice cream? Yes. Woo! That's the Bible. See how nice it meshes together? You just need a little ice cream. You scream. We all scream for? Amen. Alright. We're breaking up this monotony a little bit. Okay. But many have been hardened. Alright? So you've got this nation. They're seeking to establish their own righteousness. But you've got this election that is believed through Christ. But many have been hardened. The elect have been saved. The rest were hardened. This hardening was foretold by Scriptures. Wonderful. Eight, according as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see and ears that they should not hear. By the way, he said you're dull of hearing and we're going to talk about that a little bit. And I'll just throw a little song. I've got to preach a little bit, right? Be careful about closing your eyes. Be careful about plugging your ears. because you might want to open your eyes one day and the lights will be out." And that's what God is saying here. They wouldn't hear. They stopped their ears. They wouldn't see. He said, I come that those that see might see not. And those that see not might see. So you've got to be careful that God will let you stop your ears for so long and then He'll say, okay, you don't want to hear? I'll give you the desire of your heart. And you'll see young people or anybody that they just kind of stop hearing. Just kind of plug those ears. And you'll see them a time later and say, I talked to a young person one time who said, I don't even know if I believe in God anymore. You know why? They stopped hearing. Light received begets more light. Light rejected begets lightning. Judgment lights out. That's what happened to Israel. Same thing David said. Let their table be a snare and a trap and a stump. Table is supposed to be a place to fellowship. and dine and commune and enjoy, David's saying, let it be a snare and a stumbling block and a recompense. Let their eyes be darkened that they may not see and bow down their back always. Alright? Hardening of Israel. Alright? So here's what happens. They reject. God hardens them. Just like Pharaoh. Pharaoh rejected. God hardened him. This is what's amazing about it. You've got to get this in Romans 11. And God is going to use the hardening in His mercy, in their rejection. And it's got to make the devil crazy that God, this hardening that happens, God's going to say, alright, in my mercy, in my love for my elect, in my grace for my people, alright, they don't want me. make a plan through their hardening. The Jewish stumbling in the Gentile connection. Gentiles benefit by the fall of the Jews spiritually and physically. See what he says? If the fall of them, verse 11, through their fall, salvation has come to the Gentiles. The devil's rejoicing. They've rejected. They've hardened their hearts. He's blinded their eyes. They can't see. God says, well, they can't see. I'll use this time to let the Gentiles in then. What? I'll use this time to let the Gentiles in. Now I say spiritually, so the Gentile gets all the riches of God in Christ Jesus, gets the blessing, gets to be in Christ, gets to be seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. And I also say physical. Remember, that's what that Jew was after. He wants that kingdom of heaven on earth. That's what he was promised through Abraham. But you look at Way, way, way, way, way, way back where your savage ancestors and my savage ancestors started out. And you see what has happened when Christianity has come to those places. And civilization, and hospitals, and cures, and inventions, and Lincoln Continentals, and nice clothes, and God's using it all. Through this blindness, through this rejection, well, I'll open it up to the Gentiles now. And now it turns back to the people that rejected Him and He hardened. What a plan! Through their false salvation has come to the Gentiles for to provoke them to jealousy. Look how good they've got it now. They're not painting their bodies up with grease anymore. They're not throwing their babies into the river anymore. Look how their, look how their, quote, Christian nations are thriving and blast and prosperous. And look how they have such joy. What is it that these people have? This is one reason why Paul magnified his ministry to the Gentiles. He must have got a revelation. He said, Paul, don't fret. I'm going to use this rejection. Open it up to the Gentiles. The Gentiles are going to get saved. And the Jews are going to say, what's going on down there? What do you mean the Gentiles? I better go check this out. Paul said, I'm the apostle to the Gentiles. All right. Words of warning against Gentile conceit. So now the Jews' eyes are blinded. They reject. He opens it up to the Gentile. And what's the automatic reaction? Hitler. Stalin. Anti-Semitism. Hate Jews. Kill Jews. You killed Jesus Christ. You're opposite of the Christian. And he said, you better be careful. You Gentiles are but wild branches grafted into the root. You were not of the seed of Abraham. I didn't choose you. I chose Abraham. And through their rejection, His seed, the fact that they rejected Me, through their fall, salvation has come to you. You better crawl on your hands and knees and thank God and not get conceited and puffed up and be, you know, a lot of Jews automatically Christian. You hate us! Because they're not Bible-believing Christians that they're talking to. To replace broken branches, true, but be careful lest you be displaced as a people. Now here's what's interesting. The same people, we call them Calvinists, that would use this to say, God is predestined, God is elected, God is sovereign, He chooses you to be saved, nothing you could do. The only of the five points we agree with Calvinism is the perseverance of the saints. But if you make this for individuals, He's saying, you better be careful in going against those Jews because I'll cut you off too. Now all of a sudden you've got an Arminian, people that believe you can lose your salvation, using the same verse. if you don't look at as people groups jude you gentiles better be careful he cut them off through blindness you think he won't cut you off at the end of the world he will because it'll be all over that's uh... has anyone ever done this grafted i'm gonna do it next year eric anybody anybody ever crafted something up branch Listen if it wasn't for God Wanting to use this why would this ever work? Why why in this design would this ever work? So you see this boys and girls you take this little? branch I got a better picture of it here and You cut that sharp like that you split this one now you can take here See it this one was done here an apple tree. And you can't see it well, but these are pink blossoms and these are white blossoms. They took a wild, he says, you were a wild branch, a wild olive tree. I took you and I grafted you in with my elect, with my people. And now you're going to get conceited and puffed up He said, if they were broken off and I grafted you in, what makes you think I can't just pick up that branch and graft them in? And that's what He's going to do in the next age which we call the tribulation, millennium and such. After the church goes out, God again begins to deal with the nation of Israel. He has not cast off His people. Alright? The hardening and blessing of Israel. Hardening is partial. Look at verse 25. It's important. Because what's the timeline here? For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye be shabuiz in your own conceits, that blindness in part is happened to Israel, how long? Until the fullness of the Gentiles come in. That's the end of the church age. when the last person gets saved and the trumpet blows and we go up and now God starts dealing with His nation again. Now, He's going to judge the whole world, but His main dealings will be with the nation of Israel where He will be calling out a remnant of the seed of Abraham, physical descendants of Abraham that believe in Jesus. Alright? Keep the commandments of God, Revelation 7, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. Alright? In this way, all Israel will be saved. That's what he says. Every single one of them that believes on Jesus, yes. See, because that's who the elect is. That's who the real Israel is, is to save folks. It's like saying, so that all the church will be saved. Well, the church is the saved. Alright? They may be enemies of the Gospel, but they are beloved by God. And they may obtain mercy just as the Gentiles did. Now, Paul's words of praise to God. Look at 33. And it's in this line. He said, whoa, they rejected God and he's going to work it in his whole scheme of things and plan that this is how they're going to get their salvation. They reject. He blinds them. So God opens it up to the Gentiles. Gentiles get in. Provokes them to jealousy. Church goes out. God deals with Israel again. What a plan! Oh! Oh, I like the oh's in the Bible. You ought to preach a message on oh's. Somebody give me an O. Give me a verse with an O. O wretched man that I am. That's good for you. Amen. Someone else. O foolish Galatians. Good, Mike. And here he says, oh, the depth of the riches. Both of the wisdom and knowledge of God. How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out. For who hath known the mind of the Lord? Who hath been His counselor? Who hath first given to Him and it should be recompensed to Him again? For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be glory forever. Amen. Now, two practical truths. Be careful how long you close your eyes. See, God said, you thought I was such in one as you. You thought because I wasn't disciplining you and chastening you and spanking you that I was okay with what you're doing. No, that's the mercy and grace of God. But be careful because God has His Just like parents have their time and relationships that you can push so far. Let the blessings of the obedient provoke you to emulation. Let's say he's pushing the envelope. And let's say, your mother-in-law is saying, he is pushing you with her. That's not hard with a mother-in-law though. And let's say, he is doing right. So he despises him. Oh, he's Mr. Perfect. He can do no wrong. Oh, pastor loves him best. Mom and dad love him best. Oh, I know, they're your perfect little angel. No, why don't you let that, seeing the blessings on his life, seeing the joy in his heart, seeing the goodness and grace of God, say, you know what? That's going to provoke me to effort. I'm going to try to do right too. I mean, if you want to be a rebellious rascal, be a rebellious rascal, but don't get mad at the guy that's trying to do right. Be provoked by him. Let's sing a song, Brother G. What do you want to sing? Let's sing a...