Paul's Sorrow for the Israelites, (Romans 9:1-5), part 1/3

Paul doesn’t ease into Romans 9. He swears he’s telling the truth “in Christ,” refuses any hint of exaggeration, and calls his conscience and the Holy Spirit as witnesses. That kind of opening tells you the next words will cost him something and they do. We read Romans 9:1-5 closely and trace why Paul carries “great heaviness and continual sorrow” for his kinsmen, even while honoring Israel’s adoption, covenants, worship, promises, and the lineage that leads to Christ.

We also wrestle with the way people interpret Romans 9–11, especially when a system turns these chapters into a victory lap that ignores Paul’s grief and his chains. If the message is only about future esteem, why does Paul sound like a man pleading through tears? We talk biblical theology, careful Bible study, and how to test big claims against the plain texture of the text.

Then the conversation turns personal. Lisa reflects on a truth many of us share: we weren’t hunting for Jesus, and yet Jesus came after us. That leads straight into Paul’s Damascus Road encounter, described as a light brighter than the noonday sun, a vivid picture of false confidence being overruled by real illumination.

If you’ve ever felt the pressure of telling loved ones something they don’t want to hear, or worried your past disqualifies your witness, this will meet you there. Subscribe for more Romans teaching, share this with a friend who loves Scripture, and leave a review so more people can find the show.

Transcript

Setting Up Romans 9 Through 11

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Romans 9 and 1 through 5 is what I hope to get through tonight. Alright, alright, everybody. So we're gonna be in Romans 9, verse 1, and I intend to get through the first five verses of this book. Now, if you recall, we last time we dealt in Romans, I basically gave an introduction into the chapters of Romans 9 through 11. And so now I'm just gonna break into the first five verses of chapter 9, and then after these first five verses, I'm going to introduce another section, another parenthetical section on Romans dealing with the nation of Israel. Because I wanted, I I need to make sure that I bring clarity to this misunderstanding that has been had as a result of dispensational teaching. And so there's a lot that I want to cover that I think will be for the benefit of you all, and I think it's going to help really bring down to everyone's understanding the simplicity that is laid out here in these chapters and in these books, and expose the confusion and chaotic interpretations that has been presented by our dispensational counterparts. So

Paul’s Sorrow For His Kinsmen

SPEAKER_01 1:38

in Romans chapter nine, verse one, Paul says, I say the truth in Christ, and I lie not. My conscience also bearing witness in the Holy Ghost. Verse two, that I have not, that I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart. Verse three, for I should wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen, according to the flesh, who are Israelites, to whom pertains the adoption, the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises, whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed forever. So now what we're going to deal with here is Paul, as I communicated in our last discussion on Romans, he's expressing sorrow that he has over his kinsmen, over his his, over Israel, of which he was part of that community. And so verses one through five in Romans chapter nine, Paul expresses his sorrow and his concern over Israel, and primarily because of their misunderstanding of what the prophets taught, which was something that also confused, or I dare say, Paul was misled about as well, which we now know that he was corrected by Christ when Christ interrupted Paul's journey and brought clarity to what Paul had spent so many years in gathering and understanding. So in

A Threefold Claim Of Truth

SPEAKER_01 4:03

verse one of Romans 9, I say the truth in Christ, Paul says. And he says, I am not lying. I'm not telling you a lie. My conscience also bears witness in the Holy Ghost. And so Paul begins with a solemn affirmation. A solemn affirmation of sincerity. He's trying to demonstrate his honesty in this matter, emphasizing the truthfulness of what he is now about to express to his own brethren according to the flesh. And the intensity of Paul's statement reflects the weight of the subject matter that he is about to bring forth to his people and also to us. And so it's important for us to understand what he is saying, to whom he is saying it, and why. And so he appeals not only to his own conscience, but also in Christ. And, as he says, with the witness of the Holy Spirit, indicating that his words are spoken with the full awareness of divine presence. And he was an apostle. He spoke and heard from the lips of the Lord Jesus Christ personally. And here now he appeals. He appeals to Christ before his brethren here. And he says, Listen, I am speaking the truth in Christ. I am not lying. I'm speaking in Christ, number one. Number two, I am not lying. And number three, my conscience also bears witness in the Holy Spirit. Paul wants us to understand that what he is saying, what he's about to say, the divine presence is there with him. He's appealing to the highest of the divine order so that these folks might believe that what he's saying is true as he says it is. And so this threefold testimony, his own declaration, his conscience, and the spirit, all three of these, they underscore that what follows is not simply his own exaggerated emotion and passions, but a deeply genuine expression of what he knows to be true. This is not just some emotional characterization. This is not just some emotional appeal that he is making. That it is all true, and that the Spirit of God bears witness with him in this matter. So,

Heavy Hearts And Hard Truths

SPEAKER_01 7:32

what does he go on to say in verse 2? I have a great heaviness. I have a great heaviness, and I have a continual sorrow in my heart. Paul is troubled as I spoke to you last time we were dealt with with Romans. That in Romans 9 through 11, Paul is going to say a lot of things that to the Israelite mindset is going to be very disturbing. And we should not be surprised at why what he is expressing is disturbing to his hearers because these same things are disturbing to people who hear these things today. He is putting meat on the table. But he's telling them in advance, you're not going to like this. It is going to be hard. And this is why I am in such great heaviness. This is why I have continual sorrow in my heart, because I know what you're going through and what I'm saying is only going to aggravate what it is you are not understanding. And Paul is saying, I'm going to tell you the truth, even if it results in my own peril. Which it did. Which it did. He says, I have great heaviness, continual sorrow in my heart. And the content of his affirmation is a profound and ongoing sorrow, much like all of you. Much like all of the sorrow and anguish that you have and like I have for those whom we love but are unwilling to embrace these truths that must be understood and believed. This is what he's dealing with. And the terms great heaviness and continual sorrow, what do these indicate? Not some passive or momentary feeling, but a burden that persists in his soul. And he himself is in prison as he writes this. And if you talk to a dispensationalist, they will tell you that Romans 9 through 11, this is all good because this is something everybody should understand. And the whole idea is to understanding the positioning of Israel. And the dispensation, the dispensationalists will tell you that this is all about their glory. But if it was, if the dispensationalists were correct, if they were right, why is Paul undergoing such great heaviness and continual sorrow in his heart? These goofball dispensationalists were always telling people to know this is all about Israel and how they are going to be esteemed, lifted up, and elevated to a high position so high that even the church being distinct from Israel is going to bow down and worship to them. If this was all true, then why is Paul having a great heaviness and continual sorrow in his heart? The reason for this is because they do not understand. The reason why he is feeling this way is because he knows that they do not understand these truths. And the lack of their understanding of these truths is exactly why the apostle is in prison as he is writing this very letter. He's in prison for it. He is in prison for the exact same things that I intend to tell you throughout these chapters. And you know what? There are many amongst us who call themselves Christians, unbelieving Christians, who support what it was Paul was speaking against to his own people. You're gonna see. Not to say that these folks can't come to faith, but there is no guarantee that they will when you have remained silent and you may be the very only voice left to tell them the truth. And so Paul expresses his great heaviness. He expresses his continual sorrow, but it doesn't alleviate him from the responsibility and the weight of the responsibility that he feels that he must tell them the truth.

When Jesus Finds You First

SPEAKER_00 16:42

Lisa You know, a couple of things just came to my mind while you were speaking. One of them is that I think probably every single one of us can relate to what Paul is feeling. That, you know, the desperation we want these people to know the truth because we love them and we know the repercussions of not them not coming to faith. Right. But another thing that just came to my mind was Paul wasn't looking for Jesus. Just and you know, and it's Jesus went to him. And and I think all of us, if we're if we're honest, or at least for me, I wasn't looking for Jesus. I actually already thought I, you know, I loved him and I was doing what I need. But when when you have an encounter with with the Lord God Almighty, you are not the same. And I feel for him because I'm sure he's thinking, guys, you know me. I wouldn't be saying these things. You know, he was he was persecuting the Christians himself. And now here he is, desperate to get the truth out, and they won't hear it. And again, I just I want if you could all just think about your how you came to faith. It's Jesus, he comes after us. That's right. It's him. Lord of God, thank you, Lord. Even though the pain that we feel for others, we gotta we just gotta keep trying. Right. Because something, you know.

SPEAKER_01 18:26

And listen, listen, to continue on what Lisa is saying, because there's a lot of truth there, nothing but truth there. Imagine

The Noon Light That Exposes Error

SPEAKER_01 18:35

this. You're the Apostle Paul, but at this point, you are Saul, and you are the great leading persecutor against the church. You are actively going out and exiting people from this life. This is what you're doing. You're known for being this stellar academic when it comes to the law of God. And people see and have witnessed your zeal for your approaches prior to you talking about this dead man who rose from the dead. Now imagine him on his journey to put some other Christians to death. He is stopped dead in his tracks with a in the middle of a noonday effulgence, a light from heaven, and notice a light from heaven shone around about him, and the Lord makes it clear that we understand how bright this light was because this happened at noon. At noon. Now, for those of you who may not understand, I don't want to assume you know or don't know. But 12 o'clock noon, wherever you are in the world, once you hit noon, that is where the sun shines the brightest. It's where the sun shines the absolute brightest. Noontime is when the sun is right over your head. Right over your head. This is when Paul became illuminated by Christ. A greater light than the high noon sun shone round about him that was brighter than the sun that was in the sky. It was noticeable and it wasn't negligible at all. It was pronounced that this light that shone round about him was brighter than the noonday. And to me, and I'm allegorizing here, it signifies to me that Paul was on this journey thinking that what he was doing was the result of his own personal illumination. He believed he was functioning in the light. His journey was taking place at noonday. And then he's interrupted, thrown off his horse. The Lord Jesus Christ shines a light around Paul that is brighter than the noonday effulgence. As if to say to Paul, Paul, you have sunlight, but you have darkened it. And Paul was functioning in this way that he believed that what he was doing was in service to God. And now he finds out that it's not. And now he receives, he gets surrounded by an even greater light, which fully exposes the error of his ways and begins to set forth that which Paul needs to understand in order to make his calling, which he is now receiving, an effective calling for Christ's service. Paul was becoming a new custodian in the temple of Christ. And Christ was calling him under no uncertain circumstances to say, Paul, you now belong to me. Now imagine this. Paul, who had this reputation, his zeal was known throughout the lane, no doubt. He had a reputation that preceded him, and it wrought fear in people. And now the same Paul, the same person, now is being told and taught the truth by Christ Himself. And now Christ tells him, You're going to go back and you're going to tell all those people who you misled what the right way is. Imagine being in Paul's shoes. He now has to go back and tell all these people I was wrong. My zeal was misguided. And yet, the Lord Jesus Christ sends him back to the same folks who knew him for the religious zeal that he had. And now he's coming back with a different story. And they have to be thinking, we liked what you said before. We want to stick to that. Now he's an outsider. And for all these things, and many more, I'm sure, they they produce in him this sorrow that he's talking about. This continual sorrow, this burden that he carries. How are they going to take it? I've been telling him all these things for all these years, all this time. And now the Lord has me going to them saying that I got it wrong, I told them wrong, and now I have to tell them the truth. What credibility do I have? How often have many of you felt the very same thing? You? You're telling me about Christ? Wait, I know you. You were doing this and that and this and that. And now you want me to listen to you tell me about Jesus Christ. I saw what you were doing. I know how you live. I know who you were hanging out with. I know you were addicted to this habit and that habit. And now you're telling me about Jesus? You