The Regular Guys Bible Study
The Regular Guys Bible Study podcast -- RGBS -- is a podcast for regular guys by regular guys (not theologians) studying the Bible together. It's brought to you by a couple of goofy guys who just want to study the Bible together and show you that anyone can read and study the Bible. In fact, you SHOULD read and study the Bible yourself. We're here to show you how we do it, and, hopefully, we can have some fun along the way.
The Regular Guys Bible Study
Romans 10
We examine Romans 10, exploring how salvation comes through faith in Christ rather than through human efforts or adherence to the law. This chapter reveals the critical distinction between seeking righteousness through our own actions versus receiving it through belief in Christ's death and resurrection.
• Paul expresses his desire for Israel's salvation while acknowledging their misguided zeal
• Christ is the culmination of the law, providing righteousness for everyone who believes
• Salvation doesn't require extraordinary efforts—Christ has already come and risen from the dead
• The powerful formula: declare with your mouth and believe in your heart to be saved
• The universal availability of salvation to both Jews and Gentiles who call on the Lord
• The importance of gospel messengers—people cannot believe what they haven't heard
• Faith comes through hearing the message about Christ
• God continues to reach out to the disobedient and obstinate
• Christians often unconsciously seek righteousness through works rather than faith
Join us next time as we continue our study with Romans chapter 11. Visit our website at http://theregularguysbs.kas-m.com to leave comments and suggest future books to study.
You are listening to the Regular Guys Bible Study Podcast, the Bible study for regular guys by regular guys. We are your hosts, ken and Steve, and we are just regular guys studying the Bible together, not theologians how's it going, ken? I'm doing all right.
Speaker 2:Um, yeah, I don't know, I'm just working, doing stuff you know, one of our friends that listened to this said we should do a video version. But I'm looking at us right now. I just don't think that would help.
Speaker 1:Well, I will say I have heard that one of the most popular ways to listen to podcasts is on is the video on on YouTube, and people don't actually watch the video typically, but they listen to it and um, oops, that's weird. Just gotta I need to set my stuff on Do not disturb, cause I just got a a call. Those aren't good.
Speaker 2:That, that's fascinating, ken.
Speaker 1:Is it?
Speaker 2:No.
Speaker 1:No, All right. So well, I mean, we could. I mean, can you record from this thing that?
Speaker 2:we're using, I assume, but that sounds like a lot of extra work, I assume but that sounds like a lot of extra work.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it is a lot of extra work and we have real jobs.
Speaker 2:We don't make any money from this no, I say a lot of extra work, but I really mean a lot of extra work for you, because I don't do anything already, that's true.
Speaker 1:I wonder if I could rope you into doing stuff.
Speaker 2:Well, you know if you end up. Sure, if I screwed it up bad enough, you'd never let me do it again.
Speaker 1:So sure.
Speaker 2:Let's try it.
Speaker 1:I've used that. I've used that before. All I had to do was sacrifice one shirt for ironing to never have to do that again.
Speaker 2:Was it your shirt or her shirt? It was my shirt.
Speaker 1:It was my shirt. It was a very nice shirt and the truth is I did not intentionally sacrifice it.
Speaker 2:Sure no I really didn't.
Speaker 1:I really did not. I was just you know, I'm a little bit OCD, or maybe a lot even, and I could not get a wrinkle out of a shirt, and so I just kept kept doing it, kept doing it, and it was never. It was a pink shirt and it had a brown stripe on the. So, oh well, live and learn.
Speaker 2:You still wear the shirt.
Speaker 1:No, I think it was 35 years ago something like that.
Speaker 2:All right, well, let's move on to chapter 10, shall we?
Speaker 1:Sure, so we are on Romans, chapter 10. If you haven't read it, as always, just pause us and read it please. Romans, chapter 10, especially at the front, it seems a little, it's a little hard to grasp. I think the first time through I think I was just going what?
Speaker 2:What? Hmm, you didn't find that Interesting. I don't recall finding that, but hey, maybe the first time through I will find that Just kidding.
Speaker 1:All right. Well, Steve, you know what? I don't see any sections here, so this time you're just reading the whole thing.
Speaker 2:All right, I knew you'd do that. All right. Romans 10.
Speaker 2:All right, I knew you'd do that. All right. Romans 10.
Speaker 2:Brothers and sisters, my heart's desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved, for I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness. Christ is the culmination of the law, so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes. Moses writes this about the righteousness that is by the law the person who does these things will live by them. But the righteousness that is by faith says Do not say in your heart who will ascend into heaven that is, to bring Christ down or who will descend into the deep that is to bring Christ up from the dead. But what does it say? The word is near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart. That is the message concerning faith that we proclaim. If you declare with your mouth Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved, for it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.
Speaker 2:As Scripture says, anyone who believes in Him will never be put to shame, for there is no difference between Jew and Gentile. The same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on Him, for everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in and how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent as it is written? How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news. But not all the Israelites accepted the good news, for Isaiah says Lord, who has believed our message? Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.
Speaker 2:But I ask, did they not hear? Of course they did. Their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. Again, I ask did Israel not understand? First, moses says I will make you envious by those who are not a nation. I will make you angry by a nation that has no understanding. And Isaiah boldly says I was found by those who did not seek me. I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me. But concerning Israel, he says all day long I have held up my hands to man you really did a good job of reading that.
Speaker 1:You never stumbled at all, you just.
Speaker 2:Yeah, thanks.
Speaker 1:So just in case people don't understand what sarcasm is, that was sarcasm.
Speaker 2:Thanks, ken. No, I really appreciate you lifting me up like that.
Speaker 1:I forget People say I'm mean to you, Steve you know what?
Speaker 2:You're such a nice guy.
Speaker 1:You know what, Steve? Let me just encourage you to practice more.
Speaker 2:Just practice more.
Speaker 1:I encourage you, Steve, to practice more.
Speaker 2:I will take your constructive criticism to heart and never read again.
Speaker 1:No, please, I don't want to be the one who always reads. I'm worse than you by far, okay.
Speaker 2:Yeah, sure.
Speaker 1:All right. So this first part you didn't find confusing going up to heaven and bringing Christ down.
Speaker 2:Oh, that part. Yeah, that's the second part. That's the second part.
Speaker 1:That's the second paragraph okay, but I call that the first part yeah, it's just one part. It wasn't split at all, all right all right, but, yes, so do you have some notes? You want to talk about steve? Yeah, I do all right, I don't take notes. Typically, I just go off my own memory I sometimes it's half and half yeah, that's weird.
Speaker 2:That sounds like I'd get milk all over your computer or something it's.
Speaker 1:It's not milk, it's half and half steve, that's it comes from a cow and it comes from milk, but it's not milk it.
Speaker 2:It's like cream and stuff.
Speaker 1:What is half and half? I don't know. Half cream, half milk.
Speaker 2:Something like that, I don't know. Anyway, in verse 3, he says sought to establish their own, and that's in reference to they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge, since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own. So is that?
Speaker 1:This is verse 3.
Speaker 2:Is this referring to all those other Old Testament laws that are outside of the Ten Commandments?
Speaker 1:Oh, um, other old testament laws that are outside of the ten commandments, oh, um well, I think it's talking about regardless. You know, yes, first of all, I'll say yes, but it's also trying to find righteousness on your own. We do that every day, people try every day to, and believers, christians, do this, I do this, you do this. We seek this righteousness through our action or comparison, or, you know, if I, if I tithe, then that makes me righteous.
Speaker 2:Um, or I'm better than that guy, so surely I will go to heaven.
Speaker 1:I don't think it's that I don't think it's that um bold of a statement and I think't think it's that bold of a statement and I think much of it is really kind of a subconscious seek quest for righteousness, or it is for me. I have a subconscious quest for righteousness that every now and then I become aware of. You know, it's like oh, if I do these certain things that makes me righteous because I, you know.
Speaker 2:Or you see someone else doing something that to you in your quote, righteousness is not righteous, and so you judge them.
Speaker 1:That's true, I do that, I definitely do that, I know you do. Yeah, I definitely do that, I know you do, I definitely do that. But and we all do it and I do I'll say in my own defense I recognize most of the time when I do it. Now, you know, earlier in my life, in my career, I was going to say but in my Christian walk I would definitely not recognize that about myself. Do you judge other Steve like that?
Speaker 2:Like, I usually catch myself pretty quickly.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:At least I think I do, I think I don't.
Speaker 1:I think I catch myself quickly now as well, but I don't know, maybe I don't. I think I catch myself quickly now as well, but I don't know, maybe I don't. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Unless it's my family, and then it's just no holds barred.
Speaker 1:Yeah, family's different.
Speaker 2:We love to hate our families. No.
Speaker 1:I love my family, even the ones I hate, I love. No, I don't really hate any of my family.
Speaker 2:Yes, but we're hardest on those we love.
Speaker 1:Yes, we are. Let's see back to verse 3. It says since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness. So yeah, like you said, I think that is the law in general, because you know what we were talking about. I think in the last chapter we talked about faith. We talked a lot about faith versus works. Right, and didn't we?
Speaker 1:I think so, um that was a couple chapters ago okay, well, um, at any rate, you know, if you seek to please god by works with, and if you were a jew, you would do it by the law, right, that's how. That's how you would do it, um, but we talked about, at least a couple of chapters ago. We talked about abraham, you know where. Why was he called righteous? Because he followed the law so well? No, it was by faith.
Speaker 2:By faith and Credited to him as righteousness.
Speaker 1:And so that's a continued message here, but now it's more focused. It's really directly focused at the Jews who do not believe in Christ or who do not follow Christ. Believe in Christ or who do not follow Christ.
Speaker 2:Do you think when he says they did not submit to God's righteousness, he's referring to them not recognizing Christ as the son of God and the fulfillment of the law?
Speaker 1:I think so. Yes, is that what you think? That's what I think. Submit, they did not submit to God's righteousness.
Speaker 2:Yes, that's what I think so let's get into your confusing stuff all right, all right.
Speaker 1:So, uh, let's see. I'm going to read this section again real quick. Moses writes this about the righteousness that is by the law. The person who does does these things will live by them. Oh, I'm a little early, aren't I? Where is it?
Speaker 1:uh, oh, no, that's right the person who does these things will live by them. But the righteous that is by faith, righteousness, that is by faith says do not say in your heart who will ascend into heaven? That is to bring christ down. Or will we descend into the deep? That is to bring Christ up from the dead. But what does it say? The word is near you, it is in your mouth and in your heart. That is the message concerning faith that we proclaim. I'm going to stop there. So that quote, by the way, about bringing Christ down, or you know, should we go into heaven? And that is to bring Christ down. That is from what is it?
Speaker 1:Deuteronomy, and Deuteronomy 12, and it says and Deuteronomy 12, and it says it is not up in heaven so that you have to ask who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it. So, and what it's talking about here, or what Paul is saying, that's referencing, or what Paul is saying that's referencing is you don't need to go up to heaven to go get Christ, the Son of God, and bring him down to us for our salvation. He's already done that himself and okay, so maybe you believe that that, and he died and you know what. You don't need to descend down into Hades or whatever, into the depths and go get Christ out from the dead, because he's already been raised. And that's continued, by the way, in Deuteronomy. It talks about going to the depths, to the depths.
Speaker 2:I should have gone and read that, because I was thinking this was referring to us not judging who will go to heaven or who will go to hell.
Speaker 1:No, it's talking about the Jews, who they don't have to go seek this savior up in you know, to go get him and bring him down to us so that we can be saved and we don't have to go into the depths to go find him from where he's dead because he was raised to life again. That's what I have taken it to be, and I also. I did. Let me see, I did look, let's see. Where is this All right? So I did a test. Okay, this is, by the way, I did this after I already had my opinion. So, and I'm going, to ask.
Speaker 1:AI I did. I asked AI what it thought these two verses in Romans, chapter 10, meant For one thing. There's two reasons I did this. First of all, I've wanted to gauge its biasness. I was really worried AI might be biased against Scripture.
Speaker 2:I don't think it is Well.
Speaker 1:And two I just wanted to Not yet anyway, not yet. And two, I wanted to see if it knew the Bible. And so here's what it says Romans 10, 6-7 is about the accessibility of salvation through faith in Christ, not through human effort. Paul references Deuteronomy to say you don't need to climb to heaven or descend to the depths to find righteousness. Christ has already come down and risen, making salvation available to all who believe.
Speaker 2:I like that answer better than yours.
Speaker 1:I know, and what's funny is it's worded so well. I really didn't want to share an AI answer here, to share an AI answer here and you know I do not encourage people to go just search AI if you don't know the answer. But if you think you know, if you have an idea, and there's nothing wrong with seeing what it says. But you've got to weigh everything based on all Scripture.
Speaker 2:I'm struggling now. I don't even know if you're real. You could be AI scripture. I'm struggling now. I don't even know if you're real, you could be AI generated.
Speaker 1:I might be yes, and by the way, that was just to give proper kudos. That was from Grok, by the way. I've heard it is they tried to remove bias, but it's really impossible to remove bias, but um, so I wanted to check there. I should have compared different ais to see how they all answered. Anyway.
Speaker 2:That's interesting. So I have a question. Yes, moving on a bit, yeah. In 13, it says everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. But if I go read Matthew 7, 21 to 23, it says not everyone who says to me, lord, lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father. It says so how do we reconcile that with this?
Speaker 1:Well, let me see. So let's back up to where it first starts. Talking about that, let's start with 10. Or no, it's actually before that 9. If you declare with your mouth Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Okay, that's not just saying something, right, that's believing, that's proclaiming with your mouth and believing in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. And I think it's important to notice something he didn't say believe that jesus is the son of god. He said believe that god raised him from the dead. God raised him from the dead, that's. That is a hard thing for people to believe yeah, it's probably the hardest and that is a sticking point for a lot of believers.
Speaker 1:They say well, yeah, I think he's god's son, but you know, I think the disciples probably moved him, and blah, blah, blah.
Speaker 2:It's like um then you're, you have no hope.
Speaker 1:If that's the case, yeah then what is the point of your of of the faith that you have, or you claim to have, all right, so anyway, that's the case. Yeah, then what is the point of the faith that you have, or you claim to have, all right? So, anyway, believe in your heart that Christ, that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved, for it is with your heart that you believe and are justified. So you're justified through your heart, and that is actually where you believe. And it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved, as Scripture says. Now that says, with your mouth you confess your faith and are saved.
Speaker 1:So I think it's a combination. It sounds to me like you need both. As Scripture says, anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame, for there is no difference between Jew and Gentile. The same Lord is Lord of all and richly blessed, blesses all who call on him, for everyone who calls on his name, on the name of the Lord, will be saved. So I believe you got to take all of these sentences together and say, okay, it's, it's all these things. You need to call on his name, you need to confess in his name and you need to believe in your heart that and live.
Speaker 2:Live like you believe.
Speaker 1:And and Matthew says live like you believe. And that I you know. I think if you do believe, you will live like you believe. And I you know, I think, if you do believe, you will live like you believe. How can you not? If God has changed you on the inside, how can you live like you have not been changed?
Speaker 2:so yep, that's my take on that.
Speaker 1:Alright, what else you got? Well, that's my take on that.
Speaker 2:All right, uh, what else you got?
Speaker 1:Well, that's it for that paragraph, I think. I think we're down to 14 now. Right, we are, which. I don't have another note until 18.
Speaker 2:Okay, let's see it says uh, how glad you took notes.
Speaker 1:I know how. How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? Okay, and this is so. I've wondered what he's talking about in verse 15. Is he talking about himself? He says and how can anyone preach? Okay, first of all, this is about sending right, and this is a very common passage when talking about sending missionaries out to the world. How can they call on the one who they have not believed in and how can they believe in the one whom they have not heard? So, how can somebody believe in something they've never heard of and how can they hear it without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent as it is written? How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news.
Speaker 2:So, to answer your question, I do think he's probably referring to himself slightly, but more likely he's talking about the ones that have brought the letters that he's writing and are teaching these people.
Speaker 1:Huh.
Speaker 2:Because he is in jail. That's true.
Speaker 1:That is true. I don't think he's patting. That's true. That is true.
Speaker 2:I don't think he's patting himself on the back.
Speaker 1:That's a good point. Yeah, he's writing this letter from jail. And he's sending people with letters and he's sending people out all throughout Interesting. Do you think they were sent to the seven churches the same seven churches that were mentioned in Revelation?
Speaker 2:Some of them were or more?
Speaker 1:I think more.
Speaker 2:Probably more.
Speaker 1:Okay, okay, all right.
Speaker 2:All right.
Speaker 1:Okay, and then you said you had a note at 18.
Speaker 2:I did. But I ask did they not hear? Of course they did. And then he goes to quote their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. And so that is from Psalm 19, 4, which speaks in past tense.
Speaker 1:Yeah, he just quoted it in fact in past tense.
Speaker 2:And it also references Matthew. Where did that link go? Shoot there, it is 2414. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. So the older one, the Psalms, is in the past tense. The newer one, in Matthew, is in the future tense past tense, the newer one in matthew, is in the future tense um.
Speaker 1:The psalm is a prophecy okay, that in the future it has gone into all the world there were not there yet that's, I don't think. But so what's interesting when the jews this is my, okay, this is what I've been taught through going to church for a long time that the Jews not everybody had, you know their Bible with the Old Testament in it. The scribes did, the Pharisees carried scripture around, but they didn't even have all of it. They would have to go into the synagogue and get a scroll and read it.
Speaker 2:But as a Jewish male, you're required to memorize the Torah right.
Speaker 1:Yes, so that's what I was going to say. So anytime he quotes a section, and anytime Jesus would speak and quote a section of the Old Testament, it would bring to mind all of that psalm, you know, or all of that scripture that was spoken right. So it's sort of like a very famous one is my God, my God, why have you forsaken me when Jesus was on the cross? And if you go back and look at the reference in Psalm, it is the story of his crucifixion, basically in the Psalm. Is it Psalm or is it? I think it's in Psalms.
Speaker 2:I think it's Psalms.
Speaker 1:But you know people say, well, why does he think God forsaked him? Because you know he knew he was doing this. But if you look at what he's doing, he's bringing a recollection to the people around that say and now, all of a sudden, now they're quoting that in their brain and it is like, oh my gosh, this is the Christ.
Speaker 2:Because there's even something in those verses about it being pierced in the side and all that stuff, right?
Speaker 1:yeah, it's crazy maybe it's isaiah yeah, maybe it's. It might not be the psalm. It doesn't sound like that would be in a psalm, but um, I'm not looking it up right now, but you know what Other people can. You can look this up, guys.
Speaker 2:You know how to look it up and then you can ask AI.
Speaker 1:No, don't ask AI. I could look it up right now with AI, I would know, I'm sure. All right, what about any of these other quotes?
Speaker 2:I only had one more note, and it's about verse 21, where it says but concerning Israel, he says and he here is Isaiah quoting God, I believe says and he here is Isaiah quoting God. I believe all day long I have held up my hands to a disobedient and obstinate people, so I believe that this is still true. God still is holding out his hand to Israel.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and they are still a disobedient and obstinate people, and so are the Christians. Yep and so, and that's actually one that we passed over. On one thing he says Envious by those who are not a nation. He says something about um, we are all. We're all, israel or jews. Oh, verse 12, for there is no difference between jew and gentile.
Speaker 1:The same lord is lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him. I guess we did read that, but we skipped over the whole point about there's no difference between Jew and Gentile, and that statement is really that whole philosophy of Paul. They're saying that there's no difference between Jew and Gentile is probably why the Jews hated him so much and wanted him dead. Yep, so we killed Jesus, or the Jews killed Jesus and we killed Paul.
Speaker 2:Paul's fair in love and war.
Speaker 1:All right, so you know all of these. There's multiple quotes here from Old Testament.
Speaker 2:If you haven't read Isaiah before, you should read it. Compared to the life of Jesus, there's so many prophecies that are like dead on.
Speaker 1:Man, should we do Isaiah, yeah, isaiah, oh, that would be really hard that would be hard. It would we'd have to do small sections at a time, and but it would. It would take us a while, I think, to get through it, but that would be cool maybe that's next.
Speaker 1:All right, we'll have to think about that. All right, you know, I would be interested to know what you guys want us to do next. We are going to finish Romans, but after that I would like to know what people who are listening would like to hear next. And you can respond, or you can make comments on the website theregularguysbscom. Slash KAS-M. That's com and KAS-M. To help you remember, it's pronounced chasm and that represents the chasm that separates us from God, and the only way we can cross this chasm is through Jesus.
Speaker 2:So, and it's also your initials.
Speaker 1:That's true. That is true, it is my initials. K-a-s are my initials, and then m. Oh, it's dash m. K-a-s dash mcom. All right, anyway, all right, uh, anything else?
Speaker 2:steve, nope all right, pretty short yeah, it's not.
Speaker 1:Yeah, this was not uh, extremely long one, uh and we we said it was going to be a little shorter this time.
Speaker 2:We thought, uh and it was 11 looks, 11 looks pretty a little longer. 11 is daunting all right, but there's a lot of short sentences there short sentences.
Speaker 1:I can read short sentences.
Speaker 2:Well, no, it's, it's quoting other verses and it's like psalms or something.
Speaker 1:I know all All right. Well, guys, for next time, read Romans, chapter 11. And we will be there learning along with you. So See ya, yep, Take it later, dudes, the Regular Guys. Bible Study is a Chasm LLC production. All rights reserved.
