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Romans 11:12-16 – The Jews Loss is the Gentiles Gain

Topic: The Jews Loss is the Gentiles Gain

Reading: Romans 11:12-16

Introduction and Overview

In many things in this world there is a form of balance, where one person or group loses, while another person or group gains. We often hear talk about winners and losers, and that is basically the same principle in action.

In a religious sense we can see that the Jews loss is the Gentiles gain. The Jews were the recipients of the first covenant, but failed to recognise the new covenant when it appeared in the form of the teachings of Jesus. In fact the religious leaders of the Jews utterly rejected Jesus and His teachings. This opened the door for the Gospel of salvation to be preached to the Gentiles, and thus the Jews loss became the Gentiles gain.

This is the message Paul is pointing out in these scriptures today.

Key points from reading:

  1. The failure of the Jews allowed the word to be preached to the Gentiles
  2. The Jews loss is the Gentiles gain
  3. But it is not hopeless for the Jews as they too can find the riches of the truth of the gospel if they turn to Christ.

Discussion:

  1. Scripture: Romans 11:12
    • The failure of the Jews opened the door for the gospel to be preached to the rest of the world. It allowed the rest of the world to come into the presence of God. They rejected God firstly by rejecting and failing to fulfill the requirements of he law, and secondly, by rejecting Christ.
    • It is important to also recall that this was meant to be. Israel was the race chosen by God as His special people. But He also knew they would fail and the Gentiles would receive the chance to come to know God through Jesus Christ. This was prophesied by the Old Testament prophets, and we see the offer to the Gentiles in such prophecies as:

      17 This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: 18 “Behold, my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my Spirit upon him, and he shall proclaim justice to the Gentiles. 19 He will not wrangle or cry aloud, nor will any one hear his voice in the streets; 20 he will not break a bruised reed or quench a smoldering wick, till he brings justice to victory; 21 and in his name will the Gentiles hope.” (Matthew 12:17-21)
    • So, we see that because the Jews rejected God and the words of Jesus, the Gentiles received the hope of salvation. This opened up the offer of eternal life to all mankind regardless of their genealogy.
    • And it doesn’t end there for the Jews. Even though they rejected God and failed to keep the covenant of the law, they still have the same hope in Jesus Christ and the gospel of salvation based upon faith, if they seek Him out. They are still included in the promises of God and the hope of salvation if they look to Him.
  2. Scripture: Romans 11:13-14
    • The Jews loss is the Gentiles gain, but they still have the chance of salvation. And Paul in his ministry sought to push the Jews in such a way as to make them jealous.
    • He was not doing this strictly to make them jealous, but rather when they saw the transformation in the lives of people through the word of God in Christ Jesus, that they would be inquisitive enough to want to know more. And Paul’s hope was that as they learned about the words of Jesus, the word would take hold of them and they would repent and come to God through Christ.
    • Paul’s aim was not to “thumb his nose” at the Jews. He was intensely keen to see them come to salvation as much as the Gentiles to whom he was sent to preach. Paul knew the Jews loss is the Gentiles gain, but he also recognised how much better it would be for the Jews to gain what was now offered the Gentiles too, so that everyone becomes a winner in Christ.
  3. Scripture: Romans 11:15
    • Paul further emphasises this point concerning how much better the inclusion of the Jews under the gospel would be in this verse.
    • The Jews rejected the offering of God to Israel that was available through faith rather than works of the law. But if they could be reconciled to God through faith, then how much better would that be? The best scenario would be for the whole world, Jews and Gentiles, to come to Christ. That is the hope of all Christians.
    • But this momentary rejection by the Jews opened the way for the rest of the world to come to God through Jesus Christ. If and when the Jews repent of their rejection of God, then they will be accepted back with open arms. Those Jews who live in the shadow of death because of their rejection, will be turned to life in the blessing of God through Jesus Christ.
  4. Scripture: Romans 11:16
    • Paul points out an interesting principle in this verse, which he carries through into the next few verses as well. It is a principle that can be easily understood. He says:

      If the dough offered as first fruits is holy, so is the whole lump; and if the root is holy, so are the branches. (Vs 16)
    • If you consider a fruit tree, or as Paul will speak about in the next section, an olive tree. If the root of the tree is bad, then the branches and the fruit of the tree will be bad. They will be be sickly and the fruit will be inedible. So too in Christ.
    • When a person is rooted deeply in Christ, they are being supported by the one who is holy. And as they follow, learn and grow in His words, they will be like good branches or fruit. They will be holy because Jesus is holy and they are deeply rooted in Him.
    • But if a person starts following false teachings and false doctrines that are not based upon or part of the word of God and Jesus, then how can they be holy? They are not being supported by the holy root but have gone astray as if grafted into a diseased, unholy tree. The root of what they are following in this case is not holy and so they are not holy either.
    • It is essential to seek and find the truth. We need to look very closely at the words of Jesus to understand what He said. And this was the message of the Father to us when He said at the time of Jesus’ transfiguration:
    • “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” (Matthew 17:5)
    • We need to listen to the words of Jesus and God. The failure of the Jews that led to the Gentiles gain was that they stopped listening to God. They thought that by just doing the works of the law without the requirement of faith that went with it, was sufficient. It was not, and thus the Jews loss is the Gentiles gain. But they too can return in repentance if they seek the truth. And we too who are Gentiles need to attune ourselves to the word of God, immersing ourselves in His word to understand and grow in Jesus Christ.

Key Takeaways:

  1. The Jews loss is the Gentiles gain, and even though this was prophesied to occur, it is not the end for the Jews
  2. Bot Jews and Gentiles can find the truth if they look for it. The failure of the Jews opened the way for the Gentiles, but both Jews and Gentiles can seek and find the truth of salvation offered by God through repentance and faith.
  3. We need to ensure we are seeking the truth and not following the lies and false teachings that plague much of the church today. Seek the truth through prayer and study and God will reward you with His teachings and His insights.

Prayer Points

  1. Thanks the Lord God in prayer that He has provided you this way to be reconciled to Him through the teachings of Jesus Christ.
  2. Ask God to help you seek and find the truth so that you can understand and also recognise the false teachings that create a bad root.