Romans 10 reminds me of my first job in sales. I worked tirelessly to study the product features and benefits, the technical specifications and my competitive advantages; and yet I was failing miserably. I soon learned that I was missing one simple thing; I never asked for the order. This was the exact time in my life that I first read this chapter. The words of the apostle Paul transformed my life that day. He begins with his “heart’s desire” that all of Israel “may be saved”. Paul says “they are zealous for God”, but there is something they do not know. As a Pharisee, Paul was an expert in the study and interpretation of the Law of Moses. 20 years after his personal conversion, Paul is still teaching the missing piece that he too had learned, “Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes”. Paul repeats the message of hope from Moses given to the Israelites about the eventual redemption of the nation. Moses told the lost and wandering people to hold tightly to Word of the Lord. “The Word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart”. Paul explains this is the same message of faith that he preaches. Then Paul taught me the missing piece to my personal conversion. I understood that the covenant completed on the cross covered my sin, yet I was still flailing. Paul wrote, “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”. I finally realized that I had not yet asked for the forgiveness of my sin!
The apostle Paul quoted the Hebrew prophets to demonstrate that when you combine speaking and believing, the promise will produce spiritual renewal. He included a quote from Joel chapter 2, that left me no wiggle room. “For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all… Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved”. I had two clear options in front of me. At the end of the service, the pastor invited people come up front to pray with him. I did not move. Instead, I took home a copy of the teaching to listen to it again. Alone in my apartment, I got on my knees, confessed my sins, and asked Jesus to become the Lord of my life. I will only say that His presence was unmistakable. I traded my anger and guilt for His peace. But there was still much I did not understand.
The chapter continues with Paul explaining his motivation to preach. “How can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” Paul traveled the known world teaching the Jew first, and then the Gentile about salvation through faith in the risen Christ. Paul preached the same message to the powerful and the prisoners; to soldiers and philosophers. Not all will choose to believe. Paul tells those who do want to grow in their commitment to God that “faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the Word about Christ”. For me, that meant a personal study. I read and listened to wise and wonderful teachers of the Bible. I carefully verified everything they said. I compared it to the various translations of the Bible, and my understanding of human nature. The more I study the Bible, the more I believe it to be God’s truth. Paul concludes the chapter with an explanation to the non-believing Jew, again quoting Moses. “I will make you envious by those who are not a nation”. Atonement has been extended to the Gentiles to prepare the Jewish people to receive the Redeemer. For now, peace with God is available to all by speaking and believing His Word. God is patiently waiting for us to realize what is missing; “All day long I have held out My hands to a disobedient and obstinate people”. Friend, let me ask you a question; do you have peace with God?