Present Standing of Israel Part 3 (series: Lessons on Romans)

by John Lowe
(Woodruff, S.C.)

___________________verse 9 notes____________________________

61 Corinthians 12:3 Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit. Now that they are saved, the believers must know how to judge all spirit-manifestations, that is, how to discern between the voice of evil spirits and the authentic voice of the Holy Spirit. The crucial test is the testimony that is given concerning the Lord Jesus. If a man says, “Jesus is accursed,” you can be sure that he is demon-inspired, because evil spirits characteristically blaspheme and curse the name of Jesus. The Spirit of God would never lead anyone to speak of the Savior in this way; His ministry is to exalt the Lord Jesus. He leads people to say that Jesus is Lord, not just with their lips, but with the warm, full confession of their hearts and lives.

7Acts 28:28 “Therefore let it be known to you that the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will hear it!” In view of the rejection of the Gospel by the Jews, Paul announced that he was taking the Gospel to the Gentiles, and he expressed the assurance that they would hear it.

Titles of Christ— Names given to Christ in the Bible.
Titles of Christ
Alpha and Omega (Rev. 22:13)
Bread of Life (John 6:35)
Bridegroom (Mark 2:19)
Good Shepherd (John 10:11)
Head of the Body (Col. 1:18)
High Priest (Heb. 5:10)
Just One (Acts 3:14)
Lamb of God (John 1:29)
Light of the World (John 8:12)
Logos (John 1:1)
Lord (Rom 10:9)
Master (Luke 8:24)
Prophet (Matt. 21:46)
Redeemer (Luke 24:21)
Savior (Titus 3:7)
Servant (Luke 22:26)
Son of God (Matt 14:33)
Son of Man (Matt 8:20)
The Firstborn (Col 1:15)
The Resurrection (John 21:23)
The Vine (John 15:1)
The Way, the Truth and the Life (John 14:6)


10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

For with the heart one believes unto righteousness—it is not a mere intellectual acknowledgment but a genuine acceptance with one’s whole inward being. When a person does that, he is instantly justified (saved). Belief in the saving power of the risen Christ must come from the innermost part of man’s being. This is described as man’s heart 8(see The Way of Salvation).
and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation—that is, the believer publicly confesses the salvation he has already received. Confession is not a condition of salvation but the inevitable outward expression of what has happened: “If on Jesus Christ you trust, speak for Him you surely must.” When a person really believes something, he wants to share it with others. Therefore, when a person is genuinely born again, it is too good to keep secret. He confesses Christ. Confession with the mouth is evidence of genuine faith in the heart. Frequently both our Lord and the Apostle Paul indicate the coordination of faith and a confession (see 9Lk 12:8 and 10I Tim 6:12). Confession with the mouth does not bring about the genuineness of belief in the heart, but it gives evidence of it.

The Scriptures assume that when a person is saved he will make a public confession of that salvation. The two go together. It has been said, “If there be no confession of Christ the Lord with the mouth, we cannot speak of salvation; as our Lord said, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.” Also, “A heart believing unto righteousness, and a mouth making confession unto salvation, are not really two things, but two sides of the same thing.”

The question arises why confession comes first in 10:9, then belief, whereas in 10:10 belief comes first, then confession. The answer is not hard to find. In verse 9 the emphasis is on the Incarnation and the resurrection, and these doctrines are mentioned in their chronological order. The Incarnation comes first—Jesus is Lord. Then the resurrection—God raised Him from the dead. In verse 10, the emphasis is on the order of events in the salvation of a sinner. First, he believes, and then he makes a public confession of his salvation.

There was a transition period in the early days of the Christian church when men were secrete disciples to avoid persecution and death; but today there is no such thing as a secrets disciple—a born again person who refuses to confess Christ. I do not mean that all Christians preach, or pray in public or even testify in the church service, but all true believers “confess with the mouth” that Jesus is Savior of their soul! Jesus clearly taught, “If you are ashamed of me, I will be ashamed of you.” He said, “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven (Matt. 10:32-33).
__________________________verse 10 notes________________________
8The Way of Salvation Romans 10:9-10, has long served as one of the most helpful portions of Scripture for pointing out the way of Salvation: a confession that Jesus is Lord, and belief in one's heart that God has raised Him from death. The belief is not merely verbal agreement but staking one's entire being on this truth.
9Luke 12:8 Also I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men, him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God.
101 Timothy 6:12 Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. Timothy was already saved and possessed eternal life. He had already professed a good profession before many witnesses, as every believer should.


11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”

The aim here seems to be to deny any supposition that there is one way of salvation for the Jews and another way for the Gentiles. There is only one way—we believe in the heart, receive God’s righteousness, and then confess Christ openly and without shame.

For the
Scripture says,—It is Paul’s customary habit to always appeal to Scripture to validate his teaching.

“Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”— The apostle now quotes 11Isaiah 28:16(see below)—he quoted this verse before in 9:33. This quotation not only demonstrates that salvation by grace through faith alone has always been God’s salvation plan, but that no one—including Gentiles was ever to be excluded; therefore, Paul emphasizes that whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame. The key element in salvation is again seen to be faith. Salvation is not received by the sinner until there is a heartfelt belief in the Lord Jesus. But just as the Gospel is close to all, likewise it is offered to all, Gentiles as well as Jews. The word “Whoever” is used to indicate the universality and impartiality of God’s offer of salvation. Just as all who sin will be judged, so all who believe will be saved and richly blessed.

put to shame—Although it is true that a person who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation will not be ashamed of Him, I believe the primary meaning is that one who believes will not be put to shame in the sense of disappointment. Paul is not afraid that the sinner who places his faith in Christ will be disappointed or defeated. By this, the apostle means that he will not be afraid that salvation by faith will not work. He believes in its power to save to the uttermost.

The thought of public confession of Christ might arouse fears of shame, but the opposite is true. Our confession of Him on earth leads to His confession of us in heaven. Ours is a hope that will never be disappointed.
_________________________verse 11 notes____________________
11Isaiah 28:16 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: “Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation, A tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; Whoever believes will not act hastily. God has established the Messiah as the only worthy object of trust, a sure foundation.

12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him.

In Romans 3:23 we learned that there is no difference between Jew and Gentile as far as the need for salvation is concerned, for all are sinners 12(see Galatians 3:28-29). Now we learn that there is no distinction as far as the availability of salvation is concerned. The Lord is not an exclusive God but is Lord over all humanity. He is rich in grace and mercy to all who call upon Him. To call on the Lord means to pray in faith for salvation.

All, if they are to be saved, must come the same way to Christ. The Lord Jesus said, “…no man cometh to the father, but by Me.” (John14:6). You cannot come to Him by the Old Testament rituals or by the Mosaic Law. Salvation is offered to all people on the same basis of mercy—by faith. Hear and believe the Gospel.
The purpose of the universal offer of salvation is to show the Jew that it is possible for the heathen Gentile to be saved. God’s prerequisite to salvation is faith, not racial distinction. Therefore the call to salvation is to whoever will believe, whether Jew or Gentile. The reason is that there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. The Lord God is rich in His attitude toward all sinners and ready to receive anyone who calls on Him for salvation.