spirituality

Since we’ve come to the end of another major section in Paul’s Letter to the Romans, it’s time for another targum, a loose explanatory paraphrase of the text:   [9.1-5] I’m telling you the truth from my deepest Christian heart, and the Holy Spirit and conscience will both attest to this: My heart is broken … Continue reading God’s Plan for God’s People: A Targum on Romans 9-11

[I couldn’t think of a good way to break Romans 11 up into two studies. So, I did it all in one study, but have broken it up into two parts because of length. Please see the previous post for a discussion of the major themes and argument structure.] Explore (continued) Scriptural Metaphors Paul grounds … Continue reading God’s Inscrutable Mystery: Romans 11 (Part 2)

Romans 9-11 represents Paul’s great argument, against Gentile frustration, anger, and derision, on behalf of his own Jewish people. In chapter 9, he argued that God’s faithfulness and justice have never been dependent on Israel’s faithfulness; God is free to show mercy upon whomsoever God chooses, and the operative word there is mercy. Then in … Continue reading God’s Inscrutable Mystery: Romans 11 (Part 1)

In Romans 9, Paul defended both his own people and God’s justice from accusations that their rejection of message is a sign that God has abandoned them. Now here in chapter 10, he connects these ideas to some of the other major themes of the letter, included the nature of justice and righteousness, and Israel’s … Continue reading Zeal Gone Wrong, Zeal Gone Right: Romans 10

[There was a lot to say about Romans 9, so I had to divide the post into two. For the first half of the study, see here.] Election and Freedom The other week we saw that when the Bible speaks of God’s sovereign prerogative to choose, there are a few consistent themes: Election is about … Continue reading God’s Faithfulness to God’s People: Romans 9 (Part 2)