Not All They Obey the Gospel

 

Not All They Obey the Gospel

(Romans 10:14-21) How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?  And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!  But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report?  So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.  But I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.  But I say, Did not Israel know? First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no people, and by a foolish nation I will anger you.  But Esaias is very bold, and saith, I was found of them that sought me not; I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me.  But to Israel he saith, All day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people.

This is a statement about the preaching of the gospel and the reaction of the Jews: How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!』It means that the Gospel was transmitted constantly. In connection with the above, the Apostle Paul is saying that through irony, the Gospel of God was continually delivered to the Jews. That fact is proved by quoting the words of Isaiah 52:7 of the Old Testament, "You are beautiful and the feet of those who preach the good news."

God constantly invited and called people to the place of God's salvation. Through God's prophets, through God's direct intervention and action, through God's wisdom and method, and ultimately through Jesus Christ in the human body, God has called and is still calling people to the seat of God's salvation. In human history, the preaching of the gospel of God's salvation has never ceased. Even in that long silence that God was silent, God called people to God.

『But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.』The Jews did not obey the gospel. They didn't listen to the word. Therefore, it is 『So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God』, that is, 『Faith comes from hearing, and hearing comes from the word of Christ. It is said that the Jews did not listen to the Word of God even though it had been delivered to the ends of the earth.

『But I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world. 』

Those who disobeyed the Word of God, including the Jews, did not listen to the Word. They closed their ears to the Word and denied the Word. Nevertheless, the word of the Gospel must be conveyed without interruption. The Gospel must be preached regardless of whether the time is obtained or not according to the Bible. Because there are people who have ears to hear. Because the word of God is the word of eternal salvation. It is because it is the word of life that brings people to the eternal life of God. Who has ears to hear? Those who ponder the Word and cultivate the field of their hearts will sprout the seeds of the Word and become life.

Matthew 13:3-9 『And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow; And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. 』

This parable tells the secret of heaven. In Matthew 13:11, He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 』

Only the disciples of Jesus were allowed to know the mystery. All who are in Christ are Jesus' disciples. He becomes a disciple, not because he who is in Christ believes in Jesus, but because he died on the cross with Jesus. Why does Jesus tell you to deny yourself? This is because 『self』 is the old man of the flesh who kills the spirit. So, the purpose of Jesus' coming into the world was to save the spirit. The Spirit is those who were in Christ in the kingdom of God. However, those who were in Christ were tempted by Satan, separated from Christ, and imprisoned in this world.

The Bible says in Ephesians 5:31-32, "For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church. 』The church means the spirit of the saints. The spirit dies because it is trapped in the earth, the material of this world, and the human life becomes a soul. To be dead means to have a broken relationship with God.