Dependent on God's Mercy
A Sermon on Romans 11:28-32
Originally preached April 2, 1965
Scripture
28As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sakes. 29For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance. 30For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy …
Sermon Description
In this sermon on Romans 11:28–32 titled “Dependent on God’s Mercy,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones teaches that faith is not merely an intellectual belief; it is an action and an obedience. Even while God frowns, He still loves. Look at the position of a non-believer – blind and disobedient before God. Rejoice in knowing that salvation is entirely a result of God’s mercy looking down upon humanity with pity. It is no result of a person’s doing. These are God's people. Jews and Gentiles alike are found to be disobedient, yet God pours out His mercy to both. God’s object is to show mercy; the concept of “mercy upon all” is not universalism. There is a great distinction between the saved and the lost. He caused the evangelization of the Gentiles to rapidly grow due to the rejection of the Jews to the very same gospel. God used the belief of the Gentiles to stir the Jews and bring them to salvation. God made foolish the things of this world and natural humanity cannot believe the things of God because He has shut them up in unbelief. God shows that nothing matters except for His mercy.
Sermon Breakdown
- The apostle Paul is explaining and expounding on the prophecy in Romans 11:25-26 about the salvation of Israel.
- In Romans 11:28-29, Paul says God views the Jews in two ways: as enemies of the gospel but beloved in terms of election. God's gifts and calling are irrevocable.
- In Romans 11:30-31, Paul says the Gentiles were once disobedient but now have received mercy through Jewish disobedience. The Jews are now disobedient so they can receive mercy through God's mercy to the Gentiles.
- In Romans 11:32, Paul says God has imprisoned all in disobedience so he can have mercy on all. "All" refers to Jews and Gentiles, not every individual. God shut up the Gentiles and Jews in unbelief to show his mercy.
- God deliberately emphasized the hopelessness of Jews and Gentiles to show that salvation comes only through his mercy. The Gentiles' salvation and the Jews' future salvation show this.
- No one can save themselves. God chooses the foolish and weak to shame the wise and strong so that no one can boast before him (1 Cor. 1:27-29).
- God has hidden the truth from the wise and revealed it to infants because it pleased him (Matt. 11:25-26). No one knows the Father except the Son and those the Son chooses to reveal him to.
- We are all born dead in sin and cannot believe or understand spiritual things (1 Cor. 2:14). God has imprisoned all in unbelief to show his mercy is what saves. His mercy saved Gentiles and will save Jews.
Sermon Q&A
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones on Romans 11:28-32: Questions and Answers
What does "all Israel shall be saved" refer to according to Dr. Lloyd-Jones?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, "all Israel shall be saved" (Romans 11:26) does not refer to the total number of elect Jews and Gentiles combined, nor merely to the total of elect Jews. Instead, he explains it refers to the bulk of the Jewish nation as a whole, as a kind of totality. He clarifies that this doesn't include every individual Jew, but refers to the Jews in general as a race. He emphasizes, "This is a reference to Israel as a whole and not merely to the total number of elect Jews and Gentiles."
How does God view the Jewish people according to Romans 11:28-29?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that God has two ways of looking at the Jewish people: "As concerning the Gospel, they are enemies for your sakes, but as touching the election, they are beloved for the father's sakes." When God looks at them in terms of the gospel and the current dispensation, He regards them as enemies. However, when He looks at them in terms of His original purpose of election revealed through the fathers, He regards these same people as beloved. Lloyd-Jones compares this to a parent who may frown upon a disobedient child while still loving them deeply.
What does "the gifts and calling of God are without repentance" mean?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that this phrase means "God never regrets what he does." All His gifts and promises to the fathers and His great purpose of election are unchangeable. The word "repentance" here refers to regret or change of mind. God does not change His mind about His promises to Israel. This statement emphasizes the faithfulness of God to His covenant promises despite Israel's current unbelief.
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones explain the pattern of Jewish and Gentile salvation in Romans 11:30-31?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains this pattern as a complete parallelism: "As you [Gentiles] in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their [Jews'] unbelief. Even so have these [Jews] also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy." He clarifies that historically:
- First, the Gentiles were in unbelief
- Then the Jews' rejection of Christ led to the gospel going to Gentiles
- Now the Gentiles have received mercy while most Jews remain in unbelief
- In the future, the mercy shown to Gentiles will provoke Jews to jealousy and lead them to salvation
What does Romans 11:32 mean when it says "God has concluded them all in unbelief"?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that "concluded" means "shut up completely" or "enclosed on all sides with no way of escape." The "all" refers not to every individual who has ever lived (which would lead to universalism), but to all groups of mankind—specifically Jews and Gentiles as the two major divisions of humanity. God has demonstrated the complete helplessness of both Jews and Gentiles in order to show that salvation comes only through His mercy. Lloyd-Jones states: "God hath shut them up in this...so that there's no way out at all. That is how God saves."
Why has God demonstrated the unbelief of both Jews and Gentiles according to Romans 11?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, God has deliberately emphasized the hopelessness and helplessness of both Jews and Gentiles for a specific purpose: "in order to glorify his own great and eternal name and show that everything is the result of his grace and mercy and compassion." By showing that both groups are completely shut up in unbelief with no way out through their own efforts, God demonstrates that salvation is entirely the result of divine mercy. As Lloyd-Jones puts it: "Whenever a single soul is saved, it is all only because of the mercy of God."
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones explain the historical reversal between Jews and Gentiles?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones describes a dramatic historical reversal in God's dealings with Jews and Gentiles: "Once, indeed, until the first coming of the Son of God into this world, the Gentiles were unbelievers... The Jews were God's people." But with Christ's coming, "the position has been entirely reversed." In the Old Testament, the Jews were God's people with occasional Gentile converts. In the New Testament church, it became mainly Gentiles with occasional Jewish believers. Lloyd-Jones teaches that this reversal is not the end of the story, as God will eventually bring the Jewish people back to faith through the witness of Gentile believers.
The Book of Romans
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.