Faith, Not Works
A Sermon on Romans 9:30-33
Originally preached March 22, 1963
Scripture
30What shall we say then? That the Gentiles, which followed not after righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness which is of faith. 31But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. 32Wherefore? Because they sought it not …
Sermon Description
Paul is grieving over the standing of the Jews because in the church there are more believing Gentiles than Jews. This fact probably rattled most Jews to the core. The Gentiles, who had not sought after righteousness and lived immoral lives, had received a righteousness by faith. However, the Jews, who were actively pursuing the law and its commands, had not received righteousness. So why is it that God’s chosen people were outside of the church? In this sermon on Romans 9:30–33 titled “Faith, not Works,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones says that the law demands absolute perfection and if any one statute were broken then there would be no account of righteousness. Paul points out that the gospel of the Lord is for all people and salvation is purely the work of Christ alone. Each person is responsible for their rejection of the gospel but they are not responsible for their acceptance of the gospel. The Bible teaches that election alone accounts for the saved, but non-election does not count for those who are lost. All are in Adam so they are all without excuse, both Jews and Gentiles.
Sermon Breakdown
- The apostle is drawing a conclusion from the whole chapter, especially from verse 6 onwards.
- In verses 30-31, he makes a statement of the conclusion. In verses 32-33, he gives an explanation of the facts.
- The facts: The Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have attained righteousness by faith. Israel pursued righteousness through the law but did not attain it.
- The explanation: The Jews did not attain righteousness because they pursued it not by faith but by works of the law. They stumbled over the stumbling stone.
- Many see a contradiction between verses 6-29 which teach God's sovereignty and verses 30-33 which teach human responsibility. But there is no contradiction. Both doctrines are true.
- Election alone accounts for the saved but non-election does not account for the lost. The lost are responsible for rejecting the gospel.
- The Jews, like Pharaoh, confirmed their lost state by rejecting the gospel, justifying God's wrath. But God did not make them evil or lost. They were lost in Adam like all.
- We must accept both God's sovereignty and human responsibility. How one is saved depends on God's choice. How one is lost depends on man's sin and unbelief.
Sermon Q&A
Questions and Answers from Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones' Sermon on Romans 9:30-33
What is the main contrast that Paul presents in Romans 9:30-33?
The main contrast Paul presents is between Gentiles who have attained righteousness despite not pursuing it, and Israel who pursued righteousness through the law but failed to attain it. As Lloyd-Jones explains, "We are confronted by this amazing and astonishing position that the people who never give a single thought to God and justification and being right with God are right with God. Whereas the people to whom the biggest thing in life, in a sense, was religion and being right with God are not right with God." This paradox forms the core of Paul's argument in this passage.
What does Lloyd-Jones say is the difference between the words "attained" in verses 30 and 31?
Lloyd-Jones points out that the original Greek uses two different words that are both translated as "attained" in the Authorized Version. In verse 30, regarding the Gentiles, the word should be translated as "apprehend" or "to take eagerly to seize." It conveys the idea that Gentiles eagerly embraced and laid hold of righteousness by faith when they heard the gospel. In verse 31, regarding Israel, the word actually means "did not arrive at" or "did not reach the goal" of righteousness through the law, showing they fell short despite their pursuit.
How does Lloyd-Jones address the apparent contradiction between God's sovereignty and human responsibility?
Lloyd-Jones firmly states there is no contradiction. He explains that both truths exist side by side in Scripture: "Election alone accounts for the saved, but non-election does not account for the lost." He clarifies that people are saved solely because of God's sovereign election (Romans 9:6-29), but people are lost because of their own sinful rejection of the gospel (Romans 9:30-33). The apostle explains why anyone is saved in the first section, and why anyone is lost in the second section, without contradiction.
What does Lloyd-Jones say was Israel's fundamental error in seeking righteousness?
According to Lloyd-Jones, Israel's fundamental error was that "they sought it not by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law." They were pursuing righteousness through keeping the Mosaic Law rather than through faith. The Jews were eagerly trying to arrive at the goal of righteousness through law-keeping, but as James 2:10 states, "For whosoever shall keep the whole law and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all." Their approach was fundamentally flawed because the law demands absolute perfection with no allowance for any failure.
What does Lloyd-Jones say about the proper interpretation of difficult passages in Scripture?
Lloyd-Jones warns against adopting explanations that are "too easy" for difficult passages. He states, "Never adopt an explanation of an apparent difficulty or impasse, which makes it too easy. Let's always remember that the scriptures are profound, that these matters are not simple and easy." He rejects interpretations that remove the mystery from Scripture, arguing that we should approach difficult doctrines with humility, recognizing that divine truths may transcend our full understanding.
How does Lloyd-Jones critique those who claim Paul contradicts himself in Romans 9?
Lloyd-Jones criticizes scholars like Professors Dodd and Barclay who suggest Paul contradicts himself. He offers several counterarguments: (1) such a view denies divine inspiration of Scripture; (2) it does injustice to Paul's intellectual capacity as a logical thinker; (3) it offers a solution that is "too easy" and removes the mystery from Scripture; and (4) it doesn't actually solve the problem, because it would make Paul's entire argument from verses 6-29 unnecessary and irrelevant if the only explanation for Israel's failure was their lack of faith.
What does Lloyd-Jones say about the relationship between Israel and the Jews in this passage?
Lloyd-Jones explicitly states that "Israel and the Jews are the same people. He [Paul] uses the terms interchangeably and will go on doing so." He adds, "any attempt to differentiate between Israel and Jews is utterly unscriptural." He specifically criticizes certain "popular cults" that try to make such distinctions, affirming that in biblical usage, these terms refer to the same people group.
What does Lloyd-Jones say is the proper response to these difficult doctrines?
Lloyd-Jones concludes with a prayer that reveals his view of the proper response: humility and reverence. He prays, "We feel we hear thy voice coming to us, commanding us to take the shoes from off our feet. For the ground whereon we stand is holy ground." He asks forgiveness for "rushing at the mystery" and trying to "solve it and dissect it," urging believers to approach these doctrines "as little children" with humble dependence on the Holy Spirit's enlightenment rather than presuming to fully comprehend them through human reasoning alone.
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.