Week #6: The Gospel is Grounded in a God Who Keeps His Promises

I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he appeals to God against Israel? “Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life.” But what is God’s reply to him? “I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace. 

What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.” And David says, “Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a retribution for them; let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and bend their backs forever.” 

So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous. Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion mean! 

Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them. For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead? If the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, so is the whole lump, and if the root is holy, so are the branches. 


The question of God’s character is a very important one. The Roman gods were known for their whimsy and capricious nature. They could change their minds or toy with humans. If they were not appeased, they would remove their favor and act out in vengeance. Is the Christian God of similar character? Can we trust God to follow through on His promises to His people?

The answer scripture gives to this question is a resounding yes. Taking Israel as a case study, Paul argues that God has always preserved a faithful remnant to keep His promises toward even when the majority of the nation were led astray to worship other gods. Though most of the Jews rejected Jesus as Messiah, many did receive Him, including Paul himself, demonstrating that God had not fully rejected His people.

Moreover, God has used the fact that most of the Jews rejected His Messiah for good, for it was through their rejection of gospel that the message of salvation was taken to the Gentiles. Yet Paul still prays for his people, that ultimately they will turn to Christ and be once again fully included and accepted in God’s salvation.

• This section of Scripture contains some concepts that might be difficult to understand or receive, such as God’s election and hardening. Are you able to trust God even when you don’t understand all of His ways?
• What difference does it make in your Christian life to be assured that God is a God who keeps His promises made to His people?
• Paul is very personally committed to seeing the gospel of Christ accepted among his people. Think about your people group or ethnic background. How is God working among your people?