Journey through the Book of Romans

Paul knows Israel must Believe the Gospel Part 2

Romans 10:4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. NKJV

Paul condemned the very religious Jewish system that he once served and defended as unrighteous. We concluded our last study by saying that religion kills. Paul knew exactly the meaning of that statement because he was knee deep in the Jewish religion and his zeal was so hot and fervent that he was like today’s modern day Muslim Jihadist bent on killing everyone who names the Name of Jesus Christ thinking they are serving and doing God’s will. Paul and today’s modern day Muslim Jihadist are in fact persecuting the One and Only God. Paul has been so open with his emotions and feelings and his sincere concern for the spiritual well-being and the eternal salvation of the Nation which gave birth to him in the flesh that he has not been timid or reserved with his words concerning their true spiritual condition. Paul now being united with our Lord Jesus Christ through the miracle of regeneration and the new birth sees his Nation Israel through new lenses and so desperately wants them to come to God the Father by the only way He has ordained. Paul knows the rigor of daily not knowing if you have done enough or failed to do what the Jewish Ceremonial Laws required from every good Jew. Paul now looks upon what he once was surely pleasing God as stench in God’s nostrils and sees the Pharisees, Scribes, Elders, High Priest, and others making God angry more and more as they reject, refuse, and resist the way of righteousness He has sent through His Son our Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul now sums up all that he has said about the Nation Israel and to those Jews who would happen to read this letter of his from the beginning of this Chapter 9 with these most marvelous, magnificent, and mighty words placing as if it were a period on all he has said thus far. Paul shouts this truth of “Christ being the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes” in the hearing of anyone who would pick up this letter and read it. Paul so wants all of Israel to put down their religious works system and confess themselves as sinners and repent or turn from their sin and receive Christ to satisfy God’s requirement to stand before Him forgiven and blameless (Philippians 2:15 & 1 Thessalonians 5:23 & 2 Peter 3:14). When Paul says Christ is the end, he is going all the way back into the Garden of Eden when these words were spoken by God,  Genesis 3:14-15 The LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, Cursed are you more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the field; On your belly you will go, And dust you will eat All the days of your life; And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel.” NKJV From the moment Adam sinned everything has been pointing to Calvary where Christ would provide the way of bringing now fallen sinful man back into intimate fellowship and relationship with Pure and Holy God.

God the Father has concluded all that He will say to sinful Jews and Gentiles in Christ alone, for He is not sending anymore Prophets like Isaiah or Jeremiah to warn Israel (Hebrews 1:1-2). Our Lord Jesus was eager to affirm all that the Father had sent Him to do and when He began that great teaching we now refer to as the “Sermon on the Mount”, He said this to His disciples and the crowd gathered, Matthew 5:17-20 “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” NKJV It is pretty certain that the Apostle Paul was still an unsaved zealous Pharisee at the time our Lord Jesus spoke these words and perhaps Paul might have even sneaked into the crowd disguising himself to get a listen to what this Man Jesus would have to say.

Whatever the former case might have been, it was certain that Paul surely had these words from our Lord on his mind and heart as he penned this 4^th verse of this Chapter 10 to those in Rome. Paul knew from our Lord Jesus taking him out in the desert of Arabia teaching him all that He would write through this man how much He (Christ) disdained the Jewish religious works system that only bound men (like Paul before conversion) with heavy burdens hard to bear. Christ came and let every individual person’s sin nail Him to the Cross, even every Jew religious or non-religious. Paul now in union with our Lord Jesus knows that the Law was not given by God to Israel to justify them before Him, but it was given to them that they might see their complete failure and unworthiness and look forward to Christ coming to erase those sin stained blemishes in the washing of His Blood. Every soul of man Jew and Gentile recognize right and wrong as the conscience bears witness to it, but when every sinful Jew or Gentile look at the Law of God they should be brought to hopelessness and despair of soul and long to come to our Lord Jesus Christ who beckons with these words, Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” NKJV

Galatians 3:21-24 Is the Law then contrary to the promises of God? May it never be! For if a law had been given which was able to impart life, and then righteousness would indeed have been based on law. But the Scripture has shut up everyone under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the law, being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed. Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith. NKJV

“The design of the law was to lead people to Christ. The moral law was but for the searching of the wound, the ceremonial law for the shadowing forth of the remedy; but Christ is the end of both.” Matthew Henry

“As Christ is the end of the Law and the Gospel and has within Himself all the treasures of wisdom and understanding, so also is He the mark at which all heretics aim and direct their arrows.” John Calvin

“The sinful heart of men and women cannot conceive of the thought that they cannot do anything to make themselves acceptable to God, so the gospel of grace only rubs the proud and self-righteous the wrong way and they continue to pursue works of charitable acts to appease their consciences, not understanding without Christ in their heart and His Glory as their goal, these things make God the Father sick. Then their question to that statement is how can God be disgusted with me for doing good deeds?” Clifford D. Tate, Sr.

If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...


Sincerely in Christ,


Clifford D. Tate, Sr.

Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reade, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…