18 But I say, surely they have never heard, have they? Indeed they have; “Their voice has gone out into all the earth, And their words to the ends of the world.”
Message: Faith comes by hearing the word of Christ.
Time: Written in AD 57 from Greece, to the Christians, both Gentile and Jewish in Rome.
What the Lord is Saying:
This is a wonderful chapter and yet it's overall theme is rejection.
- Romans 10:1-3 Many have a zeal for God, but it is not in accordance with knowledge. People try to establish their own righteousness than resting in the righteousness of Jesus.
- Romans 10:4 Christ ended the law of practicing righteousness.
- Romans 10:5-8 contrasts the two messages of life. There is a message of practicing righteousness based on a law. This is contrasted with a righteousness by faith.
- Romans 10:9-13 tells us the gospel is open to all and there is no distinction. Faith is what sets apart the believer from the unbeliever. For whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved. We are to confess that Jesus is Lord and believe that God raised him from the dead.
- Romans 10:14-15 spoke of the need for the Gospel to be brought to people. The church is to send people. God calls harvest workers to carry the good news and the church needs to support people.
Here in verse 16, Paul speaks about the person that hears but does not receive the good news. I find that the most difficult people to reach are those that are already religious or deep in their faith.
Paul quotes a verse that John also quoted in John 12:38. It is from Isaiah 53:1, "Who has believed our report?" Chapter 53 is all about Jesus and the prophecy of the Messiah. Isaiah 53:3 says, "He is despised and rejected by men."
"Heed" is an interesting word that Paul uses because it intertwines faith and obedience. We are saved by faith, but faith works. Faith is obedient and moves us to obedience. Obedience is a response to our faith not a condition. But, obedience is not ever absent. The problem here with Paul's audience, the Jew is they heard the message, they had the message of the prophet Isaiah but they have rejected it.
But, it must be heard
Verse 17 proclaims the truth that faith comes by hearing. It does not come by reading. As is clear in the 1st century, faith was a product of the voice, of people being told, of people hearing the message. We preach the word of Christ. We preach Christ crucified. The message of the gospel is centrally a message of Jesus and his work for us. What separates Christianity from other religions is the central message of Christ. Other faiths push it to the side or add it as an addendum or make it a part of their message, but the central message of our faith is the Word of Christ. It is a message of Jesus and it is a message that came from Jesus.
And the Jews have heard
Verse 18 is a classic verse from Paul for it is another time when he uses a question from the audience, per se, and answers it. Has the Jew heard? Definitely they have. And he quotes Psalm 19:4, but I want to begin with verse 1:
1 The heavens are telling of the glory of God;
And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.
2 Day to day pours forth speech,
And night to night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words;
Their voice is not heard.
4 Their line has gone out through all the earth,
And their utterances to the end of the world.
God's message has been declared. No one has an excuse before Him. The problem isn't the message not going out, but that people don't want to listen, but thank goodness many have listened. Thank goodness for the remnant, for the people that do believe.
Promise: Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of Christ.
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