This week on Things Unseen, we're taking a helicopter tour of Paul's great letter to

the Romans, and we're halfway there now. Today we've reached chapters 9 through 11.

What are they all about? When we read Paul's letters, it's always

important to ask, why did he move from saying that to now saying this? So how is the glory of

Romans 8 verses 31 to 39 related to the apparent gloom of the opening verses of chapter 9,

where Paul seems to be in some distress? Well, you'll remember how chapter 9 begins.

Paul is heartbroken because he's kinsman according to the flesh, the Jewish people,

who have had so many spiritual privileges, by and large, have not come to faith in the Lord

Jesus Christ. Paul even echoes Moses' words and says that he'd be willing to be accursed himself

if that were possible, if it would lead to their salvation. I suspect that being in the spiritual

heights in Romans 8, 31 to 39, may have triggered in Paul's emotions the realization that he,

a Jew, had tasted the grace of Christ, but his own people by and large the people he loved

wanted nothing to do with the Savior. And in addition, Paul seems to have been aware of the

tensions or at least the potential tensions in the Roman churches between Jews and Gentiles.

That wasn't altogether surprising because sometime before, Claudius Caesar had expelled Jews

from Rome, partly because of some conflict with the Christians, and Jewish Christians had been sent

away too. But now they'd been allowed to return. But in the meantime, the churches in Rome

must have become very Gentile type churches. So I think you can imagine how perhaps the Jewish

Christians who returned may have felt that they no longer really mattered. So Paul's concern for

the Jews and then his extended exposition of God's purposes for Jews and Gentiles in chapters 9

to 11 is not only biblically important, theologically important, it was pastorally important.

So what's his argument? Well, it's this. God's word hasn't failed. His promises have not been broken.

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