Wednesday Night Bible Study Romans 9:30-10:4
Romans: “The just shall live by faith”
Types of Righteousness
Read: Romans 9:30-10:13
Scripture and Key References:
“For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness.” ~ Romans 10:3
1 Corinthians 1:23 Philippians 3:1-11 Galatians 2:16 Isaiah 28:9-10 Psalm 19:7; 119:70, 77 Ecclesiastes 7:20
Introduction:
Here in Romans 9:30 Paul is still answering the question, “What about Israel?” Paul wants his audience to know that the Jew’s rejection of Christ does indicate a failure of God’s redemptive plan. He has countered such thinking by making a case for election (9:6-24). He also made sure to note that God’s plan included Gentiles (9:25-29). Now, Paul argues that the Jews alone are to blame for their failure to believe. God clearly made the way of true righteousness known to them. They failed to trust the Christ because they wanted to cling to their own man-made righteousness. Man – made righteousness before God is no righteousness at all.
Discussion and Review Questions:
1. Have you experienced people who were not seeking a right standing with God and yet God worked to bring them to faith? What did their conversion to Christ look like?
2. In Romans 10:3 we are told that the Jews were ignorant of God’s righteousness. What were they failing to grasp? Why?
3. Paul reminds us that religious energy and sincerity is no guarantee of truth. How does this reality help you relate to your non-Christian neighbors?
4. Are you naturally someone who needs to add zeal to knowledge, or knowledge to zeal?
5. In what ways do you revert back to law-keeping as a means of relating to God? How can we keep this from happening?
6. What does Paul mean when he says that Christ is “the end of the law?” What difference does this make to your life?