Romans 11:25-36
And so all Israel will be saved; as it is written, “Out of Zion will come the Deliverer; he will banish ungodliness from Jacob.” 27“And this is my covenant with them, when I take away their sins.” 28As regards the gospel they are enemies of God for your sake; but as regards election they are beloved, for the sake of their ancestors; 29for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. 30Just as you were once disobedient to God but have now received mercy because of their disobedience, 31so they have now been disobedient in order that, by the mercy shown to you, they too may now receive mercy. 32For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may be merciful to all. (Romans 11:26-32)
Paul creates an interesting dichotomy between “the gospel” and “election” and then applies this dichotomy to Gentiles and Israel. The text above is clear enough (as clear as Paul ever is, at any rate!), so it need not be repeated. What’s more interesting is that first dichotomy – gospel and election. I would suspect most of us would see the two as one and the same. To be elect is to accept the Good News of the gospel. To accept the gospel is to be elected. Yet Paul doesn’t say that.
If we take Paul’s word for it (and, really, what option do we have?), then we have to acknowledge there is some difference. Furthermore, since Paul begins with “…all Israel will be saved,” we can logically conclude that election and salvation are paired together, but not necessarily gospel and salvation. What gives? Haven’t we been told “Accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior (that is, the gospel) and be saved” by theologians for many generations?
One good clue in this mystery comes from Jesus’ inaugural sermon (you’ll hear a little more about this in the sermon this Sunday!) from Luke 4. In it, Jesus quotes from the book of Isaiah:
because he has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor”
(vv. 18-19)
He then rolls up the scroll and says, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
What are the elements of this very short sermon? (1) Good News to the poor; (2) liberation; (3) healing; (4) liberation; (5) proclamation of Good News. In scripture, this is called a chiastic structure where certain lines thematically link to other lines. It’s best to see it visualized:
A1 – “bring good news to the poor” (proclaim)
B1 – “release to the captives” (liberate)
C – “recovery of sight to the blind” (heal)
B2 – “let the oppressed go free” (liberate)
A2 – “proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (proclaim)
Conspicuous in its absence is any mention of salvation. What we learn is that “the gospel” is very much about proclamation, liberation, and healing.
If it seems that the church has been talking more about issues like racism that’s because we, elected-and-saved Presbyterians, are not resting merely on our election and salvation, but are seeking to live out our gospel calling of speaking out, liberating, and healing. We do so not only because it glorifies God, but because we don’t want to hear of us what Paul says about Israel: “As regards the gospel they are enemies of God” (v. 28).
Beloved, you are saved and through your salvation elected. You are freed from your captivity to sin and are now freed for the liberating work of the gospel. Go, therefore, and be liberators anywhere you find oppression and injustice. Let this scripture be fulfilled in your life. Amen.
