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Some have believed that the doctrine of election and the words of Romans 10:9 and 13 are at odds with each other. Of course they are not, since God cannot contradict Himself. There are two common misunderstandings about the doctrine of election. One position is for people to justify their sinful desires, blaming God for their condition of being cut off from Him. This is false thinking, for God does not condemn innocent people. The responsibility of sin rests on each individual who chooses that response. Another misunderstanding that the doctrine of election can lead to is inactivity by Christians in witnessing to others. People may think that since election is all by God's choice, there is no responsibility to teach their neighbor the truth of Christ. In this passage, Paul shows us that everyone who believes in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord will be saved. Everyone is welcome, the only requirement is belief. How does that fit with the truth that God chooses those to whom He will give salvation? One analogy is a clock that has two gears which turn counter to each other to produce the working mechanism of that clock. Another would be a coin having two sides, both necessary to make up the coin. Similarly, there are two sides to the truth of salvation. God chose you before the foundation of the world, but you must choose God in your lifetime. God is good. He has given us the opportunity and desire to know Him. Salvation is open to anyone who wants to receive it. God's choice of man and man's free will are both part of the truth of salvation. God can fully balance many truths that our finite minds can only yield to. Romans 9:18 teaches that God in His righteousness does pass over some. On the other hand is the universal gospel invitation, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." Paul makes it clear that the offer of salvation is open to everyone. ( Romans 10: 12-13). If it were not for this invitation, we might think election excludes us or that the gospel is for people other than ourselves. But in Romans 10:13 we are told it is for anyone who calls upon Jesus, trusting in what He has accomplished on the cross. If you are a Christian, what a wonderful message we have to bring to our family, friends, and neighbors! God in His grace is seeking us. We do not earn the gift of salvation and we cannot work for it. The Jewish people failed to attain salvation because they pursued it not by faith but by work. (Romans 9:32) They sought salvation in the wrong way, and so do we all, until God turns our minds and hearts to Jesus. Jesus Christ became a stumbling stone for them. Isaiah 28:16 states, "See I lay a stone in Zion a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts will never be dismayed." (See also Isaiah 8:14) In Romans 9:33, Paul uses both Isaiah 26:16 and Isaiah 8:14 to help clarify who the stumbling stone is. In Isaiah 8:14 the prophet says that Jehovah is the stone that causes people to stumble. But Isaiah 28:16 makes clear that the stumbling stone is another individual whom God is going to "lay in Zion." This means the latter passage explains the earlier one, showing that the stumbling stone is actually the Lord Jesus Christ whom the Father sent into this world. The passages of Isaiah not only identify Jesus as the stone, they also identify Him as God. The Jewish people of this time and many people today think that what the righteousness God requires of us is human righteousness, that is, a development of character or an accumulation of good works of which we ourselves are capable. What they do not understand is that God requires divine righteousness. Since it is divine, the only way it can be obtained is from God Himself as a free gift. Personally I did not receive this gift until I was forty four years old. All my life I believed in God. I believed God to be the creator, and I followed a religious system that I had set up for myself. I knew I would be judged for my actions and I felt I could justify them before God. I was a fairly moral person and I cared about others However, I did not know what to do with Jesus. I actually resented others who said Jesus was the only way we could know God. I came to omit Jesus or at best ignore Him as not being an integral part of my religious system. I had stumbled over the stumbling stone. In my self-reliant thinking I could not accept my need for a Savior. I believed that whatever needed to be done for my relationship with God could and should be accomplished by me. I, like many others, both Jew and Gentile alike, depended on my own righteousness through avoiding evil, and performing good deeds. I could not see that my works could never add up to what true righteousness is, divine righteousness. For the Jewish leaders of the first century, the fact that divine righteousness was unattainable by man was an intolerable concept. They considered themselves to be quite good and clearly better than others. They didn't realize that God gave the law to show that we are sinners in need of a savior. The reality of this fact is just as difficult for people today. We must turn to the mercy of God to save us from our sins, rather than plead our own morality as ground for God's approval. Paul clearly states our new relationship to the law in Romans 10:4, "Christ is the end of the law so that there may be a righteousness for everyone who believes." Paul presents the simplicity and inclusiveness of the gospel in Romans 10:9-13. Some have asked, "What about people who just mouth the words 'Jesus is Lord', but then do not live the life?" The answer is God's responsibility. If one understands what these words mean, one's life will be different. For no one can meaningfully say, "Jesus is Lord" and remain unchanged. (see 1 Corinthians 12:3) It is impossible to overestimate the significance of those three words. They were the starting point of the church and early Christian preaching. Believers throughout history have been willing to give their lives for that statement of truth. When we say "Jesus is Lord"
we testify to three things: 1) the deity of Christ, 2) the saving work
of Christ, 3) the on-going, all-embracing rule of Christ over His
people, the church, and the whole world. The first of these truths is
due to the fact that in the Greek version of the Old Testament, the
Septuagint, the word Kyrios, "Lord," is used to translate the great
Hebrew name for God, Yahweh, over 6,000 times. This is why most of our
English Bibles do not use God's name Yahweh, but have the word, Lord,
instead. The disciples of Christ knew that this word was repeatedly
used to translate the name for God. Yet, knowing this, they did not
hesitate to transfer the title to Jesus. The second implication of the
title, Lord, is that Jesus is Savior. This is linked to His lordship
because "Lord" is a symbol of Christ's victory on the cross, and
therefore our deliverance from sin and death. The third implication of
the words, "Jesus is Lord", is that Jesus rules over the church and the
world from heaven. (Colossians 1:15-18 and 1 Peter 3:22) Christians are
to confess Him openly before others. (Romans 10:10) Let us be rid of
all "secret discipleship." Now is the time of God's grace! We will not
need to witness to others about Christ in heaven. We must testify now
of His amazing grace sufficient for salvation. Each of us can proclaim,
like the blind man in John 9:25, "I once was blind but now I see."
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