After Paul went through his belief about his fellow countrymen one day coming to faith in Jesus he launches into a time of praise and worship. In this reading, we see an exalted view of God and the reasons He should be praised. 

Paul's prayer is for ethnic Israel and their salvation. He makes it clear that their salvation will be by faith in their Messiah Jesus. He also points out that there will be a future time when the Israelites will turn to faith in Jesus and once again be grafted into the olive tree of God's family. This future component is a mystery but it is based on God's mercy. 

Here is the link to Philip's blog that we discussed in the podcast:   https://philsfiction.com/blog/

Paul tells the Gentiles that they have been grafted into the olive tree of God's people. There is no reason to boast or glory about this because it is by God's grace that He has done this. Paul also tells us that this grafting of the Gentiles may lead Israel to faith in Christ through their jealousy. 

Paul asks the stinging question, "Did God reject His people?" Paul goes on to remind the reader of Romans that there have been other times in history when Israel was faithless while He was faithful. There were times when God preserved a remnant that stayed faithful. 

Part of God's plan from all time was the inclusion of the Gentiles into God's people. In this passage, Paul draws from Deuteronomy 32 and Isaiah 65 to remind his Jewish brethren that they should not be shocked by the Gentiles coming into God's new covenant people. This was part of God's plan from the time of Abraham in Genesis 12 and Genesis 15. 

Israel had wept and had a time of great sorrow during their exile. God brought them home and their sowing of tears became a reaping of joy. 

Many people misunderstand what Paul means by 'calling on the name of the Lord' and just how faith and obedience work in his writings. In this podcast, we clear up some misunderstandings and try to provide some clarity on the issue of hearing, faith, and obedience.  

Paul builds on the idea that the word is near us and tells his readers that with our mouths we confess Jesus as Lord and with our hearts, we believe in the resurrection. The result is the salvation of the Roman Christians. 

Paul demonstrates that a righteousness based on the observance of the Law is not possible. God, in Christ, has brought about our rescue by Jesus doing for us what we could not have accomplished. The word is near us and it is accessible because of what Jesus accomplished for us.