.In chapter 10, Paul teaches us what God’s message should be to a lost world. This means a world that has no faith in God. This means to a world that is under God’s wrath and judgment. What is this message?  It is: “Jesus is Lord.”  Through this message God saves anybody who will confess “Jesus is Lord” with their heart and with their mouth. This morning we want to know what it means to make a personal confession of faith that Jesus is Lord.  I pray that God may give each one of us a personal confession of faith to God and to believers and to non-believers.  I also pray that God may use our feet to bring this good news to all nations so all that call on Jesus’ name may be saved from their sins.

PART 1 THE GOSPEL MESSAGE: JESUS IS CHRIST THE LORD (1-13)

Let’s read verse 1, “Brothers, my hearts desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved.”   The Apostle Paul had a great shepherd heart for his people so he kept on praying for them to be saved. In chapter 9 Paul said that he had great sorrow and unceasing anguish in his heart.  His sorrow and anguish came when he knew his people had rejected God’s holy mission and the Messiah Jesus Christ and were under God’s wrath and judgment. In chapter 10 his prayer for them is because they were still blindly trying to follow their own way of righteousness instead of the righteousness that is by faith in Jesus as revealed in the Bible.

Paul knew that his people were zealous for God. He also knew,  that their zeal was misdirected. Let’s read verses 2-4, “For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. Christ is the end of the law so that there might be righteousness for everyone who believes.”

The Jews thought that they were saved by God for many reasons. They thought that since they were the physical descendants of Abraham that they were saved. They said firmly, “We are the children of Abraham!!” They knew of Abraham’s faith and they liked calling themselves the children of Abraham. They also thought that they were saved because they observed the law of Moses absolutely. They kept the Sabbath day, they fasted 2 times a week, they gave a tenth of their earnings and they spent time memorizing the Bible. Over time, they added many laws so the total of laws was 631. They thought that the more laws they had and the more laws they tried to observe, the more righteous before God they would be. They had great zeal for God and should be credited for their zeal. To be zealous for God is good. However zeal for God does not save us.

The Jews that Paul talks about here are a case in point. They had zeal for God but they were not saved. They were not saved because their zeal was not based on knowledge so their zeal was misdirected and misapplied. They thought that the Law would save them and would make them right with God. However, they failed to realize that the law only makes one more conscience of their sins and for the need of Jesus’ saving grace and mercy. Here, in verse 2, the word “knowledge” is God’s righteousness. God’s righteousness is that a man is made righteous with God through faith in Jesus Christ. This is found in the Old Testament.

Romans 3:21-22 says, “But now a righteousness from God apart from law has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe…”  When the Jews did not humbly and prayerfully study the Bible they lost the whole point. Then they tried to establish their own righteousness. When they did this, they only added many rules and regulations and traditions which made those who tried to live by them very boastful, proud and self-righteous and those who didn’t do them, the objects of their criticism. They were like the Pharisee in Luke 18:10-12. It says, “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers---or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’”

See this man’s self-righteous zeal? The Apostle Paul was also at one time like this. In his own way and in his human zeal for God he personally tried to destroy the young church of Jesus. He was the one who approved Saint Stephen’s stoning. He was the one who personally dragged Christians to be persecuted and jailed even going as far north as Damascus. He was like a one man wrecking crew and all the disciples were worried about his zeal.  Paul  thought he was doing God’s will. However, he was doing it for selfish ambition and without the knowledge of God. In the 12th and 13th century many people who called themselves Christians came from all over Europe to try and  retake the city of Jerusalem from the hands of Moslems. In order to do this, they formed crusades of soldiers who killed many innocent people. Their zeal went even as far as killing many Jews and calling the Jews “Christ killers” saying that they were avenging the Jews killing of Jesus. They thought that this was God’s way to make them righteous. All of this is zeal without knowledge. This was certainly not Jesus’ way!
 

 The religious Jews were too proud to confess their wretchedness to God and admit their unrighteousness, so they hid behind righteous acts, pretending these things would save them. They claimed that they were righteous because they had the law. But Romans 3:10 says, “As it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one.”

This is why God provided for all people the way to be righteous with the coming of Jesus. Jesus’ coming is a new era and new covenant in God’s history.  Verse 4 says, “Christ is the end of the law so that there might be righteousness for everyone who believes.”  We are no longer under the written law. Now we are under the grace of Jesus. All we need to do is to believe and then we are right with God. All one needs is faith in Jesus. If we try to follow the law, and try to live a righteous life without faith in Jesus, we will become burdened, tired and exhausted and have no peace with God. This is because no one can follow the law without breaking at least one law.  I know someone who tried to serve God with his own zeal thinking his righteous acts would make him right with God. He diligently took care of the Bible Center. He fished zealously and had over one hundred   names of sheep and their telephone numbers. He  read the Bible and many religious books.  However, he could not accept the righteousness that comes by faith in Jesus because he still struggled with sin. He thought that if he believed in Jesus that he would never sin anymore; that he would be perfect! As a result, he had no peace but instead felt a heavy burden and God’s judgment. This is because he tried to live under his own law to be righteous with God. He could not believe God’s grace that comes when we believe in Jesus as our righteousness. In his eyes he kept failing again and again. (See Paul’s example of works after he accepted Christ. It was God’s grace that helped him work hard. He was not burdened, but thankful for God’s grace. 1 Cor.15:9-10)

In verse 5 Paul uses the example of Moses who told the people how they could be righteous under the law. Let’s read verse 5, “Moses describes in this way the righteousness that is by the law: ‘The man who does these things will live by them.’”  These are words from Leviticus 18:5. The law states that if you obey it 100% then you are righteous. But who can do this? In order to do this you would have to be perfect. There is no one who can live in total obedience to God because all of us have sinned at least one time. Even if we break one law, even one time, then we are considered law  breakers. Only Jesus could obey the law 100% because he was perfect God and perfect man. The Jews knew that they could not keep all the requirements of the law. So they were not righteous, but condemned. Nevertheless, they stubbornly refused to believe in the righteousness of God, that is Jesus Christ

Let’s read verses 6-7, “But the righteousness that is by faith says: ‘Do not say in your heart, Who will ascend into heaven (that is to bring Christ down) or Who will ascend into the deep? (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).” These verses seem strange. What does it mean? It means that the righteousness by faith is only possible because of Jesus. It also means that man can only obey God’s commands and live a godly life because Jesus.

Jesus who is God in the flesh came into this world as a baby in a manger. He lived in obedience to God’s will. He died on the cross and rose from the dead. All we have to do is receive him and his words and not be a skeptic. We don’t have to sigh of the impossibility of attaining righteousness and justification with God, because God in his power has done it through the death and resurrection of his Son Jesus. The gospel work has been completed through Jesus’ death for our sins and his resurrection from the dead.

All we have to do is to believe the word of God which isn’t far from us. Let’s read verse 8, “But what does it say? ‘The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart’, that is the word of faith we are proclaiming.”

God is not far from us. He is right here in the Bible, speaking to us.  It shows us the way of faith and the way of righteousness and the way of eternal life. The key is our mouths and hearts. Our hearts especially are the key to faith and future glory. Our hearts must be open to Jesus as the only way of righteousness.  Then our hearts must be willing to obey him and his word.

What then must we do to be saved and have God’s righteousness?  Let’s read verse 9, “That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord’, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.’”  This confession of faith is the point of our faith. “Jesus is Lord.”  This is the climax of God’s history. God in his great mercy sent his Son to die on the cross for the sins of the world.  God in his great mercy raised him from the dead for our justification. Every great man in history, every military general or leader of an empire like Caesar and Napolean died. Even the Queen of England who is now almost 100 years old will die. There have been many “lords” in history, but they all succumbed to death. However,  Jesus rose from the dead and sat at the right hand of God. He is indeed Christ the Lord. He is the only one worthy to be called Lord because he is eternal God.

Why then do we need to make a confession with our mouths that Jesus is Lord?  A confession of faith is the beginning point of faith and at the same time, a confession of love to God. Superficial confession is easy, but deep meaningful confession is hard. For some people, to say “I love you” even to their husband or wife is hard, so how much harder is it to say it to Jesus. To come close to God we have to understand his expression of love in and through Jesus. Then we have to make a confession of love based on our faith in Jesus.

In Jesus’ ministry, even from the beginning, Jesus helped his disciples to see who he really was so they each could personally make the necessary confession of  faith, which is the stamp of eternal life.  When they grew spiritually enough he asked them, “Who do you say that I am? (Mt.16:15-17) Peter answered first and probably for all the others when he said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”  This confession of faith was the cornerstone of Peter’s spiritual life. It was  his stepping stone to eternal life.

But how can we make such a confession of faith in Jesus? We must each know his great unconditional love for us. For example, after Jesus rose from the dead, Peter felt dejected because he had denied Jesus three times. He felt bummed out and depressed that he had failed his Lord. He felt like a failure and a loser. He thought that his life of a disciple was over. He thought there was no way Jesus could use him or even want him back. He went back to his old life of living for three meals a day and his old job of fishing. However, Jesus loved Peter even though Peter denied him three times.  What did Jesus do for Peter? He came back to him and restored him as his top disciple by asking him three times, “Do you truly love me more than these?…Do you truly love me? And,  “Do you love me?”  These questions moved Peter’s heart.  Peter thought Jesus would condemn him or question him, “Why did you deny me?” Instead Jesus only asked him, “Do you love me?” When Peter saw Jesus’ forgiving and unconditional love for him he could only say, “Yes Lord, you know that I love you.” (John 21:15-17)

Each of us needs to make a love confession to Jesus. This is a matter of our hearts knowing and accepting Jesus’ love for us personally. It is not merely just saying it with our lips. Look at verse 10, “For it is with your heart you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.”  Belief is the only essential of salvation, but confession is the natural result of a believing heart. What must we also believe besides Jesus’ unconditional love for us in order to make a confession of faith? According to verse 9 we must also believe that God raised Jesus from the dead.

Why do we have to confess this faith with our mouths? It is because the confession of faith is the beginning point of our faith. When we confess our faith we are also witnessing to others the power and grace of Jesus who forgave our sins. Through confessing our faith we are declaring to others that we want Jesus to be the Lord of our lives. When we confess our faith to others then our faith also becomes stronger because we are reconfirming it to God and confirming it to ourselves.  Therefore confession of faith is not just a one time event. It is of course the only way to be saved. All we need to do is say it with a believing heart just one time and we are saved. But when we are saved, it is necessary to keep confessing our faith in order to strengthen our personal love relationship with God and to witness to others that Jesus is Christ the Lord.

One time Jesus healed a woman who had a terrible bleeding problem. This problem was for over 12 years. How did it happen? When Jesus was walking along in a crowd, this woman mustered up enough courage and faith to sneak through the crowd to go to Jesus. She believed that if she just touched his cloak, she would be healed, and she was!! Jesus wondered out loud who had such faith that when his cloak was touched he felt as if some power had gone out from him. Of course Jesus knew, but he said this out loud in order to draw the woman who had been healed to make a public confession of faith.

As a result she came out and confessed. According to Luke 8:47 this woman in the presence of all the people told why she had touched Jesus and how she had been instantly healed. Then Jesus said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.” No doubt that this woman’s confession helped many people to come out of their own private and hidden lives and to come into the light and enjoy God’s forgiveness and peace. No doubt, this woman gave many people hope to be healed. Therefore, a confession of faith is God’s way for us not only to express my love and thanks to God, but it is also a way to express and witness the power and grace of God to others.

A confession of faith in Jesus in public takes courage. For example, in the time in which Apostle Paul wrote the book of Romans, a confession of faith that Jesus is Lord, not Caesar is Lord could mean death by fire or death by the lions in the Roman Coliseum. In our nominal Christian society many Christians are too quiet about their faith. They think believing in their minds is enough. But the Bible clearly shows us that we should make a confession with our mouths.

Some people might feel that they need to know more of what the Bible says in order to make a public confession. But you don’t need to know a lot. All you need to do is believe the word of God  in your heart that Jesus died on the cross for your sins and rose from the dead.

I myself did not know much about what the Bible said when I began to confess to others that Jesus is Lord. I had been studying the Bible for about six weeks when I  went to my first Bible Conference. Up to this time, I really didn’t believe. But at the Conference, we studied about the gospel from 1 Corinthians 15:3,4. It says, “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: That Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried and that he was raised on the third day according to the Scripture.”

That afternoon, after we studied this in the group Bible study and heard the message, I wrote my first testimony. It was three sentences long. I said that I believed that Jesus died for my sins and rose from the dead according to the Scriptures. After that Conference, I had the joy and peace of God in my heart because I believed in my heart and had confessed with my mouth “Jesus is Lord.”  Soon I began to testify with David Brogi on campus. He did all the talking, and I said maybe one or two sentences, but nevertheless, it was confessing my faith that Jesus is Lord to others. I learned that a Christian life is a continuous act of confessing my love for Jesus personally and publicly.

This is a good reason why we keep sharing testimonies from our 1:1 Bible studies and Sunday Worship service. Through our testimonies we can personally witness to others that Jesus is Lord. We struggle to let him be the Lord of our life so we can be powerful Christians who live by faith and not by feelings. The more we publicly confess to God our love for him we can reaffirm our faith and grow in our faith.

 Let’s read verse 11-13, “As the Scripture says, ‘Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame. For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile---the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’”

These words are the great words of promise in the Scripture to all people. When anyone puts their trust in Jesus’ death on the cross for their sins, all their shame is taken away. Those who trust in his forgiveness can not be condemned by anyone, because God through his Son has forgiven all their past shameful acts and all their past shameful thoughts. To anyone who calls on the Lord Jesus’ name, God will richly bless with salvation. Is there any greater blessing than this? Absolutely not!! God richly blesses our lives when we confess with our mouths and believe in our hearts that Jesus is Lord.

Part 2 THE GOSPEL MESSENGERS (14-21)

The Apostle Paul shows a chain reaction of belief in these verses. Let’s read verses 14-15, “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news?’”

These words reveal the great need and necessity of missionaries to bring the word of the Lord Jesus to all the world. If no one goes and preaches about Jesus, no one will hear the good news. No one then will be able to believe and call on the name of Jesus. Then no one can be saved. Before the New Testament was written, hearing the message of the gospel through missionaries was the only way to know the gospel and the only way to be saved.

Now there have been so many Bibles printed  in most of the languages of the world. But the problem is that no one reads the Bible  but instead they spend a lot of time watching TV or surfing the internet. There are also so many churches, but many churches don’t preach the gospel, but instead talk about  topics like abortion, gun control and politics. There are few  who are  teaching the Bible 1:1. I heard that Billy Graham said that if he could have another chance he would not do a mass evangel ministry that he is known all over the world for the past 45 years. Instead he said he would do 1:1 Bible study ministry much like what UBF is doing. This is why it imperative that we become missionaries to this world that is lost. We can not be lazy because we who believe that Jesus is Lord are first responsible.

We who believe that Jesus is Lord must believe that God chose us in his sovereign will. We did not chose him, but he chose us to go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.  The missionary calling is God’s heart to save all the people of the world. If we don’t go out and tell, how can people be saved? How blessed are those who hear the good news because they can have a chance to be saved!
 

To those who bring the good news, their feet are very beautiful. Verse 15b says, “…How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” This verse is taken from Isaiah 52:7 which says, “How beautiful on the mountain are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’”

The background behind this is that Israel was in captivity and ruled by the Super power nation of Assyria. Some Israelites were in Egypt to escape captivity. Others were still living in the land and being oppressed by Assyria. Still others were in foreign lands as slaves and servants. In this dark time, God was still working. God was still sending his prophets to the people living in great darkness and oppression and suffering with the message, “Your God reigns!” In other words Isaiah and all the prophets were saying, “The God of Israel is the Sovereign God! Put your faith and trust in him and will save you and give you eternal life!” It was also as if they were saying, “Jesus is Lord!”  To those who brought this message to God’s suffering people, their feet were very beautiful! Because they brought the message of hope and salvation.

Those who bring this message have beautiful feet. We usually don’t think that anyone’s feet are beautiful. Usually feet are dirty and smelly. But when we use our feet to bring the gospel that Jesus is Lord to those dying in their sins, our feet are very beautiful!

How then should we view those who brought us the good news? We must believe that those who invited us to 1:1 Bible study or Sunday Worship and who teach us the Bible have been sent by God. Most of us have heard Shannon Smith’s Life Testimony. We heard the way he was witnessed to. On his way home riding the Metro bus, ha made a quick stop at the Stamp Union to use the bathroom and then to get back on the bus and go home. It was very urgent for him to go. However, Missionary Sarah Yun and Shepherdess Mahmia Richards were more urgent to tell him about Jesus. So they stopped him and told him the good news before he could use the bathroom. In this way he was invited to 1:1 Bible study. In this way he could study the word of God and be a new creation in Christ. That day, Sarah’s and Mahmia’s feet were indeed beautiful.

We see here that God uses people of different nations to bring the gospel to America. In the past America sent many missionaries all over the world. America sent one million missionaries to the world and blessed the world. Missionary Sarah Barry, the co-founder of UBF was one of them. Though she was one person, an American from a comfortable and secure home, she went to war torn Korea to live as Korean people do and to teach them English and the Bible 1:1. From her, thousands of people have been blessed with salvation. In addition, Korea UBF has sent over 1500 missionaries to the world. Now it is America’s turn. I heard that America UBF has sent 10 missionaries to the world. We pray for 1 million missionaries. May God help us to send 1 million missionaries in the 21st Century.

Let’s read verses 16-17, “But not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, ‘Lord, who has believed our message?’ Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” The Israelites were guilty of not accepting the good news even they had the greatest honor to hear it first. Verse 16 quotes Isaiah 53:1 which is the message of the suffering Messiah, Jesus. Because they rejected the words of Christ and the message they had no faith and no salvation. They lost God’s blessing to be priests for the world. Let’s read verse 18, “But I ask: Did they not hear? Of course they did: ‘Their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.’”

The Israelites could not make any excuses. They knew God’s word and knew God had chosen them to be a priestly nation for the world, yet they chose to reject Jesus and God’s holy mission. Moses foresaw Israel’s rejection of God and his mission from the beginning. Look at verse 19, “Again I ask: Did Israel not understand? First, Moses says, ‘I will make you envious by those who are not a nation; I will make you angry by a nation that has no understanding.

 Israel’s rejection of Jesus was the open door for the Gentile world. They heard the message and were excited that God sought them and wanted to save them. They knew that they were wretched sinners who lived godless and disgusting lives of sin. They would come to know the living God. Let’s read verse 20, “And Isaiah boldly says, ‘I was found by those who did not seek me; I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me.’”  From the time of Jesus’ birth and even right after his ascension into heaven, the Gentiles began to be God’s people. The Magi from the east are a good example of those who did not know what they were looking for, but to whom God revealed himself to.

Let’s read verse 21, “But concerning Israel he says, ‘All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and obstinate people.’” Even though the Israelites were disobedient and obstinate, God did not forsake them. They must have hurt God’s heart by their disobedience. Yet God held out his hands all day long for them in anticipation that they would come back to his arms of love because he was ready and willing to forgive them and to restore them as a kingdom of priests and a holy nation for the world.

In today’s passage, we learned that our message to a lost world is: “Jesus is Lord.”   We also learned to make a confession of faith with our mouths and believe in our hearts that God raised Jesus from the dead. We learned that this is the way of salvation. We learned that a confession of faith is a love confession to God for his great love for us revealed in Jesus Christ. May God give each of you a personal confession of faith and a public confession of faith that Jesus is Lord.  May God use your feet to bring the good news to this lost world that Jesus is Lord.