Today we will look at Romans 9:30-33.
Romans 9:30-33
30 What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith;
31 but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law.
32 Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone,
33 just as it is written, “Behold, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, And he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.”
Read Romans 9:30. What type of sentence does Romans 9:30 begin with? Circle your answer.
a statement a question an exclamation
God uses the book of Romans to answer all of our questions considering salvation. Remember that from the beginning Paul speaks to us as a lawyer preparing his case in a courtroom. He has already proved our guilt before God. He has proved that our only hope for acquittal is faith in Jesus. In Romans 9-11 God uses Paul to teach us the scope of salvation. Who is God’s target for His mercy?
Look at the list below and write in the rifle scope who is God’s targets for His mercy.
Jews, Gentiles, Righteous, Sinners, Children of Flesh, Children of Promise, Those Who Trust in Jesus, Those Who Trust in the Law
Go back and read Romans 9:30 again and answer the questions below.
Did the Gentiles pursue righteousness? Circle your answer.
Yes No
How did they attain righteousness if they did not pursue it? Fill in the blanks with your answer.
by __ __ __ __ __
Read Romans 9:31-32 and answer questions below.
Did Israel pursue righteousness? Circle your answer.
Yes No
Did Israel attain to the law of righteousness? Circle your answer.
Yes No
Why did Israel not attain the righteousness that they pursued?
because they did not pursue it by __ __ __ __ __ but as though it were by __ __ __ __ __
What have you already learned in Romans, are we saved by faith or by works?
__ __ __ __ __
What did Israel stumble over in their pursuit of righteousness?
the __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
THINK ABOUT IT…
Have you ever been running in the yard or at the park racing after a goal? Maybe to be the first one to the swing set or the slide… and on the way you trip over something and wipe out all over the ground?
Did stumbling over that something make you angry?
Why did it make you angry?
What if you looked down and saw that what you tripped over was your favorite ball or toy, and it was something that you had been looking for, for a very long time. Would you still be angry that it made you trip and lose the race to the slide?
Or would you be so excited that you finally had what you had been searching for? Would you then even call out to your friends to stop running and to come and see what you had found?
I bet you would.
Read Romans 9:33 and answer the questions below.
In this verse Paul is taking us back to Isaiah 8:14 and Isaiah 28:16. God had been warning Israel about this stumbling stone for hundreds of years. Yes He wanted them to trip all over Jesus, but He wanted them to trip to slow them down enough to realize they were about to miss the One that the Law and the Commands and all the Prophets spoke about and pointed to.
What happens to those who believe in Him, the Stumbling Stone, the Rock of Offense?
will __ __ __ be __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
Who is this stumbling stone and rock of offense?
__ __ __ __ __
God wanted Israel to stop racing for their own righteousness. He wanted them to trip all over His Son and realize that this One they tripped over racing for righteousness was the only One who could give them the righteousness they were racing for.