"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." 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." But concerning Israel he says, "All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and obstinate people" (Romans 10:19-21)

Understanding the message of Christ is the next step after hearing it. So Paul's logical question concerning Israel was; did they not understand this message? Israel was given the law and had the prophets and patriarchs as their guide. Israel had understanding of these things and lived daily by them. However they were so indoctrinated by the letter of the law they missed the fact that this was a type or shadow of Jesus ( Hebrews 10:1 ). (Meaning that the law only resembled the foreshadowed Messiah.)

Jesus rebuked the Pharisees in Matthew for this very thing, he said, "you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: " 'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.' " ( Matthew 15:6-9 ). When we only have head knowledge about God then we take what he said and become legalistic about it. Israel was so wrapped up in their doctrine of the law that they made the word of God of no effect in their lives and in the lives of those around them.

Because they nullified the word of God by the letter of the law rather than the intent of the law and worshipped other Gods, Moses prophesied that God would make them angry by nations that did not have understanding. "They made me jealous by what is no god and angered me with their worthless idols. I will make them envious by those who are not a people; I will make them angry by a nation that has no understanding" ( Deuteronomy 32:21 ). People who are not instructed in religion and grow up having no preconceived notions about God will accept the gospel message with gladness. It is far easier to comprehend and accept at face value when religion isn't in the way telling you, you must participate in your redemption. The biggest lie we believe is that we must do something to be right with God, instead of accepting the fact that Jesus already did something.

Isaiah foretold this. He saw that Gentiles would come to Jesus and accept the gospel message and Israel would reject it. "I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me; I was found by those who did not seek me. To a nation that did not call on my name, I said, 'Here am I, here am I.' "All day long I have held out my hands to an obstinate people, who walk in ways not good, pursuing their own imaginations" ( Isaiah 65:1-2 ). The difference between the two is that the Gentiles know they will never be good enough for God on their own, but Israel has not understood this yet. All they see is the literal letter of the law and not the embodiment of law which is Jesus who fulfilled the letter. . Patiently God waits and calls for them to understand his message. Jesus is the promised Messiah who gives us the righteousness of the Law by grace .

This has implications for us today. We can start out through faith in Jesus only to be yoked once again to the rules (or "law"). It is important to understand the truth of Jesus and what he did for you as a basis of how to live. We have died to the law through faith in Christ so we are free to live by the Spirit. Paul said in Galatians, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!" ( Galatians 2:20-21 ). If we go back to religion, to the rules and doctrines of men, after we accept this marvelous grace then Christ died for nothing.  We can nullify the word of God in our hearts by living according to man's rules and regulations. What a harsh reality.

This is why Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit to live by, to protect us from going back to the old way. We do not need the law because we have a perfect guide living inside us directing and steering us in the way of God. He has written himself upon our hearts so that we do not have to live by the letter, for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life (II Corinthians 3:6). Paul has written extensively throughout the New Testament, that living by the Spirit will not gratify the flesh. But, in living by the Spirit we will experience the freedom which Christ purchased for us and God desires us to have,  for "where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom" ( II Corinthians 3:17 ).

Today, it is my prayer that you are free. Free from religion, free from the law, free from the doctrines of men and free to live for Jesus. I pray that you will understand this freedom and shake off everything that keeps you in chains. You were called to walk in this glorious liberty in Christ, may you understand this calling and fulfill it according to his riches and grace, amen.

"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" (Romans 10:18)

If faith comes from hearing the message of Christ, it only makes sense to ask the question whether or not Israel heard the message. Paul said not all of Israel has accepted the good news nor believed in it ( Romans 10:16 ). Was that because they hadn't heard the message of Christ?

In today's passage Paul stresses that they had in fact heard the message, he said, "Their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world." The voice he is talking about is that of nature. It is bearing God's message and is proclaiming throughout the entire universe His existence. Romans 1 says, "what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine nature-have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse" ( Romans 1:19, Romans 1:20 ). Nature testifies to the evidence of God, but does it testify to Jesus and the message that Israel was supposed to hear? Paul said it did.

Jesus was responsible for Creation. John said, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made" ( John 1:1-3 ). Jesus was the one who made everything so the heaves declare the glory of God because of Jesus. The skies proclaim the work of his hands ( Psalms 19:1 ). We cannot look at the majesty of the world around us and deny the fact of Jesus. Hebrews says, "In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word" ( Hebrews 1:1-3 ). Jesus is the exact representation of God, but was made manifest to us. He made the entire universe and holds everything together by his powerful word. If we know God then we have evidence of Jesus. We have heard this message proclaimed and faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.

So what about Israel, why did they not understand this message? They didn't understand it because they didn't know God in the first place. Jesus said in John 14, "Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father" ( John 14:9 ). So in the same way, if they knew the Father, they would have recognized the Son. Nathanael was proof of this. "When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, "Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false." ( John 1:47 ). Jesus recognized Nathanael and said here is a true descendant of Jacob according to the promise. What made him that way? It was because his heart was right with God. He knew God and it was evident in his lifestyle. In other words it was more than rules and regulations with Nathanael. So when he saw Jesus he said, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel" ( John 1:49 ). He recognized him as the Messiah because God revealed it to him. This happened because his heart was right with God in the first place and he knew God. Remember, Jesus is the exact representation of the Father ( Hebrews 1:3 ). So the Israelites didn't receive the message of Jesus even though creation testified to him, on the basis of not knowing nor understanding God. They rejected God and followed the letter of the Law instead of the author of the Law.

This has implications for us today. We can miss heaven by eighteen inches. If what we know only remains in our head and doesn't penetrate into our heart then our entire life is in vain. Everything around us testifies to Jesus and understanding that he came from the Father to give us life and to bring us into relationship with him is too awesome to understand intellectually. We must understand this in faith and allow that to change our entire life. Faith comes by hearing and recognizing the message of Jesus.

Today I am so thankful for Jesus. I am thankful that he is the difference in my life. I am thankful that I can know and understand the Father through the Holy Spirit whom he's given me. Today, may you mix this message of grace with faith and be forever changed, amen.