“1 I speak the truth in Christ — I am not lying; my conscience testifies to me through the Holy Spirit — 2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the benefit of my brothers and sisters, my own flesh and blood. 4a They are Israelites,…”
Paul spent chapter 8 describing in detail the security and assurance that believers in Christ have in the gospel. In chapters 9-11, he takes a turn to plead for the salvation of the non-believing Jews in Rome. While there are some Jewish people who have repented of their sins, confessed, “Jesus is Lord”, and believed in His resurrection, most of Israel has rejected their Messiah, Jesus Christ. Paul wishes to draw a distinction between those Jews who are now Christians and those who have rejected Christ. He will also explain that it is ultimately through the promises to, and even the disobedience of, Israel that will provide the Gentile nations opportunity to respond to the Gospel and be saved.
Chapter 9 begins with Paul pouring out his broken-heartedness and anguish. In verse 4, Paul identifies the group of people he is anguishing over, his flesh and blood, the Israelites. We will see in our next devotional, that Paul also takes the time to praise God for all of the opportunities the Israelites have had to follow God and accept Jesus as the promised Messiah. The non-believing Jewish community viewed Paul as a traitor. He was, after all, one of them when he was known as a Pharisee, at that time named Saul. His heart breaks for them because without the direct intervention of Jesus on the road to Damascus, Paul would still be a Jewish Pharisee lost in his sin.
“Now Saul was still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord. He went to the high priest and requested letters from him to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any men or women who belonged to the Way, he might bring them as prisoners to Jerusalem. As he traveled and was nearing Damascus, a light from heaven suddenly flashed around him. Falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him,“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” “Who are you, Lord? ” Saul said. “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting,” he replied. “But get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the sound but seeing no one. Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing. So they took him by the hand and led him into Damascus. He was unable to see for three days and did not eat or drink.” — Acts 9:1-9
Because of this, Paul felt the need to defend the sincerity of his anguish by exclaiming that he is not lying. In fact, Paul invokes the name of both Christ and the Holy Spirit as a defence to prove that he is not lying. Paul backs up his statement of sorrow and anguish by explaining just how much he loves his Jewish flesh and blood, as he calls them. If it were possible, Paul would suffer eternal damnation, being completely separated from God if it would allow for his Jewish brothers and sisters to be saved. Obviously this cannot work. Paul’s death and damnation would not ever be able to cover his own sins, let alone the sins of anyone else! That is precisely why Jesus had to die, the sacrificial lamb had to be spotless, sinless, and perfect. Paul, no doubt, knows this as he’s been explaining for the last 8 chapters that no one is capable of redeeming themselves from their sin apart from the gospel of faith in Christ Jesus. Yet, what an incredibly strong passion Paul is displaying for the unbelieving Jews! Do we feel this strongly for those who are lost as we once were? Paul is modeling for us what it looks like to love people as Jesus does. Can we say that we love people with this level of sincerity? Pray that God would give us this same desire to see His people saved.