SERMON TITLE: The Kindness and Severity of God
SCRIPTURE: Romans 11:11-24 (ESV)
SPEAKER: Josh Hanson
DATE: 1-12-25
Sermon Discussion Guide
Takes notes here
It’s good to be with all of you this weekend at Gateway Church. And — if you happen to be worshiping with us for the first time — or if you’re joining us at our North Main Campus or are with our friends in Bucyrus — I want you to know that God loves you and that I love you too.
We’re continuing our series in Romans this weekend — looking at Paul’s letter to Christians living in Rome last week. Paul’s never met these Christians. He hopes to visit them soon — as we discover near the end of his letter — but since he hasn’t been able to meet them face to face — he writes them this letter — a letter many consider to be Paul’s greatest contribution to our faith.
And we’re nearing the end of Paul’s answer to a question his original readers were asking. A question that may not seem all that relevant to us today but — as I hope you’ve seen — ends up being very practical for us. Their question is this: If God’s promised Messiah — or Savior of the world — was a promise given to the Jewish people — why did so many Jews not believe that Jesus was the fulfillment of God’s promise to them? To ask the question another way: Why did the vast majority of Jews reject Jesus as the promised Messiah?
This was a heart wrenching question for Paul’s readers because many of them were Jews. And they had friends and family members who — though Jewish — had rejected Jesus. And Paul’s readers couldn’t understand how this had happened. You see, the Jewish people had this assumption that — when God’s Messiah came — all Jews would recognize him, believe in him, and definitely not reject him. They lived with an assumption where — to be Jewish meant that you’d receive God’s Messiah when he appeared. Yet that’s not what happened. So Paul gives a lengthy three chapter response to their question.
And we’ll continue to explore Paul's response in our passage today. If you have your Bible, please turn with me to Romans chapter eleven. We’ll be in Romans chapter eleven — beginning in verse eleven. There Paul writes…
Romans 11:11–24 (ESV)
11 So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather, through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous. 12 Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion mean! 13 Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry 14 in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them. 15 For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead? 16 If the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, so is the whole lump, and if the root is holy, so are the branches. 17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, 18 do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. 19 Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” 20 That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear. 21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. 22 Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off. 23 And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again. 24 For if you were cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, the natural branches, be grafted back into their own olive tree.
The key verse of our passage — the verse the title of this sermon is based on — is verse twenty-two — where Paul writes…
Romans 11:22 (ESV)
22 Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off.
God’s kindness — something that — Christian or not — we expect and hope for. A simple definition of kindness is, “Showing mercy and doing good even to people who don’t deserve it or who deserve the opposite.” (Robert D. Jones, Pursuing Peace, pg 112.) But his severity or harshness — well — I think the Bible says somewhere that God is love so there’s no way he can also be severe, right? Or maybe God is harsh towards really bad people — but not towards someone — I don’t know — like me.
This is the assumption that the people of Israel had begun to believe. That God would only be kind towards them and there was no possibility of them experiencing his severity. Thus Paul — who we can’t forget is Jewish — wants to make clear to his original audience — and to us — the futility in their assumption. For God is kind — a wonderful truth I hope we’ll all leave here believing — and — he is severe — a sobering truth I also hope we will all leave here believing today. But — even in this truth — that God is severe — we find mercy. For — even in Israel’s fall — there is hope. To this hope and mercy we now turn.
Let’s return to verse eleven. There Paul writes…
Romans 11:11 (ESV)
11 So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather, through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous.
Did Israel stumble? Yes! Did they stumble in an irredeemable way? Not at all!
First, no one can argue that Israel didn’t stumble. The Jewish people had God’s Messiah murdered. If that’s not stumbling then nothing is. But the Bible makes a distinction between stumbling and irredeemable stumbling. For example, the book of Psalms states…
Psalm 27:2 (NLT)
2 When evil people come to devour me, when my enemies and foes attack me, they will stumble and fall.
A few psalms later we read…
Psalm 37:23–24 (NLT)
23 The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. 24 Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand.
Evil people — according to the first psalm — stumble and fall. Godly people — according to the second psalm — stumble and yet never fall. Why? For the Lord holds them by the hand. God keeps the godly from falling. Both the godly and ungodly stumble — yet — it’s the godly who do not fall because the Lord keeps them from doing so.
Applying this biblical principle to Paul’s words in verse eleven means that Israel — as a nation — has stumbled. The Jewish people as a whole have stumbled — again — they murdered Jesus. Yet — the true Israel — the remnant as Paul has called them — those of Jewish background who did — or will — believe in Jesus — stumbled but did not fall.
Yet Paul goes even further. For he explains that God’s purpose in the nation of Israel stumbling is that — through their stumbling — through their rejection of Jesus as God’s Messiah — salvation has come to the gentiles or the nations. And don’t miss this: the salvation of the nations is meant to stir jealousy among the Jews. What does Paul mean by that? He goes on to explain this in the next verses.
We’re in verse twelve.
Romans 11:12–15 (ESV)
12 Now if their (Israel’s) trespass means riches for the world, and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion mean! 13 Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry 14 in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them. 15 For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead?
Paul says that the stumbling of the Jews means riches for the world and riches for the gentiles. And — by this — he’s saying that now — people of all nations — people of the ends of the earth — experience the benefits of salvation.
And these benefits of salvation will be a blessing to the world — because — followers of Jesus are to be a blessing to the world.
And — here in Paul’s day — he says that when the gentiles live in this way it will not only be a blessing to the world — but will make Israel jealous. For the Jews will see God’s blessing, favor, kindness, and mercy clearly being upon people who they don’t think deserve it. And Paul hopes this will stir in the Jews a jealousy that leads to faith in Jesus.
Now — how does something like this apply to us today? In this way: How are we displaying the benefits of salvation to the world? To our community? To our co-workers and spouses and children and classmates and friends?
How are you — if you believe in Jesus — showing others the riches of salvation in your life that’s a blessing to them? Those benefits I mentioned earlier are so distinct from the world in which we live: selfless, generous, looking out for the interests of others, caring for the poor and vulnerable, being sexually pure, and living holy lives.
Not picking and choosing from this list — which isn’t exhaustive, by the way — but living the “saved by grace” life. The “I’ve been blessed with the mercy of God” life. The “I’m loved by the One who created everyone and everything, have been called by him out of the darkness of spiritual death and into the eternal light of his glorious presence and now live accordingly” kind of life. The “I was blind but now I see. I was lost but now I’m found” kind of life.
“Well, Josh. That sounds like an impossible life to live.” Jesus’s disciples said a similar thing to him once. They said, “Who then can be saved?”
Matthew 19:26 (ESV)
26 But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
With God all things are possible — including living the saved life. But only “with God” is this kind of living possible. Without him — Jesus says — it’s impossible. That’s what Israel failed to understand. They tried to live a life pleasing to God without him. For — in rejecting Jesus — they rejected the One whose name means “God with us.” And many follow in their steps of eternal futility today — trying to live a life pleasing to God without Jesus. And that’s impossible.
But don’t miss the other half of Jesus’ response to his disciples: With God all things are possible. With Jesus you can be selfless. With Jesus you can be generous. With him you can look out for the interests of others. With him you can care for the poor and vulnerable. With him you can be sexually pure. With him you can live a holy life.
With Jesus you can give up that bitter attitude. With Jesus you can put to death that addiction. With Jesus you can have joy. With Jesus you can forgive those who’ve sinned against you. With Jesus you can do everything that God asks of you and commands you to do in his Word and repent when you don’t. Man what hope we have — we who’ve experienced God’s kindness — what hope we have who have God with and always present with us.
And — to keep us all humble — to keep us from thinking highly of ourselves — Paul emphasizes that it’s because of our connection to Jesus that we have this hope. In verse sixteen he writes…
Romans 11:16–24 (ESV)
16 If the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, so is the whole lump, and if the root is holy, so are the branches. 17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, 18 do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. 19 Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” 20 That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear. 21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. 22 Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off. 23 And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again. 24 For if you were cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, the natural branches, be grafted back into their own olive tree.
Now there’s a lot to unpack in these final verses of our passage.
So — first — know that the holy root leads to holy branches. Jesus is the root of the olive tree. And only those who are grafted to him — using Paul’s olive tree illustration — are those who are holy — for Jesus is the Holy One of God. We — Christians and not — have no holiness in and of ourselves. To be holy means to be without sin — to be pure. We’ve all sinned — Paul said back in chapter three — thus we’re all unholy. Thus all — and only those — who are united to Christ are those who are holy.
Second — and related to point one — gentiles now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree. Gentiles — non-Jews — have been grafted into the tree and are connected to the root. Which means ethnicity plays no part in an individual’s holiness. Gender plays no part. Your intellect plays no part. All of the ways we divide ourselves up into groups — the perceived good guys and bad guys — none of that matters. The only thing that matters is being united to Christ by faith.
Which means — third — there’s no room for pride or boasting. Paul tells us to remember that we don’t support the root — the root supports us. We don’t support Jesus — Jesus supports us. And those who need to be supported have no reason to boast about themselves. You don’t go to Valvoline to get your oil changed and then brag about getting your oil changed. “Man, I pulled into their garage like a pro! I mean — they did point to the left and the right a bunch of times so my tires didn’t drive into the hole — but man I’m awesome — my oil is changed!”
Fourth, we’re to stand fast by faith — because — where our focus is — so shall we put our faith. What is your life fixed on? For the joy set before him — Jesus endured the cross. And — in response — we’re told to…
Hebrews 12:3 (ESV)
3 Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.
Our enduring comes from our considering all that Jesus endured — by keeping our eyes fixed on him. And the means to fix our eyes on Jesus that God has graciously — and in his kindness — given to us — is his Word — the Bible. I know, I know — “Here goes Josh again with reading our Bibles.” Read it. Meditate on it. Memorize it. Study it. Discuss it. For in it you discover who Jesus is, what he’s done, and what he’s promised to those who follow him. So — yes — I’m the Bible guy — for this book is how we fix our eyes on the One who loves us in a world that’s constantly trying to distract us from his love.
And — Paul is clear — what makes a person right with God is not our power — not what we’re able to do in our own strength — what makes us right with God is his kindness to us. Earlier Paul calls this God’s mercy. In other places he calls it God’s grace. Regardless — all of it is unearned favor and blessing from God. God’s kindness is never earned. His mercy is never deserved. Grace isn’t opposed to effort — but it is opposed to earning. Thus — when someone experiences God’s grace, kindness, and mercy — all which are undeserved — they will begin to live differently. As we read throughout the New Testament…
They put to death the sinful desires of their flesh. (Col. 3:5)
They live according to the desires of the Spirit — not of the flesh. (Gal. 5:16-26)
They discipline their desires and keep them under control (1 Cor. 9:27)
They consider the interests of others and not just their own (Phil. 2:4)
They rejoice always and pray constantly (1 Thess. 5:16-17)
They control their words (Eph. 5:4; James 3:1-12)
They love their wives as Christ loved the church and submit to their husbands as the church submits to Christ (Eph 5:22-33)
They live in a way that requires great effort on their part — as they live by the power of the Holy Spirit and under the authority of the Word of God — not going through life on auto-pilot — Instagramming, Facebooking, and TikToking away their lives while saying they don’t have time to read their Bible. For they believe that God is both kind and severe — and his severity keeps them sober-minded. For remembering his severity fuels their discipline. Reflecting on his harshness is like a guardrail that keeps them from veering off into the abyss of being cut off from Jesus. Only someone full of themselves — what the Bible calls pride — would respond any other way to God’s harshness or kindness.
And now — fifth — we come to the key verse of our passage — where Paul writes…
Romans 11:22 (ESV)
22 Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off.
After mentioning both God’s kindness and severity — Paul emphasizes God’s kindness — and adds, “Provided you continue in his kindness” mentioning nothing of God’s severity. Meaning — there’s no, “Provided they continue in his severity.” Which tells us the goal of God’s severity in the life of the follower of Jesus: God’s severity — his harshness — his wrath — his just judgment which will come to those who rebel against him — is meant to keep God’s people in his kindness. For — when we don’t ignore God’s harshness — when we don’t theologize away his wrath — instead — those who’ve been spiritually awakened by the grace and mercy of God flee from his severity. That’s what we did when we first experienced God’s mercy in awakening us from our spiritual death. We saw that we were children of wrath, living under the just judgment of God — and — having been awakened we ran to his kindness, grace, and mercy. We ran towards his open loving arms. We drew near to him because he first drew near to us.
Finally, there is hope for Israel. If God does not keep his promise to Israel then none of his promises can be trusted — that’s the point Paul’s been making. Yet Paul’s point is that God has kept his promise to Israel which means we can trust all of his promises to us. Thus — when God’s saving people from all nations is complete — the hardening of Israel will come to an end. Jesus alludes to this in Matthew’s gospel.
Matthew 24:3–14 (ESV)
3 As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” 4 And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. 5 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are but the beginning of the birth pains. 9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. 10 And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. 11 And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. 12 And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
The gospel will be proclaimed throughout the whole world — the gentiles will call on the name of the Lord and believe in him because they hear the gospel proclaimed by those who are sent out — and when the last person ordained to believe in Jesus does so — the end will come. The hardening of Israel will be over. And Jesus will return.
A few verses later Jesus says…
Matthew 24:22–31 (NLT)
22 In fact, unless that time of calamity is shortened, not a single person will survive. But it will be shortened for the sake of God’s chosen ones. 23 “Then if anyone tells you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah,’ or ‘There he is,’ don’t believe it. 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones. 25 See, I have warned you about this ahead of time. 26 “So if someone tells you, ‘Look, the Messiah is out in the desert,’ don’t bother to go and look. Or, ‘Look, he is hiding here,’ don’t believe it! 27 For as the lightning flashes in the east and shines to the west, so it will be when the Son of Man comes. 28 Just as the gathering of vultures shows there is a carcass nearby, so these signs indicate that the end is near. 29 “Immediately after the anguish of those days, the sun will be darkened, the moon will give no light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. 30 And then at last, the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the peoples of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he will send out his angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from all over the world — from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven.
And he concludes with…
Matthew 24:36–51 (NLT)
36 “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows. 37 “When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day. 38 In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat. 39 People didn’t realize what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes. 40 “Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left. 42 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. 43 Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into. 44 You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected. 45 “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. 46 If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. 47 I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. 48 But what if the servant is evil and thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’ 49 and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? 50 The master will return unannounced and unexpected, 51 and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Now I know — I know — here we are again — who wants to talk about a judging, severe and harsh God. “Josh, don’t you know people stopped talking about God’s wrath, and judgment, and harshness decades ago?” I appreciate what one theologian said about such things: “A God without wrath brought men without sin into a kingdom without judgment through…a Christ without a cross.” When we reject the wrath of God, we also reject the sin of man, which means there’s no reason for Christ to die on the cross — which is not Christianity regardless of what it’s called.
Yes — God’s wrath and judgment are uncomfortable topics and stir fear inside of us. But think of the alternative: what happens if there is no wrath and judgment of God? Then everything is permitted, right? If there’s no eternal judgment — no eternal wrath — or as the godless world says “survival of the fittest” — then there’s no justification for human rights. How can you say anything is wrong and that the guilty should be punished and then dismiss God’s right to do the same? Does justice really end with us? You know it can’t. For who wants the unrepentant, shows no remorse — rapist, or child molester, or war criminal — fill in the blank with who you think is a really bad person — to go unpunished?
Yet — at the same time — do you want the repentant, remorseful, have put their hope in Christ — rapist, child molester, war criminal — fill in the blank with who you think is a really bad person — to receive God’s kindness? Remember — we’re told to note the kindness and harshness of God. Not one or the other — but both.
So — keep watch! For you don’t know what day Jesus is coming. Don’t live as if today you can ignore what Jesus has commanded because you’ll have tomorrow — or some day in the future — to straighten things out. Respond to his kindness to you today — for he is being kind to you. You’re alive, he’s being patient with you, he’s endured your sin, he’s giving you time to repent, and he still holds out his hand of mercy and forgiveness to you. Respond to his kindness today.
Or — I should say — you are responding to his kindness. Either in gratefulness or presumption. Either in gratitude or in arrogance. How are you responding to God’s kindness to you? May you take note of his kindness to you and respond to his kindness with faith in Jesus — the kind and merciful Savior. May we each count God’s kindness towards us as a gift every day of our life. Think of your sins, think of your flaws, think of your selfishness and then marvel at God’s kindness and mercy towards you. And thank him for his mercy. Praise him for his grace. Worship him because he is kind. Let’s pray.
Heavenly Father, you are kind and you are severe. And we thank you that you are both. Your severity is what we all deserve — for you are just and we have disobeyed your commands. Yet your mercy is what many experience because you are kind — not counting our sins against us — but crediting Christ’s sacrifice as the payment for our sins.
Spirit of God, give us eyes that see things as you see them. Often we mistake your kindness for your severity. That loved one who suddenly died — a seeming harshness — you knew was an act of kindness as you spared them and us the misery of an incurable cancer. Or something that looks like your kindness — an unexpected large sum of money — can often be the means by which we experience your judgment — for how many are ruined by their love of money? We’re incapable on our own to discern such matters and we’ll all be better off if we just admit how often we inaccurately interpret events as your kindness or harshness. Instead, help us to trust that all things in our lives are being used by you for our good. The kind things and the harsh things. For — when we believe that it all is being used for our good — we will endure with hope.
And — Jesus — you not only endured the harshness of your fellow man — who killed you on the cross — but you experienced your Heavenly Father’s severity when he received your sacrifice as an offering for our sin. You experienced the just punishment that all who put their faith in you deserve. We fool ourselves into thinking we’ve begun to fathom the depth of the misery you experienced or the love that you displayed on the cross.
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — help us all — Christian or not — right now — to take note of your kindness and severity. And may they both turn us to you and be the means by which we trust in you for our hope, life, joy, and peace. And we pray all of this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
May you go taking note of the kindness and severity of God — and may they draw you closer to him. Amen.
God loves you. I love you. You are sent.
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