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The Pastoral Epistles of Saint Paul
Talk by Metropolitan Jonah (Paffhausen), part 10, Romans chapter 10:1-11:12
November 30, 2021
 
This class covers the complex topic of God's sovereign will and our limited understanding of it. Topics include: 
1) On misguided zealotry that has roots in ego, pride, vainglory, and insecurity; 
(2) Faith and the heart ... Christ is known by faith in our hearts ... we are saved by calling on the name of the Lord ... It's not an external form (be it ritual cleanliness or long dresses or long beards), but a disposition of the heart, and our confession in word and life. Our faith in Christ is expressed in our faithfulness to him. Faith in God produces closeness to God leads to growth in faith, ...; 
(3) Righteousness and faith: our faith in Christ is righteousness allowing us to commune with God ... faith is being united with Christ by the Holy Spirit, and is the true righteousness, not a set of good deeds; 
(4) Sin, repentance, and confession: God wants us to repent and return, like the Prodigal, to his open arms .. not on our own terms as a slave, but as a beloved child. If we don't confess our sins, we hold on to them, too proud to say we made a mistake ... and so we condemn ourselves; 
(5) The remnant of the Jews: The Old Testament is largely about the apostasy of the Jews. But God has not rejected his people because he accepts the remnant who are truly His people, not just those who claim to be. This remnant is not chosen by works but by grace to those He foreknew. There are *not* two tracks to salvation, one for the Jew and one for the Gentile, as taught by the heresy of dispensationalism, which seems to possess significant portions of American evangelicalism; 
(6) On Origen; 
(7) On our Christian witness: tell people about your faith in Christ, which brings joy and hope. We know that Christ died for all, a cosmic self-offering. God wants to save everyone through Christ. We do not pass judgment on others ... we focus on our own repentance.