Romans 11

Today we are coming to an end of the doctrinal side of salvation in the book of Romans. If you notice, after Romans 11 Paul starts to exhort the Roman church how to live as people who have been saved by the gospel. What we see in Romans 11 is Paul wrapping up the doctrine of salvation that he laid out from chapters 1-10 by showing that even though Israel rejected God’s salvation there is still a remnant of Israel that God has chosen to save. In this chapter Paul shows how Gentiles are grafted into God’s people through the power of the gospel. God’s plan has always been to save both Jews and Gentiles because God shows no partiality. What I want to put the main focus on is the way that Paul praises God in the doxology because of the awe he has in the way God has introduced salvation to his chosen people. Let’s break down this doxology.

Oh, the depths of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!

Paul’s soul is filled with admiration and awe at the richness of the deep wisdom and knowledge of God. To put it into perspective, there are still parts of the ocean that have not been seen or ventured because it is too deep, and the pressure would be too much for the human body to handle. That is just the ocean, imagine how deep the wisdom and knowledge of God, the one who created the oceans, the one who told the waves how far they can come up, the one who controls every molecule of water that is too far for any human to venture. The deep riches of God’s wisdom and knowledge can never be fully ventured. God has no beginning and no end which means there is no end to the depths of riches in his wisdom and knowledge.

How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!

Paul says this in the context of the gospel. How unsearchable and inscrutable are the ways of God, in bringing salvation to us! Who can even fathom the sovereign decrees and his sovereign decisions in the way that God has decided to bring salvation to his people. It is impossible to trace the reason behind God’s wisdom and knowledge in bringing salvation to his people. Our minds will not be able to comprehend all the ways of the Lord, because our finite minds cannot wrap around an infinite God.

For who has known the mind of the Lord?

Ever since the development of software and technology scientists have been able to study and gain a good understanding of the human brain. Neuroscience can tell us how our brains operate, what part of the brain does what, and by doing so they can obtain a picture of the mind of a person. That is not possible with God, there is no possible way that we can probe his mind, there is nothing we can do to study him apart from what he has revealed to us in his word. God’s thoughts are not our thoughts, his thoughts are lofty, high, and eternal, ours are low, finite, and limited. God knows everything from beginning to end, we can only know what's in front of us.

Who has been his counselor?

Usually when we grow in wisdom and knowledge it is because we learn from others, we read, we learn through life experience, we learn from God’s word. The things we know in life have been taught to us in one way or the other, but who has taught God? No one! God has no counselors; he is the counselor. There is no one who gives God instruction, no one who tells him what to do, no one who gives him advice, God is infinitely wise and does not need counsel but he himself is the fount of all good counsel.

Who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?

Job 41:11 says “Who has first given to me, that I should repay him? Whatever is under the whole heaven is mine.” God has no need to walk to a bank to take a mortgage out for a house, there is absolutely nothing that anyone or anything can ever give to God in which it does not belong to him already. Everything belongs to him, he is the sole owner of all, but God has been kind to us in extending his hand of salvation to us so that we can be saved from his wrath. We do not give God a gift, he gives the gift to us.

For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him by glory forever. Amen.

God is the source of our salvation. God in the depths of his riches of wisdom and knowledge, by his unsearchable judgments and inscrutable ways, was counseled by no one, because no one can know his mind, gave us a gift by his power and grace and all glory is due to the triune God forevermore. Brothers and sisters, we have been justified by the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and we are alive to God. Why did God decide this was the best way? Who can know his mind? We will not be able to trace the full extent of his sovereign decisions but one thing we can do is be in complete awe, admiration, and adoration to the God who has been so gracious to us in extending his hand of salvation. We did not deserve this mercy, but his ways are not our ways, and his thoughts are not our thoughts. May this doxology be engraved into our hearts, as we meditate on the saving power of the gospel.