JMD Devotional 232 Romans 10:1-4 Zeal without Knowledge

BRETHREN, [with all] my heart's desire and goodwill for [Israel], I long and pray to God that they may be saved. I bear them witness that they have a [certain] zeal and enthusiasm for God, but it is not enlightened and according to [correct and vital] knowledge. For being ignorant of the righteousness that God ascribes [which makes one acceptable to Him in word, thought, and deed] and seeking to establish a righteousness (a means of salvation) of their own, they did not obey or submit themselves to God's righteousness. For Christ is the end of the Law [the limit at which it ceases to be, for the Law leads up to Him Who is the fulfillment of its types, and in Him the purpose which it was designed to accomplish is fulfilled. That is, the purpose of the Law is fulfilled in Him] as the means of righteousness (right relationship to God) for everyone who trusts in and adheres to and relies on Him.

I have always admired (in a limited context) Jehovah Witnesses for their commitment, the quality of their printed material (the illustrations, paper and printing, not the content) and their taking their unpopular message door-to-door. Mormons have the best commercials. They excel at family values and in getting their young men to take their faith seriously by taking it to the road on bicycle for two years as a ‘missionary’. Then there are groups that scare me, like the IRA and the al Qaeda. What these all have in common is a certain zeal for God without the knowledge of His will for mankind and the specific salvation provided exclusively through Christ Jesus. They have an axe to grind, another agenda, an alternative path. There is God’s way and man’s ways; it appeals to sinful pride to work out your own salvation rather than accepting what is freely given; to hold to ‘secret knowledge’ that places one in an exclusive ‘club’. They believe in what they are doing; but never mistake ‘sincerity’ for truth and righteousness.

Dear God,
Counterfeits abound in this land of confusion. Please keep us safe and secure in the light of Your truth. Help us to clearly understand how and why Israel failed as a nation to embrace the salvation You provided. Show us the limitations of legalistic rules and laws and human will-power and the necessity of trusting You to work out in us what we cannot do for ourselves. Demonstrate the superiority of walking in Your Spirit over working and relying on our own flesh. Faith is the victory that overcomes the world, even our own self-destructiveness. Impart to us the full knowledge of salvation.
Amen

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