Wednesday, 17 December 2025

Romans part 133 - One in Messiah 22

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Rom 10:9-10 For if you confess with your mouth that Yeshua is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart it is believed for righteousness, and with the mouth it is confessed for salvation.

Both a "believing heart" and a "confessing mouth" are expressed as personal in verse 9. After all, it is you and me believing and confessing. Yet, verse 10 expresses this impersonally, saying, "It is" in both instances. (And yes, it is a "heart thang.") Paul is writing both verses to say both are true, "It's all about you, and it's not all about you."

By restating the previous verse in this way, Paul is acknowledging both audiences that make up "one in Messiah." Gentile people tend to see things individually and personally. Statements like, "I am saved," or "I have sinned," are common among Gentiles. However; Jewish people tend to see their primary identity in being a people (or tribe or nation). Statements like, "we are the people of the Book," or "we are the chosen people," or "we have sinned," are common among Jewish people. Verse 9 is written about you, "your heart" and "your mouth," while verse 10 is written about "the heart" and "the mouth." Can you see the difference?

Additionally, what is "the heart" anyway? We're not talking about the beating organ here. Paul is writing about the place in each of us where the Holy Spirit lives. Romans 5:5b God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Ruach ha-Kodesh who was given to us. The Ruach HaKodesh is Hebrew for the Holy Spirit.

All this talk about believing and confessing makes me wonder why it is such a big deal. After all, God knows our thoughts, so why isn't just believing enough?

Psalm 139:1b,2b Adonai, You searched me and know me ... You discern my thinking from afar.

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword ... able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

However; an oath comes into the world only in a real and physical way. Satan does not know our thoughts. He only knows what he hears and sees. When we confess with our mouths, we are affirming to God and ourselves, as well letting Satan know, that we belong to God. There is a binding and a loosing that takes place when we confess with our mouth, "Yeshua is Lord."

1 John 4:15 Whosoever shall confess that Yeshua is the Son of God, God dwells in him, and he in God. (MOV - My Own Version)

Why did I just say, "Binding and loosing?" By confession, we bind ourselves to God, while at the same time, loosing ourselves from the bonds of slavery to Satan. Yes, it takes both a believing heart and a confessing mouth. Go ahead, enter in with both your heart and your mouth. Your future depends on it. Shalom shalom.