Romans 11:1-6 - The Elijah Syndrome
- Chad Werkhoven
- Jun 11
- 4 min read
Chances are you're afflicted with a syndrome you didn't know you had!
Romans 11:1-6 (NIV)
CONTEXT: Paul is discussing why the Jewish people have rejected Christ at the end of the tenth chapter:
17 Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. 18 But I ask: Did they not hear? Of course they did...
19 Again I ask: Did Israel not understand?
21 ...concerning Israel Moses says,
“All day long I have held out my hands
to a disobedient and obstinate people.”
11 I ask then: Did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew. Don’t you know what Scripture says in the passage about Elijah—how he appealed to God against Israel: 3 “Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars; I am the only one left, and they are trying to kill me”? 4 And what was God’s answer to him? “I have reserved for myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” 5 So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace. 6 And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.
Canons of Dordt
Point 2 - Limited Atonement
Article 9: The Fulfillment of God’s Plan
This plan,
arising out of God’s eternal love for the elect,
from the beginning of the world to the present time
has been powerfully carried out
and will also be carried out in the future,
the gates of hell seeking vainly to prevail against it.
As a result, the elect
are gathered into one, all in their own time,
and there is always a church of believers founded on Christ’s blood,
a church which steadfastly loves, persistently worships,
and here and in all eternity praises him as her Savior
who laid down his life for her on the cross,
as a bridegroom for his bride.
Summary
Paul begins chapter eleven with another of his famous rhetorical questions to help move his discussion forward. This one comes on the tail end of a series of inquiries as to why his own people - the Jews - were rejecting Christ.
Faith comes through hearing, he surmised at the end of the previous chapter, so did they not hear? Paul doesn't wait long to supply the answer: of course they did! They'd been given God's law and the prophets!
His final question of chapter ten identifies the issue. Paul asks, did they not understand what they'd heard? This time the answer is a bit more drawn out. Ultimately, they didn't understand, and their lack of understanding came as a result of their disobedience and obstinance.
So then, the big question at the beginning of chapter eleven is did God reject His people - the ones He foreknew? Could it be that although God had chosen them to belong to Him, He finally had enough of their stubborness and finally cut them loose? Once again Paul quickly makes the answer to his own rhetorical question firmly absolute: No! God did not reject His people!
Dig Deeper
It's called the Elijah syndrome, and people like us are especially prone to it. Most of our readers (not all!) come from solid Christian communities and remember back in the day when our pews were overflowing. Extra chairs were set up often. Potlucks and dinners dominated the calendar and enrollment in children's programs were busting at the seams. But now, decades later, many experience the opposite reality: empty pews, quiet fellowship halls and far fewer children.
Like Elijah, we often silently pray Lord, are we the only ones left?
Paul here reminds us that God answered Elijah's somewhat delusional prayer, telling Elijah that He had reserved for Himself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal. So too, writes Paul, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace! There was then and is now a portion of Jewish people preserved by God in the grace of Christ.
You may think the Church is quickly disintegrating; your own congregation is likely smaller than it used to be and you're continually bombarded with bad news seemingly indicating the Church's demise all over North America. But come back to this passage often and revisit what both Elijah and Paul learned about God's grace, which is summarized in the Canons:
God’s eternal love for the elect, from the beginning of the world to the present time, has been powerfully carried out and will also be carried out in the future... There is always a church of believers founded on Christ’s blood.
ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who always has and always will keep His covenant people;
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Even if your own church community is a fraction of what is was, praise God for preserving you and others as a remnant chosen by grace;
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:
Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Ephesians 4
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