Romans 15:7-13

Self-deception will turn good people bad. Nobody starts out with the intention of deceiving themselves into wickedness, but it happens. The Jewish people were God’s people, and in many ways, they were good people. God revealed in the scriptures how he intended to use the Jewish people to bless the gentiles. Paul references just a few of the texts that make this clear. God intended that the Jewish people and the gentile people would rejoice together in praising Him. It was God’s intention that the gentiles would find hope in Him just as the Jewish people had. He wanted to give peace, joy and hope, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to all nations.

Yet, in spite of the recorded words of the prophets, the Jewish people did not understand God’s plan, and they did not love and bless the gentiles. They deceived themselves by holding a partial truth so high, and so important in their theology, that they could not recognize an equally important truth. They wanted to be special, and they wanted to be favored, so they held high the truth that God had chosen them, and ignored the truth that God was choosing the whole world. Their self-deception crucified Christ.

These verses not only make the Jewish self-deception visible, but they stand as a counterbalance truth to the self-deception that Christian nations have practiced so many times throughout history. Yes, it is true that the Jewish nation rejected Christ and played a part in his crucifixion. However, it is also true that the Jewish nation was the root of the Christian faith; our faith is rooted in the faithfulness of Abraham and his descendants.  At times, Christians, just like the Jews, have wanted to believe they were special and favored. They held the truth that Jews rejected Jesus, and ignored the truth that Christ never rejected the Jews.

Self-deceived Jews crucified Christ; self-deceived gentiles massacred Jews in the millions. Christian, do not deceive yourself; self-deception always results in wickedness.