Hebrews 5:8 Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; 9 And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;
The faith of Christ was worked out through obedience. This obedience was something learned. Look at the correlation to our faith.
John 6:28 Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? 29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.
John 6:40 And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.
1 John 3:23 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment.
Our obedience is to believe on Christ Jesus. That is our faith. We believe on Him. It is not just a believing in Him, but believing in what He did. There are many that believe in Him but not on Him. Look later in Romans 10:
Romans 10:1 Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. 2 For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. 3 For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.
Paul saw the Jews had a zeal for God but not according to righteousness. The believed in God but did not believe on Him. What was the primary aspect of God that they did not believe? It was His righteousness. They could not see the righteousness of God. They were ignorant of this. They tried through the law of works and conditions to obligate God. Today is no different. The ignorance of the righteousness of God is prevalent. Man continues to try and obligate God to salvation. What Paul has taught us is our justification, our salvation is accomplished. It has been done. There is nothing you can do to impress God. You can’t obligate Him by your choice or by your will or by keeping the law or by faith. The justification that all of these are said to bring is settled and has already occurred. It is the ignorance of righteousness to not see this.
The work of God as read in John 6:29 above is that we believe. John is telling us that it is by God that we believe. It is His work that we do that. God will reveal His righteousness to whom He chooses. He is sovereign in all things. Nothing is left out of His sovereignty.
Proverbs 25:2 It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings is to search out a matter.
The glory of God is to conceal a thing. God gets glory in concealing His righteousness from some and revealing it to others. Those to whom it is revealed are those whom He has chosen to send His Son to be their propitiation. That is what separates the sheep from the goats. To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? To whom has the righteousness of God been revealed? Look at one more series of verses to illustrate how belief in Christ is revealed. It is revealed by God to His sheep. It is not revealed to all and we see the consequences below.
Acts 13:38 Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: 39 And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.
The words of God in the book of Romans teach us all that believe are justified. It is not that they will be justified but are justified. We are, we have been justified by the faith of Christ. This message to some is not welcomed. To some it causes anger. I have personally experienced this in my life. This shows that belief in the righteousness of God must be revealed. To the natural man this is foolishness. Look at how the Jews treated Christ.
John 10:33 The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.
Luke 4:28 And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, 29 And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong.
Christ was not revealed to these. The Father had not drawn them to the Son. They could not see God incarnate standing before them. Today, Christ is denied though the scriptures plainly speak of Him. If He is not revealed He will be rejected. Those who speak His truth will be hated and persecuted. They will be persecuted for His name’s sake.
Matthew 10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.
Matthew 24:9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.
Luke 12:17 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake.
Why would any reject the Son of God? Why would some persecute those who speak the truth of God?
John 12:38 That the saying of Esaias the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spake, Lord, who hath believed our report? and to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed? 39 Therefore they could not believe, because that Esaias said again, 40 He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them.
The nature of man is to turn from God. In His sovereignty, He hardens some. This is the will of God that not all will know Christ Jesus His Son.
Romans 9:21 Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? 22 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: 23 And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,
Why do some reject the word of God and not others? Only by the will and power of God are some drawn to His Son, the living Word. Just like the Jews of His day rejected Him, today we see the rejection of the sovereign salvation of God. Salvation completed in Jesus Christ. Salvation that is now revealed to us today by the very Spirit of God through His word. Not all will embrace this message of a completed salvation in Jesus Christ. Some will insist that man plays his part. Paul has shown us the justification of His people has been completed. We have been made right with God. We are called to believe this message. The message of forgiveness of sins and justification as mentioned above in Acts 13. Do not frustrate the grace of God by insisting you have a part to play. Christ was the actor, Christ was the sacrifice, Christ is our righteousness. He is our all. His is our salvation.