Here is a good audio series on Romans 9, 10, and 11 by historian / preacher David Pawson. The series is not specifically about Calvinism or Arminianism, however, the subject of the nature of election is addressed, and Pawson comes to a solidly Arminian conclusion.
Pawson argues that Paul wrote the epistle to the Romans in order to address the problem of antisemitism among the Gentile Christians in Rome.
The Roman Church was initially exclusively Jewish, then over time Gentile converts were added. At some point Emperor Claudius ordered all Jews to leave Rome (likely because they were bickering over whether or not Jesus was the Christ). After the death of Claudius, Nero permitted the Jews to again return to Rome.
These edicts impacted the demographics of the Roman church. The church was first Jewish, then became a mixture of Jewish and Gentile, then became exclusively Gentile, then finally was again a mixture of Jews and Gentiles. When the Jewish Christians returned they were not welcomed by the Gentile Christians. The Gentiles were arguing that the Jews were now rejected by God. Pawson argues that the purpose of Paul’s letter was to address the exclusion of the Jews by the Gentiles, and that Romans 9-11 in particular addresses this issue.
HT: Onesimus
Leave a Reply