What does it mean that "whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Joel 2:32; Romans 10:13)?

Thus salvation must be altogether of grace; and if of grace, distinctions are impossible. Here our second text comes in most blessedly. The atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus has one value for all who believe, whether Jews or Gentiles. The "no difference" doctrine angered the Jewish people deeply. Paul, as its chief exponent, was fiercely persecuted by them on this account. Even Peter, when charged to preach to Cornelius and his company, was slow to admit that the grace of God was for all alike. "Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Remark in passing one of the many incidental proofs of the Deity of Christ. This verse is cited from Joel 2:32, where manifestly the reference is to Jehovah; in Rom 10 it is applied to the Lord Jesus. Then He is Jehovah! Were He not, He would not possess the competency to be the Saviour of men. He is moreover "Lord over all." Thus every one must bow to Him, either now or in the great hereafter.

What is required of men in order that they might be saved? Simply to "call" upon the name of the Lord This was all Israel could do in the midst of their misery in Egypt. To shake off Pharaoh was impossible; to get rid of the taskmasters was out of the question; but they could cry to God. In like manner to-day, he who calls upon the name of the Lord, acknowledging Him thus as his only hope, will be saved. To all such He is "rich." The blessings bound up in the salvation of God are neither few nor small; no creature tongue could declare them in their blessed fullness.

The very first service the Holy Ghost does is, if I may so say, to shake out and hoist aloft the flag on which is emblazoned, "WHOSOEVER SHALL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD SHALL BE SAVED." Salvation through the name of Jesus is what that means. It is the Gospel in its simplest possible form. Whosoever, therefore, desires to be saved may be. There is salvation, for anybody who will have it, through the name of Jesus.

"Whosoever will call upon the name of Jehovah shall be delivered" shows that the blessing is by faith, and hence by grace. "All flesh" does not necessarily mean every individual, but, as we know from other scriptures, blessing here goes forth largely toward all classes — that is, toward all nations and even all divisions among nations. But all this is of great importance, because the Jewish system naturally tended to limit God as well as to make classes within the Jews. Only the family of Aaron could go into the sanctuary; only Levites could touch the holy vessels with impunity; whereas this greatest blessing of God will go out with the most indiscriminate character of grace. "And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of Jehovah shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as Jehovah has said, and in the remnant whom Jehovah shall call." Hence it is plain that, although it is blessing for Israel, still our prophet Joel keeps true to his purpose. The city of Jerusalem abides the great and royal centre; mount Zion reappears, the sign of grace for the kingdom which Jehovah will establish in that day.

Our salvation, then, lies in calling on the name of the Lord, as is stated so plainly in verses 12 and 13. There is richness of supply and of power in Him, and all is at the disposal of the one who calls upon Him, without any distinction. Here we have the "no difference" of grace, just as in chapter 3 we had the "no difference" of guilt. Jesus is "Lord over all" whether they call upon Him or whether they do not. But the richness of His saving power is only at the disposal of those that call upon Him.

The "calling upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ" is bowing to authority in the hands of the divinely appointed Ruler. To "call upon the name of the Lord" is the pass-word of salvation; and the apostle has no thought here of a mere lip-confession, although, of course, there may in fact be many who say, "Lord, Lord," while the heart knows Him not. But he credits all with their responsible profession, and from his inmost heart he desires for all that "grace and peace" which have but one source, one channel, — our Father God, and the Lord our Saviour.

Verse 12 magnifies the riches of the blessed Lord as the lavish dispenser of the wealth of salvation to all that call upon Him. Jew or Gentile, Pharisee or Canaanite, are alike, and in precisely equal degree, eligible as objects of Divine grace. "There is no difference." Their personal characteristics may differ to the widest range of possible variance; but as regarded by the Spirit of truth, they are sinners alike. Now, the Lord is rich to all that call upon Him. As He has elsewhere said, "Him that comes unto me I will in no wise cast out" (John 6:37). A rich Christ, then, reader, waits still to be gracious, to prove His riches as the receiver, with everlasting welcome, of all who call upon Him. "For (verse 13) whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Joel 2:32). Here we have another quotation added as a closing witness, first, to the full and wide aspect of the grace of the Gospel; and, secondly, to the identity of the Jehovah of the Old Testament with the Jesus of the New.

I make only one further remark on this verse. The calling here spoken of is not the vague cry of an uneasy conscience, but it is the cry of faith. "Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst" (Matt. 8:2), is the language of petitioning faith, while as yet no clear indication of the mind of the Lord has been given. "Lord, I believe" (John 9:38), is the glad expression of the same faith, when the revelation of the truth in the person of Jesus lays the believing sinner as a willing worshipper at the feet of the Son of God. Faith lays hold of the person of Christ with the firm grasp of conscious dependence on Him alone — of utter hopelessness of help or safety, from within or from without, save only in Him. The cry, "Lord, Lord," may, alas! as we are solemnly warned, proceed from lips whose sound never came from a believing heart. But the note of true faith is, that its aim is God. Its misery is distance from Him. Its joy is in the blessed Jesus, because by His precious blood the believer is brought nigh in Him (Eph. 2:13).

The contrast with living by doing is plain. That is not faith, nor is it salvation. For the righteousness of faith, the apostle quotes, however, in what many seem a very strange fashion, Moses too. He puts into his words clearly what is not in Moses; and the language of Deuteronomy the thirtieth, which he uses, unquestionably speaks of the law itself. "This commandment which I command thee this day" could be nothing else but this. It was of this commandment that Moses says: "It is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off; it is not in heaven, that thou shouldst say, Who shall go up for us to heaven to bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it; neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldst say, Who shall go over the sea for it and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it; but the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it." Yet, in principle at least, the apostle seems to find the gospel in this. Can it be implied, where not expressed? The beginning of the chapter shows that Moses has been speaking of the time when the predicted blessing and the curse shall have been alike fulfilled, and when, scattered in every land, Israel will return in heart to what was then commanded them. This explains the words "not in the heavens." The law had been given them in the first place from heaven, God speaking to them thence; and again, "not beyond the sea" refers to their scattered condition far away from their land, and yet with the word in their hands, and now through grace in their hearts also, for through grace it is. When they return in heart to God at that time, God will have compassion on them. They will be no more able to keep the impossible terms of the law than they ever have been, and if God takes them up at the end of their wanderings, it can only be in grace after all, although by that grace itself the law is now written in their hearts. This reminds us at once of the new covenant, for the terms of the new covenant are: "I will write My laws in their hearts"; yet how different is this "I will write" from the legal compact, "thou shalt do" so and so! Thus the light dawns on us. The apostle really makes explicit what is implicit in Moses, words; but then again, for this, Christ must come in. With Moses that is yet a secret thing which at least does not come into the passage quoted, but the apostle puts it in as, in fact, indispensable. There could be no grace apart from Christ. There could be no salvation apart from grace, and we are familiar with the new covenant as that which, of necessity, must have Christ for its fulfilment. When once we see this, we need have no difficulty about what is said here; and for us "Who shall ascend into heaven, and who shall descend to the abyss?" can only refer to Him. It seems strange at first sight that he should put it, "Say ye not in thy heart, who shall ascend into heaven," and for the purpose named; who ever did say that? No one, assuredly, ever thought of bringing Christ from heaven, as no one ever thought of raising Him from the dead. These are things outside of the range of man's natural expectation, much more of any accomplishment on his part; but this is, nevertheless, what was absolutely needed, and thus the hopelessness of any effort on man's part is confessed at once. If we cannot ask, even, Who shall do this? this after all is what has secured salvation for us and nothing else could secure it. Thank God, it is an accomplished thing; and therefore still more, no one could need to ask the question. Only the word of it remains, the report which awakens faith and of which faith lays hold. There is simply the word in the mouth and the heart, a word of confession for the mouth, and of faith for the heart. The apostle does not hesitate to put these together. He does not think of the possibility of a faith without confession. He does not own such a thing to be faith. "Faith if it have not works, is dead, being alone." It is, of course, the basis of all, necessarily. One must believe that God has raised Christ from the dead or there will be no confession of Him as the Lord of all, and the apostle joins confession with salvation surely, as looking on to that time when Christ will confess in His turn those who have confessed Him upon earth. That is the time when salvation will be complete. The calling on Him as to which he quotes from Joel, in the same way as Peter at Pentecost, necessarily implies this. "Whosoever shall call upon the Name of the Lord shall be saved." Notice how fully the deity of Christ is recognized here, for "the Lord" in Joel is Jehovah; and notice, too, that by the words of Joel himself the Gentile cannot be excluded. If it be "whosoever believes" and "whosoever confesses," the Gentile, of necessity, may come in here upon the same footing as Israelites themselves.

How important then is the Gospel, in which He is presented as Lord for the submission of faith. Verses 14 and 15 emphasize this. If men are to be saved they must hear the Gospel and God must send it. With Him it all begins. God sends the preacher. The preacher delivers the message. Men hear of Christ and they believe in Him. Then they call upon the Lord and are saved.

The original immediate application was deliverance in Zion for a remnant; Joel 2:32. But God had furnished the blessing in terms which let in the Gentile too when the time was come, and this way of grace of His was more important far than the Jewish privilege. This supposed the testimony which made known the Lord on whom they were to call.

And it shall come to pass that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered, for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord has said, and in the remnant whom the Lord shall call.

Here we find that salvation, or deliverance, is in Zion for Israel in the last days, but it is in connection with the call of God, and will be made in a remnant. It will be there for all, for "whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord," but the call of God has to come in to make it effectual. He calls a remnant, and this remnant gets the benefit of the deliverance that is in Zion.