“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17 (KJV)

Some might say, I can understand why Romans 10:17 might say, “faith cometh by hearing the Word of God.” But, why does it rather say, 'faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God'?"

It is sometimes taught by Calvinist theology students that an unsaved sinner is so spiritually “dead in trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1) that he cannot even hear the Word of God in the gospel, let alone respond to it in faith.

It is argued that if you go to a funeral and tell the deceased to rise up out of the coffin, he cannot even hear the words of your command, let alone respond to it. So, it is then falsely argued by them from this that the Spirit must first regenerate a lost sinner so that he can hear the gospel and believe it.

While that sounds logical, the Lord Jesus gave a different explanation for how a sinner who is “dead in sins” is “quickened [made alive]” (Eph. 2:5) when He said,

“It is the spirit that quickeneth [makes alive]; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life [ they bear the God-life to the hearer]” (John 6:63).

The Lord here asserts that His words “are spirit.” That is, His words have the spiritual power to raise a dead sinner from spiritual death. The Lord also clearly taught that His words “are life.” Thus, since the sinner must be given life in order to be able to ‘hear’ the gospel, then …

… the Lord's words are able to give a dead sinner all the life he needs to ‘hear’ and then ‘respond’ to the gospel in faith.

This is why Romans 10:17 is worded in that manner. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God, to be sure, but even the hearing comes by the Word.

- as adapted from Ricky Kurth, of the Berean Bible Society