Romans 9A (2017) So now we are all waiting for that final link in the chain, our glorification

Transcription

1 Rmans 9A (2017) Our previus lessn ended in Rmans 8 at v.30 and the end f that glrius chain f events Paul declared was the future f every believer The ultimate cnsequence f ur salvatin by grace thrugh faith in Jesus Christ is that we are assured a future f glry with Christ And that assurance isn t based in anything f urselves Paul s chain f events is entirely a wrk f Gd n ur behalf Beginning with Gd s chice f us befre the fundatins f the earth The chain was unbreakable and inevitable, as Paul describes each link cnnected with the prir link withut dubt S fr everyne Gd includes in the plan f salvatin, He will nt fail t finish the wrk He begins And as I ended the last lessn, I explained that every believer in the church, past, present r future, sits at the fifth link tgether We all were freknwn by Gd, predestined t becme His child, called n a day int faith, and justified in Gd s sight by ur faith S nw we are all waiting fr that final link in the chain, ur glrificatin And that s the main thrust f Paul s argument and why he laid ut each step in the chain s carefully There were five links fr everyne, and five f the six have already cme t pass fr all f us S Paul draws ur attentin t where we sit n the chain tday, and he leads us t the inevitable cnclusin If Gd has taken us this far, by His pwer and nt because f anything we ve dne, then hw can we dubt He will bring us t the final link T assume therwise is bth illgical and unbiblical The nly cnclusin we can make frm what Gd has already dne fr us is that ur future f glry with Him is equally assured And that s the cnclusin Paul makes as well 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

2 Rmans 9A 2! f! 22 Rm. 8:31 What then shall we say t these things? If Gd is fr us, wh is against us? Rm. 8:32 He wh did nt spare His wn Sn, but delivered Him ver fr us all, hw will He nt als with Him freely give us all things? Paul asks the questin raised by his unbreakable chain if Gd is wrking s hard t bring us t Himself in a day t cme, then what can stp it? Wh is mre pwerful than Gd? Wh culd change His mind r thwart His desires? Obviusly, we knw the answer is n ne But let the implicatins f that answer sink in fr a mment The highest pwer in the universe has determined yu will be glrified in a day t cme N ther actr r pwer has the capability t change that plan, s it puts t an end any cncerns fr yur eternal security D yu fear the devil s ability t tempt yu int sin? N matter hw successful He becmes, it wn t change Gd s plan Gd determined t bring yu t glry befre the devil even existed D yu wrry abut yur wn faithfulness t beying Christ? N matter hw disbedient yu are, yu wn t change Gd s mind Gd justified against all yur sin, past, present and future, s yu re nt disbedience isn t surprising Gd Paul says the ultimate prf that Gd will nt be swayed in His supprt fr us is seen in His willingness t put Christ n a crss fr ur sake Once again, Paul is asking us t cnsider the implicatins f what we already knw t be true The Father tk the thing mst precius t Him, His nly begtten Sn, and delivered Him ver t die a hrrible death He did this t bring yu and me t Himself, having already freknwn us and predestined us t receive His grace S hw ridiculus wuld it be t cnsider that after Gd had dne such extreme things fr ur sake that He wuld then allw the plan shrt t fail in the end 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

3 Rmans 9A 3! f! 22 That s why Jesus said this: Jhn 6:37 All that the Father gives Me will cme t Me, and the ne wh cmes t Me I will certainly nt cast ut. Jhn 6:38 Fr I have cme dwn frm heaven, nt t d My wn will, but the will f Him wh sent Me. Jhn 6:39 This is the will f Him wh sent Me, that f all that He has given Me I lse nthing, but raise it up n the last day. Ntice Jesus chice f verbs and yu ll find the links in Paul s chain The Father gives Jesus the peple Jesus will save (freknwn and predestined) Thse He gives will cme t Jesus (called) Thse wh cme will nt be rejected by Gd (justified) And in v.39 Jesus cncludes that all the Father gives Him in this way, Jesus will lse nne (all will be glrified) We can sum up Paul s analysis with a simple but prfund statement Gd nly calls and justifies thse He intends t glrify in Christ The Bible calls these peple the elect because Gd selects them frm amng all fallen humanity t receive glry S yu aren t standing n the fifth link f Paul s chain because f yur merits r effrt r even because f yur desire t be saved Yu re there because Gd put yu there As Jhn wrte Jhn 1:12 But as many as received Him, t them He gave the right t becme children f Gd, even t thse wh believe in His name, Jhn 1:13 wh were brn, nt f bld nr f the will f the flesh nr f the will f man, but f Gd. We were given the right t be children f Gd And Jhn says Gd didn t give us that blessing because f ur family cnnectins (bld) r ur gd wrks (will f flesh) Nr even because f ur wn desire (will f man) 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

4 Rmans 9A 4! f! 22 But slely because Gd elected us t be His As Paul says in 1Crinthians, yu are in Christ by His ding 1Cr. 1:30 But by His ding yu are in Christ Jesus, wh became t us wisdm frm Gd, and righteusness and sanctificatin, and redemptin, And if Gd has elected yu t be with Him in glry, can we imagine anything that culd stp Gd frm getting what He wants? Paul explres sme pssibilities Rm. 8:33 Wh will bring a charge against Gd s elect? Gd is the ne wh justifies; Rm. 8:34 wh is the ne wh cndemns? Christ Jesus is He wh died, yes, rather wh was raised, wh is at the right hand f Gd, wh als intercedes fr us. Rm. 8:35 Wh will separate us frm the lve f Christ? Will tribulatin, r distress, r persecutin, r famine, r nakedness, r peril, r swrd? Rm. 8:36 Just as it is written, Fr Yur sake we are being put t death all day lng; We were cnsidered as sheep t be slaughtered. Rm. 8:37 But in all these things we verwhelmingly cnquer thrugh Him wh lved us. Rm. 8:38 Fr I am cnvinced that neither death, nr life, nr angels, nr principalities, nr things present, nr things t cme, nr pwers, Rm. 8:39 nr height, nr depth, nr any ther created thing, will be able t separate us frm the lve f Gd, which is in Christ Jesus ur Lrd. Rm. 8:37 But in all these things we verwhelmingly cnquer thrugh Him wh lved us. Rm. 8:38 Fr I am cnvinced that neither death, nr life, nr angels, nr principalities, nr things present, nr things t cme, nr pwers, Rm. 8:39 nr height, nr depth, nr any ther created thing, will be able t separate us frm the lve f Gd, which is in Christ Jesus ur Lrd. Paul begins in v.33 culd ur enemy stp Gd s plan? The Bible says Satan is the accuser f the brethren S perhaps we might imagine him cming befre the thrne with a damning accusatin against us Telling Gd f sme terrible secret sin in ur life Wuld this cause Gd t change His mind cncerning ur glry? 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

5 Rmans 9A 5! f! 22 Paul says remember, Gd is the ne wh has declared yu justified His is the judge and if the judge has already acquitted yu f sin, then he will nt entertain any new arguments frm the prsecutr Hw can yu be cndemned fr sin when the One with the pwer t cndemn has already taken that cndemnatin fr yu And nw He sits at the right hand f Gd as yur advcate Therefre n sin yu cmmit, n matter hw grievus, can separate yu frm the lve f Gd Then Paul asks in v.35, wh else might separate us frm the lve Gd? If nt Satan, can sme tribulatin r distress separate yu? A tribulatin is an external threat t ur peace, while distress is a persnal difficulty What abut persecutin perhaps leading us t deny Christ like Peter did? Or perhaps a famine causes us t steal r turn ur back n Gd in anger Or nakedness (which is a reference t public shame) Or peril, meaning physical vilence, r swrd, referring t executin? Befre we give the bvius answer, did yu ntice smething abut that list? The seven things Paul lists are an inventry f what the Lrd experienced n the way t crss He endured all these things fr ur sake Paul s subtle pint is that whatever has ptential t cause us t act in unfaithful ways Christ already walked thse steps fr us And He was faithful all the way t death And since we have been credited with Christ s perfect life by ur faith, it matters nt what we are able t endure in the face f such things 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

6 Rmans 9A 6! f! 22 Paul explains this in v.37 when he says in all these things we verwhelmingly cnquer thrugh Christ Paul s nt prmising that because we are Christians we will always be victrius ver the trubles in ur life He s saying that Christ cnquered them during His life, and since we have been credited with His success, we can t be defeated by them nw S even if we shuld fail at sme step alng the way, Christ s success will stand in place f ur failure We have been credited with that faithfulness S we can never be separated frm the lve f Gd This leads Paul in vs t give perhaps his mst sweeping and pwerful statement f the assurance f eternal security fr every believer Given all that he s argued thrughut this chapter, Paul says He has full cnvictin and cnfidence that we cannt be separated frm Gd fr any reasn T ensure we understand hw sure Paul is in his cnvictins, he adds a series f ten frces that represent the extremities f this life and the next Which he intrduces with the first pair f death r life Nthing n this side f the grave r n the ther side f the grave hlds the pwer t separate us frm the lve f Gd And mre specifically, n spiritual pwer r earthly pwer, n present existence r future existence N pwer is greater than Gd We can t g high enugh t be ut f His reach (s even Christian astrnauts remain in Gd s lve) We can t deep enugh t hide frm Gd s lve (s Christian divers are still secure in Christ) Simply put, nthing in Creatin is capable f cming between us and the Lrd Wh has saved us and prmised us glry in a day t cme 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

7 Rmans 9A 7! f! 22 With that statement, the first Act in Paul s thesis n righteusness cmes t a dramatic clse Lking dwn the left side f ur Structure f Rmans chart, we see Paul s lgical develpment f his thesis clearly He s walked us thrugh a series f ideas carefully and methdically He explained what righteusness is and why we need it He explained hw mankind errs in trying t find it in wrng ways Then Paul explained the ne and nly way Gd has grants it t us He prved the plan has never changed since times f ld And he reflected n the implicatins f Gd s plan in the life f everyne wh is saved by it Ending here with the mst imprtant implicatin: we are His frever withut any dubt Gd is faithful t d fr us just as He prmised Nw befre we mve int the Paul s secnd act, yu may have nticed that I skipped ver v.36 In that verse, Paul punctuated his argument by quting frm Psalm 44 The psalmist declared, speaking as Israel, that Gd has allwed His children t be killed by their enemies all day lng The psalmist was lamenting Israel s difficult circumstances suffering under Gd s judgment The phrase killed all day lng is euphemism As Calvin explains, the psalmist intimated that death was s suspended ver them, that their life differed but little frm death Israel has knwn many generatins f such suffering as cnsequence fr having vilated the Old Cvenant They have been verrun by their enemies, exiled, persecuted and killed 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

8 Rmans 9A 8! f! 22 And as the psalmist remarks, these things cme at the hand f Gd, as a result f His will fr His peple Paul s pint in quting this psalm was t demnstrate that thrughut histry Gd's peple have been made t suffer at times We are cnsidered by Gd as sheep t be slaughtered, the psalmist says S if necessary, Gd may bring us t death t achieve an eternal gd purpse in us Therefre, nthing that happens t us in this life nt even death itself is a threat t Gd s plan fr us After all, He s the One Wh gives life and takes it away But even with that explanatin, Paul picked an dd verse t qute as prf fr his argument, didn t he? In fact, if we lk at mre f that psalm, Paul s chice becmes even mre interesting and perplexing Psa. 44:9 Yet Yu have rejected us and brught us t dishnr, And d nt g ut with ur armies. Psa. 44:10 Yu cause us t turn back frm the adversary; And thse wh hate us have taken spil fr themselves. Psa. 44:11 Yu give us as sheep t be eaten And have scattered us amng the natins. Psa. 44:12 Yu sell Yur peple cheaply, And have nt prfited by their sale. Psa. 44:13 Yu make us a reprach t ur neighbrs, A scffing and a derisin t thse arund us. Psa. 44:14 Yu make us a bywrd amng the natins, A laughingstck amng the peples. Psa. 44:15 All day lng my dishnr is befre me And my humiliatin has verwhelmed me, Psa. 44:16 Because f the vice f him wh repraches and reviles, Because f the presence f the enemy and the avenger. Psa. 44:17 All this has cme upn us, but we have nt frgtten Yu, And we have nt dealt falsely with Yur cvenant. Psa. 44:18 Our heart has nt turned back, And ur steps have nt deviated frm Yur way, 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

9 Rmans 9A 9! f! 22 Psa. 44:19 Yet Yu have crushed us in a place f jackals And cvered us with the shadw f death. Psa. 44:20 If we had frgtten the name f ur Gd Or extended ur hands t a strange gd, Psa. 44:21 Wuld nt Gd find this ut? Fr He knws the secrets f the heart. Psa. 44:22 But fr Yur sake we are killed all day lng; We are cnsidered as sheep t be slaughtered. Psa. 44:23 Aruse Yurself, why d Yu sleep, O Lrd? Awake, d nt reject us frever. Psa. 44:24 Why d Yu hide Yur face And frget ur afflictin and ur ppressin? Psa. 44:25 Fr ur sul has sunk dwn int the dust; Our bdy cleaves t the earth. Psa. 44:26 Rise up, be ur help, And redeem us fr the sake f Yur lvingkindness. Frm reading mre f the psalm, we cme t see it s a lamentatin fr Israel The psalmist says the natin feels rejected by their Gd He seems t have frsaken His peple Rejecting them and leaving them t the mercy f their adversaries wh desire t destry them They are a derisin, are a reprach, reviled Gd allws them t be sld cheaply as slaves, scattered like sheep Nw this hardly seems like the psalm t chse if yu pint was t demnstrate that we can have cnfidence in Gd t prtect us Paul was arguing that nthing can separate us frm the lve f Gd And in the midst f that argument, Paul cites a psalm that has as it s majr theme the lamentatin f a seemingly rejected Israel If anything, the psalm seems t make the ppsite argument But if we lk at the psalm again, we find an interesting detail 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

10 Rmans 9A 10! f! 22 At the end f the psalm, just after the part Paul quted, the psalmist suddenly turns ptimistic In v.23 the psalmist describes Gd s rejectin f His peple as a sleep frm which Gd may at sme pint awaken frm And then He may cease His rejectin f His peple and return t them And s he asks the Lrd t rise up and t be Israel s help in their afflictin He asks the Lrd t redeem His peple Israel fr the sake f Gd s lvingkindness That wrd is a reference t Gd s cvenants Lvingkindness is a cvenant wrd that describes the Lrd s willingness t make cvenants with men uncnditinally And t keep them faithfully as a measure f His lve fr us S the psalmist is referring t the Lrd s cvenants with Israel, asking the Lrd t keep them faithfully S why did Paul qute this psalm t argue his pint f eternal security? Why pick a passage that seems t argue fr an ppsite cnclusin? He picked it because f what the psalmist says at the end Despite the Lrd s hard treatment f His peple at varius times in histry, the end ultimately determines Gd s faithfulness Just as ur wn life has many twists and turns, trials and disappintments, we can t judge Gd s faithfulness t us until we see hw it ends The psalmist declares cnfidently that the Lrd s lvingkindness wuld prevail in the end But Paul used this passage fr anther reasn, ne that sets up the next three chapters f the bk Paul wanted t draw his readers attentin t the questin f Israel Israel s relatinship t the Lrd was a cmplicated situatin, ne that seemed t argue against Paul s teaching n eternal security 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

11 Rmans 9A 11! f 22! At the time Paul wrte this letter t Rme, the church was quickly becming a Gentile rganizatin What had started as a Jewish mvement in Jerusalem was nw largely centered in Asia Minr amng Gentiles What s mre, the vast majrity f Jews had rejected Christ as their Messiah In fact, Jews were frequently persecuting thse wh declared Jesus as Messiah S it was becming increasingly apparent that the Jewish peple were nt ging t embrace Christ And if they d nt acknwledged Jesus as Messiah, then the peple f Israel cannt be saved And if they are nt saved, then what des this say abut the faithfulness f Gd? Didn t Gd prmise that Abraham, Isaac and Jacb wuld have innumerable descendants wh wuld receive the prmises f the Kingdm? S ne culd ask is Gd rejecting His peple after all? That s the cnclusin smene cme t at the pint f chapter 8 Paul has prven that righteusness cmes nly thrugh faith in Christ nt by birth t Abraham but nly by the faith f Abraham S if the Jewish natin is t be receive the prmises Gd gave t their frefathers, the natin must cme t accept Jesus But in Paul s day it was becming increasingly bvius that this wasn t happening, and in fact the church was becming less and less Jewish Yet Paul said that Gd is in cntrl f the saving prcess, including predestining the elect frm befre time If s, then Israel s rejectin f Jesus wuld seem t suggest Gd has purpsely rejected them And if Gd has rejected Israel after having made prmises t them, hw can we be sure Gd will keep His prmises t us t? 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

12 Rmans 9A 12! f! 22 In ther wrds, Israel s rejectin f Christ calls int questin everything Paul has argued fr the Church Hw can we feel secure in ur salvatin when we see Gd s peple Israel rejected? What s t stp Gd frm rejecting us t? Remember, the leadership f the church in Rme were Jews wh received the Gspel at Pentecst Many f thse Jewish funders were still leading the church in Rme in Paul s day And Paul knew they wuld be sensitive t the questin f Israel s state f unbelief S Paul knew he needed t address that questin S fr the next three chapters, Paul fcuses n answering the questin What abut Israel? Mre specifically, why didn t Gd elect Israel t receive their Messiah, which Gd prmised t send them? What des Israel s situatin say abut Gd s faithfulness? Has Gd frsaken His peple as the psalmist feared? Or will Gd ne day fulfill His prmises t His peple as the psalmist pleaded at the end f Psalm 44? Paul spends three chapters answering the questin What abut Israel? In Chapter 9 Paul reviews Israel s past relatinship with Gd The histry f Israel is imprtant t understanding what Gd is wrking t achieve in that natin In chapter 10, Paul mves t explaining Israel present circumstances f having rejected their Messiah Paul s dividing pint between past and present is the Messiah s first cming S chapter 10 examines Gd s plan fr Israel during the time fllwing Christ s appearing Finally in chapter 11 Paul reveals Gd s future plan fr His peple Israel 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

13 Rmans 9A 13! f! 22 He ll explain hw Gd remains faithful t Israel just as the psalmist hped And he explains why Israel s temprary rejectin was necessary t achieve the gd things Gd prmised t them and t us S chapters 9, 10 and 11 are Israel s past, present and future And tgether, these chapters address the questin f what abut Israel? Altgether, they put t rest any cncerns that Israel s unbelief casts dubt n Gd s faithfulness t His children Befre we dive int the start f chapter 9, take a brief lk at the pening f chapter 12 Cmpare the pening line f that chapter with the ending f chapter 8 Yu ll ntice that the tw chapters flw tgether almst seamlessly In fact, if I remved chapters 9-11 frm yur Bible, yu wuld never have nticed they were missing Paul s discussin f righteusness flws easily frm the end f 8 int 12 This affirms fr us that these next three chapters are a sidebar in Paul s main discussin His thesis n righteusness is essentially suspended fr three chapters while he deals with this imprtant questin S that s where we re ging t be t fr a while Let s lk at the start f chapter 9, Israel s past As we d, we need t appreciate an imprtant shift in Paul s fcus Where befre Paul taught abut an individual s relatinship t Gd, nw Paul is describing a natin s relatinship Paul uses these chapters is specific address Israel s past, present and future as a natin Obviusly, the natin is made up f individuals, and each individual still has a requirement f faith in rder t be saved 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

14 Rmans 9A 14! f! 22 But the questin is examining is what d we make f Gd s bvius chice t leave Jewish peple largely utside the call f the Gspel fr this time? It s self-evident that the Church is almst entirely Gentile And we knw Gd determines His elect, as Paul taught S the questin is why did Gd nt permit His peple t embrace the Messiah while He brught Gentiles frm all ver the wrld This distinctin is imprtant t remember, because it will guide ur interpretatin f sme imprtant cncepts presented in these chapters S when interpreting Paul, we must ask is Paul speaking abut the experience f an individual believer r the unique experience f Israel And then allw ur interpretatin t fit the cntext Rm. 9:1 I am telling the truth in Christ, I am nt lying, my cnscience testifies with me in the Hly Spirit, Rm. 9:2 that I have great srrw and unceasing grief in my heart. Rm. 9:3 Fr I culd wish that I myself were accursed, separated frm Christ fr the sake f my brethren, my kinsmen accrding t the flesh, Rm. 9:4 wh are Israelites, t whm belngs the adptin as sns, and the glry and the cvenants and the giving f the Law and the temple service and the prmises, Rm. 9:5 whse are the fathers, and frm whm is the Christ accrding t the flesh, wh is ver all, Gd blessed frever. Amen. Paul pens this sectin in a diplmatic fashin, defending his mtives cncerning Israel Paul recgnized he was wading int dangerus waters and his answers might nt please everyne The histry f the church has validated Paul s cncerns Paul s explanatin in this chapter and the nes that fllw have stirred cnsiderable cntrversy Many Christians have simply rejected what Paul teaches, preferring a different explanatin S Paul begins by reassuring his audience that he is n antisemite 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

15 Rmans 9A 15! f! 22 It s hard t believe anyne culd think Paul was against the Jewish peple But remember Paul s ministry was fcused n Gentiles, even as he als spent time seeking Jews t S nw as he begins t explain Gd s plans fr Israel, he wants his audience t trust his persnal mtives Paul says he is nt lying in what he will say abut Israel, and the Hly Spirit testifies in agreement t all wh receive these wrds That Paul grieves fr Israel s lss as they reject Christ In fact, Paul says if it were up t him, he wuld willingly trade his wn salvatin fr Israel s Obviusly, that wasn t pssible and Paul acknwledges that reality But the fact that Paul says this (he s nt lying) is remarkable, because Paul knew better than mst what he wuld have been trading away And that s nt a deal mst (if any) f us wuld make, is it? It s a very strng statement abut Paul s persnal cnvictins fr his peple We can hardly indict Paul s genuine cncern fr Israel given he was willing t spend eternity in Hell fr their sake And speaking f Israel, Paul ffers a definitin t guide his discussin In vs.4-5 Paul gives the definitin f Israel, the peple in view in these three chapters They are the Israelites, thse descended frm Abraham, Isaac and Jacb (the fathers in v.5) They were a natin f peple created by Gd and adpted as His peple frm amng all the natins n earth They were the peple wh lives in the presence f the Gd s glry in the tabernacle They received the cvenants f Gd, the Law f Gd and the temple and the prmises f the prphets 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

16 Rmans 9A 16! f! 22 Mst imprtantly, they were the peple frm whm came the Christ as prmised This definitin is critical because it clarifies that Paul was talking abut an earthly, physical Israel He s nt talking abut the Church r Gentiles certainly He s nt talking abut a spiritual Israel r sme grup f peple wh mimic Israel s lifestyle r culture r share in their beliefs He s speaking nly f the literal, physical descendants f Abraham, Isaac, and Jacb The peple frm whm came Jesus And cncerning these peple, what d we say abut their past relatinship with Gd? Wuld we dare say that the wrd f Gd has failed cncerning what Gd prmised the Jewish peple wuld receive? After all, that s the crux f the issue here We knw in the past Gd called this peple special He went t the truble t frm them ut f nthing, t place them in their land and dwell amng them He als prmised them a Messiah, but He didn t permit them t receive Him S Paul asks the bvius questin first Rm. 9:6 But it is nt as thugh the wrd f Gd has failed. Fr they are nt all Israel wh are descended frm Israel; Rm. 9:7 nr are they all children because they are Abraham s descendants, but: thrugh Isaac yur descendants will be named. Rm. 9:8 That is, it is nt the children f the flesh wh are children f Gd, but the children f the prmise are regarded as descendants. Rm. 9:9 Fr this is the wrd f prmise: At this time I will cme, and Sarah shall have a sn. Already we begin t see hw imprtant Paul s definitin will be 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

17 Rmans 9A 17! f! 22 Because he says that if we think that Israel s rejectin f Jesus means the wrd f Gd cncerning Israel has failed, then we re lking at the wrng Israel Because Paul says they are nt all wh are are descended frm the man Israel (Jacb) are cnsidered Gd s Israel What Paul is saying is this: t be cnsidered Israel, it is necessary t be descended frm Jacb but it is nt sufficient There is mre t being part f Gd s Israel than merely having the right father S if we re ging t evaluate Gd s faithfulness t His prmises t Israel, we must first make sure we re lking at the right Israel We must understand which grup f peple Gd gave His prmises t in the past befre we can evaluate His faithfulness tday Paul prves his pint with a simple example f Abraham s children Abraham had tw sns, Isaac and Ishmael Yet nly ne f them received the prmises Gd gave t Abraham Gd issued His prmises t Abraham befre he had any children But later Abraham learned that when Gd spke thse prmises, He nly had ne f Abraham s descendants in mind Paul shw evidence fr this ruth frm Genesis 21 when Abraham was tld that nly thrugh Isaac wuld Gd number r cnsider Abraham s descendants Abraham had ther descendants thrugh anther sn But thse descendants did nt receive the prmises Gd gave t Abraham S if we lked at thse descendants, we might think Gd was nt faithful t His prmises But we wuld be wrng, because Gd had already determined wh wuld receive His prmises We might say wh His elect were t be 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

18 Rmans 9A 18! f! 22 And He determined they wuld cme thrugh Isaac alne As He spke t Sarah saying it wuld be a certain sn t receive Gd s prmises, nt all sns This chice is a prergative Gd never relinquishes Therefre, Abraham s example leaves us with an imprtant principle that will carry us thrugh the rest f this chapter and int Chapter 10 It was nt Abraham s earthly r fleshly children that are in view when Gd issued His prmises Only certain children He calls children f the prmise were in view The term children f prmise means thse Gd chses receive His prmises There is nthing inherently better abut these children f curse They didn t d anything t deserve Gd s favr (that s why it s called grace) They were simply chsen t receive the prmises while thers weren t included And that distinctin is ne Gd repeats thrughut histry If yu were tempted t think that Abraham s situatin was unique, Paul ffers Exhibit #2 Rm. 9:10 And nt nly this, but there was Rebekah als, when she had cnceived twins by ne man, ur father Isaac; Rm. 9:11 fr thugh the twins were nt yet brn and had nt dne anything gd r bad, s that Gd s purpse accrding t His chice wuld stand, nt because f wrks but because f Him wh calls, Rm. 9:12 it was said t her, The lder will serve the yunger. Rm. 9:13 Just as it is written, Jacb I lved, But Esau I hated. One generatin later, Isaac faces a similar situatin with his wn children He t had a barren wife until Gd pened the wmb And when He did, He gave Rebekah twin bys 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

19 Rmans 9A 19! f! 22 And nce again Gd demnstrates His prergative t chse by telling Rebekah that the lder sn wuld serve the yunger That s a smewhat cryptic way f designating the child f the prmise In that culture, the lder child received the patriarchal blessing as a birthright and the greater share f the family inheritance But in the case f Isaac s family, there was anther unique part f the estate that wuld be handed dwn t It was the prmise Gd gave t Abraham which went t Isaac That prmise culd nly be inherited by ne child, since it wasn t divisible S nce again the questin becmes wh is the child Gd intended t receive His prmise? He tells the mther it will be the yunger child, which went against cultural traditin Culturally, the lder child wuld receive preference But t make sure we see Gd acting apart frm man s ways, Gd selects the yunger child t be His child f prmise Ntice Paul says the Lrd expressed this desire befre the twins were brn Paul says the Lrd selected this timing t ensure we culdn t say that the bys merely received what they deserved They hadn t dne anything gd r bad at that pint, Paul says S neither sn had anything t cmmend r discredit himself befre Gd And Paul says the Lrd did this t ensure we wuld cnclude that the chsen child was made s accrding t Gd s grace and nt by an human cnsideratin It was merely n the basis f Gd s call, His electin f Jacb ver Esau Paul backs his cnclusin with a qute frm Malachi 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

20 Rmans 9A 20! f! 22 Gd declared that He lved Jacb and hated Esau Thse terms are laded with emtin fr us, s they see harsh t us We feel as thugh we need t explain them away Sme say that Gd made his chice n the basis f what he knew these bys wuld d But Paul s wrd specifically preclude that interpretatin, since Paul says Gd made his declaratin in advance t preclude such a cnclusin S we must understand the wrds hate and lve in the cntext f Gd s chice They are definitins really T be chsen by Gd is t be lved by Gd T be passed ver by Gd is t be hated, nt in an emtinal sense, but simply in the sense f being the ppsite f lve But the pint is it was Gd wh determined which by received the prmise It wasn t n the basis f persnal merit And that s hw Gd s chice wrks thrughut histry Gd s elect are nt elected n the basis f merit but merely n the basis f Gd s gracius chice If yu lk fr it, this is a cmmn pattern f Gd in scripture Gd cmmnly chses thse wh the wrld wuld nt expect t receive the hnr Isaac was the yunger, but Gd chse Him ver the lder Same fr Jacb ver Esau Same fr Judah ver Reuben Same fr Jseph ver his brthers Same fr David ver his brthers 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

21 Rmans 9A 21! f! 22 And men like Mses, Giden, the prphets, the apstles, Paul particularly were all unlikely heres chsen by Gd As Paul himself explains t the church, this pattern is intended t expse man s flishness in thinking he knws hw Gd wrks Gd intentinally wrks against the nature thinking f sinful men t shw Himself strnger 1Cr. 1:25 Because the flishness f Gd is wiser than men, and the weakness f Gd is strnger than men. 1Cr. 1:26 Fr cnsider yur calling, brethren, that there were nt many wise accrding t the flesh, nt many mighty, nt many nble; 1Cr. 1:27 but Gd has chsen the flish things f the wrld t shame the wise, and Gd has chsen the weak things f the wrld t shame the things which are strng, 1Cr. 1:28 and the base things f the wrld and the despised Gd has chsen, the things that are nt, s that He may nullify the things that are, 1Cr. 1:29 s that n man may bast befre Gd. 1Cr. 1:30 But by His ding yu are in Christ Jesus, wh became t us wisdm frm Gd, and righteusness and sanctificatin, and redemptin, 1Cr. 1:31 s that, just as it is written, Let him wh basts, bast in the Lrd. Desn t the truth f Gd s svereign electin reveal Gd t be mean and unfair? This is prbably the single mst cmmn, natural thught fr every persn wh grasps the Biblical truth f Gd s svereign electin In fact, it s easily the mst cmmn reasn fr why sme peple refuse t accept this truth It s becme a particularly strng sentiment in the Western Hemisphere in the last 200 years Prbably because independence, freedm, equality, and being self-made are s ingrained in ur culture We autmatically cunt it unfair anytime smene is withut equal pprtunity r cmplete self- determinatin The idea that anyne r anything else may be in cntrl f ur destiny is ffensive and just plain wrng Specifically, isn t it wrng that Gd is at wrk electing sme but leaving thers utside the family 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

22 Rmans 9A 22! f! 22 That s the questin we address next week in the rest f this chapter 2018 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.