Election (part 9) - [Romans 9]

Well, it never ceases to amaze me what people will do when it comes to God Last year the

Presbyterian Church USA voted to receive a document that would give new names to the Father the Son and the

Holy Spirit They could have two other triads like sun light and burning ray

Overflowing font living water and flowing river Fire that consumes sword that divides and storm that melts mountains

It gets worse compassionate mother beloved child and life -giving womb Have kind of a side note

I they never want to rename Satan to her, but that's another story Very strangely al moeller said to rename.

God is to create an idol God gets to name himself Isn't that true?

God gets to rename to the name himself and And as compromise leads to more compromise the

Arizona Daily Star said that some churches now in Arizona no longer like to use the word

Lord for God They don't want to say the word Lord her article talks about the largest

Episcopal Church in Tucson st. Phillips in the hills and They have said according to the rector

Susan Anderson Smith Lord has become a loaded word conveying hierarchical power over things

Come to mean that doesn't it mean that? Which in what we have she said recorded in our sacred text is not who

Jesus understood himself to be So Jesus didn't think of himself as Lord Even though Hebrew and Greek both mean

Lord They even have a prayer over at the First Congregational United Church in Midtown It's not called the

Lord's Prayer because you'd hate to use the word Lord So instead you call it the prayer of our Creator and I don't know if this reporter was a believer or not

But reporter Stephanie ends was insightful when she described a service at st. Phillips noted quote

There's not much Lord in this service end quote Truer words could not have been spoken today

I have the pleasure of preaching from a passage that extols God the

Father God the Son and God the Holy Spirit with basically one word and that word is what?

Lord Jesus is Lord because the Father made him

Lord and there's something about that hierarchical power that we sometimes

Resist against yet It is everywhere in Scripture and it has been a wonderful series in my life and in the church's life

I believe to go through God is Lord to the extent that he chooses who will be his children

That he has the authority and the right and the privilege And we should be thankful that he would actually choose us to be his children

God and God alone is Lord. It is God's will and God's will alone

That determines who is saved. It is God's grace and God's grace alone that determines who will go to heaven

It is God's choice and God's free choice alone that determines who will be in his presence

We've been going through an election series and now we're up to election part 9 Asking this question

What is the biblical doctrine of election and how can we understand it in a way that would make us respond?

Properly with praise and thanksgiving. What is election? We're on part 9 today, and I was gonna finish today part 9

But I'm gonna finish next week Lord willing 10 is a round number. And so let's go for 10

I did not want to rush through Romans 9. There'll be some introduction today some overview today. We'll look at Romans 9

God's sovereignty in choosing and then next week We'll look at some of the responses that this doctrine will elicit in our soul

And are they good objections or not and Paul deals with those as well But overall the series the last nine weeks

We've been looking at 20 questions that will ask and answer the question. What is the biblical doctrine of?

Election we've gone through 18 so far Steve and I are gonna try to put this into a book in the next year so we can have it to read as well

Let me just quickly go over the questions that we've looked at so far and every one of these questions is designed to answer

The objection, how could that be? How could that be fair? This seems to be something that is not proclaimed that often help me understand it

So I've tried to set up these 18 to 20 questions to answer any objections

Going from easiest to hardest almost and these will all basically Force you to take the telescope that you look at God with and it'll make you have the eyepiece

Here and the big lens here Too often we flip that thing around and when you've got the big lens here and the eyepiece there in the telescope

There's only one thing you see in the lens and that's what? Your own eye and so we want to have

God be magnified and glorified and that's exactly what this series Has attempted to do question number one in review quickly

Do you view election as something for mature Christians only we answer that no, it's for every

Christian Number two, do you think election stifles praise? How could it stifle praise?

Ephesians 1 verse 6 is to the praise of the glory of his grace. God chooses our

Response should be praise in God's Word. There's always a statement of fact and then there's a response your scripture reading

Here's the response and the response with the election should be God. You're great Number three, do you think that all

Christians believe in election answer? They all do it just depends on how you describe the word election

Does God foresee their faith then choose them or does God foresee their sin?

No, they're so needy that with just grace and love he rescues them and grants them eternal life

Number four, when do you believe election took place? We believe election took place before the world what began 2nd

Timothy chapter 1 verse 9 Number five, do you believe election is based on a person's faith?

No, it's not based on their faith faith is a gift. It's based on God's grace I love by the way that we have a new little baby in the church faith

And I can't wait to see that Binny's and when I do from now on I'm gonna walk up to him I'm always gonna say this faith is a gift

Number six, do you view election as unloving? Some people think it's unloving that God would pick and choose

But the Bible says in Ephesians chapter 1 verses 4 and 5 in love he predestined us

Number seven is election impersonal and sterile that is fatalistic How can it be fatalistic when he chooses us and adopts us unto sonship to be daughters and sons?

That's not impersonal That's as close to familial as you could get Number nine, do you believe an unbeliever's will is totally free?

We've talked about how our will is fallen Do you believe at the fall in other words that when

Adam sinned he was corrupt when his mind his soul his body His his thinking processes, but his will was still somehow good.

No, we believe that the fall was total Number ten. Do you believe election inhibits evangelism?

I mean why evangelize if God chooses I Could ask you lots of questions. Why do you chew and swallow if God has ordained you to eat?

We know the answers to those things God has ordained that there be seed planted and then the harvest then the growth so too in the spiritual world we

Evangelize because God has chosen for us to evangelize and has called us to do that very thing

Number eleven. Do you realize that election does not eliminate human responsibility? Are we responsible to preach the gospel?

Yes People responsible to hear the gospel. Yes, we are accountable both are clearly and plainly taught number twelve

We could have a whole sermon on review couldn't we and I've done that before Did you know that it is a sign of maturity not to force mental closure on doctrines?

That come from an infinite God. There are some things that are too high for us to get over. Yes Jesus is fully

God and fully man The Trinity, etc this teaches that God chooses and That God holds accountable and we just have to realize that those two parallel lines will one day meet up in heaven

They do in God's mind, even though I might not be able to understand them Number thirteen. Did you know that grasping depravity unlocks the doctrine of election?

Did you know that if you understand the fallen nature of man, you will realize he needs a Savior He needs a

Savior by name and by action Number fourteen.

Do you believe the non -elect will ever desire salvation? The answer is no, they'll never want salvation

They won't want the punishment, but they won't want to love Jesus Christ Number fifteen does election promote sinful living?

No, it it spurs it on we've even read today I heard read from this pulpit in the scripture reading

John 15 16 I have chosen you and ordained you that you should go and bring forth.

What did he tell the disciples? Fruit so to when God chooses us. He wants us to bear fruit

We're almost caught up number sixteen. Do you believe that election is the gospel? I mean, that's what will happen is we love election.

We can't believe it We can't believe we haven't seen it like this and then we run around and when we meet unbelievers That's all we talk about is election

I'm glad we're zealous but overzealousness would make us get off track that Jesus Christ died on behalf of sinners was raised from the dead

And people must believe and so we don't need to run around preaching election to unbelievers We should be preaching what the gospel to unbelievers?

By the way, the modern missionary movement from John Payton to add an arm Judson to William Carey all was propelled

By their belief in what? election By the way,

I keep thinking whenever I drive by the church now for the last 16 months during the series where it says election part

Nine, I think they think I'm gearing up for the presidential election coming up And if we just have 42 parts of this series, we're figuring out

Romans 13 from every angle Friends what we love about ourselves our freedom to choose who leads us

Sometimes we're not too sure about God when he gets to choose of his own desires who he wants us his children especially when we realize

Every person including me has forfeited the right to ever even look at God or be in his presence

Number 17, what should I do? If I attend a church that never preaches about election to quote

Steve Lawson rise up and chant Bring the book It's everywhere. You start to read it and you just think

God sits on a throne. He ordains things He decrees things he purposes things.

He wills things he is on the throne. Jesus is Lord Number 18, did you know election raises many questions at least 20 that I could think of but there are other questions like he

Is patient towards you not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance What about that verse in 2nd

Peter we attempted to look at some of those? Verses and we would affirm that whoever calls on the name of the

Lord will be saved but we also confirm that John 6 Jesus says no one can come to me unless They try really hard unless they use their free will unless the father who sent me what draws him and now number 19

Does God choose us by name? Does God choose us individually or does

God choose us corporately? Does he choose us as a clump or as a bunch as a as a big group?

Can you say beloved God chose me if you're a

Christian Can you say that God chose Mike Abendroff before the foundation of the world? Is that a biblical thing to say if I'm a

Christian? The answer is yes God Uses election as something very personalized.

He picks a definite number of people by Specific names as it were or is it kind of election like this dear sirs

To whom it may concern dear John dear

Jane No When God was writing the names in his eternal book of life, they were by name

Your name if you're a Christian turn over to Romans chapter 16 before we get into chapter 9

I want to show you a great illustration of what happens when we see this Rufus is a wonderful man of God in Romans 16 verse 13

Sadly the NAS doesn't really bring out the import of the original language the

Greek language But Rufus is like a template for us as Rufus is given this name.

So to every Christian Can claim this exact same thing because it's true

Rufus in my NAS it says greet Rufus a choice man in the

Lord kind of like, you know When you go to the store, I've eaten so much beef from Nebraska that these days you know instead of having some kind of Shank steak or some kind of you know pulverized

You know rawhide Dog chew bone steak thing if I can't really have a good steak

Then I might as well just not have one at all when I pick steak I want to have what kind of steak a choice steak a good one something

That's the best if I come to your house and it's ribeye. That's fine. I won't complain but if I get to pick If it's

Chuck steak, well, that's another issue Now there's an element to that but here's what the

Greek says about Rufus greet Rufus the elect the chosen one

Rufus the elect one That's how Paul says it greet Rufus the chosen the elect

The choice man in the Lord is one thing but the choice if you say it's God's choice

God chooses to say Rufus is mine Greet Mike Abendroth the elect one chosen by God personally.

That's the idea God does not choose us by group or bunch or by nation or something vague

He doesn't choose us in a big huge clump of humanity and then say, you know If you'll just believe in me, then that will kind of solidify that choice

No, that is not how God chooses Kurt Daniel said it. Well Would be like saying that God prepared so many seats at a banquet

But leaves it totally up to us whether we will be at the banquet or not. That is not what the

Bible teaches Scripture teaches that God has indeed prepared a banquet table with just so many chairs

But he has also placed name tags at each seat Election is a divine reservation for us in particular

How rich is that? Name tags we have people come over and eat at our house The kids usually do the name tags and they put their the people's names on there

You know Rufus and Chloe or whoever comes over. There's the personal name tag that people know right where to sit

He didn't just choose the church as a as a some kind of group without choosing the individuals He did not wait for you to write your own name in by believing

Come forward to the front and as you do God's writing your name in his book That can't be

Why don't you come up front and write your own name in God's book? Can that be that can't be? How about God's written everyone's name in the book and in believe before he erases it

Revelation 3 5 says he is not going to erase it What God does he does with indelible ink he engraves the names he chooses by name and the

F the evidence is Suffocatingly evident

Turn with me if you would just we're gonna just take a tour. Here's a tour through the New Testament and old Let's start with Isaiah verses in the

Bible About election you said I thought we were in Romans 9. Well, we'll get there Isaiah chapter 4 we're gonna look at several verses and I want you to just see the tenor and the flavor of this choice of These names recorded and these names you're going to find out are going to be personal names

Written personally by God. It's amazing to just do a little overview about how God writes people's names in a book

This is God's black book that he has the choice to write in whomever he wishes

Isaiah 4 2 Not all these are on election unto salvation for believers, but you'll get the idea

Isaiah 4 2 in that day the branch of the Lord will be beautiful and Glorious and the fruit of the earth will be the pride in the adornment of the survivors of Israel Will come about that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy

Everyone who is recorded for life in Jerusalem Astounding let's go to Daniel.

Please chapter 12 the same kind of terminology people's name written in a book personal names

Personally written by God Daniel chapter 12 This will all help us understand

Romans 9 Daniel 12 1, please Now at that time Michael the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people will arise and There will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time

At that time your people Everyone who is found written in the book

Will be rescued Not just a group. It's not just an amorphous blob of people

It's not them writing themselves in the book. How about Malachi? Please last book of the

Old Testament in the English Canon 2nd Chronicles would be in the Jewish Canon, but turn to Malachi.

It's just before Matthew Mark Luke and John Malachi Chapter 3 and again.

I'm just trying to give you an overview of this personal name written by God himself

Malachi 3 16 and following then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another and the

Lord gave attention and heard it and a book of Remembrance was written before him for those who fear the

Lord and who esteem his name Now listen to this from God. They will be mine says the

Lord Yahweh of host of the armies of God on the day that I prepare my own possession and I will spare them as a man spares his own son

Who serves him? That is just an awesome set of verses now

Let's go to the New Testament Luke, please Luke 10 just a few more verses and we'll get to Romans chapter 9

Luke chapter 10 if Steve Lawson was preaching on big

God Psalms. These are big God verses the transcendent nature of God Luke 10 verse 17 the 70 returned with joy saying

Lord even the demons are subject to us in your name and He said to them one of the most amazing statements out of our

Lord's mouth. I Was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning verse 19 behold

I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy and nothing will injure you

Now for our notice verse 20 nevertheless do not rejoice in this

I mean by the way, would you want to rejoice in that if you were given that kind of power? If I could only have that kind of power for my ministry,

I Would be so happy. I would be dancing and that's a good thing to be rejoicing at because God has blessed them but something more is to be rejoiced over Nevertheless do not rejoice in this that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in Heaven it's one thing to be able to walk around unlike the charlatans of today

Jesus. I read I mean Satan I rebuke you and I bind you and I I cast you over to my next -door neighbor's yard

I know I'm supposed to be loving to them, but I'm just get away from me or whatever it might be But I have power over spirits

That's minor But to have power from God to write your name in a book of life

Philippians chapter 4, please two more books Philippians and then Revelation Philippians chapter 4

You could just hear it I mean my Just want to read these verses and just think this is my

God This is my congregations God what he has done for these dear fellows these fellow workers

He has done for his people. It's not just them and we get the crumbs This is for us as well

Philippians chapter 4 verses 2 and 3 I urge

You odia and I urge Syntyche to live in harmony in the Lord Indeed Philippians 4 3 true companion

I ask you also to help these women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel

Together with Clement also and the rest of my fellow workers Whose names are in the book of life?

Written by God before time begins Well, there's a flip side to those not written turn to Revelation and we'll wrap up our overview of these

Personal names personally written by God Revelation 13, please. This is a

VIP list. You do not want to be on Revelation 13 verse 8 all those who dwell in the earth will worship him

Everyone whose name has not been written and look at where when it's written Has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the

Lamb who has been slain if Anyone has an ear let him hear pay attention in other words verse 10 If anyone is destined you might see that in italics in your

Bible Basically, if anyone hasn't had their name written before the foundation of the world is what he's saying for captivity to captivity

He goes if anyone kills with the sword with the sword, he must be killed. Here is the perseverance and faith of the

Saints chapter 17 of Revelation Says the same thing it just talks about the doom of those who are not personally written by a personal

God before the foundation of the world Revelation 17 8 the beast that you saw was and is not it is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction

Those who dwell on the earth Whose name has not been written in the book of life when?

From the foundation of the world will wonder when they see the beast that he was and is not

And will not come And I could go on and on beloved revelation 20 if anyone's name is not found written in the book of life

He's thrown in the lake of fire God is the true lawgiver of the

Medes and Persians as pilot would say what I have written I have written God personally records our names in his book

And if you think those verses are airtight, I can actually take the ratchet and tighten it a little bit more

I don't know why I'm fascinated with snakes But one of the things about snakes

Especially some of the constrictors boa constrictors Just heard a story last night that my nephew was on Omaha TV with some big anaconda thing around his neck

It's like a nice. It's like the pastor's kid gift snake deal and If a boa constrictor grabs a little rabbit or something else

Titans and then when that rabbit breathes just a little bit more what happens is that constrictor? Squeezes just a little bit more and you know the rest of the story

If you think this has been airtight before written in the book before the foundation of the world Romans chapter 9 is the final ratchet.

It is the final constrictor that should make any of the breath of our pride or the breath of our free will are the

Oxygen that is in our system that somehow Knows not to claim salvation is of God and of us but pragmatically and evangelistically

Sometimes it's not 100 % grace, but we attribute cause to our faith or something

This just sucks it right out this is like some kind of Space shuttle airlock and if you open the door accidentally all the oxygen just go

Get sucked out. You said enough is enough. It's been 30 minutes. We're not in Romans 9. Okay Romans 9

That's right Romans chapter 9 Not so stark of a passage

About election to be found in the New Testament Not just nations, but individuals the sovereign choice of individual people

Say well, you know we spend too much time on this doctrine of election Met somebody this week and been coaching my son's basketball team

And I was talking to one of the parents and I thought Lord one of the reasons why I want to coach Is because I want to spend time with my son

One of the reasons I want to coach is because I want to have an influence on some of these kids Even though it's a

Christian school. There's still influence that need to be given and so I was talking one of the moms the other day of one of our kids and She said oh your pastor.

I said yes She said oh, you know that guy on TV, I love him He just he looks good and he's attractive and and I love to hear his message

He's down in Houston and I just sitting there going. Oh great. I hope by the way when you describe me

It's not with you know, first of all lies. Oh, he's good -looking. He's attractive. He's got a good smile.

I Try using that teeth whitening stuff. It doesn't work long term I want to be known as a preacher of the gospel all the gospel

Yeah, I even draw it doesn't do X Y & Z But at least he'll teach me the truth and tell me what the Bible says in total full counsel

Well, she said to me, you know old Joel down in Houston. He's he's just You know my kind of pastor and I just thought you know 2nd

Timothy chapter 4 people heaping up teachers after their own desires I mean just go ahead and put a shawl on and a long beard and walked around Venice Beach for a half hour

You'll have 500 foolish followers. I mean people just follow And I thought I don't want to blast her contrary to my preaching style

I'm not always blasting and just setting everyone straight Don't say one doctoral deviation around me because I'll show you chapter and verse

Abendroth Rambo So, how do

I get into this story? So I said to her, you know as far as I'm concerned

I want to hear more preaching about sin and Joel Osteen minimizes sin she said

That's just not my opinion. I could prove that I said to her but the Bible teaches a lot about sin and she said

We already know that we're sinners We don't need to keep hearing it all the time. We're sinners

And I thought all right calm I said

Paul wrote the book of Romans how many chapters were in the book of Romans she's like Well, Joel has nice teeth.

No, she didn't say that. I said there are 16 chapters How many chapters do you think talked about sin in total or even in part?

And she said well, how was I supposed to know you're a pastor and I don't know these things I looked at her and I said translation

Everywhere Paul talks about sin because it exalts the Savior to save such kinds of people it shows his grace it shows his love and as Lawson says when you show people how bad they are in Scripture and then exalt the saving power of Christ the chasm that's between the two is worship all that for just a little side detour to say to you

That the Bible doesn't just give us a little crumb of election talk here and there in Paul's magnum opus

In Paul's Magna Carta as it were in the book of Romans He talks about sin a lot.

Yes. He talks about the Savior a lot Yes, he mainly talks about the righteousness of God, but included in that is a hearty section on election

If you were to ask Paul can election be over preached I think I know the answer and basically what's happening is if you look at the end of chapter 8 chapter 9 is is kind of helping people who had a question after chapter 8 if Chapter 8 is verse 1.

There's no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus The opposite of justification is condemnation if there's no condemnation

We ought to praise God In chapter 8 verse 28 God causes all things to work together for good to those who love

God in Chapter 30 chapter 8 verse 31. What are we gonna say about these things?

God's for us who's against us if God gives us the greatest gift verse 32. He didn't spare his son

Won't he give us everything else? Well, what about God's love verse 35? What will separate us from the love of God?

Nothing will tribulation distress persecution famine, etc. Etc. Verse 38

I am convinced and remain convinced that neither death nor life nor angels nor principalities nor things present

Nor things to come nor powers nor height nor depth nor any other thing We'll be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus And if you're a

Jew, the first thing you think of is well that may be true but there are lost Jews and if there's lost

Jews who have been given the promises of God and they're this Covenant nation and they're this Jewish nation.

They have perished Maybe they've even seen some parish without being saved and how can

I be sure of my salvation if Israel? Doesn't all believe

So now Paul is going to answer this question Why are some individual Jews saved and others are not

Romans chapter 9 is basically that Why are some individual Jews saved and others are not and are you ready for the answer?

The answer is shocking. The answer is Pauline The answer is you know what some people think about this chapter

They think Paul didn't write it Because they can't see a Paul who has been saved by the mercy and grace of Christ Jesus on the

Damascus Road so deserving of hell and then rescued from wrath and love

Commissioned that Paul would never write this though. They think it's not Pauline Others have called

Romans 9. Are you ready for this one? immoral It's immoral this chapter something it's sinful

I don't know about you and I don't know if it's my Sinful hangover that I still have even though I'm saved

But that's if people if liberals are telling me this is not written by Paul and immoral.

This is my kind of chapter This is exactly where I want to just belly up to and go.

You know what just park it. This is for me You tell me Jesus didn't create everything with the word

I want to park on that you tell me Jesus isn't God. I would love to worship him as God and Here we have the question ask why are some individual

Jews saved and others are not? Answer because God never planned them all to be saved

That's Romans 9. It is amazing. They were never part of the plan Why aren't why aren't everybody?

Why isn't everybody saved in this world? You'll soon come to find out because God never planned it that way if I have breath the rest of the sermon and Next week.

I'm going to try to show you from Romans 9 that salvation is both sovereign and undeserved

That you don't understand grace unless you realize it is a sovereign and be undeserved

And that's what happens here in Romans chapter 9. God is King God is God God only intended to choose some of Israel for salvation

He didn't choose to save them all he might have chose the whole nation as his people as a nation

But he has not chose them all to go to heaven God is God and he does what he wants and If Romans 8 is true, and it is there security for the believer

Who God has chosen don't let Romans 9 and some people of Israel's damnation

Rock your eternal security assurance boat Because God did not plan to save every person who was ever living whether it's in the

Jewish nation are out of the Jewish nation This is one of those chapters and it's time about ready to go to The theme parks and all my little kids run up to that theme park sign and it says no one over 50 inches can ride this

No one can ride this chapter unless they will say to themselves God I have preconceived notions.

I have training from other religions I have other ideas about you But if you're going to say something in Scripture and I can see it plainly in context and understand what you say

I will what? Believe it Lord I don't believe but help my unbelief

Here we see the eternal love of God, so let me give you in the time remaining I know we won't get very far six proofs in Romans chapter 9

Six proofs to answer this question. Why is not all Israel saved? The answer is because God's grace is number one sovereign and number two undeserved six proofs that show

We don't have to be shook up about our eternal security because there's a few Israelites many

Israelites that aren't in heaven I mean after all Jesus was the

Jewish Messiah You'd think all the Jews would follow him But they didn't and the answer Romans chapter 9 is they didn't of course because they didn't believe but that's not

Romans 9 Romans 9 is because God didn't choose them James Boyce with Philip Ryken said the reason is that God does not choose everybody and Never has great

Baptist preacher of a century ago said as long as Romans 9 remains in the Bible No, man shall be able to prove

Our minion ism our election that's God sent God that man -centered. All right chapter 9 verse 1

I'm telling the truth in Christ Paul says Romans chapter 9. I'm not lying My conscience testifies with me in the

Holy Spirit. I mean it is off and going No, ands no, buts no therefores.

No some kind of particles I'm telling the truth eight ends and before you know what he's out of the chute just with action

No conjunction at all, and he goes from the top of the world feast kind of language celebration kind of language to now lament and damnation kind of language and just Aghast as it were verse 2

That I have great get the word mega out of that great like a megaphone great sorrow and Unceasing grief in my heart.

This was not just theological for Paul. This was Personal he had the joy of Romans 8 and then now just the unceasing grief in his heart

Why Paul verse 3? For I could wish that I myself were a curse doesn't this sound like Moses Praying that God instead of cursing

Moses's people that God would curse Moses instead Unbelievable self -sacrifice,

I wish I myself were the Greek word anathema Cursed damned sent to hell.

I wish I could be sent to hell God Separated from Christ why?

For the sake of my brethren my kinsmen according to the flesh Paul loved them and then he gives many things that the

Jews had going for them many special blessings that only God chose to give Verse 4 who are

Israelites to whom belongs the adoption of sons and the glory and the

Covenants and the giving of the law and the giving of the temple service and the giving of the promises

Who are the fathers and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh who is over all

God bless forever Amen, Jesus is God there by the way in Romans 9 5 and Paul is going to defend

God as it were John Piper's book called the justification of God is excellent in Romans 9 that God on the ground of his own sovereignty has only thought there was going to be a remnant of Israel anyway, and God has the prerogative to do that And so we come to proof number one if you're taking notes six divine proves that proofs that I Guess what is it is?

It's still a proof. Yes six divine proofs That show Israel's rejection as part of God's sovereign plan six divine proofs that Grace is both sovereign and undeserving

And if you zip quickly down to verse 11, this is the key verse of the whole chapter

Of all of chapters 9 10 and 11 is Paul deals with Israel. The answer is found right here

But everything else is just helping us understand it with logic and understanding and scripture, but 11 is the key

For through the twins or though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad. Here we come so that God's purpose according to His choice would stand not because of works but because of him who calls

That's the key to this chapter. Why is not all Israel saved? Answer let it be written.

Let it be said let it be believed that God's electing grace is both sovereign and desert undeserved and God's Sovereignly chose not to save every every

Israelite Proof number one of that very fact God's Word endorses only a partial choosing proof number one

God's Word many other places endorses only select choosing and if you look at verse 6

Basically, we'll see the the limit of the scope is Propped up against that God's Word still true.

Look at verse 6 Can you imagine if God was going back on his promises? Could you imagine that he he's some kind of Indian giver?

Can you imagine verse 6? Working with that. It's the exact opposite.

It shows the verity and the sufficiency and the authority of God's Word, but it is not as Though the

Word of God has failed Because of verses 1 2 3 4 and 5 in chapter 9 when you read that you can't say to yourself

God's Word isn't true. You can't say that it's not as if God's Word has failed The word failed means to to run off course

It means to kind of drift off. It means to somehow you're on the straight and narrow I was on a bike ride yesterday

And if I just look up for about 10 seconds before you know what I could easily almost go off the side of the road

Failed run off the course run adrift on some kind of coral or something.

Is that what God's Word does? We all we know the answer May it never be but Paul says this in verse 6 for they are not all

Israel who are descended from Israel Just because you're in the

Jewish nation temporarily. It doesn't mean God has chosen to save you unto heaven That's not

God's purpose and it never has been You see this word Israel in Romans 9 10 and 11.

It's used 11 times and it's always talking about ethnic national Israel Why is there unbelief in the nation of Israel?

Has God's Word fallen off the edge of the truck? No God's Word has always talked about a select few

They're not all of Israel Look down in verse 27.

I could show you elsewhere even in Romans 9 about God's undeserved sovereign grace

God's Word hasn't failed it This is just an example of what God does Romans 9 27 and Isaiah cries out concerning Israel Though the number of the sons of Israel be as the sand of the sea it is all of them that will be saved true

It is the remnant That shall be saved Isaiah 10 teaches that the

Word of God is still true It's always taught that there's going to be some chosen and not all God even judges

Some of the unchosen ones looking for the Lord will execute his word upon the earth verse 28 thoroughly and quickly

Judges Israel saves a remnant. It's always part of the word It's not odd or something new or strange

Why is not all Israel saved answer God's never planned it that way proof number one the

Word of God teaches it proof number two God sovereignly chooses to bless only through Isaac and not other children of Abraham back up to verse 7

Can you imagine how many children did Abraham have? Trick question.

How many children did he have? Well, let's just read the verse first and we'll find out God chooses

Isaac over Ishmael. Why on purpose? Why because he wanted to why because it's just the nature of God to choose

Verse 7 neither are they all children because they are Abraham's descendants just because you're an

Abraham kid Doesn't mean you're going to heaven just because you're a pastor's kid It doesn't mean it either here on a much grander scale because of covenant promises to Abraham God chooses to restrict it look at it in verse 7 through Ishmael your descendants will be named

Why not Ishmael? It's more than 13 years earlier God chose to bless through Isaac verse 8 that is it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God It's not just because you come from someone's loins as it were.

He's got you got your dad's DNA but the children of The promise are regarded as descendants

God decides who his children are are he's decided before the foundation of the world to pick and choose who his children are and God makes a divine distinction.

God makes a divine determination Paul is just illustrating why some

Jews reject Jesus and others believe and look at verse 9 I mean, this is absolutely amazing for this is the word of promise

The words not nullified there's all this promise word stuff and in verse 9 you see the Old Testament quoted at this time

I will come and Sarah shall have a son matter of fact. God says it's not through Hagar It's through Abraham not with Hagar.

It's through Abraham through with with Sarah But did you know something listen to Genesis 25

Abraham had six other sons through Keturah Now Abraham took another wife chapter 25.

This is after Sarah died whose name was Keturah She bore to him Zimran Jakshan Medan Midian Ishbak and Shua so we've got

Isaac Ishmael and The six strange -named guys all eight of those

Come on Here's how I would do it Whoever rises up and has the most influence who has the most money who can control things the best

Who kind of rises above the other sons who honors me the most who shows me the most difference who creates a name that while I'd be remembered for that's the one that I'll pick

But God said with sovereign Undeserving grace I pick only

Isaac. Is everybody okay with that so far We're fine when he gets to pick Isaac It's you know, what about people in my family and neighbors, but Paul's not dealing with that right now

You cannot just be a physical descendant of Abraham. There has to be more and that's why you see this promise language in here

Let me just show you one more. We can't stop now I think it's a sin to make the

Bible boring when you preach But it's also a sin to be bored when the

Bible's preached proof.

Number three. Why did God? Somehow abandon Israel. He never did

God's Word proof one always endorses choosing God's Word Also shows us proof to God chooses to bless through Isaac of his own pleasure and number three

I know what you're saying Isaac and Ishmael had the same father, but they had different They're not really all

Jews They're not really all Hebrew of Hebrews. And so proof number three we see

God sovereignly chose Jacob and did not choose Esau proof three Remember the big picture chapter 8 am

I secure in Christ? Because look at Israel Paul said look at Israel because God has planned it that way the

Word of God proves it He chose Isaac by his own choice his own meaning God's own choice and number three look at Jacob and Esau and Not only this verse 10, but there's

Rebecca also when she had conceived twins by one man our father Isaac conceived at different times at the same time

Conceived at the exact same time by a Jewish mother and a Jewish father For though the twins were not yet born.

You need to underline that in your mind They were not yet born and if you're not yet born, they had not done anything good or bad

Why so that God's purpose according to his choice would stand?

Not because of works not because Esau was better Not because Jacob was better doesn't matter who's better But because of him who calls it was said to her the older will serve the younger

Is that the way it works back in those days? It's not even the way it works today. You think about inheritance?

Okay out comes the first boy who came out first Esau comes out first.

Yes Well, there was this little thing called the law of primogenitor. He got all the double blessings.

He got all the extra stuff He was top dog. I Know it's a stretch. But when my mother died a year and a half ago almost two years ago.

There were three kids Myself my brother and my sister

I'm the oldest and Guess what part of my guess what the my mom said just divided up among the kids, you know equal share

I was hoping for the law of primogenitor so I could have double would have been biblical but would have been dated but since I was a firstborn

I Got I mean, how do you divide a hundred percent three ways? You can't really

You're gonna have just you know four significant figures and so I got thirty three point three four percent My sister got thirty three point three three percent and my brother got thirty three point three three percent

But I was the oldest I got the most And I got the check for dinner that night too in this other culture

It's the firstborn we've even got inklings of it now in China and the girls and and people choosing the sex of their children because they want boys and all these other things here the law that was pretty much around and the culture was it's the firstborn that has preeminence and Jacob wasn't the firstborn at all

Real Jews same father same mother conceived the same time Distinction made before they were born

Distinction made in eternity past so God's purpose could shine Why isn't all of Israel saved because God never chose to save them all it's not

God's purpose Israel is to be saved based on the calling of God Why are some

Jews saved and others are not because God and then in verse 12 you see in Romans 9 It was said to her the older will serve the younger the elder

Esau will serve the younger That is completely Non -semitic that is completely not

Jewish and then if you can't stand it so far verse 13 it only seems to get

Tighter as the anaconda of God's Word just squeezes out all human choice

Just as it stands written Jacob I loved But Esau I hated weren't even born yet when that was determined Hadn't even done anything yet God didn't say

I'm looking down the quarters of time and and I see Jacob will be a really fine fellow Was he a fine fellow

Woman once said to Spurgeon regarding this verse when he was preaching it as to Jacob. I love but Esau I hated

I cannot understand why God should say that he hated Esau That Spurgeon said it's not my difficulty madam.

My trouble is to understand how God could love Jacob when you research probe

Investigate do some kind of titration analysis get the microscope and look down really close

To examine salvation what you will never ever see is man's work merit deeds baptism ordinances

Sacraments, you'll never find those no matter what kind of atomic microscope you can find Because the choice

Romans 9 and elsewhere says it is God's prerogative I've used the illustration a thousand times, but it's still so true when

I would play out in the sandbox of our backyard. I Boxes anymore.

I don't think they do that, but it would be good for them I had a civil war going on all the time between the

Confederates and the Yankees and even in Nebraska I knew it was right to be on the winning team the Yankees And so I would always have these blue guys and I determined who was the best who was right who was just who was the victor?

Who I was how I killed all the other guys at the last second and rescued the world and saved the

Union Because you want to know why because I have been made in the likeness and image of God and it's

God's credit and God's glory because I was in Adam and I defaced to some degree and Made a grotesque view of my image of God at the fall, but it's not completely wiped out

And that's why I have a desire for love and compassion and mercy That's why I have a conscience and that's why

I like to choose Because God by nature is a chooser and I have the image and likeness of God and to this very day

I choose People on my own team, etc. And that's just a reflection of God Paul shows here that God has the absolute authoritative right to do whatever he wants with his creatures and May I push it he has the absolute authoritative right to do whatever he wants with his sinful creatures

They deserve nothing and if God rescues some out Why do we look at those who haven't been rescued by saying

God? How can that be just when we should be dumbfounded thinking I can't believe God would choose them for good

Not that they did good but he made them into good to do good things you have a lot of questions

Well, Paul answers those questions. We're gonna have to get to those next week Why does God love one and not another the answer?

Because to love the one and hate the other Is God's sovereign and undeserved choice of grace and Friends, we may or may not like such a

God but that is the only God with whom we have to do and And Paul said in Ephesians instead of grinding your teeth and gnashing at God Paul said in essence in order of chronology before you ever get on your knees and say

Jesus is a fair Savior a Wonderful Savior. He said that we should be on our faces praising

God that he would choose us before the foundation of the world It is an absolutely mind -blowing thing to see how

Sovereign God is and that stupid little, you know Wizard of Oz deal where Toto pulls the curtain behind and you see some little egghead kind of a guy back there

Controlling all the levers and you're let down When Paul takes the screen and Pulls it back to let you see the backside back parts of God as it were

What you see shining forth through Romans 9 is divine sovereignty and Paul isn't ashamed

Lord. Thank you for your condescending grace Thank you that you would call us children of God.

Thank you for your spirit. They would help us to see these truths Lord, it is the most humbling thing in the universe to think that in eternity past you would choose us

And think that you knew all of our sins and all of our skeletons and you knew us we were worse than Jacob And yet you've decided to love us

Lord help us by your Spirit's grace not to be haughty not to seem how somehow better than those

But to praise the glory of your grace for saving a people like us Lord, would you work in our hearts this week and let us find time?

To just reflect on this great glory that in your sovereignty you have picked and chosen like you did in Eternity past and We happen to be the ones who receive the buckets of mercy now and that how you've poured out your love upon us through Christ Jesus our risen