What Does the Bible Teach about Predestination?

God’s Sovereignty Over Human Circumstances

But he's also sovereign over individuals. He has absolute authority over every soul to do as he pleases. Let me speak, I think I can illustrate this first with something that you it's obvious you can't you can't argue with what I'm about to say.

You did not choose to be born, you had no control over that, you did not choose your parents, you had no control over that, you did not choose the country in which you were born, you had zero control over that, you did not choose, you were born sometime in the late 20th, and then some of you in here in the early 21st century, you had no control over any of that.

Well, who had control over that? Was it just random chance? No, I'm telling you today that God had control over that. You are here even this morning in this place for a purpose. Now, you agree with that.

Predestination and Romans 9

God is also sovereign, not just over our circumstances, but also sovereign over the salvation of individuals. I'll go to you. Go ahead and turn to Romans nine. I'll just I was trying to think what I want to say about this text.

I'll say that early on in my Christian walk, I didn't even know this was in the Bible. I mean, if you would have told me that I would have known Romans nine, if you would have told me, like, is Romans nine in the Bible, I would have said, well, sure.

Yeah. And if you just said, what's Romans nine about? I have no idea. I didn't hear we didn't talk about this in Sunday school. A few years ago, I looked at a Lifeway curriculum. We had a couple of classes going through the book of Romans and they were using Lifeway.

And I thought, well, this is interesting. I wonder what this I wonder what this study has to say about Romans nine. So I flipped through and it went Romans one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, ten, eleven, twelve.

Wait a second. Am I reading that right? No, I want I went back. I checked. I like maybe it's just this book. No, look. No, they skipped it. Well, I'm saying that's foolish. I want you to hear what but I know why they skipped it because it's controversial.

Paul’s Teaching in Romans 9:6–24

This shouldn't be controversial. Romans nine, verse six, the word of God is true, though every man be a liar. Romans nine, verse six. But it is not as though the word of God is failed, for not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring.

But through Isaac show your offspring be named. This means that it is not the children of the flesh or the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring. For this is what the promise said about this time next year.

I will return and Sarah will have a son. And not only so, but also when Rebecca had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, though they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad in order that God's purpose of election might continue, not because of works, but because of him who calls.

She was told the older will serve the younger. As is written, Jacob, I loved, but he saw I hated. What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God's part? By no means. For he says to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I have mercy and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.

So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God who has mercy. For the scripture says to Pharaoh, for this very purpose, I've raised you up that I might show my power in you, that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.

So then he has mercy on whomever he wills and he hardens whomever he wills. You will say to me, then, why does he still find fault for who can resist his will? But who are you, old man, to answer back to God?

What will what is molded say to its motor? Why have you made me like this? Has the potter no right over the clay to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use?

What if God, designed to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory, even us whom he has called not from the Jews only, but also from the Gentiles.

Why Romans 9 Is About Individuals, Not Just Nations

Now, I just don't have time in this sermon to exposit all of that text, but I'll make some comments. Comment number one, some people will read this text. I heard the late great Adrian Rogers preach this text, hungry for what he would say.

And he he missed it. And I love the brother and I'm grateful. I believe we'll see him in heaven. But some people read this text and they preach and they say this isn't dealing with individuals. This is dealing with nations.

Now, I disagree with that, but let me just expose the logic of that, expose the poor logic of that argument. You say it's not dealing with individuals, it's dealing with nations, which I'm disagreeing with.

It's dealing with individuals. But you say to me, no, no, no, no, no, no. It's dealing with nations, not individuals. I say to you, then, what are nations composed of? Nations are not just geopolitical entities that don't have what people nations are composed of individuals.

So you've moved the text from just being about individual persons to being about a bunch of individual persons and you've not gotten out of the issue that you may have with the text. But secondly, I'll mention this.

The very objections that Paul answers are the very objections that people raise when they hear what the Bible has to say about God's sovereignty over the individual, not merely nations. You're saying to me that God arbitrarily chooses one person to have mercy on and another person to pass over.

No, I'm not saying he does so arbitrarily. I'm saying he does so sovereignly. He chooses to have mercy on one and he chooses to display justice on another. That's not fair. Aha. Now you get the sense of the text because Paul addresses that verse 14, what shall we say then?

That's not fair, Paul says, stop, what shall we say then? Is there injustice on God's part? By no means, for he says to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I have mercy and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.

So it depends not on human will exertion, but on God who has mercy. Or down in verse 19, you will say to me then, well, why does he still find fault? If that's true, if he sovereignly chooses to save one and he sovereignly chooses to pass over another and display his justice, who can resist his will?

Aha, you found yourself in Paul's argument. Verse 19, you will say to me then, why does he still find fault? For who can resist his will? And I'm just waiting. All right, Paul, give us the logical explanation.

Make it all work in our minds. Make our hearts understand it all. Help us here. Instead, he says this and you've entered into a realm that you don't belong. Who are you? Who are you? To stroll up into the courts of a holy God.

And demand explanations that your brain has a hard time wrapping around, I'll just read it how he says it, because the Quatro version is not as good as what Paul says. But who are you, old man? Verse 20, to answer back to God.

Well, what is molded say to its motor? Why have you made me like this? So I'm going back to Nahum. But what I'm saying here is if you've heard all of this, God has and I mean it when I say it, absolute authority over all.

Christ’s Sovereign Rule Over All Things

He has absolute authority in the universe today over everything, over nature, over nations, over individuals, over angels, over demons, over humanity, over particles of dust, over unknown galaxies, over things about the human body that we haven't figured out yet in science.

He is creator of all. He's Lord of all. And Christ is King. Christ is King. That's not just a cute slogan that we have painted here above the pulpit. It's a testimony to his sovereign rule over everything.