Take Two: Romans 9, Proverbs 16

In Romans 9, we see some more of Paul's heart. In vv.1-5, Paul bares his soul to say that if it were possible to save his kinsmen (ethnic Israel) by being accursed himself, he would gladly do it. Paul recognized in Israel two things that we can glean from for us today.
He saw their lostness. He recognized in them that they were separated from God. Understand that he would not have found a lot of "them" who would have agreed with him and that is the second observation.
They were lost, but did not know it...because they had come to trust in the wrong things. They had so much entrusted to them (v.4-5), yet they were missing the point.

I think of the many people I know who are separated from God yet religious in many respects. They have grown up in a church for most of their lives. They have heard the gospel, learned Bible stories, been part of good Sunday School classes...yet they have come to trust in the "rituals" as their hope, rather than real transformation. How can I say that? Because there is no evidence of pursuing the purpose of their salvation.

Does this mean that God's Word has failed...since not all of ethnic Israel has been saved? Certainly not. Paul notes that the genetics were not the point at all (v.6-13). What provided salvation was not one's DNA, but the mercy of God toward man (vv.14-18).

You may say: "This seems harsh and difficult to understand. Perhaps God has somehow been unjust." May it never be. God's purpose is above our own. His understanding and comprehension transcends ours (vv.19-ff). In other words-- You do not have to be able to define God and His actions to your satisfaction for Him to be God. He is already.

I imagine that some of Paul's readers (some Jewish readers) were asking themselves...why would God save Gentiles when/if all of ethnic Israel, the people of promise, had not been saved? [Sounds somewhat like the question of going into the world to win other nations to Christ when there are lost around us.] Paul's point is that God never intended for salvation to be based upon ethnicity or works, but based on God's mercy. Election was more about purpose than status. [Say it again- Salvation is more about being chosen for a purpose than about going around with a t-shirt that says, "I'm saved."] Salvation should never lead to a form of pride as though there was something significant about us as the "saved people." We are just the recipients of God's mercy. God's mercy is the operative principle at work.

Proverbs 16:3 is the takeaway today. "Commit your works to the Lord and your plans will be established." Many times we want to establish a plan and get God to bless it. If we want great things to come to pass, we need to first commit our efforts to the Lord. We make Him our priority. He is our purpose. We endeavor to honor Him in our families, our finances, our vocation, our education...in everything. When He is priority One, we find the strength to see our plans come to pass. God provides the strength and the power. This occurs because we first sought God's plans and committed ourselves to them. Then, we relied on Him working in and through us to bring it all into being.

Grace,