Blog 9 - God's Mercy for His People

God’s Mercy for His People

Read:

• Romans 9

Rejecting Christ: Verse 1-5

You know what’s annoying! Seeing a celebrity or a top-level athlete have a child with all the advantages in the world, but they just waste it. One example that comes to mind for me is world champion Boxer Chris Eubank's son, Chris Eubank Jr. Now Chris Eubank Sr was a legend in British boxing, but his son never reached the level of his dad. Despite having all the best coaches, they all said he’s too lazy. They had so much potential and all the advantages but just fall flat on their face.

The same can be said with of the Jews in the first 5 verses of chapter 9. We see Paul lamenting over the Israelite people. Lamenting is a biblical term that means to have a passionate grief or mourn towards God. We see in verse 4 the advantage the Israelites have which are:

“Adoption”: They are the chosen people, children of God, adopted into His family, as seen in Exodus 4v22.

“The glory”: This refers to the visible presence of God that dwelt with the Israelites, particularly during their time in the wilderness (Exodus 40:34-38). The Israelites experienced God's glory in ways other nations did not.

“The covenants”: God made several covenants with the Israelites, such as the Abrahamic, Mosaic, and Davidic covenants, through which He promised blessings, land, and a relationship with Him.

“Giving of the law”: At this time, they have access to the law of Moses (the Torah), a divine guide for how they should live in accordance with God's will.

“The promises”: God made them many promises throughout the Old Testament of a coming messiah. Not just for Israel but all nations, but that includes them as well. They are blessed through God’s promises that Jesus came and died for their sins.  

Now it’s easy to look at the Israelites here and see that they are stupid to reject Christ considering how much God has blessed them. But if we look at our own lives look at how much God has blessed us. Go back and read how God has blessed the Israelites, and you will see that God has blessed us in the same way. So, are you neglecting Jesus? Why not come to him and thank Him for how he has blessed you in your life. We should avoid neglecting God by spending time in His word and praying to Him. To deepen our relationship with Him by drawing closer to Him.

God’s Chosen People: Verse 6-13

Imagine owning a family business and you have loads of children to pass it on to. But you can only pick one. The inheritance isn't given simply because of birth right but because of the founder’s choice of who is most suited for leadership, regardless of their position in the family. In the same way, God's choice of who will fulfil His promises isn't based merely on lineage or works, but on His sovereign will.

We see God’s sovereign will in these next few verses here. When God chooses Isaac over Ishmael in verse 7 (Seen in Genesis 21v2) and when God chooses Jacob and not Esau before they were born in verse 13. (Seen in Malachi 1v2 and 3) This shows that God is sovereign over His people, because He loves them and has compassion for them.

We see that God picks people who can fulfil a calling He set for them. We aren’t called based on our own works but by what God chooses for us before we are even born. God will then equip us with the gifts and the desire to do what God calls us to do when we put our faith in Him.

God’s Mercy Verse 14-29

We see at the start of the chapter that the Israelite people had rejected Christ. But Paul reminds them what God has done for them and the love and compassion God has shown them. (v14-16) For example hardens Pharaoh's heart during the Exodus out of Egypt. In that moment God showed mercy on His people, delivering them out of the hand of Pharaoh, out of slavery.  

We see in these verses that God has a lot of love and compassion for His people. Therefore, just know that when you feel distant from Christ like the Israelite people are, God still loves you and has compassion for you. No matter how much you’ve let Him down, God is still calling for you to come to Him. He wants us to look upon Him even in our lowest moment when we feel like we have let Him down.

Verse 30-33 – The Importance of Faith in Christ

From previous chapters we know that Jewish people believe only they can receive salvation. But these last three verses we see that salvation is for everyone who their faith in God. Salvation is for both Jew and Gentile (non-Jew). Everyone can be saved even people who we may think are too far gone to their sin or we find hard to talk to. This should challenge us to go out and tell everyone about Jesus and how He died for us.

We also see that the Jewish people focus too much on works to get them to Heaven. When we read other letters from Paul we can see this comes up a lot when it comes to the Jewish people. But it is important to know that we cannot earn our way to Heaven, but it is through God’s grace and mercy for us that we are saved. (Ephesians 2v8-9)

Dear Lord, thank you that you have adopted us to be your children. Thank you that you are sovereign over us and that you show us mercy and grace for us each day. Let us be reminded of your kindness and grace everyday of our lives. Amen

Going Deeper Questions

1. How has God blessed you in your life? How can we avoid the mistakes that the Israelites made? (v1-5)
2. What does God’s sovereignty mean? How do we see God’s sovereignty in these verses? How does God’s Sovereignty make you think about God’s calling for your life? (v6-13)
3. Even though the Israelites have rejected God, God still has mercy for them. How does this make you feel when you sin? (v14-18)
4. How does verse 30-33 show us the importance of faith in Christ?
5. Why do you think the Jews keep trying to earn their way to Heaven? What comfort do you get knowing that salvation is through faith alone? (v30-33)