Romans, Chapter 9

I admit that I am having difficulty writing about Romans chapter 9 because it presents a confusing message. While the sections we have been covering lately have been impassioned pleas by Paul that outline the plan of salvation, chapter 9 diverts from this by delving into the argument of God' plan for people. If God knows those who will choose Him, is there really such a thing as free will? Does God play favorites like in the story about Jacob and Esau? These are questions I do not have the answer to because I cannot even hope to understand the mind of God; therefore I am finding it difficult to write on this chapter today.

"6It is not as though God's word had failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel. 7Nor because they are his descendants are they all Abraham's children. On the contrary, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." 8In other words, it is not the natural children who are God's children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham's offspring." – Romans 9:6-8

This passage is a little clearer and I feel I can bring some understanding to it. The first Israel that Paul mentions here is the ancestral nation of Israel. The second Israel that Paul mentions is the current church: those who believe in Jesus. Once we accept the message of Christ's sacrifice we become children of the promise. Paul wrote this part of the message to illustrate once again that salvation was not just meant for the Jews, but for everyone. We all become Abraham's children through the promise God made to Abraham. We are a different type of offspring not in the physical sense, but in the spiritual sense.

"30What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, righteousness that is by faith; 31but Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it. 32Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the "stumbling stone."" – Romans 9:30-32

Our stumbling block is the belief that we can earn our way into heaven, and that is sadly one of the greatest fallacies that is spread throughout the world. If you look at the basic tenets of almost every major religion in the world they all suggest that you should be a good person, take care of the poor, don't murder, etc. These are all wonderful virtues to have, but they still do not solve the problem of sin. How can we absolve ourselves of something that we don't have the power to absolve? If someone lies to you, do they have the power to make you forgive them of that lie? If a crime is committed, do you have the power to not convict yourself? No! That power can only come from someone else, just as the power to forgive sin and grant righteousness can only come from someone who has the power to do so. If all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God then there is not a single person that has ever lived that has the power to forgive sin except Christ. He is the only person who has not committed this crime of sin, and therefore because He is also fully God he has the power to forgive sin.

This is also where faith comes in. Personally, I have never seen Jesus walking around my work, at a football game, or anywhere else for that matter. We must gain this righteousness by faith that His promise and sacrifice is true. Anyone who was a personal witness to His life on earth is long dead as well, so we only have the written first-hand accounts of His ministries. Even those we must take on faith because of time and translation over 2000 years. If it is this act of faith that is holding you up from acting on what many believe is truth ask yourself this: How did it endure? How did the brief ministry and life of one man in a dusty corner of the greatest empire in the world at the time grow into something that the globe now bases its calendar and so much on? How did 11 ordinary men carry this message and nurture it into the faith of billions if there isn't some small morsel of truth in it? If it is based solely on faith, then how did it survive? These are the questions I leave you with today.

TODAY'S QUESTIONS:

1. How did the brief ministry and life of one man in a dusty corner of the greatest empire in the world at the time grow into something that the globe now bases its calendar and so much on?
   
2. How did 11 ordinary men carry this message and nurture it into the faith of billions if there isn't some small morsel of truth in it?
   
3. If it is based solely on faith, then how did it survive?