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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
“I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, and in this way all Israel will be saved. As it is written:”
‘The deliverer will come from Zion; He will turn godlessness away from Jacob. And this is My covenant with them when I take away their sins.’
“As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies for your sake; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable. Just as you who were at one time disobedient to God have now received mercy as a result of their disobedience, so they too have now become disobedient in order that they too may now receive mercy as a result of God’s mercy to you. For God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that He may have mercy on them all.”
Romans 11:25-32
This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
In yesterday’s message, we found the Apostle Paul sharing three sides of God with his Roman readers.
On one hand, God is stern and unwavering in the way He despises sin. Anyone disrespecting and disobeying Him can expect to receive discipline.
On the other hand, God is merciful and forgiving. Not wanting anyone to perish in their transgressions, He makes the way for people to not only get right with Him but abide with Him forever. All one needs to do is believe in His Son Jesus who He sent as an atoning sacrifice to pay the sin penalty once and for all, for all people.
It’s this truth that reveals a third side of God, that of redemption and it’s this character trait of the Lord that we find Paul continue to discuss in our verses for today from Romans 11. Look again at what he had to say here:
“I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, and in this way all Israel will be saved. As it is written:”
‘The deliverer will come from Zion; He will turn godlessness away from Jacob. And this is My covenant with them when I take away their sins.’
“As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies for your sake; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable. Just as you who were at one time disobedient to God have now received mercy as a result of their disobedience, so they too have now become disobedient in order that they too may now receive mercy as a result of God’s mercy to you. For God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that He may have mercy on them all.” Romans 11:25-32
Many of the Jews hardened their hearts, refusing to place their faith and trust in Jesus as the long predicted Messiah. In doing so, they essentially rejected the new covenant God was forming, not just with them but the Gentiles (those who weren’t Jews).
Speaking of the Gentiles, many of them willingly and gladly accepted God’s offer of salvation through His Son, becoming Christians when at one time they seemed to live a lifetime separated from God. Again, it was God’s amazing redemption, a redemption born out of His deep mercy that opened up the opportunity of eternal life for people that once seemed beyond saving.
So what about the Jews who chose to turn their backs on God’s offer of salvation through Jesus?
Well, as we see Paul so skillfully write, they still had hope. God’s gifts and call were, and still are, irrevocable. In other words, He doesn’t withdraw the offer but always leaves the door open for anyone who decides to reverse course and accept Jesus as Savior. Redemption is always an option because we have a merciful God as our Maker and Master.
There’s always hope that a sinner might turn their lives around and emerge a far better person because they became a saved child of God, the One who is the Great Redeemer of His people. Paul knew this better than most because he was a perfect example of what redemption looks like, having moved from a murderous, Jewish Christian persecutor to the greatest Apostle Jesus ever had.
Today, our God is still as merciful and in the redemption business, ever ready to bring people out of the judgment seat of sin and into the glorious holiness of justification, righteousness, and salvation.
Thanks be to God for who He was, who He is, and who He will always be. Tomorrow we will begin a five devotion series looking at His amazing nature.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
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