Rom 9  God’s Sovereignty is Not Fair

1 I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit,

2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart.

3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh,

4 who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons, and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises,

5 whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen.

Paul states, that with the Holy Spirit as a witness that he is speaking the truth, that he wishes he could surrender his salvation if it meant that his jewish brothers could be saved instead.

who are his “kinsmen according to the flesh” ?

(verse 4 tells us they are Israelites, to whom belongs adoption as sons, and the glory, and convenants, and the giving of the law, temple service, and promises)

bear in mind, the christian faith is not meant to be at odds with the Jewish faith

(it is the promised fulfillment of the Jewish faith)

Opening a Christmas gift is not contradictory to a month of tree decorations, christmas carols, and staring at gifts under the tree.  It is the anticipated climax of the season. It is accepting something you have anticipated and looked forward to for a period of time.

Christ is the fulfillment of the Jewish faith (not it’s enemy)

(but since the Jews, in majority, rejected their messiah, He moved on to the gentiles, as promised as well)

By the time this book was written, a major shift has taken place:

(christians are comprised by a majority of gentiles, rather than jews)

Gentiles who are likely asking, “what happens to all the promises God made to His chosen people)

Israel is the chosen nation, but a nation who rejected the Messiah.

Does this mean God’s promises to the nation (given to Abraham) are now null and void ?

6 But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel;

7 nor are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants, but: “THROUGH ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS WILL BE NAMED.”

8 That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants.

Rom 4:16-17

16 For this reason it is by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with grace, so that the promise will be guaranteed to all the descendants, not only to those who are of the Law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all,

17 (as it is written, “A FATHER OF MANY NATIONS HAVE I MADE YOU”) in the presence of Him whom he believed, even God, who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist

Abraham is promised to be the father of nations who are not of his physical seed.

(it is our faith that makes us children of Abraham, and inheritors of the promises)

Gal 3:

7  Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham.

29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.

9 For this is the word of promise: “AT THIS TIME I WILL COME, AND SARAH SHALL HAVE A SON.”

10 And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac;

11 for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God’s purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls,

12 it was said to her, “THE OLDER WILL SERVE THE YOUNGER.”

God CALLS 

one of the twins to be blessed (the younger)

and the other to serve (the firstborn)

so that His purpose according to His choice would stand

God goes against the jewish custom that firstborn inherits all the blessings and privileges

13 Just as it is written, “JACOB I LOVED, BUT ESAU I HATED.”

Malachi 1:2-3 declares, “‘I have loved you,’” says the LORD. But you ask, ‘How have you loved us?’ ‘Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?’ the LORD says. ‘Yet I have loved Jacob, but Esau I have hated, and I have turned his mountains into a wasteland and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.’

Hundreds of years after Jacob and Esau had died, the Israelites and Edomites became bitter enemies. The Edomites often aided Israel’s enemies in attacks on Israel. Esau’s descendants brought God’s curse upon themselves. Genesis 27:29 tells Israel, “May nations serve you and peoples bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers, and may the sons of your mother bow down to you. May those who curse you be cursed and those who bless you be blessed.”

Esau and Jacob born somewhere around 2000 BC 

Malachi written around 440 BC
(1500 years have passed and this verse speaks to God blessing and cursing nations, not individuals)

He actually gave a lot of land for Esau to inhabit.  He simply favored Jacob in recognizing who got the birthright of firstborn 

14 What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be!

15 For He says to Moses, “I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION.”

16 So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.

17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “FOR THIS VERY PURPOSE I RAISED YOU UP, TO DEMONSTRATE MY POWER IN YOU, AND THAT MY NAME MIGHT BE PROCLAIMED THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE EARTH.”

Exodus 9:16

Exodus 9:12 hardened pharaohs heart

was it fair for God to harden the heart of the ruler of Egypt against obeying Him ?

18 So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.

some say “when they hear of God calling (John 14:6 and John 6:44) say “not fair. He called you and not me”

(it’s not fair that he lifts some above their sin and leaves others in their sin)

I can reply “I agree. It’s not fair that He forgives anyone”

If I give you a gift, do you reply “it’s not fair that she didn’t get a gift” ?

there is nothing fair about a gift. There is nothing fair about sovereignty.

19 You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?”

If His call is irresistible , then it’s not fair that I be judged for not being called
(the call is the gift of mercy, the judgement is still deserved, just as pharaohs heart being hardened was just)

20 On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, “Why did you make me like this,” will it?

21 Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use?

(remember who is God and who is not, who is master and who is not)

Rom 3:3-4

What then? If some did not believe, their unbelief will not nullify the faithfulness of God, will it?

May it never be! Rather, let God be found true, though every man be found a liar, as it is written, “THAT YOU MAY BE JUSTIFIED IN YOUR WORDS, AND PREVAIL WHEN YOU ARE JUDGED.”

Job 9:1 ¶ Then Job ¹answered,

Job 9:2  “In truth I know that this is so; 

But how can a ^aman be in the right ¹before God?

Job 9:3  “If one wished to ^adispute with Him, 

He could not answer Him once in a thousand times.

Job 9:22 on .. Job finally cracks under the strain of his trials, and awesome friends

and goes into a pity party for chapters about how it is unfair for God to cause or allow all these calamities.

Job recognizes God’s power to do as He wishes, but does not recognize God’s wisdom and plan within His sovereignty

22 What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction?

23 And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory,

24 even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles.

25 As He says also in Hosea, 

“I WILL CALL THOSE WHO WERE NOT MY PEOPLE, ‘MY PEOPLE,’ 

AND HER WHO WAS NOT BELOVED, ‘BELOVED.’”

26 “AND IT SHALL BE THAT IN THE PLACE WHERE IT WAS SAID TO THEM, ‘YOU ARE NOT MY PEOPLE,’ 

THERE THEY SHALL BE CALLED SONS OF THE LIVING GOD.”

“Not fair that God loves one and hates another

(Calls one and not another)”

I agree , it’s not fair that he loves any of us

Not fair that he calls any of us 

“Not fair that he killed or allowed to be killed that person and not this other person”

I agree, not fair that He doesn’t kill all of us

We often ask why?

Why did he do this or not stop that ?

Maybe , like children , we feel we have the right to agree or disagree with the authority giving the order ?

Sometimes the parent just says “because”

(No need to explain just because)

We do this with God… as if agreeing or disagreeing with His purposes matters in the least 

He calls us (as in verse 11) according to His purposes .. not according to anything He sees in us 

And His purposes are not as cording to anything He sees in us 

Does an auto mechanic get to brag about filling in a scratch on a car fender (or taking a car with a brown engine block, cracked pistons, and making it run ?)

Gods promises to Israel were not fair 

(If He were fair, He would let us all go to hell for our sins   That would be fair 

Gods promises to Israel had nothing to do with anything God knew before hand would be helpful in Jacob to fulfill those promises (actually the opposite is true)

Gods promises to Israel are in Gods hands to fulfill to the letter

Gods promises are open to those who are children of Abraham by faith (not of the flesh)

All are not Gods children 

Eph 2:2-3 we deserve His wrath

John 1:12 through Christ, we can receive the title of children 

27 Isaiah cries out concerning Israel, “THOUGH THE NUMBER OF THE SONS OF ISRAEL BE LIKE THE SAND OF THE SEA, IT IS THE REMNANT THAT WILL BE SAVED;

28 FOR THE LORD WILL EXECUTE HIS WORD ON THE EARTH, THOROUGHLY AND QUICKLY.”

29 And just as Isaiah foretold, 

“UNLESS THE LORD OF SABAOTH HAD LEFT TO US A POSTERITY, 

WE WOULD HAVE BECOME LIKE SODOM, AND WOULD HAVE RESEMBLED GOMORRAH.”

30 What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith;

31 but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law.

32 Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone,

33 just as it is written, 

“BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE, 

AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.”

what is this stumbling stone ?

Christ is the only way to the Father and to the promises made by the Father to Israel 

John 14:6, John 6:44