In recent visits we’ve seen the futility of seeking a relationship with God on our own terms. In Romans 9 Paul explains how some, through believing, enter into a relationship with God and receive His righteousness.
In verses 11-15 he declares that it begins with God’s compassionate purpose. After quoting, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated,” Paul asks, “What then shall we say? Is God unjust?” and answers, “Not at all! For he says to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.’”
God’s purpose in election is to have mercy and compassion for the one He chooses. No one deserves it. God has the right to condemn all of mankind, because all have sinned and come short of His glory. In Romans 9:16-18 we find that salvation depends on God’s mercy and power. His objective is to have His name proclaimed in all the earth. “Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy.”
If you think it’s unjust, Paul argues, “Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for noble purposes and some for common use” (verse 21)? God is sovereign. He knows how to “make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory – even us, whom he called” (verses 22-24).
Are you willing to be pliable clay in the hands of the Master Potter, submitting to the pressure of His hands to make of you what His sovereign plan is for your life?
