God’s Sovereign Choice / Romans 9:1-33

The Enormity of God

If you have your Bibles, either turn them on or open them up to Romans chapter nine. For those of you who are students of the Word of God, what you are going to find is that Romans chapter nine contains some of the most difficult, yet finest, theology in all of your Bible. This is the type of passage that we have to get familiar with as serious students. We are challenged to be diligent, to show ourselves approved unto God as workmen who don’t need to be ashamed, but handle accurately the Word of truth. This chapter is absolutely essential in helping us understand the enormity of God.

This is a passage we have to wrestle with, and it is not easy. It’s not palatable; it doesn’t go down smoothly. You don’t leave feeling some strange warm fuzzies. No, in fact, it is wonderfully terrifying because it begins to communicate the faults we have in our perception of God.

If I asked you to fill in the blank—“God is _______”—how would you answer? Some of you would say God is holy, or peace, or love. All very true. Some of you would use metaphors: God is my refuge, my strong tower, my rock, or my fortress. Again, all true. Some of you would get deep and theological and say God is omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient, transcendent, eternal, immutable, or sovereign. I would say those are true, too.

But do you really believe that? If I were to ask you to explain who God is in your life, does it match your theological confession? We say theologically that God is lofty and sovereign, but do we then expect God to function in ways that make us comfortable? Is God allowed to be God, fully unhindered and unchained to our human pleasures, our goodwill, or our limited framework of theology? Or can God truly be God?

If we’re honest, what tends to happen is that we take God and we domesticate Him. We take Almighty God and we try to make Him manageable. He becomes some sort of Yoda-Gandalf-Santa trifecta—a wise sage who brings gifts and shows up at the opportune time to save the day. But that’s not who God is. God is bigger than that.

Isaiah 55:8-9 (NASB)

‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,’ declares the LORD. ’For [as] the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts.

For us to seek to understand God is a noble concept, but to demand that God would somehow conform to our limited insights or what we think is just or right is another matter entirely. God is not obligated to take the theological cookies and put them on the bottom shelf. He is not obligated to function within the framework of what our finite, temporal minds think is appropriate. God is above that. When you find yourself fully exploring the depths of an almighty, sovereign God, it is wonderfully terrifying. It’s wonderful in that you see the enormity of God, but it’s terrifying in that you see how small you really are. The bigger our God is, the smaller we become—and in that, the more accurate our theology truly is.

The Promise to Israel

In chapters nine through eleven, Paul gives us three chapters of deep theology to explain the bigness of God. A. W. Tozer once said that the church has surrendered her once lofty concept of God and substituted for it one so low and ignoble as to be unworthy of worshiping men. He said she has done this little by little, and her very unawareness makes the situation all the more tragic.

We live in a day and age where we need the next generation to study their Bibles and pursue an enormous God. We need to get beyond the “weak sauce” view of God where He just shows up at a worship service. We need to embrace a God who calls us to live on mission for something bigger than ourselves.

Paul gives us this calling on the heels of what we learned in chapter eight. We saw that our suffering has purpose and that God is so sovereign and true to His Word that even when life is hard, we have hope. We saw that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

Romans 8:38-39 (NASB)

For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

This causes a casual scholar to ask: “Wait a second. You’re suggesting the promises of God are unchanging? But I remember all those promises God gave to those Old Testament guys. He promised the nation of Israel a heritage. But looking around this room, I see more Gentiles than Jewish people. If God’s promises never fail, what’s happening today?”

That is why Paul gives us these three chapters. Chapter nine shows us God’s sovereign electing purposes. Chapter ten shows us man’s responsibility. Chapter eleven shows us God’s irrevocable plan for both Israel and the Church.

To be clear, we are not “Replacement Theology” people. The Church has not become Israel. The Bible takes great lengths to distinguish between the two. In Romans 1, Paul says the gospel is to the Jew first and then to the Greek.

Romans 1:16 (NASB)

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

In chapter eleven, we will find that a partial hardening has happened to Israel so that we Gentiles might be grafted in, but God is not done with His Jewish bride. But let’s look at chapter nine: the sovereign electing purposes of God.

The Principle of Choice

Paul begins by expressing his deep sorrow for his Jewish brothers. He says he would almost wish himself accursed if it meant their salvation. He lists the incredible gifts given to the Jewish people: the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the law, the temple service, the promises, the patriarchs, and ultimately, Jesus Himself. But then he makes a vital point: just because you are in the family tree of Abraham doesn’t mean you are a true child of the promise.

Romans 9:6-8 (NASB)

But [it is] not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are [descended] from Israel; nor are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants, but: ‘THROUGH ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS WILL BE NAMED.’ 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.

God called Abraham and promised him land, seed, and blessing. But Abraham and Sarah got tired of waiting. Abraham slept with Hagar, who gave birth to Ishmael. God said, “I appreciate you trying to help out, but don’t do that again.” God chose Isaac, the son of Sarah, to be the heir of the promise.

You might say, “Of course He chose Isaac; Sarah was the wife.” But Paul takes it further. Look at Rebekah. She had twins by one man, Isaac. Before the twins were even born—before they had done anything good or bad—God told her that the older would serve the younger.

Romans 9:11-13 (NASB)

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, it was said to her, ‘THE OLDER WILL SERVE THE YOUNGER.’ Just as it is written, ‘JACOB I LOVED, BUT ESAU I HATED.’

That was countercultural. The oldest was supposed to be the favorite and get the double portion. But God said, “No, I choose the younger.” The word “hated” in this context implies a lack of priority or a rejection in favor of another. Regardless of how you take the expression, the principle remains: God chose one and did not choose the other. And you’ll notice in verse 11 that this choice was not based on their performance. It was based on God’s purpose according to His choice.

Is God Unjust?

Paul anticipates the complaint. If I say God chooses, you immediately ask, “Is that right? Is there injustice with God?” Paul’s answer is: “May it never be!”

Romans 9:15-16 (NASB)

For He says to Moses, ‘I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION.’ So then it [does] not [depend] on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.

This is God saying He will do whatever He is pleased to do. If our view of God is a docile, manageable God, this is very uncomfortable. But if our God is the Lord of all who spoke the world into motion, He has the freedom to run with the puppet strings cut. We don’t control Him; He is God and we are not.

He says it doesn’t depend on the man who wills or runs, but on God who has mercy. Mercy is when you don’t get what you do deserve. It’s like when you’re speeding, the cop sees you, and he lets you go. Our election is not based on our effort; it’s based on God.

Paul then gives the example of Pharaoh. He says God raised Pharaoh up specifically to demonstrate His power.

Romans 9:17-18 (NASB)

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

Why was Pharaoh the most powerful figure of his day? Was it his SAT scores? No. God grabbed Pharaoh and exalted him. God positioned him so that when God finally struck him, the whole world would see it. God raised him up to destroy him as an example for ages to come. We are still talking about it! It’s like God raised up the playground bully just to punch him in the face so everyone would know who the real Boss was.

This brings a second complaint: “Well, if God orchestrated it, how can He hold Pharaoh accountable?”

Romans 9:20-21 (NASB)

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? 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?

Paul doesn’t even give a direct answer; he just forces us to ask the right question. The question isn’t “Is God fair?” The question is “Who are you to talk back to God?” It’s like a thirteen-year-old kid trying to tell his parents how the world works. Son, you’re still popping zits; talk to me in twenty years.

And let’s be honest: you don’t want “fair.” Fair is each of us receiving the full portion of the wrath of God. Fair is God wiping us off the face of the earth. I don’t want fair; I need mercy.

Vessels of Mercy

Paul explains that God, willing to demonstrate His wrath, endured with much patience “vessels of wrath prepared for destruction.” We are all naturally prepared for destruction because of our sin. But God intervened to make known the riches of His glory upon “vessels of mercy” which He prepared beforehand for glory.

Some people try to soften this by saying God just “looked ahead” and saw who would choose Him. But that doesn’t sound like a sovereign God. Ephesians tells us He chose us in Him before the foundation of the earth.

Ephesians 1:4-5 (NASB)

just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will,

Before the world was made, God chose you. That changes how you view your faith. It means your salvation is a gift provided while you were still dead.

What is your picture of salvation? Some think we are treading water in a lake, getting tired, and we reach out for God’s hand. In that version, God is waiting for us to make the move. That sounds like a sissy God. And it’s an arrogant view of yourself. The Bible doesn’t say you were drowning; it says you were dead. You were fish food on the bottom of the lake.

Ephesians 2:4-5 (NASB)

But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),

Dead people can’t choose anything. The first move was made by a sovereign God. If you have come to faith, it’s not because you were real smart or figured out the spiritual Sudoku puzzle. It’s because the good hand of a sovereign God awakened you from the dead and called you to Himself.

A God-Sized Setup

I remember when this theological issue first hit me. I came to faith on March 23rd, many years ago, because a church offered free food. I went for the meal, heard the gospel, and raised my hand to “choose” Jesus. It felt like the most logical decision I had ever made.

But years later, as I studied my Bible, I started seeing this issue of sovereign election everywhere. I was in Decatur, Texas, at a men’s conference, and I was so wrecked by this teaching that I walked outside and sat on a tree stump. I said, “God, I think my view of You is terrible. It’s like elementary school. If it’s true that You chose me, then my view of You needs to expand.”

I started replaying the tape of my life. I realized I had been set up. I had a buddy from football who was reading his Bible on the plane next to me. I had a drinking buddy who suddenly got saved and started talking to me about Jesus. The girl I was dating told me I had to get right with God or we were done—and her dad just happened to be a pastor.

I thought I was making a choice, but behind the scenes, God was moving. Jesus said, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him.”

John 6:44 (NASB)

’No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.

If you ask me, “Did I choose God, or did God choose me?” I’m going to give you a very frustrating answer: Yes.

Romans teaches both, and it doesn’t apologize for driving us nuts. Chapter nine is clear that God chose us. But don’t miss next week, because chapter ten will leave you with the full assurance that you chose God.

Resting in Sovereignty

We have to allow the text to reframe our view of God. God is not tamed by you. He doesn’t always make sense. He is holy and good, but He doesn’t always function within the parameters of what we think is acceptable.

If you are here tonight and you aren’t sure where you stand with God, it isn’t an accident. God is likely setting you up. The circumstances of your life and the people you know are not coincidences. If you haven’t placed your faith in Christ, I pray with great diligence that you would choose Him tonight.

But I’m also going to sleep well tonight. I’m going to sleep well because, as much as I pray you choose Jesus, I know it is ultimately in the hands of a sovereign God. I trust Him in the process.

We need to worry less about who is chosen and recognize the privilege of responding to the moving of a sovereign God. In twenty-plus years of serving the Lord, I’ve never experienced anything so wonderful, even if I don’t always understand it. Let’s leave here knowing we serve a God bigger than we could ever comprehend, who loved us and called us before the world began.

Let’s pray. Father, we thank You that You are who You are. We don’t have to domesticate You or control You; we can just sit in awe. Thank You for the beauty of the gospel. May You be big and may we be small. Warm the hearts of those here and call them to Yourself. In Jesus’ name, Amen.