Children of the Promise
Romans 9:5-13
1.
Church, this morning I’m going to ask you to
engage your mind: because we are going
to wade into some intellectually deep water!
a.
I believe you guys are up to it!
2.
For those of you who are familiar with the
Apostle Paul, you know that he was an intellectual genius -
a.
He was a Heavenly heavyweight! The Einstein of doctrine and theology!
b.
For the next few weeks, we’ll be looking at some
doctrinal truths that are mystical and deep, but also important, things like:
i. God’s
promises
ii. His
character and nature
iii. His
sovereignty
iv. His
election
v. His
justice
vi. His
grace
3.
To accomplish this objective, Paul is going to
take us on a journey through time
a.
He is going to turn to the historic and present
situation of the nation of Israel as a backdrop to help us grasp these great
truths of God.
4.
Now some of us may not have an interest in the
nation of Israel, and that’s OK, but I’d like to point out three things:
a.
#1 Israel is important to God, which I believe
is reason enough for us to at least have a basic understanding her place in
God’s plan
b.
#2 God is not finished with Israel. Isreal is
like Gods timepiece in prophecy, which means we can learn some things about
God, and where we are in God’s plan, based on what’s happening with Israel,
c.
#3 God’s relationship with Israel is a picture
of His relationship with you and I, the New Testament believer.
9 I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience
also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, 2 that I have great sorrow and
continual grief in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed
from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh, 4 who are
Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving
of the law, the service of God, and the promises; 5 of whom are the fathers and
from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally
blessed God. Amen.
5.
Last week we opened up a can of worms in dealing
with the nation of Israel …(miss it?
Clayritter.com)
a.
In that, being God’s chosen people, Israel had
the promises, the covenants, the law, the temple worship,
b.
They had all these things going for them, yet
they missed the Messiah, and crucified Him!
c.
Now it appears that they’ve been set aside, and
Jesus is building His church in the Gentile nations (that's what He told us to
do in Matt 28)
6.
And as we touched on last week, the astute bible
student may ask the question:
a.
Did God fail to keep His promises to Israel?
b.
I mean they were unique among all the other
nations in their relationship to God, but now they seem sidelined from the
church universal.
7.
This is important, because: How can we love and trust a God that may not
keep His promises?
Israel’s Rejection
and God’s Purpose (The Promise)
6 But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect.
For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, 7 nor are they all children
because they are the seed of Abraham; but, “In Isaac your seed shall be
called.” 8 That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the
children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed. 9 For
this is the word of promise: “At this time I will come and Sarah shall have a
son.”
8.
The first part of Paul’s answer to the question: Just because Israel seems sidelined, it
doesn’t mean that the word of God hasn’t accomplished its intended purpose.
So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It
shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it
shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.
Isaiah 55:11
9.
OK, if we accept the premise that God’s word
always comes to pass, and certainly we can look at the veritable plethora of
bible prophecies that have come pass which would support that premise…
a.
But there is also I would call an the individual
application of God’s promises;
b.
To wit, the fulfillment of God’s promise on an
individual can be affected by that individual’s response to the promise.
c.
That’s what Paul means when he says “they are
not all Israel who are of Israel”
10. The
name “Israel” means, “Governed by God” (that's why God changed Jacob's name to
Israel)
a.
Yet, not all who are Israel by lineage are
governed by God. It’s not that God isn't
willing, but rather that God isn’t a dictator who forces Himself to control a
person’s life.
b.
In order to be governed by God, there must be a willingness
to be governed by God!
c.
In the same way we could say, not all who are in
the church are governed by God
11. What
Paul does is create a distinction here between the “child of promise,” the sons
of God,
a.
and the “child of the flesh,” who are not the
sons of God
b.
Being related to Abraham doesn't make you a
person a child of the Promise.
c.
His point is that being “of Israel” doesn't make
you right with God, any more than being “of Calvary Chapel” (or any other
church) would make you right with God,
The determining factor of whether or not you are a
child of the promise isn't who your father is, but who your Father
is!
d.
And Paul uses a real life example to make his
point...
Real Life Examples
– Isaac and Ishmael
12. Paul
brings up the account of Abraham and Sarah, and the sons Isaac and Ishmael
(Genesis 16-21),
a.
God promised Abraham a son, but after 10 years
he and Sarah got impatient, and so Abraham took matters into his own hands
(surrogate) and had a son with one of his servants, Hagar.
b.
This son, Ishmael, being the firstborn, was
‘entitled’ to the inheritance of his father.
13. Later
on, God fulfilled His promise, and Sara became pregnant, and had a son Isaac.
a.
Isaac was the son of promise, the result of God
fulfilling His promise,
b.
Ishmael was the son of the flesh, the result
Abraham taking matters into his own hands.
14. As
they grew, the boys didn’t get along, there was friction, as there is always
friction between the spirit and the flesh.
a.
So God instructed Abraham to send Hagar and
Ishmael away.
15. What
happened? Isaac went on to be the
patriarch of the nation of Israel,
a.
and Ishmael went on to be the patriarch of the
Arab nations, and there is still friction, a fulfillment of God’s word that was
spoken to Hagar:
“Behold, you are with child, and you shall bear a son.
You shall call his name Ishmael, because the Lord has heard your affliction. He
shall be a wild man; His hand shall be against every man, and every man’s hand
against him. And he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.” Gen 16:11-12
16. Now
this isn’t my opinion; Ask any Arab
Muslim and they’ll tell you they’re descendants of Abraham through Ishmael,
a.
and they further believe that Muhammad was the
“prophet” sent by their god, Allah, into the world.
17. Now
to our point, one might look at this and say “that’s not fair, Ishmael couldn’t help who his mother was, so why did
Abraham send him away, and why are his descendants estranged from the true
God?”
a.
To which we could say, It is true the
descendants of Ishmael are generally estranged from God, but not ALL of
them.
b.
You will find descendants throughout the world
who worship the true God,
c.
As a matter of fact they are part of the last of
the gentile people groups that are coming to Christ in the 10/40 window (you
are a part of that!).
d.
In other words, descendants of Ishmael CAN
become children of the promise.
18. See,
God DID bless Ishmael (Gen 17). Ishmael
had a blessing and an inheritance from the Lord.
...as for Ishmael, I have heard you. Behold, I have
blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly. He
shall beget twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation. Gen 17:20
a.
The determining factor as to whether or not they
are right with God isn’t determined by their lineage,
b.
But rather what he and his descendants
individually chose to do the blessing the Lord gave them.
19. In
other words, a person could be born of the seed of Isaac, and NOT be a child of
the promise,
“those who are the children of the flesh, these are
not the children of God”
a.
or they could be born of the seed of Ishmael,
and be COUNTED as a child of the promise.
“ the children of the promise are counted as the
seed.”
OK that one we can understand, but this next one gets more complicated:
Jacob and Esau
10 And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by
one man, even by our father Isaac 11 (for the children not yet being born, nor having
done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might
stand, not of works but of Him who calls), 12 it was said to her, “The older
shall serve the younger.” 13 As it is written, “Jacob I have loved, but Esau I
have hated.”
20. So
Isaac grows up and gets married, and has two sons: Jacob and Esau (Genesis 25),
Esau was the firstborn, thus he had the right of the blessing of his father.
a.
There was division between these boys before
they were even born, as Rebecca could feel them wrestling in her belly! She
asked God “what is going on?”
“Two nations are in your womb, two peoples shall be
separated from your body; One people shall be stronger than the other, and the
older shall serve the younger.” Gen
25:23
b.
Esau was the “mans man,” big, hairy, a hunter of
game, not really interested in spiritual things
c.
Jacob was the choirboy, a momma’s boy, soft
sensitive, and a conniver.
21. Perhaps
you’re familiar with the story, Jacob wanted the blessing of the firstborn, so
one day when Esau comes in from the field, famished, Jacob has this nice hot,
savory pot of stew cooking,
a.
And Esau smells it “man, I want some of that!”
to which Jacob replied, sure, if you’ll give up your right to dad’s blessing,
b.
and Esau was like “whatever…”
c.
Now, neither of these boys were the epitome of
Godliness, but Paul tells us that the Lord “chose” Jacob; he was accepted, yet Esau was not accepted…
22. Then
Paul quotes from Malachi 1 “Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.”
a.
That sounds a little harsh!
b.
And to top it off, Paul is also saying that God
chose Jacob over Esau before they were born, and it wasn’t because of what they
would do, or not do.
c.
Which bings us into the realm of the sovereignty
of God
The Two nations -
the Sovereignty of God
23. Now,
looking at these two brothers, we may partially understand God’s choice,
a.
Jacob went on to father the twelve tribes of
Israel,
b.
And Esau?
You can trace his lineage to another group of people that, along with
the Arabs, are enemies of Israel; the
Palestinians.
c.
(Backstory) you may not think it relevant, but I
do, as it speaks to the sovereignty and choices of God, as well as the
fulfillment of scripture, and God’s overall plan.
Esau & Edom
24. If
you trace out Esau, his people become Edom (Gen 36), and dwelt in the area southwest
of the Dead Sea, later named “Idumea,” Greek for Edom.
a.
They actually lived peacefully in a ‘two-state’
solution alongside Israel,
b.
When the Romans destroyed Jerusalem in 70 AD,
the Roman General Titus also decimated the Edomite population, and only 40,000
Edomites (Idumeans) were allowed to remain,
c.
This was a fulfillment of Obediah 1:
Thus says the Lord God concerning Edom (We have heard
a report from the Lord, and a messenger has been sent among the nations,
saying, “Arise, and let us rise up against her for battle”): “Behold, I will
make you small among the nations;
Obadiah 1:1-2
25. The
Edomites that remained blended in with the other people groups in that area, until
the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. (MAP)
a.
When Israel declared statehood, the surrounding
Arab nations formed an alliance to attack and destroy the Jewish state,
b.
Before they attacked, they warned all non-Jews
to leave the area until the Jews had been destroyed, after which they could
return and resettle the land.
c.
I’m sure the Arab nations figured, two or three
weeks, we’ll wipe out Israel, and then we’ll have an Arab state.
26. The
non-Jewish people, many of whom were Edomites, fled to Jordan to wait out the
war,
a.
Of course, it didn’t quite work out that way,
Israel defeated the Arab nations, and the non-Jewish people, many of which
Edomites, had nowhere to go.
b.
and the “Palestinian Issue was born.
c.
Check this out:
Partial fulfillment of Psalm 83:
Do not keep silent, O God! Do not hold Your peace, and
do not be still, O God!
2 For behold, Your enemies make a tumult; And those
who hate You have lifted up their head.
3 They have taken crafty counsel against Your people,
and consulted together against Your sheltered ones.
4 They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from
being a nation, that the name of Israel may be remembered no more.”
5 For they have consulted together with one consent;
They form a confederacy against You:
6 The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites; Moab and the
Hagrites;
7 Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek; Philistia with the
inhabitants of Tyre;
8 Assyria also has joined with them; They have helped
the children of Lot. Psalm 83:1-8
d.
By the way, this has not yet been fully
fulfilled, it started in 1948, but it is still in motion, as there is still a
state of war between the Palestinians and the Jews
27. And
it’s interesting to see how a group of people that at one time lived peacefully
with Jews, due to a common ancestral bond,
a.
Are now totally dedicated to Israel’s
destruction (don’t take my word for it, it’s written into the Palestinian
charter, article 15).
b.
They teach children in kindergarten that it’s
good to kill Jews, it’s in their schoolbooks.
c.
They teach their little boys to aspire to be
suicide bombers.
d.
If you’re interested, read “Why I Left Jihad” by
Walid Shoebat (which is also a great
testimony of how, through the gospel message, an enemy of Israel can become a
lover of God!)
What’s my point in
all of that?
28. From
a logical perspective we might rationalize God’s choice:
a.
The Jews being given the word of God, they were
(and are) downright OCD about maintaining the integrity of the scriptures,
preserving it for millennia.
b.
Giving us the proof of the infallibility of
God’s word, through the prophecies that were written down, and we can now see
them fulfilled.
c.
They’re OCD about maintaining their genealogy,
allowing the proof of the birth of the Messiah; what tribe He would come from,
what family He would be born into, even when and where He would be born!
29. We
could also say, based on observation of history, we can say that Ishmael and
Esau weren't really interested in spiritual things.
However….
30. We
can’t say that God chose Israel because they were righteous
Therefore understand that the Lord your God is not
giving you this good land to possess because of your righteousness, for you are
a stiff-necked people. Deut 9:6
a.
So we can’t say God chose the nation of Israel
because they would be “good,” I mean they killed Jesus, didn't they?!
b.
So, God’s election of Israel did not depend on
their human merit, because time and again they showed themselves to be
faithless and disobedient!
The Purpose of
God…
31. Was
He choosing who would be “right” with Him? Who would be the “perfect and
righteous people?” NO!
a.
God was choosing the people and the nation that
He would use for the purpose of bringing His plan of Salvation to mankind!
b.
God was choosing the people and the nation that
He would use to reveal His love, His mercy, His grace, and His glory to all of
the earth.
32. And
the takeaway is this: This is a picture
of God’s relationship with you and I, think about it:
a.
Just like Jacob, God chose us before we were
born….
He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world…
Eph 1:4
that we should be holy and without blame before Him in
love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself,
according to the good pleasure of His will… Eph 1:4-5
b.
Just like Isaac, just like Jacob, God didn’t
choose us because we were good, or because He saw that we would eventually be
good;
c.
He knew we would be like Israel, we’d say “we love
you God!” then we’d walk our own way...
i. Yet
He chose us...
d.
He knew we’d disobey, get into all kinds of
messes...
i. Yet
He chose us…
e.
He knew we’d become selfish, self-serving…
i. Yet
He chose us...
f.
He knew we’d be stiff-necked, and resist Him
i. Yet
He chose us...
33. See
the mystery is that God chose Isaac, that He chose Jacob,
a.
The mystery is that he chose you and I!
b.
Why did He choose us? Because we had something to offer? Because He saw how good we’d be? No…
c.
Simple:
We are the fulfillment of His Promise…
I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him
who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be
blessed.” Gen 12:3
He says, “You will do more than restore the people of
Israel to me. I will make you a light to the Gentiles, and you will bring my
salvation to the ends of the earth.” Is
49:6
Copyright © 2014 Clay Ritter.
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