Children of the promise - Romans 9:6-8 In Romans chapter nine, Paul asks a rhetorical question:
Well then, has God failed to fulfill his promise to Israel? No, for not all who are born into the nation of Israel are truly members of God's people! Being descendants of Abraham doesn't make them truly Abraham's children. For the Scriptures say, "Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted," though Abraham had other children, too. This means that Abraham's physical descendants are not necessarily children of God. Only the children of the promise are considered to be Abraham's children. Romans 9:6-8 (NLT)
God will never fail to fulfill a promise He's made, yet the fulfillment of God's promise on an individual can be affected by that individual's response to that promise. That's what Paul meant when he said "they are not all Israel who are of Israel."
See, the name "Israel" means, "governed by God," but in fact not all who were Israel by lineage were willing to be governed by God. It's not that God wasn't willing, but rather that God isn't a dictator who forces Himself on people. In order to be governed by God, there must be a willingness to be governed by God.
Paul's point is that being "of Israel" doesn't make a person right with God, any more than being "of Calvary Chapel" (or any other church) would make a person right with God. The determining factor of whether or not you're right with God (a child of the promise), isn't who your father is, but who your Father is!
Rest assured, God has a plan for Israel, and that plan will be fulfilled, but each individual Israelite must decide: Will I accept God's promise to Abraham, the Messiah Jesus Christ?
In the same way, God has a plan for humanity, and that plan will be fulfilled, but each person must decide: Will I accept God's promise to Abraham, the Messiah Jesus Christ? Your response the that question is what determines whether you are a child of the flesh, which is simply a member of the human race, or a child of the Promise, a member of God's family.
"Lord, thank you for offering the promise of Abraham to all. that you that you so loved the world, that you gave your only Son to die for us, so that through Him we can have life!"
Pastor Clay | 
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