19 But you will say to me, “Then why does he still find fault with us? After all, who resists his will?” 20 Who are you, a mere human being, to talk back to God? Will what is formed say to him who formed it, “Why did you make me this way?”[Romans 9:20 Isaiah 29:16, 45:9] 21 Or has the potter no right to make from a given lump of clay this pot for honorable use and that one for dishonorable? 22 Now what if God, even though he was quite willing to demonstrate his anger and make known his power, patiently put up with people who deserved punishment and were ripe for destruction? 23 What if he did this in order to make known the riches of his glory to those who are the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory — 24 that is, to us, whom he called not only from among the Jews but also from among the Gentiles? 25 As indeed he says in Hoshea,
“Those who were not my people I will call my people;
her who was not loved I will call loved;
26 and in the very place where they were told,
‘You are not my people,’
there they will be called sons of the living God!”[Romans 9:26 Hosea 2:25 (23), 2:1(1:10)]
27 But Yesha‘yahu, referring to Isra’el, cries out,
“Even if the number of people in Isra’el is as large
as the number of grains of sand by the sea,
only a remnant will be saved.
28 For Adonai will fulfill his word on the earth
with certainty and without delay.”[Romans 9:28 Isaiah 10:22–23]
29 Also, as Yesha‘yahu said earlier,
“If Adonai-Tzva’ot had not left us a seed,
we would have become like S’dom,
we would have resembled ‘Amora.”[Romans 9:29 Isaiah 1:9]
"God’s Restoring Mercy" by Author: Jennifer Woodard
God is not required to have mercy on us; He is Sovereign. He would be justified to deal with us as our sins deserve. Yet, in His mercy He provides another way. As the scriptures explain, it is not simply the physical children of Abraham who are regarded as his “offspring,” but those who accept the promise of God by faith (Romans 9:8).
To those who reject His offer of forgiveness in Christ God is justified in His wrath. Yet God shows patience and compassion. God offers salvation even to those who may ultimately reject Him! It is God who offers mercy; people, sadly, refuse the offer. Our salvation does not depend on what we deserve, as the, Apostle Paul wrote. "It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God's mercy" (Romans 9:16).
In the end it is no wonder that people who refuse God’s offer of forgiveness are punished for their sin. However, it is amazing that God offers forgiveness to all who turn from sin and to Christ for salvation. As Paul wrote elsewhere, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith–and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8).
Hymn for Today: "He Giveth More Grace" by Anne Johnson Flint
1. He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength as our labors increase;
To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials He multiplies peace.
2. When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
Our Father’s full giving is only begun.
3. Fear not that thy need shall exceed His provision,
Our God ever yearns His resources to share;
Lean hard on the arm everlasting, availing;
The Father both thee and thy load will upbear.
4. His love has no limits, His grace has no measure,
His power no boundary known unto men;
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.
Thougth for Today:
"23 since all have sinned and come short of earning God’s praise. 24 By God’s grace, without earning it, all are granted the status of being considered righteous before him, through the act redeeming us from our enslavement to sin that was accomplished by the Messiah Yeshua."[Romans 3:23-24]
Please pray:
That many people in Kenya will come to knowYeshua the Messiah and receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
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That many people in Kenya will come to knowYeshua the Messiah and receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
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