Romans 9:19-24

Passage

What, then, will you say to me? Why, therefore, does He still bring accusation?  For who has resisted His intention?  Oh man, on the contrary, are you one to express disapproval of God?  Will that which is molded say to the one who molded, “Why did you make me this way?”  Or does not the potter have the authority of the clay to make out of his lump of clay in one case a container of honor and in another case one of dishonor?  And if God, after desiring to demonstrate His wrath and make known His power, endured in much patience vessels of wrath having been made sufficient for destruction in order that He should also make known the abundance of His glory upon vessels of mercy which He prepared in advance into glory?  Even us, who He called not only out of the Jews but also out of the Gentiles?

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Before we get to the answer to the can of worms that was opened yesterday, Paul reminds us of our place.  Who are we to express disapproval of God?  Can we, who are flawed, have any claim to judge God?  Because we do not understand the big picture and only understand what little perspective we can muster for ourselves, we find it easy to judge God.  The truth is, God does not live up to our perspective because God is bigger that our perspective.  In fact, it is our perspective that actually cannot live up to God.

Why is it so easy for us as human beings to think that we can find fault with God?  How can we learn to question our own failings and our own lack of understanding without taking it to the point of challenging God’s character?

Second Thought:

God knew that the created order would seek out sin.  This is why from the beginning of the world He also had a plan to bring salvation into the world through His Messiah.  Because He exists outside of time, He knew the solution and brought it forth even at the beginning of creation.  However, because we exist within time, we appeared as vessels destined for wrath while we wallowed in our sin.  God knew that salvation would come to us, but He allowed us to wallow in our sin so that His grace and mercy would be understood and realized.  Think about it this way.  If a child mouths off to a parent, we believe there will come a time and place where they will be repentant and sorry.  But we still punish them and make them go through the process of dealing with the consequences of sin.  God is no different.  He knows that we are sinful.  He knows that our time spent as vessels destined for destruction will only serve to help us understand our recreation as vessels destined for mercy.

How do you understand your own reality with respect to being a “vessel destined for destruction?”  How can this help you be grateful for being called to be a vessel destined for mercy?

Third Thought:

Paul then reminds us of the greatness of God’s mercy.  God not only had mercy upon the Jews but upon the Gentiles.  This goes to show the totality of God’s plan.  God knew the whole world had sinned, so He plans for the world to have access to salvation should they receive it.  The Hebrew people were the ones who were called to proclaim this message to the world, but the salvation is intended for the whole world to be able to access.

Why is God’s plan always greater than our ability to conceive of it?  How has God exceeded your idea of what He could do to demonstrate grace in your life?

Passage for Tomorrow: Romans 9:25-26