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God is Patient

Posted on by korgrocker

“No, don’t say that. Who are you, a mere human being, to argue with God? Should the thing that was created say to the one who created it, “Why have you made me like this?” When a potter makes jars out of clay, doesn’t he have a right to use the same lump of clay to make one jar for decoration and another to throw garbage into? In the same way, even though God has the right to show his anger and his power, he is very patient with those on whom his anger falls, who are destined for destruction.”
Romans 9:20-22 NLT

Paul highlights in his letter the reality, the truth, that God is very patient with everyone, even those who deserve an immediate response to their wickedness. We often joke about standing away from a person who has uttered a blasphemy, or stated something scandalously evil, just in case a lightning bolt from Heaven zaps them on the spot, turning them into toast. But the reality is that God is patient and doesn’t respond immediately with any form of judgement. However, everything we ever do is saved up in books, to be opened some time in the future. In Revelation 20:12, we read, “I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books”. 

Miscarriages of justice are depressingly common. Not, I should add, just for those who are wrongly convicted of a crime, but for the multitude of those who commit crimes and then get away with it, because they are not caught by the police. Many others fail to account for their misdemeanours because there is insufficient evidence to convict them. We humans want to see justice done in our lifetimes, not having to wait for God’s Great White Throne. But God is patient because He knows that He has plenty of time. While a person is alive they have the opportunity to repent of their sins. Should they refuse then on the coming Judgement Day He will remind them of this fact. No-one will ever get away with their sins.

There is much going on in this world that causes God to get angry. The early Israelites made God very angry through their rebellion and sins. Moses wrote in Deuteronomy 9:8, “Even at Mount Sinai you made the Lord so angry he was ready to destroy you”. Moses was up the mountain receiving God’s commandments written onto tablets of stone but the Israelites were having a right old party down below, with a golden calf to dance around. God said to Moses, “ … I have seen how stubborn and rebellious these people are. Leave me alone so I may destroy them and erase their name from under heaven. Then I will make a mighty nation of your descendants, a nation larger and more powerful than they are” (Deuteronomy 9:13-14). I’m sure there is much about what we do and say that makes God angry. He will be patient while we are alive, but after death there is no escape from the consequences of our sin.

I have heard many times people say to me that they are a good person, and God will never send them to hell. They claim to be good because they give to charity, or live a life free of crime and even motoring offences. There is a Scottish saying about a person, that there is not a bad bone in their body. But God sees differently. Our bar for judging someone, especially ourselves, is quite low. But God’s bar is so high that no-one can possibly achieve a state where they will be considered “not guilty” just by their own efforts. Paul wrote in Romans 3:23, “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard”. There is an analogy, that if the pass mark for an exam is 50%, and one person gets 49% and another gets 35%, then they both fail. The person with the higher mark cannot claim that they have passed the exam. In life, we spend our time in accruing marks on a Heavenly exam paper. Sadly, it’s an exam that no-one can pass in their own strength.

But there is Good News! We read in Romans 3:24-26, “Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he makes sinners right in his sight when they believe in Jesus”. Such love! Such grace! How can we ever thank Jesus enough for what He did for us. 

Dear Lord Jesus. Once again we thank You for what You did for mankind at the Cross of Calvary. We worship You today. Amen.

Jars of Clay

Posted on by korgrocker

“No, don’t say that. Who are you, a mere human being, to argue with God? Should the thing that was created say to the one who created it, “Why have you made me like this?” When a potter makes jars out of clay, doesn’t he have a right to use the same lump of clay to make one jar for decoration and another to throw garbage into? In the same way, even though God has the right to show his anger and his power, he is very patient with those on whom his anger falls, who are destined for destruction.”
Romans 9:20-22 NLT

Paul picks up the story of a potter, working with clay, and making a number of different jars. He probably remembered the Scripture we looked at recently – Isaiah 45:9, “What sorrow awaits those who argue with their Creator. Does a clay pot argue with its maker? Does the clay dispute with the one who shapes it, saying, ‘Stop, you’re doing it wrong!’ Does the pot exclaim, ‘How clumsy can you be?’” It may be difficult for us proud people to accept, but we are no different really to a clay jar. God made us, and the potter made a jar. Both very different in complexity and function, but created nevertheless. But the analogy has other implications – a person can end up either a thing of beauty or something else. 

I spent time yesterday with a two-week-old baby boy and his loving parents. Enjoying the marvel of creation, and this perfect new life. A new entry into this world with so much potential. The analogy with the clay pot ends here, because this new life will grow and develop from a baby into an adult. Not so for our clay jar. But we must never forget that God brought the new baby into this world. The go-to Scripture is in Psalm 139:13-16, “You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvellous—how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed”.

Somehow, as I look at myself and who I am, unique in every way, I think of the loving Father who formed me. He put together a design just for me, and brought it to fruition. And looking at myself in this way puts a different complexion on how I live my life. I have only God to thank. He didn’t make a failure. He made a person that started right at the moment of conception, that grew under His careful and watching eye into who I am today. Yes, sin has taken its toll, corrupting and distorting, but He allowed for that through Jesus and His sacrifice at Calvary. And one day God will give me that perfect body we read about in 1 Corinthians 15:53, “For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies”. 

Let us pilgrims take a fresh look at ourselves today. We thank God for making us just as we are, not as who we would like to be. He had, and has, a plan for each one of us, and put us together in a way that will enable us to fulfil that plan. How amazing is that! We don’t have to fret because other “clay jars” seem better than us. We are just as God wants us to be. After all, he is the Master Creator Potter, perfectly skilled in His craft. And after He made us, He destroyed the moulds. The blueprints were discarded. And yesterday’s new baby is another unique creation, with plans and purposes already set out for him.

Dear Father God. We thank You for new life. There is nothing more exciting than seeing a new baby coming into this world. I pray a blessing on the new baby introduced into my family, through Your grace and design. And in this time of spring, I thank You for making all things new. Amen.

Blaming God

Posted on by korgrocker

“So you see, God chooses to show mercy to some, and he chooses to harden the hearts of others so they refuse to listen. Well then, you might say, “Why does God blame people for not responding? Haven’t they simply done what he makes them do?” No, don’t say that. Who are you, a mere human being, to argue with God? Should the thing that was created say to the one who created it, “Why have you made me like this?””
Romans 9:18-20 NLT

Paul introduces the word “blame” into his writings. If there is anything that man is good at, it is playing the blame game. And God is not immune from accusations, allegations, and the blame for things when they go wrong. Paul warned his readers that it is a bit much for the created being to blame their creator. How can a person have the gall to say that if God made me, what does He expect if I behave in an inappropriate way. Such a response or attitude is something to invite a lightning bolt from Heaven, zapping us out of existence. Thankfully our Heavenly Father is not just loving but He is patient with us as well.

Why do people blame God for calamities that affect them or those around them? We always need to find a reason for things that happen outwith our control, things that can be devastating, life threatening, and so on. The sudden or unexplained death of a loved one. A medical diagnosis bringing bad news. A car accident that produces a life changing outcome. A national disaster or change of government. Or perhaps disasters we have no control over and yet may have affected us deeply. Often, people blame God when the rest of the time they don’t even acknowledge that He exists. They never go to church. They never pick up a Bible. If they are asked, they may even deny that there is such a Being as God. But to then subsequently blame Him for the cat being run over in the street is bizarre. It’s not just individuals who apportion blame to our Heavenly Father. Insurance companies refer to “Acts of God” in their policy documents. This often appears in “Force Majeure” contract clauses, eliminating their liability, should an unforeseen event occur.

Arguing with God, or blaming Him when things go wrong, is not a new phenomenon. Isaiah wrote in 45:9-10, “What sorrow awaits those who argue with their Creator. Does a clay pot argue with its maker? Does the clay dispute with the one who shapes it, saying, ‘Stop, you’re doing it wrong!’ Does the pot exclaim, ‘How clumsy can you be?’ How terrible it would be if a newborn baby said to its father, ‘Why was I born?’ or if it said to its mother, ‘Why did you make me this way?’” However, Bible readers will also have read Isaiah 45:7, “I create the light and make the darkness. I send good times and bad times. I, the Lord, am the one who does these things”. 

When we blame someone for a situation that affects us and those around us, we are finding fault with them. So if I fall over an obstacle such as a discarded pair of shoes, I blame the person who left them in my way. They messed up. Their untidiness and neglect literally caused my downfall. If we extend blame to God for something that happens, or doesn’t happen, then we are effectively saying He messed up. But nothing is further from the truth. We should remember what Paul wrote to his Roman readers. “Should the thing that was created say to the one who created it, “Why have you made me like this?” In other words, what right do we have to question our loving Heavenly Father, who made us? 

Who or what, therefore, is responsible for the disasters that inflict the human race? If not God, then who? There is only one answer really. It has to be the impact of trying to live in a world blighted and corrupted by sin. The wars, caused by arrogant and selfish national leaders. The cost of living and commodity shortages caused by greed. The disputes with neighbours due to a failure to communicate and compromise. The sudden cancer diagnosis, the loss of a job. The list is endless. Should God intervene? Or bring healing? Or stop a war? I’m sure He does sometimes, but most of the time sin has to take its course. So we pilgrims stay close to our Heavenly Father, truly grateful for His grace and mercy, keeping short accounts. Only in God can we find the answer to life’s problems and struggles. As the old song says, “And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace”. Oh, about that pair of shoes – I’d better put them away before someone falls over them!

Dear Father. Please forgive us when we try and blame You for negative events and times of uncertainty. Please help us to see what is going on, or what has happened, through Your eyes, because Your perspective is all that we need. Thank You. Amen.

Hardened Hearts (2)

Posted on by korgrocker

“So you see, God chooses to show mercy to some, and he chooses to harden the hearts of others so they refuse to listen. Well then, you might say, “Why does God blame people for not responding? Haven’t they simply done what he makes them do?” No, don’t say that. Who are you, a mere human being, to argue with God? Should the thing that was created say to the one who created it, “Why have you made me like this?””
Romans 9:18-20 NLT

Paul puts himself in the shoes of his readers. He asks the question – if God has hardened people’s hearts, can they be blamed for not responding to Him? A follow on question might be, if God wants everyone to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4) why would he apparently prevent most people from responding to His grace and mercy? 

The place to start is probably a scene in a Garden with three actors – Adam, Eve and a serpent. The introduction of sin into a sinless world automatically included a hardening of hearts, as selfish and godless thoughts grew a layer of callouses around hearts that were previously soft and attentive to God. And the same condition has afflicted all of mankind, up to the present day. Has hard-heartedness been a condition caused by God or by sin? I’m reminded of an oyster, a shellfish that deals with an irritating grain of sand by depositing layers of calcium carbonate around it to mitigate the irritation. A human being will allow callouses to build up around a sinful heart so that the voice of the conscience within becomes increasingly quieter. The thing is, God allows it to happen because He has granted to mankind free choice. Human beings can choose to sin or not to sin. But perhaps God has hardened hearts in judgement for the sin that came through Adam. 

Happily, hardened hearts are not a terminal condition. Through God’s grace and mercy, hearts can be softened – that’s why Jesus came to this world. Heart surgery was, and is, His speciality. The layers of hardness are peeled back to expose the softness of a repentant sinner’s heart, open and pliable in God’s hands.  

But there is hope for a hard-hearted people. We read in Ezekiel 11:19-20, “And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them. I will take away their stony, stubborn heart and give them a tender, responsive heart, so they will obey my decrees and regulations. Then they will truly be my people, and I will be their God”. In the context of Ezekiel’s day, this was when the exiles were returning from captivity, through choice. Many of course stayed behind. And the same will apply to those exiled in their sins, and who make the choice to turn or return to God. Through God’s grace and mercy, He will do what is necessary to turn a hard stone into a “tender, responsive heart”. 

So today we pilgrims once again follow the advice of a psalmist, who wrote in Psalm 139:23-24, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life”. That’s where we start when we have perhaps found ourselves exiled away from our home with God, into the darkness of the societies around us. It’s a dangerous prayer to pray. We might find stuff within us we rather not have known about. Painful to consider and deal with but God has our future at heart. There is no room for hard hearts calloused by sin in Heaven. God is in the business of softening hearts, – if we let Him.

Dear God. Thank You for Your grace. You are so concerned about each one of us that You never stop loving us and forgiving us when we confess our sins. Thank You. Amen.

Hardened Hearts (1)

Posted on by korgrocker

“For the Scriptures say that God told Pharaoh, “I have appointed you for the very purpose of displaying my power in you and to spread my fame throughout the earth.” So you see, God chooses to show mercy to some, and he chooses to harden the hearts of others so they refuse to listen.”
Romans 9:17-18 NLT

In Romans 9:17, Paul quoted a verse from Exodus 9. The context was a conversation between Moses and Pharaoh, taking place in the middle of the plagues that God had sent to the Egyptian nation, plagues that attempted to change Pharaoh’s mind about allowing the Israelites to leave Egypt. And in the middle of this conversation we read what Moses said to him. “But I have spared you for a purpose—to show you my power and to spread my fame throughout the earth” (Exodus 9:16). Pharaoh wasn’t at all keen in allowing the Israelite slaves to leave Egypt. They were the power house driving his economy, building his public buildings, probably the pyramids as well. But God wanted to demonstrate for all posterity His power and to make sure that all the peoples of that age and in the vicinity of Egypt would know what He was capable of. Perhaps God was setting the scene for what was going to happen a few years later when the Israelites started to take over their promised land. Before Moses even returned to Egypt, following the burning bush experience, he was warned about God’s plan. We read in Exodus 4:21, “And the Lord told Moses, “When you arrive back in Egypt, go to Pharaoh and perform all the miracles I have empowered you to do. But I will harden his heart so he will refuse to let the people go”. God exercised a divine choice, as Paul wrote in today’s verses from Romans 9.

It is a trait of human beings, that we can “harden our hearts” when faced with a situation that perhaps demands a more compassionate response. In the Uk we are bombarded, particularly on daytime TV, with heart-wringing adverts promoting one good cause after another. It is humanly impossible to respond to all of them, though there are reports of some that try, but most people “harden their hearts” in response by looking away, or selecting another channel. Sadly, people “harden their hearts’ when it comes to the things of God. We read what Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:17-19, “With the Lord’s authority I say this: Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused. Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity”. In the walks around my neighbourhood I sometimes find an opportunity to talk about God and His message of hope. But mostly I receive a negative response, from people who have “hardened their hearts” against anything to do with God. 

Another group of hard-hearted people are the scientists and medics who believe in evolutionary theories that try and explain the world around us, because they have “hardened their hearts” against any alternative. They develop all sorts of implausible responses to the anomalies in their beliefs, so that they can avoid the consequences of having to admit that God exists.

But the important consideration for us pilgrims is about whether or not we have “hardened our hearts” against anything God wants us to do. And we will only find an answer to that in His presence. In Isaiah 6, the prophet had a vision of God in the temple. It was so real and profound that he volunteered to do God’s work becoming a voice to his people, the Israelites. But he had an uphill struggle. We read in Isaiah 6:9-10, “And he said, “Yes, go, and say to this people, ‘Listen carefully, but do not understand. Watch closely, but learn nothing.’ Harden the hearts of these people. Plug their ears and shut their eyes. That way, they will not see with their eyes, nor hear with their ears, nor understand with their hearts and turn to me for healing””. It was time for God’s chosen people to be disciplined for their stubborn rebellion and sin. But Isaiah was faithful to his call. There are men and women declaring God’s message to this generation, in our communities and nations. We may be amongst them. But I think we can all agree that there are many “hardened hearts” around us.

We pilgrims need to ensure that our hearts are soft, so that God’s message is received and acted upon in our lives. The Psalmist wrote in Psalm 139:23-24, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life”. It’s a prayer that all pilgrims must regularly pray.

Dear Father God. We pray for hearts, softened by Your love and grace, Your kindness and mercy. We worship You today. Amen.

Is God Unfair?

Posted on by korgrocker

“Are we saying, then, that God was unfair? Of course not! For God said to Moses, “I will show mercy to anyone I choose, and I will show compassion to anyone I choose.” So it is God who decides to show mercy. We can neither choose it nor work for it.”
Romans 9:14-16 NLT

There are places in the Bible where God’s fairness has been questioned. Where God is perhaps allowing a wicked person to flourish, while allowing one of His followers to go through a difficult time with disease or poverty. The Psalmist who wrote Psalm 73 had some doubts. We read in Psalm 73:1-3, “Truly God is good to Israel, to those whose hearts are pure. But as for me, I almost lost my footing. My feet were slipping, and I was almost gone. For I envied the proud when I saw them prosper despite their wickedness”. We look around us today and see corruption in sport, commerce, and politics. We are told of eye-watering salary packages paid to company bosses. And we pilgrims, who find that paying our bills and keeping warm and fed in these days of inflation more and more challenging, wonder where the fairness is in it all. Why does God allow such inequity? Or are we blaming Him instead for what is effectively mankind making wrong choices and allowing sin to flourish?

Much has been written about capitalism and communism, and many “ism’s” in between. But we won’t be able to find a truly equitable, perfect, and fair society until Jesus comes again to rule and reign. Isaiah prophesied about the coming Messiah, that, “His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen” (Isaiah 9:7). God is committed to bringing a fairer world, a promise that He will never break.

In the context of today’s verses from Romans 9, was God being unfair when He chose Jacob rather than Esau? There is of course a bottom line to God’s mercy. He will never reject any repentant sinner, and He will cover them with His grace come what may. But the reality is that God will choose some to undertake special roles within their lifetime, so that He can bring about His purposes. For example, consider the Apostle Paul. God chose Him in a dramatic way with a special revelation of Jesus on the Damascus Road. But God didn’t start there. He had His hand on Paul from the moment he was born, training him well in a Jewish home and with the teaching of the Jewish religion. And after Damascus, Paul started his missionary journeys and even found the time to write the letters we know and love. God also had jobs for the other Apostles, and many people since. Some had much to do. Others have had very little. Moses is another example. He was eighty years old when God chose him to do a specific job (Acts 7:23,30). 

Was God being fair when He chose Paul or Moses for the tasks He had for them? In our man-made world of pseudo-fairness, we would have invited applications from people with appropriate CV’s, giving the job to someone after a process of candidate interviews. God, however, knows straight away who is right for the task He has for them because He can see what is in a person’s heart. It would have been unfair of God if He had chosen Esau rather than Jacob for becoming a founding member of the Israelites nation because his character didn’t fit in with the job spec.

In the context of Romans 9, and our verses today, Paul quoted part of a verse from Exodus 33. It was the occasion when Moses was asking for reassurance from God after the Israelite people’s rebellion and sin. God gave Moses a glimpse of Him as He passed by, and the reassurance He requested was granted. God also told Moses that how He dispensed His mercy and compassion was His affair. From a human perspective we may be tempted sometimes to consider that God in unfair with His dealings with mankind, and many will shake their fist in God’s face in their anger and frustration. But we pilgrims know and love our wonderful Heavenly Father – we know He will always act fairly. We trust Him in all that He does, even when there are grounds for confusion. The Psalmist wrote in Psalm 73:17, “Then I went into your sanctuary, O God, and I finally understood the destiny of the wicked”. Here’s the secret for when we might become confused because of what is happening with people around us, both afar and near. In the quietness of our prayer closets, where we are close to God, we find the answers we need. Guaranteed. 

Dear Father. There are many times when we would like You to act in a certain way, but You are sovereign, and see the end from the beginning. So we can trust You to act with fairness and righteousness, regardless of what we see. We praise and thank You today. Amen.

God Chooses People

Posted on by korgrocker

“But before they were born, before they had done anything good or bad, she received a message from God. (This message shows that God chooses people according to his own purposes; he calls people, but not according to their good or bad works.) She was told, “Your older son will serve your younger son.” In the words of the Scriptures, “I loved Jacob, but I rejected Esau.””
Romans 9:11-13 NLT

We previously read about God’s promise being developed through the Isaac blood line. Isaac married Rebekah and she gave birth to twins, Esau preceding Isaac by a few minutes and consequently inheriting the first born rights of his culture. But before they were born, Rebekah felt a struggle between the two babies going on within her. We pick up the story in Genesis 25:22-23, “But the two children struggled with each other in her womb. So she went to ask the Lord about it. “Why is this happening to me?” she asked. And the Lord told her, “The sons in your womb will become two nations. From the very beginning, the two nations will be rivals. One nation will be stronger than the other; and your older son will serve your younger son””. As Isaac was approaching his death, and according to the custom in those days, he spoke out a blessing on his first born son. However, through deception, Isaac, the second born, received the eldest son’s blessing. We read in in Genesis 27:29, “May many nations become your servants, and may they bow down to you. May you be the master over your brothers, and may your mother’s sons bow down to you. All who curse you will be cursed, and all who bless you will be blessed”. When Esau found our how he had been tricked, he pleaded with his father for a blessing, and this is what Isaac said, “ … You will live away from the richness of the earth, and away from the dew of the heaven above. You will live by your sword, and you will serve your brother. But when you decide to break free, you will shake his yoke from your neck” (Genesis 27:39b-40).

What started with a mother’s question to God, the result was the establishment of one of the pillars of the Israelite nation. Deception was in there somewhere too, which probably prompted Paul to write that God chooses people and uses them to work out His purposes, both good people and bad people. Ideally, to get a job done, God will choose one of His followers, but this need not be the case. A scheming mother, and a deceiving son might not be high on God’s list of choices, but we see as we read the story of Isaac how God turned his life around and established him as one of the Jewish patriarchs.

There is a question we pilgrims must ask ourselves – are we available to God “according to His purposes”? Have we felt a stirring in our spirits to do something or be somewhere, prompting an obedient response? Difficult questions to answer, but important nevertheless. I look back in my life, and see occasions when I ended up in a situation that, in hindsight, had to be a God moment, because otherwise it was too much of a coincidence. I’m sure my readers have been in such situations as well. In Ephesians 1:11 we read, “Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan”. God has plans for His entire creation, but also intimately and ultimately for each one of us. Nothing is going to frustrate those plans. We read in Proverbs 16:9, “We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps”. Or Jeremiah 29:11, ““For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope””.

So what has God chosen us for? There is a story about how a friend of Billy Graham invited him to a church meeting and let him borrow his truck to get there. Through that simple act we can see a link in a chain of events that resulted in Billy Graham becoming one of the greatest 20th century evangelists. Has God got in mind a similar simple act for us? All He asks is that we are available to do His will. We don’t know what a simple “Yes Lord” might result in, but God does.

Dear Father, we today commit ourselves to be available to do Your will in these times and in this generation. Amen.

Children of the Promise

Posted on by korgrocker

“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. For God had promised, “I will return about this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.” This son was our ancestor Isaac. When he married Rebekah, she gave birth to twins.”
Romans 9:8-10 NLT

We continue to work our way through Paul’s thesis on Abraham’s children. He was making a very clear distinction about the status of Abraham’s children and the special place enjoyed by the descendants of Isaac. In previous verses, Abraham’s other children, such as Ishmael, had no birth right to be a “child of the promise”. But what was this “promise”? 

In Genesis 17, we read about how God appeared to Abraham and made a covenant with him. The first two verses read, “When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am El-Shaddai—‘God Almighty.’ Serve me faithfully and live a blameless life. I will make a covenant with you, by which I will guarantee to give you countless descendants””. And then in Genesis 17:19 we read, “But God replied, “No—Sarah, your wife, will give birth to a son for you. You will name him Isaac, and I will confirm my covenant with him and his descendants as an everlasting covenant”. The covenant, or promise, that God made with Abraham was to be implemented through his son Isaac. And in Genesis 17:7-8 we see what the promise was all about, “I will confirm my covenant with you and your descendants after you, from generation to generation. This is the everlasting covenant: I will always be your God and the God of your descendants after you. And I will give the entire land of Canaan, where you now live as a foreigner, to you and your descendants. It will be their possession forever, and I will be their God”.

God specifically said to Abraham, in response to his question about Ishmael, that this son would not be a part of the promise. And, by implication, neither would his other children. Isaac was the man through whom God was to build a mighty nation; all pure-blooded Jews, like Paul, were descended from him. Note that this covenant is eternal, everlasting and one that God will never abandon, no matter how much His chosen nation rebels.

What an incredible position, and responsibility, this put the Israelite nation under. Specifically chosen by God under the terms of an “everlasting covenant”, to be His chosen people. But here it would stay, as an interesting historical fact, if it wasn’t for Jesus. God’s plan was that His Son would come to this world and, through His sacrifice at Calvary, widen the “promise” to include all who believed in Him. Paul joins up the dots in his letter to the Galatians. We read in Galatians 4:22-23,  “The Scriptures say that Abraham had two sons, one from his slave wife and one from his freeborn wife. The son of the slave wife was born in a human attempt to bring about the fulfilment of God’s promise. But the son of the freeborn wife was born as God’s own fulfilment of his promise”. Paul goes on to describe how Isaac was the spiritual fulfilment of God’s promise, and he continues to write, “And you, dear brothers and sisters, are children of the promise, just like Isaac” (Galatians 4:28).

Are we pilgrims guilty of the same action as Abraham, trying to hurry God along, or presuming a course of action outside His will? It is always tempting to rationalise a course of action when we should instead be patient, and full of faith that God will bring about what He promises.

So we pilgrims are included in God’s spiritual kingdom, as “children of the promise”. This doesn’t, of course, bring us under the Jewish Law – in Galatians 5:1 Paul wrote, “So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law”. God through His wonderful grace, of which we are totally undeserving, has adopted us into His family has His children. And just as God promised to Abraham that his descendants would be given the land of Canaan, we spiritual “children of the promise” look forward to our inheritance in Heaven. We don’t know when that will be, but it will come to pass one day, perhaps sooner than we think.

Dear God. We look forward to receiving our inheritance in our coming promised land. Please help us to live out our lives dedicated to You, running the race to reach the finishing line. In Jesus’s name. Amen.

Abraham’s Children

Posted on by korgrocker

“Well then, has God failed to fulfil 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.”
Romans 9:6-7 NLT

A Muslim man I once worked with said to me one day that we were really spiritual brothers because we both worshiped the same God. But these verses in Romans 9 are clear about the distinction between Abraham’s children. The Jewish nation was descended from Isaac alone. Although Ishmael was Abraham’s son, he was not part of God’s promises. We Christians also claim to be “children of God”, but most of us aren’t descended from Isaac either. Does that mean Muslims and Christians are outside of God’s favour? No it doesn’t, because the Gospel message in the Bible is clear, that everyone has the opportunity to become members of God’s family. This is true for both the Jews and non-Jews. Remember the verse, “For God so loved the world …”? No-one is excluded from God’s grace. We are all part of the “world”. Everyone is able to kneel before the cross at Calvary in repentance for their sins, and receive forgiveness and mercy. We read in John 1:12, “But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God”. Jesus primarily came to bring His message of the Kingdom of God to His own people, the Jews. In Matthew 15:24 we read, “Then Jesus said to the woman, “I was sent only to help God’s lost sheep—the people of Israel””. However, in John 10:16 Jesus seemed to imply that He was the Shepherd of other peoples as well. We read in John 10:16, “I have other sheep, too, that are not in this sheepfold. I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock with one shepherd”. In 1 John 2:2 we read, “He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world”. 

By the way, referring back to my Muslim work colleague, his claim that we both worship the same God isn’t valid. The differences between the. two faiths is most stark with the Christian belief in the Trinity, God the Father, His Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. The Muslim God, Allah, is a single being, and any talk of the Trinity is blasphemy to them. They consider that Jesus was a prophet, but not God.

But that is not to say that a Muslim cannot find Jesus. God Himself said through Paul in his letter to Timothy that everyone has the opportunity to be saved. We read in 1 Timothy 2:3-6, “This is good and pleases God our Saviour, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth. For, There is one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity—the man Christ Jesus. He gave his life to purchase freedom for everyone. This is the message God gave to the world at just the right time”. 

So, sadly for my Muslim colleague, we are not spiritual brothers at all. But we pilgrims must never build a wall, keeping us separated from society around us. We are of course not of the world, but the lost and hopeless people we are in contact with, our friends and neighbours, need to hear about the love and grace of God. Unless they hear it from us, they may never hear it at all.

Dear Father. You gave us an important job to do in this lost and dying world. Please embolden us to share Your message of Good News with anyone You lead us to. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Covenants

Posted on by korgrocker

“They are the people of Israel, chosen to be God’s adopted children. God revealed his glory to them. He made covenants with them and gave them his law. He gave them the privilege of worshiping him and receiving his wonderful promises. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are their ancestors, and Christ himself was an Israelite as far as his human nature is concerned. And he is God, the one who rules over everything and is worthy of eternal praise! Amen.”
Romans 9:4-5 NLT

We mustn’t forget the Covenant, made between God and His people. We read in Genesis 12:1-3 how God established a special relationship, a covenant, with Abraham; “The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you””. We read in Exodus 19:4-6 God’s message to Moses, “‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians. You know how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth; for all the earth belongs to me. And you will be my kingdom of priests, my holy nation.’ This is the message you must give to the people of Israel”. An awesome responsibility for the Israelites. To support the Covenant, God set out rules and regulations, the Law, that had to be followed, and we can read about that in Exodus 20 and throughout the Books that constituted the Jewish Torah. However, regardless of how the Israelites behaved, and their success at keeping their side of the bargain, the Covenant God made with Abraham and the nation he fathered was unconditional.

We Christians, with the benefit of our Bibles, can look back at two Covenants. The word “Covenant” means an agreement or promise, often underpinned by a legal document. And God has committed Himself to making a Covenant with His peoples everywhere. God cannot lie or break a promise, so the Covenant that He made was everlasting. So when Paul wrote about God making covenants with the Jews, His people, that meant there was an eternal agreement that would never be broken. 

The Covenant that God made with the “people of Israel” included “wonderful promises“. He gave them territory, and promised that the Jews would be a nation that one day will bring blessing to all the families on earth. The Israelite nation were chosen to be His adopted children, with all the benefits that result. Deuteronomy 28 lists the blessings that will be enjoyed by the Jewish nation if they keep the Covenant with God. Many of the Biblical prophecies about the Jews have not yet been fulfilled, but they will be because what God has promised will come to pass. 

But perhaps the biggest and most important promise that God made to His chosen people was the Messiah. Isaiah prophesied, “All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’)” (Isaiah 7:14). And Isaiah 9:6-7, “For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen!” With the benefit of hindsight, we saw that happen with the birth of Jesus, bringing salvation to a lost people and a dark world. And yet the promise of the Messiah won’t be fully fulfilled until we see Jesus reign for all eternity, a government bringing peace that “will never end”.  

Jesus came, ushering in the New Covenant. Jeremiah prophesied that it would happen, ““The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah” (Jeremiah 31:31). About Jesus, the writer of the Hebrews said, “That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant” (Hebrews 9:15).

God never breaks His promises. His Covenants are eternal. And we pilgrims can be part of God’s covenant promises. Forever.

Father God, we thank You for Your faithfulness. It is everlasting, full of love and grace. We praise and worship You today. Amen.