Tuesday, June 16, 2020
Romans 9
Welcome back to Bible Study on afaithtalk. This lesson is on Romans 9. If you haven’t read 1-8, please go back and do them first. Each of them are titled Bible Study – Romans … You can see all the studies so far under the Tuesday Bible Study link on the menu bar, or you can just scroll on the main page until you find the ones you still need to do. They’re all here.
Let’s pray:
Father, we’ve made it to the second half of Romans already. I ask that You bless each person reading this and Lord Jesus, that You would reveal all and anything each one of us needs to see in this. And Holy Spirit, I ask for Your presence and your peace to so fill us as we study that we know our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has been with us. Amen.
Read Romans 9:1-5 NIV
I speak the _________ in _________—I am not ___________, my conscience confirms it through the _______ ________—I have great ___________ and unceasing ____________ in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were ___________ and _____ _____ from _________ for the sake of _____ __________, those of my _______ ______,the people of ___________. Theirs is the ___________ to __________; theirs the ___________ _______, the ____________, the receiving of the _______, the temple ____________ and the __________.Theirs are the _______________, and _______ them is _____________ the human ______________ of the ______________, who is _________ over ______, forever _______________! Amen.
Can you hear the pain in Paul’s words? And why does he hurt so? Put it in your own words:
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
Read Romans 9:6-8 NIV
It is not as though God’s word had ___________. For not all who are ________________ from ___________ are __________. Nor because they are his descendants are they all __________________ children. On the contrary, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” (Genesis 21:12)In other words, it is not the children by ___________ descent who are __________ children, but it is the children of the ______________ who are regarded as ______________ offspring.
The children of the promise. This is how we know we too can be God’s children, Abraham’s offspring. It’s not reckoned by genes, it’s reckoned by promise. When Christ has makes us part of his ekklesia we become God’s children. And in some miracle of God, Abraham’s offspring. That’s why when God promised Abraham more children than sand on the seashore, it really comes true through those with the faith.
Latin ecclesia, from Greek ekklesia, where the word is a compound of two segments: “ek”, a preposition meaning “out of”, and a verb, “kaleo”, signifying “to call” – together, literally, “to call out”. Although that usage soon passed away and was replaced with “gathering, assembly, congregation, council”, or “convocation”.
Read Romans 9:9-13 NIV
For this was how the ___________ was stated: “At the appointed time I will return, and Sarah will have a son.” (Genesis 18:10, 14)
Not only that, but _______________ children were conceived at the same time by our father Isaac. Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad—in order that God’s ______________ in ___________ might ________:not by _________ but by him who calls—she was told, “The older will serve the younger.” (Genesis 25:23) 13 Just as it is written: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”) (Malachi 1:2-3)
Romans 9:14-18 MSG
14-18 Is that grounds for complaining that God is unfair? Not so fast, please. God told Moses, “I’m in charge of mercy. I’m in charge of compassion.” (Exodus 33:19) Compassion doesn’t originate in our bleeding hearts or moral sweat, but in God’s mercy. The same point was made when God said to Pharaoh, “I picked you as a bit player in this drama of my salvation power.” (Exodus 9:16) All we’re saying is that God has the first word, initiating the action in which we play our part for good or ill.
One of you will say to me: “Then why does God still blame us?
For who is able to resist his will?”
Romans 9:19 NIV
Romans 9:20-21 NIV
But who are you, a ______________ being, to talk back to God? “Shall what is ______________ say to the one who _____________ it, ‘Why did you ____________ me like ________?’” Does not the ___________ have the right to make out of the same lump of __________ some pottery for ____________ purposes and some for ___________ use?
Romans 9:22 MSG
If God needs one style of pottery especially designed to show his angry displeasure and another style carefully crafted to show his glorious goodness, isn’t that all right? Either or both happens to Jews, but it also happens to the other people.
Romans 9:23-24 NIV
What if he did this to make the ________ of his glory known to the _________ of his ________, whom he ______________ in _____________ for ________— even us, whom he also _____________, not only from the ________ but also from the _____________?
What if God did this to prepare us in advance for the glory that will be revealed in us? Of course He will prepare us in advance for everything that will come. Right now He’s just as likely to prepare us for what we’re going to go through as we go through it, but He is always faithful and He will never leave us to do something He won’t also equip us in doing so long as what we’re doing is within His will for us, which is always if we’re focused on Him, because He has complete control over everything for us. We need never fear, we are completely safe in Him.
Read Romans 9:25-29 NIV, Look these up to fill them out.
As he says in Hosea 2:23:
“I will call them ‘____ __________’ who are not my __________;
and I will call her ‘____ _________ _____’ who is not my loved one,”
Hosea 1:10 and,
“In the very place where it was said to them,
‘You are ______ ______ ____________,’
there they will be called ‘__________ of the living ______.’”
“Though the ___________ of the ___________ be like the sand by the sea,
Isaiah 10:22-23 cries out concerning Israel:
only the ____________ will be ____________.
For the _______ will carry out
his ______________ on earth with _______ and __________.”
It is just as Isaiah 1:9 said previously:
“Unless the ________ ______________
had left us _________________,
we would have become like ____________,
we would have been like _________________.”
Do you remember what happened to Sodom and Gomorrah? You can find that story in Genesis 19.
Romans 9:30-33 MSG
How can we sum this up? All those people who didn’t seem interested in what God was doing actually embraced what God was doing as he straightened out their lives. And Israel, who seemed so interested in reading and talking about what God was doing, missed it.
Romans 9:32 MSG
How could they miss it? Because instead of trusting God, they took over. They were absorbed in what they themselves were doing. They were so absorbed in their “God projects” that they didn’t notice God right in front of them, like a huge rock in the middle of the road. And so they stumbled into him and went sprawling.
Romans 9:33 NIV Look it up to fill it out.
33 As it is written: Isaiah 8:14 and 28:16
“See, I lay in Zion a _________ that causes people to ___________
and a ________ that makes them _______,
and the one who ______________ in ______ will ___________ be put to _______.”
Doesn’t that make your heart hurt too? Instead of trusting God… They didn’t notice God right in front of them. Oh that we wouldn’t be so blind. Oh that we wouldn’t be so prideful. Oh that we would see God in Jesus right in front of us. Faith, my friends, it’s all about faith. Faith is what matters. Faith is what is rewarded. Faith is how we can make it through till He comes back. And He is coming soon.
Let’s end with a prayer.
Lord Jesus, we can see how it hurt Paul to know his people, who ethnically are also your people, refused to believe; refused to trust. We can see they got so busy doing their things they thought were for you that they missed you in doing them. Oh Lord, let that not be the case with any of us. Let us all see You because You really are right in front of us, you surround us, guard us, have complete control over our lives and what happens to us. So help us, grow our faith. Help us to know in You we are all that You tell us we are. This chapter, Abraham’s children, God’s children. Thank You, Lord Jesus for all of this. It’s such a rich blessing to go through this book. An even richer one to go through it with you. Fit us for the glory that will be revealed in us one day. In Your precious and holy name, we pray. Amen.