Let's open our Bibles to Matthew 5:1-6.

Let's open our Bibles to Romans chapter eleven.

God is faithful even when we are faithless.

Remnant of Israel (1-10)

The Grafting in of Gentiles (11-24)

The Mystery of Israel's Salvation (25-36)

Three Orthodox Views

i. All the physical Israel will be saved

ii. A remnant of Israel will be saved

iii. The Church is now Israel

Let's open our Bibles to Third John, which only has 14 verses. It's the shortest book in the New Testament and never even mentions the name of Jesus.

How then should we live? - Isaiah 6:1-13

This came at the time of great grieving for Israel

Isaiah's Purification (1-7)

Isaiah's Calling (8-13)

Conclusions

We must realize our sin and its hindrance to the Gospel and repent.

We must look and see needs within our church, community, and world.

We must go when sent - no matter the consequences.

Let's open our Bibles to Romans 9;24-29.

In fulfillment of His word, God in mercy is calling to Himself a people from the Jews and the Gentiles.

Salvation is from God's great mercy and His sovereign, effectual call, not from anything in us

The entire book of Romans to this point, but especially chapters 8 and 9, emphasizes that God, not man, is the primary force behind salvation

General call - it goes out to all, but it is not effectual

Effectual call - it always accomplishes God's purpose of giving life to the spiritually dead so that they respond willingly to the call

Salvation brings us into a personal relationship with the living God

Hosea and Gomer's children

Jezreel - It can mean "God will scatter" - God would scatter the northern kingdom of Israel

Lo-ruhamah - God would have no compassion on Israel

Lo-ammi - they were not his people and he was not their God

God changes the children's names

Jezreel - it can mean "God will sow" - God will sow the land again with people

Ruhamah - compassion

Ammi - my people

Salvation extends to people from every type of background

A pagan background does not exclude you from God's mercy (vs. 25-26)

A religious background does not automatically include you in God's mercy (vs. 27-29)

Salvation delivers us from God's inescapable, thorough judgment

When God's judgment comes, none will escape except the vessels of mercy (the remnant)

You must respond to God's call of mercy by repenting of your sins

Salvation brings us into the racially diverse spiritual family of God's people

There will be no racism in heaven - it will be multi-racial and multi-cultural

There is no place for racism in the church today

Let's open our Bibles to Romans 9;18-23.

The Sovereign God has the right to deal with sinful creatures in such a way as to display His glory, both in judgment and in mercy

1. The Sovereign God has all the rights to deal with sinful creatures as He chooses; sinners have no rights (vs. 19-21)

a. It is not true that God made us to be sinners

b. We are sinners by being born "in Adam"

c. We are sinners because of the guilt of our own sin

d. To blame God's sovereignty for your sin is shameless audacity

e. From the same lump of clay God makes vessels for both honorable and dishonorable use

i. Charles Hodge: The punishment of the wicked is designed to manifest the displeasure of God against sin

ii. The Sovereign God has all the rights to deal with sinners as He chooses; sinners have no rights

2. The Sovereign God deals with sinful creatures in such a way as to display His glory (9:22-24)

a. God displays his glory by his patience, wrath, and power when he judges sinners who are prepared for destruction

i. John Piper: "The final and deepest argument Paul gives for why God acts in sovereign freedom is that this way of acting displays most fully the glory of God, including his wrath against sin and his power in judgment, so that the vessels of mercy can know him most completely and worship him with the greatest intensity for all eternity."

ii. Reprobation: God does not work directly on the heart to infuse evil

iii. He works through secondary causes to permit sin

iv. This doctrine comforts believers with the truth that no evil person can thwart the sovereign purpose of God

b. God displays his glory by making known the riches of his mercy on vessels of mercy, which he prepared beforehand for glory

i. God's unmerited grace shines more brightly against the terrible backdrop of human sin

ii. Paul uses the word "riches" to help us understand that our inheritance in God is infinitely greater than the greatest riches on earth

Let's open our Bibles to Romans 9;14-16.

As the righteous Sovereign over all, God is not unjust to grant mercy to some and to harden others, because all deserve His judgment

As the righteous Sovereign over all, it is outrageous to think that God could treat anyone unjustly (9:14)

To raise the question of fairness presupposes that you have rights and that your rights are being violated

We all have sinned without excuse against God

His justice would only bring us what we deserved

Matt 20:1-16 Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me?

As the righteous Sovereign over all, God is free to show mercy to whomever He wishes (9:15-16)

Moses boldly asked God to show him His glory in Exo 33:18

God declared He would proclaim the name of the Lord before Moses

It included this statement, I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion

God's glory is displayed by His freedom to show mercy and compassion on whomever He wishes

Thomas Schreiner: No human being deserves God's mercy

We all justly deserve condemnation

As the righteous Sovereign over all, God is free to harden whom He wishes, to display His glory (9:17-18)

God is not unjust to raise up a proud sinner on the stage of world history and use him for God's greater purpose of demonstrating His power and causing His name to be widely proclaimed

God is not unjust to grant mercy to some to display the glory of His grace, and to harden others to display the glory of His righteous judgment

Luke 18:13, God, be merciful to me, a sinner!

Let's open our Bibles to Romans 9;1-5.

"Sinners are responsible to repent and believe in Christ, but when they do repent and believe it is totally due to God's sovereign grace so that no one may boast."

--Pastor David Fell

Let's open our Bibles to Romans 8:35-37.

Nothing can separate us from the Love of Christ.

1. Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?

a. Scripture teaches that we will go through situations like these because we have been made right by the Love of Christ.

i. Psalm 44:22 - Yet for your sake we are killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to the slaughter

b. We must place our hope in what Scripture teaches, that He has not forgotten His covenant promises.

2. More than conquerors

a. John Piper “A conqueror defeats his enemy, but one who is more than a conqueror subjugates his enemy. A conqueror nullifies the purpose of his enemy; one who is more than a conqueror makes the enemy serve his own purposes. A conqueror strikes down his foe; one who is more than a conqueror makes his foe his slave.”

b. Nothing can separate us from the Love of God.

Let's open our Bibles to Romans 8:33-34.

God's answer to guilt is that He justifies His elect through Christ's mediation on our behalf

1. The world, the devil, and our consciences seek to condemn us with guilt

a. The world charges us of being guilty of hypocrisy, intolerance, self-righteousness, and other sins

i. We're all prone to put on a false front so that people do not see what we're really like

b. The devil charges us as guilty when we fall short of God's holiness

i. "Satan" means adversary - he is the accuser of the brethren

c. Our consciences charges us with guilt when we know that we have sinned

i. The conscience by itself is not a reliable guide

ii. It's important to maintain a good conscience before the Lord

2. After confession, answer charges of condemnation with God's promise to justify His elect through Christ's mediation on your behalf

a. If you are truly guilty, confess your sin and turn from it

i. We need to be forgiven relationally

b. Answer charges of condemnation with the fact of God's sovereign election

i. When you're feeling guilty over your sin, you're prone to doubt your faith in Christ

ii. Knowing that you're saved because God first chose you in spite of your sin is essential in battling guilt

c. Answer charges of condemnation with God's promise to justify the ungodly by grace alone through faith alone

i. We are truly guilty and deserve to be condemned, but Jesus paid the penalty that we deserved

d. Answer charges of condemnation with Christ's effectiveness and sufficiency as your mediator

i. Christ Jesus died for our sins

ii. Christ Jesus was raised for our justification

iii. Christ Jesus is now exalted to the right hand of God

iv. Christ Jesus is interceding for us