Sermon Central
-
“the Irrevocable God” Series
Contributed by Ron Tuit on Jul 9, 2013 (message contributor)
Summary: God's plan in History, His character and His purpose are NOT revocable.
“The Irrevocable God”
We spent several weeks in Romans 11:17-24, seeing how God has worked sovereignly and supremely in cutting off branches of unbelief in Israel and saving many Gentile, non-Jewish branches, which includes us, who are grafted into His Righteousness by the gift of His justification by faith. Last week, we looked at the condition of “Holy Branches,” that we cannot boast over our fusion into Christ, because it is a righteousness and an act of God, which is not our own.
1 Corinthians 1:30-31 declares clearly: “It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God--that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord."
Today we examine more of Romans 11, starting at verse 25: “I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And so all Israel will be saved, (imagine how thrilled Paul is to be able to say this!) as it is written: "The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob. 27 And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins."
God’s design for human history
In part, these verses are reminding us of WHAT has ALREADY happened in history: that God’s design for Human History still included Jews as well as Gentiles. It is no surprise to God that most of Israel has rejected the gift of righteousness by faith alone, in Christ alone; it is no surprise because God has created this condition by hardening Israel, until the full number of non-Jewish believers come to Him. We should never sit and wonder at Israel’s unbelief, but marvel at God’s grace toward us. But there will be a time when God will work powerfully within Israel and bring most them to an enormous revival to the truth of Jesus: “And so all Israel will be saved… The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob. 27 And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins."
How can God KNOW that Israel will turn to Him? Is God waiting for Israel because He is limited by man’s human free will? Never. How can the Creator, Omnipotent, Omniscient God ever be limited by the creature? God’s Design for salvation and for the world is not accidental but ordained. God is not thwarted by anything that man possesses, yet today, the teaching of “Open Theism” says that God cannot know what men will decide and that He is limited by their choices. They say God is limited by man’s choices.
Does God look down the hallway of time and say, “I SEE the way things are going to happen, therefore I declare it to happen? Is God like a CNN analyst who looks at the way things are and then predicts an outcome? Not at all. God’s Design is not psychic; God’s design is SOVEREIGN. If you believe that God is Sovereign, then He is Sovereign over ALL THINGS, not just some things. Does God ORDAIN ALL things or not? Is the end of time and the building of His Church and Kingdom dependent on man’s FREE WILL? If THAT is the case, we indeed, live in perilous and uncertain times! NO. God is displaying HIS SOVEREIGNTY here. God is not a VICTIM.
HOW does God know about the future? How does God know that Israel WILL TURN to Him again? The reason that God KNOWS is because He has ORDAINED what will happen. The future of Israel is in the hands of God because HE alone HAS THE POWER to TURN ISRAEL from their unbelief, in the same way that He has turned YOU and has turned me from unbelief.
“God’s Character”
Look at Romans 11:28: “As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies on your account; (We looked at this, most of the Jews are presently enemies of God and God is taking His Gospel to non-Jews) but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, 29 for God's gifts and his call are irrevocable.”
God’s Character and His nature coincide perfectly with His Design and His Covenant. There is NEVER any inconsistency in God. Numbers 23:19 says it so plainly: “God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, (a born-in –sin-human) that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?” God is not HUMAN, God is God. He is not like us!
