Did You Know That All Who Worship Christ Become Adopted?
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Paul the Apostle Explains Our True Christian Heritage and Its Significance
(Romans chapter 9, verses 1 -13)
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In today's study we will be tackling part 1 of Romans chapter 9. This chapter is a little bit more lengthy than some, and so I will break it up into 2 halves for the sake of brevity. As we begin part one today, the apostle Paul is still elaborating on what we now call the end of chapter eight. “We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us”, wrote Paul at the close of last week's study. This means all believers and Christ followers are formidable powerhouses in their spirits, with unbreakable willpower, and with inner strength of body, mind and spirit unachievable by human means. Today we will continue to examine these Scriptures verse by verse in order to better our understanding (mine included, since I learn something new every time I write or read another one of these studies). So let's get started at verse one, shall we?
This Week’s Bible Verses for Study and Memorization
“I speak the truth in Christ – I am not lying, my conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit – I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race, the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoptions as sons; theirs is the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the Law, the temple worship and the promises. Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen.
“It is not as though God's word had failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel. Nor because of his descendants are they all Abraham's children. On the contrary: 'it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.' In other words, it is not the natural children who are God's children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham's offspring. For this was how the promise was stated:'at the appointed time I will return, and Sarah will have a son'. Not only that, but Rebekah's children had one and the same father, our father Isaac. Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad – in order that God's purpose in election might stand: not by works but by him who calls – she was told, 'The older will serve the younger'. Just as it is written: 'Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated'.” (Romans 9, verses 1-13)
How Close Is Our Walk With Christ?
We've all had those moments when we knew in our heart of hearts – still others have expressed it to me as “a feeling in their guts” – when we knew that something was either right or wrong, on target or a complete miss, or of simply finding oneself in a situation where they felt leery of the circumstances or the people in them for one reason or another. The feeling of something that is too good to be true is one such example. That is exactly what the apostle Paul meant when he wrote, “I speak the truth in Christ – I am not lying, my conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit...”. It is interesting to note here that Paul's conscience had a direct connection to the Holy Spirit. They were interconnected in such a way that the presence of one element depended on the presence of the other. This is a goal that is worthy of attaining for the sake of our relationship with the Lord, that of unity of mind and Spirit. The more interdependent they are within ourselves, the closer our walk with Christ becomes.
Paul Fears the Worst for His Hebrew Brethren
Paul the apostle then goes on to lament his own people, the Hebrews of their day, for what they were missing out on as a result of their continued unbelief that Jesus was the promised Messiah, the Son of God. “For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race, the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoptions as sons; theirs is the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the Law, the temple worship and the promises. Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen.” Paul was reciting a litany of his own faith as he wrote these words nearly 2,000 years ago. All he has written here is a summary of only a fraction of a part of the Law of Moses as it is documented from the books of Genesis through Deuteronomy in the Old Testament. The Jews of Paul's day had Jesus crucified by the Romans. Instead of greeting him as their Savior and “Rabbi”, they had him executed.
Not Everyone Will Be Adopted As God’s Children
“It is not as though God's word had failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel. Nor because of his descendants are they all Abraham's children. On the contrary:... 'it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.' In other words, it is not the natural children who are God's children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham's offspring.” When Paul wrote that “not all who are descended from Israel are Israel”, he was referring to Jacob and Esau, the sons of Isaac. Although they were twin brothers, Jacob became one of the patriarchs of Israel while Esau became the patriarch of what ultimately became the Muslims. (For more details on this topic you may refer to the book of Genesis starting around chapter 25.) Paul then expounds on the fact that it is not those who are Jewish by birth who are God's children, but that it is all people – the entire world or body of believers – who have become Jewish by adoption with Jesus Christ as the head of our households. Only those who worship Jesus in Spirit and in truth will be adopted into the family of God. All others will be rejected by God because of impure hearts and their clandestine motives.
If we had all of Romans 9 in front of us, we would see that we are at roughly the halfway point for this chapter. Beginning at verse 14, Paul the apostle continues to elaborate on whether God should be considered as just, as opposed to unjust, with respect to his seemingly inconsistent treatment of Jews and Gentiles. For a detailed study of the remainder of Romans chapter 9, watch for this in your inboxes or on your social media of choice every Thursday at 7PM. Until then, take care....
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