Romans: Chosen to Choose
2025-07-20
Charles Billingsley
Romans 9-10
Romans can be divided into 4 distinct sections.
Romans 1-3:20 is about the wrath of God
Romans 3:21-8 is about the Grace of God
Romans 9-11 is about the God plan for the Jew and Gentile
Romans 12-16 is about God’s righteousness being lived out in a practical way in all of our lives
For the first 8 chapters of Romans, Paul builds this powerful and persuasive mountain of truth pertaining to God’s righteousness, His provision for our salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ, and the problem of our sin.
We Ended up at the end of Chapter 8 with this wonderful reminder of that fact that as believers, we are more than Conquerors in Christ. We have been given ultimate victory over evil!
In romans 9 we come to a shift in Paul’s emotions. He is about to change the subject from being “more than conquerors” and turn his attention to his own people and their lost condition. He begins to show a great concern for them because they have been offered the greatest gift known to man, and many of them refused to receive it.
there has also been a shift in the church culture in that there are more Gentile Christians now than Jewish Christians.
Chapter 9 – Israel’s past
Chapter 10 – their present
Chapter 11 – their future
When we say Israel – we are talking about the ethnic group of Jewish people.
Paul quotes the OT many times in Romans, but half of Paul’s OT quotes in Romans are in chapters 9-11. And 40% of those quotes are taken from Isaiah.
In chapter 9, Paul reminds us all of:
The Sovereignty of God – one having all power and authority
1. God is sovereign and always Has a plan
9 I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, 2 that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen (my family. I grew up with them) according to the flesh, 4 who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises; 5 of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen.
Paul makes the statement that He would gladly take their place in torment in order to see them saved. But what irony!
Someone had already taken that punishment for them! Jesus! And yet they rejected Him.
So Paul lists 7 advantages the Jewish people have over any other people group – and yet they still were blinded to the truth of the Messiah – who had walked among them – performed miracles in front of them – even rose from the dead ! And still they rejected Him as Messiah.
Israelites – they would be blessed for generations simply because they were Jews.
Adoption – special relationship as adopted people – Exodus 4:22 – God proclaims the people of Israel as “His children”
Glory – reference to the physical glory of God – pillar of cloud / pillar of fire – reminded them that God was with them – a manifestation of His presence
Covenant – covenant with Abraham, Moses, David, the Messiah. Was always conditioned upon their obedience to God
The Law – the Torah – the had the privilege of absolute truth as their foundation and basis for justice. No other nation could claim that. We have the Bible because God chose these people. America is founded upon Judeo, and later, Christian ethics that are based from the Bible.
The Service of God (worship) – God allowed the people access to Him through the tabernacle/ temple – by way of the tribe of Levi. God’s means of restoring the people into a right relationship with Him.
The promises – land , a future kingdom , the Hope of the Messiah – who ushered in a New Covenant – based on Grace instead of the Law . Those promises are still available through Christ – He is the true Bar Mitzvah – “son of the covenant”
They had everything going for them.
The nation of Israel , as a majority , still rejected Christ as the messiah.
**Rejection by the majority does not negate God’s promise to the minority – there will always be a few who believe. A Remnant.
But because of their many blessings, It leaves them without excuse for failing to believe. The gospel was presented to them first. But what they failed to see is that it is not their heritage as God’s chosen people that will save them. It is by Grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone that is the only thing that will save them.
Many people in our churches today have this same mindset.
Just because your daddy or your momma came to church and were Christians, doesn’t make you one – any more than standing in your garage makes you a car.
Your heritage doesn’t save you.
Your upbringing doesn’t save you.
Your Good works don’t save you.
It is only by grace alone, through faith alone, In Christ alone that we are saved.
2. God is Sovereign – His plans have a purpose
God gave them their identity through His plan.
6 But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, (This is a play on words here. Israel means “governed by God”. Paul is saying not all of Israel is actually governed by God. you are only truly governed by God when you are surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.” Not all Israelites in the flesh were Israelites of the spirit). 7 nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, “In Isaac your seed shall be called.”8 That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed. 9 For this is the word of promise: “At this time I will come and Sarah shall have a son.”
Abraham had many sons, not just Isaac. But the promise of the covenant, of the messiah – would go through Isaac.
Their identity should have been found in their God-determined purpose, not simply by the offspring of one another.
Just because you are born a Jew, you are part of a chosen people but that does not automatically lead to your salvation.
Replacement theology – vs. 6 this false doctrine states that the Church has replaced or superseded Israel in terms of the promise and blessings of Israel because the Jews were the ones who crucified Jesus. And So replacement theology says that God has replaced Israel by giving the Church those blessings.
We are seeing a rise in the popularity of this theology right now because of the Gaza conflict.
It was this very theology That the Catholics bought into that caused the crusader wars in the 12th century leading to the slaughter of thousands of Jews.
Even Martin Luther, despite all the good that he did, he also bought into this theology which led him to write many horrific anti-semetic things about the Jewish people – leading Adolf Hitler to quote him in MeinKampf – which led to the slaughter of 6 million Jews
But God still has a plan for His people.
You find the answer in the first 2 verses of the next chapter 11:1-2
11 I say then, has God cast away His people? Certainly not! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew.
remember: God’s choices are not made based off of a majority opinion or human preferences. God chooses who He will use to fulfill His plans. He chooses His timing. And He chooses his ways according to His own purposes and His mercy.
It’s not really up to us to vote.
He chose only Isaac to establish His covenant. We don’t necessarily know why. He just did.
another example :
10 And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by one man, even by our father Isaac 11 (for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls), 12 it was said to her, “The older shall serve the younger.” 13 As it is written, “Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.”
Prothesis – Greek word for “purpose” in vs. 11. It means “setting forth, having a plan, a design”
Not “hate” in the sense that we use the word today.
In ancient eastern culture – to hate or despise something was more with priorities than emotions.
What we are talking about is not personal – it’s national.
God is referring to two nations here.
God preferred Jacob over Esau to build His nation.
Luke 14 – Jesus – “if any man comes to me and hates not his family…”
NLT – if you want to be my disciple, by comparison, you must “hate”.
Jesus wasn’t telling us to despise our children or our parents. But he IS telling us that He must be our preference and priority if we are going to follow Him in extreme devotion.
Paul is underlining the fact that just because you were born a Jew, it does not automatically put you under the blessing of the Covenant. Not by merit or by the rights of your heritage.
God chose Jacob even before the two boys were born. Why? Simply because God decided that’s the way it was going to be.
Jacob certainly didn’t earn it. He was a conniving , deceiving, lying individual.
I don’t know why he chose Jacob over Esau, but he did. And His plan proved to be the right one – as it always is.
3. God is Sovereign – His character is perfect
14 What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! 15 For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.”16 So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. (The MSG – “Compassion doesn’t originate in our bleeding hearts or moral sweat, but in God’s mercy.)
17 For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.”18 Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.
Exodus
Pharaoh hardened his own heart first. That was pharaoh’s choice.
Then God allowed Pharaoh’s heart to harden even more – two different words. this one means – God firmed it. in other words, God saw his hardness – and hardened it even more. Romans 1 – He “gave him up” to his own hardness.
This does not say that God is not going to give you mercy. but it is saying that He will give you mercy according to His will, not ours.
You might say – “that doesn’t seem fair!”
But do we really even have grounds to say that? To question God’s plans or His motives?
4. God is Sovereign – His plans are merciful and just
Notice I did not say ‘fair.’ If you think God should be fair – then you might think that God owes you something. The better word is “just”. But the truth is, God doesn’t owe us anything.
Mercy isn’t something that God owes us – it is something He gives freely. If it were earned, it wouldn’t be Mercy.
Imagine if you walked out into the parking lot today and saw a man giving away $100 bills to random people. If you didn’t get one – would you accuse the man of injustice? no, you’d be more in awe that the man was giving $100 bill out at all!
Maybe we should stop wondering if God is fair or not and start considering the fact that God is a just God.
The truth is, none of us deserve any salvation or mercy at all! But He is just to forgive us and offer us mercy we don’t deserve and could never earn. The fair punishment for our sin is death – as Paul stated in chapter 6. But God is merciful and just, in that He treats His creation in His perfectly righteous way.
We will NOT always understand this.
God is God. And we are not. He does as he pleases and answers to no one.
Job 38:4
“Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?
Tell Me, if you have understanding.
“If the job of “Supreme Judge of the Universe” ever opened up, here are the necessary qualifications.
You must be:
Omnipotent – all-powerful
Omniscient – all-knowing
Omnipresent – present everywhere at once
Immutable – unchanging
Eternal – above and beyond the bounds of time
self-existent – needing nothing, and nothing created you
Holy – the very definition of purity and goodness
Just – absolutely right in every decision
Not only is all of humanity woefully unqualified for this position, we have no basis or right to question the ONE and ONLY ONE who is.” – Charles Swindoll
So Paul uses these examples of how God chose Isaac over Ishmael, Jacob over Esau, and the allowing of Pharaoh’s heart to harden as a big reminder to the Jews that God has always had a plan and that He has provided for them a way of salvation through that plan all along. But it is not up to us to second-guess that plan.
God chooses.
God uses.
9:19 You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?” (The MSG – So how can God blame us for anything since he’s in charge of everything? If the big decision is already made, what say do we have in it?).
The Message-
20-24 Who in the world do you think you are to second-guess God? Do you for one moment suppose any of us knows enough to call God into question? Clay doesn’t talk back to the fingers that mold it, saying, “Why did you shape me like this?” Isn’t it obvious that a potter has a perfect right to shape one lump of clay into a vase for holding flowers and another into a pot for cooking beans? 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.
Remember, Paul is talking about the history of the Jewish people. But many have turned this personal and believe that these verses are more about personal salvation and that God pre-determines only a select number of individuals that will be saved
The Doctrine of Pre-destination / Election
Calvinists vs Arminialists
There are wonderful men and women of God who fall on both sides of this argument.
Calvinists – followers of John Calvin got together after his death to express Calvin’s doctrine of salvation in five main points.
Calvinism places strong emphasis the Sovereignty of God – in that some people are destined by the sovereign will of God for heaven, and others are destined for Hell – that it has all been pre-determined by God and you have no say in the matter.
Some go so far as the say that Jesus did not die for the whole world, but He only died for the elect – those pre-determined to be saved.
R.C. Sproul, John Piper, Jonathan Edwards, the recently deceased John MacArthur
Arminians – Jacobus Arminius – Same thing – their followers came up with 5 points to express Arminius’ views on the doctrine of salvation.
Armenians place a strong emphasis on the Responsibly of Mankind. God knows all things, including who will be saved, but even though God desires all to be saved, He gives mankind the freedom to either choose Him or reject HIm. Armenians believe Jesus died for the whole world and will save anyone who calls upon His name.
Charles Wesley, John Wesley, A.W Tozer, CS Lewis, J Vernon McGee, etc…
Both sides are man’s attempt to articulate and make sense of the mystery of God and His magnificent plan for salvation.
So which side is right? BOTH!
We must embrace the whole counsel of God.
There is obvious tension between God’s sovereignty and Man’s responsibility, but God does not owe any of us an explanation of how to figure that out.
The truth is, there are ample verses of scripture to support both.
The doctrine of election is a two-sided coin. It is God’s choice of us. And it is our choice of God. God initiates, but we respond.
As a church, we have no definitive statements on this doctrine for this reason. There are wonderful theologians and Godly believers on both sides of the aisle.
I am intentionally in the middle.
You simply cannot deny that this passage (chapter 9), along with several others, points to the very vivid fact that God is Sovereign and chooses whom He will choose and will do what He chooses to do.
Yet, at the same time, you cannot deny that there are many other passages in scripture that clearly point to the responsibility of man to follow God. Chapter 10!
So is our salvation based off of God choosing us? Or is it based off of us choosing God?
The answer: YES!! It is both.
You may not understand it. And I don’t think any of us ever will totally grasp this. But that is ok. Some things are a mystery. And always will be.
If God were small enough for us to figure out, then He would not big enough for us to worship!
Train illustration
trains leave at a predetermined departure time
Yet you can choose whether or not you want to be aboard that train.
You also get to choose your seat.
you can choose what you want to eat
you are operating on the parameters of your own choices
while at the same time riding on a train that left at a pre-determined time.
So we have both something pre-determined in advance, cooperating simultaneously with your own decision.
Charles Spurgeon put it this way:
Picture a door leading to a beautiful room.
ON the door front is a sign that reads: “Whosever will may come.”
And so you choose to walk into that door. As you close it, you look back and you notice another sign on the backside of that door: “Chosen before the foundations of the world. “
Then you find a table with your name tag on it.
You chose to walk through the door – only to discover that God had chosen you to be there all along.
When it comes your salvation – God has already chosen you!
The question is, have you chosen to follow God?
It is a wonderful mystery. We cannot fully fathom it, and yet every believer has experienced it.
So what shall we do with this?
All I know is, the more we preach the gospel around here, the more people are chosen. The more people join the elect. So we are going to keep preaching the gospel.
And if you are here this morning and you are not sure if you are part of the chosen – then surrender yourself fully to the Lord Jesus – choose to call on His name, believe in your heart that can save you – and then ask him to do so. Then you too will become part of the elect – part of the Kingdom of God – fully chosen, fully forgiven, fully part of the family of God!
Pre-destination – that term is found 4 times in scripture.
Election – 27 times.
the Bible does not place a huge emphasis on this –
but what the Bible does emphasize about God – is mercy!
Another illustration: Hosea
Hosea’s life and calling are a beautiful picture of the Gospel.
especially to the gentiles.
Hosea, commanded by God, marries Gomer, who then leaves him for other lovers, symbolizing Israel’s idolatry and unfaithfulness to God. Despite their betrayal, God’s love for Israel endures, and Hosea buys Gomer back, representing God’s promise to redeem His people.
The Message
9:25-33 Hosea put it well:
I’ll call nobodies and make them somebodies; I’ll call the unloved and make them beloved in the place where they yelled out, “You’re nobody!” they’re calling you “God’s living children.”
Isaiah maintained this same emphasis:
If each grain of sand on the seashore were numbered and the sum labeled “chosen of God,”They’d be numbers still, not names; salvation comes by personal selection. God doesn’t count us; he calls us by name. Arithmetic is not his focus.
Isaiah had looked ahead and spoken the truth:
If our powerful God had not provided us a legacy of living children, We would have ended up like ghost towns, like Sodom and Gomorrah.
How can we sum this up? All those people (Gentiles) 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. 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. Isaiah (again!) gives us the metaphor for pulling this together:
Careful! I’ve put a huge stone on the road to Mount Zion, a stone you can’t get around. But the stone is me! If you’re looking for me, you’ll find me on the way, not in the way.
Who is this Stone? Jesus!!
My hope is built on nothing
than Jesus blood and righteousness
I dare not trust the sweetest frame
But wholly trust in Jesus Name – the Cornerstone
NKJV
30 What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness of faith; 31 but Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness. 32 Why? Because they did not seek it by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumbling stone. 33 As it is written:
“Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense,
And whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”
The Responsibility of Man
NLT
Romans 10 Dear brothers and sisters, the longing of my heart and my prayer to God is for the people of Israel to be saved. 2 I know what enthusiasm they have for God, but it is misdirected zeal. 3 For they don’t understand God’s way of making people right with himself. Refusing to accept God’s way, they cling to their own way of getting right with God by trying to keep the law. 4 For Christ has already accomplished the purpose for which the law was given. As a result, all who believe in him are made right with God.
5 For Moses writes that the law’s way of making a person right with God requires obedience to all of its commands. 6 But faith’s way of getting right with God says, “Don’t say in your heart, ‘Who will go up to heaven?’ (to bring Christ down to earth).
7 And don’t say, ‘Who will go down to the place of the dead?’ (to bring Christ back to life again).”
8 In fact, it says,
“The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart.”
And that message is the very message about faith that we preach:
Paul is saying that we don’t need to go to heaven to recruit a Messiah. And we don’t need to go down to Hell to rescue a Messiah.
The One who saves has already come and is as close as the heart in your chest!
Paul is heartbroken over the failure of his own people to recognize Jesus as the doorway to their salvation. In their efforts to obtain righteousness through the law, they missed the fact that their salvation was not found in adherence to the law, but rather through placing their faith in Jesus as their Messiah.
So after building this tremendous argument that our salvation is the work of the Sovereignty of God. He now turns the coin over and makes just as strong an argument about the responsibility of Humanity in this equation. So we embrace both sides without diminishing the other.
Leaning too strongly towards the sovereignty of God without the conviction of our own responsibility can lead us to a mindset that all that happens is from God and that we are merely puppets in his hands. Therefore, everything we do is under grace, no need for aggressively sharing the gospel because we don’t have any choice in the matter, anyway.
But, leaning too strongly towards the responsibility of man can lead to a legalistic mindset that places all the pressure of living perfectly on your shoulders because if you earned your own salvation, who is to say you couldn’t lose it as fast as you earned it? So we lean towards what we do instead of what He has already done. It becomes a salvation that is more about works than grace.
I believe that a proper perspective is the balance of both!
Someone asked the great preacher Charles Spurgeon one time about how he reconciles these two truths about salvation: the sovereignty of God and the responsibility of humanity. His answer: “I wouldn’t try. I never reconcile friends.”
In chapter 10, Paul highlights our responsibility…our response to God’s call for our salvation.
1. The Gospel is available to all of us – therefore all of us are accountable
9 If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved.
Pisteuō – greek word for ‘believe’ – it means to trust fully – to trust with all of your heart and soul!
Parachute analogy – IF you go skydiving, you may say you believe that the parachute will save you , but until you jump out of the plane – you haven’t displayed your true belief.
Belief requires faith, trust and action!
2. The Gospel is Universal – therefore it is available to all of us.
10:11 As the Scriptures tell us, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.” 12 Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him. 13 For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
John 1:11 He came to his own people, and even they rejected him. 12 But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.
John 3:16 – whosoever!
10:14 But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? 15 And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!”
It is not only our responsibility to place our faith in Him for salvation, it is also our responsibility to tell others about Him!
Evangelism isn’t a personality type – it’s a responsibility to all believers.
We have the gift of hope in our hands – we must share it!
Imagine a firefighter finding people trapped in a burning building saying – “well, I don’t want to make them uncomfortable by dragging them out – I’ll just live a good life in front of them.
That’s not compassion – that’s cowardice.
Tell everyone you know! Tell everyone you can!
I’ve never met anyone who chose God – turn around to discover that He hasn’t chosen them.
You Choose God – and you will discover – that He has chosen you all along.
3. The Gospel is simple – therefore everyone can understand
The Gospel is so amazing in that we could write enough volumes about it to fill a library of Congress.
It is so complex that it has confounded the minds of philosophers and theologians for centuries
And yet so simple that a 6 year old little boy in Salt Lake City can grasp it’s meaning and life-changing power. That boy was me.
Paul warns:
16 But not everyone welcomes the Good News, for Isaiah the prophet said, “Lord, who has believed our message?” 17 So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ.18 But I ask, have the people of Israel actually heard the message? Yes, they have:
“The message has gone throughout the earth, and the words to all the world.”
19 But I ask, did the people of Israel really understand? Yes, they did, for even in the time of Moses, God said,
“I will rouse your jealousy through people who are not even a nation. I will provoke your anger through the foolish Gentiles.”
4. The Gospel is receivable – therefore we must open our minds and hearts in order to receive it.
20 And later Isaiah spoke boldly for God, saying,
“I was found by people who were not looking for me. I showed myself to those who were not asking for me.”
21 But regarding Israel, God said,
“All day long I opened my arms to them, but they were disobedient and rebellious.”
Can that be said of you this morning? God has used people, circumstances, situations, heartache, disease, trouble, addiction, divorce, emergencies, whatever it may be…to get your attention. And yet you still ignore His call???
2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is long-suffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
Titanic Life Boat Illustration
On April 14, 1912 – at 11:40 pm – The Titanic struck an iceberg on her starboard side that gashed the side of the unsinkable vessel.
In less than 3 hours – at 2:20 am April 15, 1912 – the Titanic had sunk.
2,240 people on board.
1,534 perished
only 706 were saved.
The reason – there were only 20 life boats. Enough space to hold only half of the ship’s passengers and crew.
But even of the 20 life boats, in the chaos and the panic only a few of the boats were filled to capacity. The life boats could hold 65 passengers. Yet many of them only had between 20-25 people in them when they entered the water. Mostly women and children.
The reason: many people were hesitant to get in the life boat because they still believed the sinking ship was the safer place to stay.
The crew was not adequately trained in lifesaving procedures.
But the main reason – Because the crew had been told that the lifeboats would not support the weight of 65 passengers being lowered that distance from the ship.
What they didn’t know, was that the boats had been reinforced with steel in further testing and had been proven to be strong enough.
Unfortunately, no one bothered to tell the crew. So in their ignorance, they were keeping the number being saved to about 25 people per boat.
I estimate almost 595-600 more people could have been saved had those lifeboats actually been filled.
What a tragedy.
WE are all on the titanic. This world is sinking in its own sin.
And yet, people every day all over this world are being offered a life boat – to save them from their own sinking and drowning lives. But because of fear, or ignorance, or their comfortable lives, or disbelief that Jesus really can change their lives, they simply turn away.
But God has given us a way of escape. He has offered us life through His son Jesus. Jesus is our lifeboat.
And Jesus is saying: Whosoever believes in me shall not perish, but have everlasting life!!!
The gospel is for everyone. It is the life saving life boat for your soul!!
And we have but one responsibility: Jump in now while you still can!
God has chosen you! Before the foundations of the world – He chose you!
There’s room in this boat for you!
He wants to save you!
Now all He awaits is for you to choose Him.