The God of the Bible

After years in full time ministry I have come to a conclusion about many in our American churches. This will sound like a criticism but please don't read that into the tone of this article. I fear that if you took the average church laymen and gave them an hour on the sovereignty of God as taught in the Bible and throughout the majority of church history they would say that is not my God. And sadly I would have to say yes, that's right it isn't your God but it is the God of the Bible. Americans are raised in a culture that says to people at every turn "if it's to be it's up to me." In turn this means that God is only as sovereign in the life of most Christians as their own free will allows Him to be. My argument to this way of thinking is simply to ask people to read the Bible. Abraham did not choose God rather God choose Abraham. The apostle Paul wasn't going to Damascus for a worship service but rather he was going to persecute Christians. And on the way God choose him in an extraordinary way and the text even says (Acts 9:15) “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel."

In my devotion time this morning I was reading, praying and meditating on 1 Kings 17-19. Here is a summary of my thinking through this Old Testament historical narrative and how it relates to the sovereignty of God. I wrote this in the form of a note to our men's Bible study.
I was having devotion this morning in 1 Kings 19. This is the story about Elijah after he confronted King Ahab and those who were worshiped the images of Baal. Do you remember that Elijah fled for his life? He goes into the desert and cries out to the Lord saying "I have had enough, take my life for I am no better than my ancestors." Then Elijah says to the Lord "I have zealously served the Lord God Almighty. Both the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I alone am left and not they are trying to kill me." Then the Lord gives him these instructions in 1 Kings 19:15 "Go back to Damascus..." and in verse 18 the Lord declares "yet I will preserve seven thousand others in Israel who have never bowed to Baal or kissed him."

Do you know why this story and illustration is so important to us in the orthodox, evangelical church?
Because it is the very illustration the apostle Paul uses in Romans 11 to prove that God is sovereign in election. Just think how blessed we are to have the New Testament in order to see what the author meant, in the illustration in 1 Kings 19, by what he wrote. Elisha thought he was the only prophet of God left but God assured him that He had kept another 7000 for Himself. Allow me to relate this back to the context of Romans 9-11. The apostle Paul is describing the doctrine concerning the sovereignty of God. The Jews have misunderstood because as God's chosen race and descendants of Abraham most of the Jews are not saved. (Sidenote-can you imagine being the apostle Paul and telling your fellow Jews that by in large they were lost and cut off from God?) If you don't understand this argument, then I fear that you will never understand the context of Romans 9-11. If you look at Romans 9:6 the Jews would say to the apostle Paul, if we have the covenant, and are the chosen people, we built the temple and even Jesus Himself came as a Jew, if you are saying that we aren't saved then it can only mean one thing and that is God's word has failed. But Paul insists (Rom.9:6) that God's word has not failed because being an ethnic Jew, or a descendant of Abraham is not the basis of a person's election. Paul teaches that God elects unconditionally, which means no merit, no earning it nor deserving it but on God' free and sovereign choice to pick those whom He desires. All that background then leads me to the verse I want to share with you in Romans 11:7. I have listed this verse in several translations. Just read it literally and don't add nor bring any preconceived ideas or beliefs to this text.
Here we go:

Romans 11:7 (NIV) - What then? What Israel sought so earnestly it did not obtain, but the elect did. The others were hardened,
Romans 11:7 (NASB) - What then? What Israel is seeking, it has not obtained, but those who were chosen obtained it, and the rest were hardened;
Romans 11:7 (NLT) - So this is the situation: Most of the people of Israel have not found the favor of God they are looking for so earnestly. A few have—the ones God has chosen—but the hearts of the rest were hardened.
Romans 11:7 (NCT) - So this is what has happened: Although the Israelites tried to be right with God, they did not succeed, but the ones God chose did become right with him. The others were made stubborn and refused to listen to God.

It is very plain from what Paul wrote that the only way to be right with God is to be chosen by God Himself and therefore no man can take credit for his own election. The verse also says that the others were made stubborn or in the NASB they were hardened.

Guys, when you see this doctrine in its brilliant glory in both Old and New Testament it will change your view of God and the Scriptures. It will place us where we belong, insufficient, depraved, and undeserving of anything other than hell. And it will place God where He belongs as the sovereign Creator of all things who by an act of grace and mercy chose some to be elect prior to the foundations of the world. (Ephesians 1:4)

Again and again in the Old Testament we see how God chooses those whom He will bring in a saving relationship to Himself. Even with the prophet Elisha God reinforces His own doctrine of election by saying "I have kept 7000 for myself." And that very doctrine is what Paul uses to illustrate this doctrine in Romans 11. I pray the Lord will open your eyes to see and not only to see this wonderful spiritual truth but to savor it to the degree that it brings you to worship, exalt and magnify Christ in your body in life and also in death!

Blessings,