13 In the words of the Scriptures, “I loved Jacob, but I rejected Esau.”
14 Are we saying, then, that God was unfair? Of course not! 15 For God said to Moses, “I will show mercy to anyone I choose,
and I will show compassion to anyone I choose.”
16 So it is God who decides to show mercy. We can neither choose it nor work for it.
17 For the Scriptures say that God told Pharaoh, “I have appointed you for the very purpose of displaying my power in you and to spread my fame throughout the earth.”
18 So you see, God chooses to show mercy to some, and he chooses to harden the hearts of others so they refuse to listen.
19 Well then, you might say, “Why does God blame people for not responding? Haven’t they simply done what he makes them do?”
20 No, don’t say that. Who are you, a mere human being, to argue with God? Should the thing that was created say to the one who created it, “Why have you made me like this?” 21 When a potter makes jars out of clay, doesn’t he have a right to use the same lump of clay to make one jar for decoration and another to throw garbage into? 22 In the same way, even though God has the right to show his anger and his power, he is very patient with those on whom his anger falls, who are destined for destruction. 23 He does this to make the riches of his glory shine even brighter on those to whom he shows mercy, who were prepared in advance for glory. 24 And we are among those whom he selected, both from the Jews and from the Gentiles.
One of the most difficult concepts for us to grasp is the sovereignty of God. I have tried on numerous occasions to explain it, and always seem to come up short. The short answer is; God is God, and He can do whatever He wants, whenever He wants, with whomever He wants. God is the ultimate authority.
We see an innocent child that is sick or injured and say, “It’s not fair. Why would God allow that to happen?” The only completely honest answer that I can give is, I don’t know. But one thing that I can say with 100% certainty is that God does. For most people, that is not a good enough answer, and this is where I fall short.
One thing that I can say from my own experience is that when situations like this come up, it is almost never about the innocent person – because, the innocent person is just that – innocent. In Genesis 19, we find the story of God’s judgment on Sodom & Gomorrah
Again, in my experience, when tragedy befalls an innocent person, it is usually a sign that God is trying to get the attention of someone else. The very same person that asks the question, “Why would God allow this…?” is most likely the person that God is trying to reach.
Tragedies will come and go in our life. What we do with the tragedies is what matters. Is your first reaction to go to God in prayer? It should be. But typically prayer is the last thing we do. We say things like, “We’ve done our best, now all that is left is to pray.” Maybe God has allowed this tragedy in order to get your attention – to come to the end of your human power – to come to the beginning of God.
In John 9:1-12, Jesus came across a man who was blind from birth. His disciples asked him if it was his sin or his parent’s sin that caused the man to be born blind. Jesus said it was neither, and added that he was born blind so that his disciples and all who were there could see God’s glory when Jesus healed the mans sight. Was it fair that God allowed this man to be born blind?
God chose Jacob over Esau because God is sovereign. God is not arbitrary in His judgment. He is all-knowing, all-powerful, and ever-present. God is eternal and can see the end as clearly as the beginning.
When Esau departed from his father, he set out on his own and became the nation of Edom
Paul pointed out that God even used Pharaoh to work God’s plan and purpose so that the world would see God’s power at work through the Jewish nation. This is a perfect example of the sovereignty of God. God knew before time even began that pharaoh would reject God. He knew every decision that pharaoh would ever make, and in knowing that, He worked His plan through pharaoh.
Again, this is where the sovereignty of God becomes difficult to grasp. We all have a free will, and God will never get in the way of our decision making. Every choice that we ever make is 100% ours to make. So, with that said, just because God knows the choices that we will make before we make them, doesn’t change the fact that we still have to make that choice.
God’s judgment on Pharaoh’s sin was to harden Pharaoh’s heart. If we choose to separate ourselves from God, that is exactly what we will get. The Holy Spirit works constantly in the lives of believers as well as non-believers to draw us to Himself. If we choose to completely reject God, to confirm our disobedience, He will remove His blanket of protection and allow us to suffer the consequences of our decision.
We are all born with an internal sense of longing for a relationship with God. Some have called it a “God-shaped hole” in our heart. The only thing that can properly fill this hole is God Himself. We try to fill the hole with things of this world; love, money, fame, prestige, sex, drugs. But nothing can fill the void. When Pharaoh rejected God, God sealed up that hole in Pharaoh’s heart. God took away Pharaoh’s innate desire to know God. He hardened Pharaoh’s heart. Pharaoh was left to suffer the consequences of his rebellion.
Paul asked and answered the question that he knew was on their minds. “Why does God blame people for not listening? Haven’t they simply done what He made them do? In other words, did God create Pharaoh as a mindless being solely for the purpose of rejecting God? The answer is still no. Just because God knew ahead of time that Pharaoh would reject God, doesn’t change the fact that Pharaoh still had to make the decision of his own free will.
Some call this circular reasoning – we are using God to justify God. Call it what you will, but know that God is the final authority on all matters. This is the Sovereignty of God.
Paul asked, “Who are you, a mere human being, to criticize God? Should the thing that was created say to the One who made it, why have you made me like this?” He used the example of a potter that used the same lump of clay to make a decorative vase and a garbage can. In verse 21, we tend to focus on the decorative vase and the garbage can as the heart of the verse, as if one is more important than the other. But, in reality, “the same lump of clay” is the focus of the verse.
We are all the same in God’s eyes. We are all sinners, and we are all in need of a savior. God continues to patiently pour out His love and mercy on all of us right up to and beyond the moment when we decide to reject Him once and for all. God loved Pharaoh. You can be certain that God poured out His love on Pharaoh as a child. And still when he was a rebellious teenager. And even still when he was a young adult being groomed to be the Pharaoh of Egypt. When Pharaoh rejected God, God still loved him. Nothing can separate us from the love of God. (Romans 8:38-39).
At this very moment, God knows exactly who will accept Him and who will reject Him. But, once again, just because He knows it doesn’t change the fact that we need to make that decision.
God’s promise was fulfilled through His Son, Jesus Christ. And, through Christ, we can all be saved. Have you asked Jesus Christ to forgive your sins? Have you turned from your sins and turned towards God? Have you accepted God’s free gift of salvation that Paul spoke about in Romans 5? Call out to Jesus now and know that you are saved.
Study Questions
Do you understand God’s sovereignty?
I’m not sure that we can ever fully grasp the concept of God’s sovereignty. You can’t put an infinite amount of substance in a finite space. Rather than trying to understand God’s ways, we should concentrate on understanding God. Trust in His promises. Trust in His love for us. Know that He wants us to know Him as well as He knows us. Believe that He loved us all so much that He gave His only Son, so that whosoever believes in Him, will never perish, but have everlasting life.
Which is more important – the decorative jar or the garbage can?
It’s our nature to pin a level of importance on ourselves and others. We see successful people, people of authority, and famous people as somehow being better than others. To God, we are all the same. We are all from the same lump of clay that He uniquely shaped into us. Our very existence depends on Him. Having this perspective helps to free us from the temptation of self pride – which as you know is Satan’s sin.
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