Mercy to Some, Hardening to Others
Romans 9:22-24 · Mike Doyle · Aug 18, 2024
Romans (2022-25), No. 086
Holly Hills Bible Church
https://hollyhillsbiblechurch.org/teaching/messages/49261936183851

Transcribed from the recording by SermonAudio, so expect the occasional misheard word.

Jim's right, I chatted with him before, and these verses are really a challenge because they don't seem to on the surface, but as you start digging into them, I kept thinking all week, do I understand what he's saying here? I kept asking myself that. You'll have to be the judge. When I'm done, you can tell me if I did or didn't. Second thing is, how many of you have the handout? Make sure you have it, because I'm going to go over it. And you can follow along.

But what it really does, what that chart really does, is kind of go through in chart form, or in diagram form, really what these verses are. And that chart was done in 1984 by Hal Malloy. So he must have understood these verses really well. So we'll start with verse 21.

Or does not the potter have a right over the clay to make from the same lump one vessel of honor, honorable use, and the other for common use? It is in his infinite wisdom and knowledge God reads with unerring accuracy the operations of the human heart. On the other hand, man looks at the outward appearances, but God is always looking at your heart.

Man would say, if I'm not one of God's vessels of mercy, then I cannot do right and should not be blamed for that. If He didn't pick me, why should I even worry about it? But no one's going to dare say that to God on that day. They're not going to say to Him, I couldn't come because I was not one of the elect. For that wouldn't be true. The reason one refused to come will be found to be one's love of sin not their non-election. God says, whosoever will. The door is open to every single one of us. God does mean whosoever, anybody. And that's the word for you if you're a sinner, if you're not in Christ, if you're one of them, the door is open. It's not an election. God's business is election, and we'll see why hopefully this morning.

Man's reasoning, my reasoning, may be sound and correct from a human perspective, But up against God's sovereignty, our reasoning is out of place and irrelevant. We don't think like he does, yet. We have neither the right nor the power to call God to account about anything. He's God. If God did not elect some, none would be saved, because there's none that seek after God. And this is one of the first principles I think we need to understand.

The entire world, every human being from Adam, except for Christ, shows up on the planet, they're the enemies of God. They do not seek after God. They could care less. Men are lost not because they're hardened, but they're hardened because they're lost. Lost is first. They're lost because they're sinners.

So God's not responsible for your sin. He's under no obligation to save anybody. Now there are a lot of Christians who think he is under some sort of covenant here or covenant there, but you have to understand if salvation is by grace alone, God is under no obligation to save anybody. Anybody. So he graciously offers salvation. So our salvation is based on grace, not some covenant that God made, said, well, if you'll do this and you do that, then I will save you.

So does the potter really have the right over the clay to make from the same lump the vessel of honors, honorable use, and one for common use? God's right over man is over every creature. It's unquestionable. Every creature. A right which unbelief disputes only because it has never seriously thought about it. Or it yields to a spirit of self-presumption and rebellion. That's the good old sin nature. There's no rights If the creator doesn't have any, nobody has him.

So God must have absolute right over us as creatures. He's the one that made us. He can form as he pleases, and he can assign to us a position high or low in the scale of creation as it seems fitting to his eyes. He can do all that. He has the freedom to do all that, and he has the right to do it, and he has the power to do it.

It was interesting, I was studying this week, I ran across kind of a cool question from Ron Merriman from years ago. He said, he asked the question, what's the difference between a piece of pottery and a human being? You know what the difference is? The difference is a human being has volition. A piece of pottery doesn't. Makes us kind of unique. So, Shall the clay be honored as a potter?

In other words, are they of the same status that the thing made would say to him that made it, I don't understand why you made me this way. In Isaiah 45, nine, it's really interesting. Isaiah, woe unto the one who quarrels with his maker. An earthenware vessel among the vessels of earth.

Will the clay say to the potter, what are you doing? Or one thing, or the thing you are making say, he has no hands. What a statement. Or in Isaiah 29, 16, you turn things around, shall the potter be considered as equal with the clay? That what is made would say to its maker, he did not make me. or what is formed say to him who formed it, he has no understanding.

Have you ever looked at God and said, you don't understand me? That's the clay talking to the potter. So what you find is, is that scripture, and those who have the privilege to meet God in the Old Testament, you find out that every single one of them falls down. They feel like they're dust and ashes like Abraham did. Or Job said, my eyes see thee and I abhor myself and repent in dust and ashes. So if you see God, it causes a reaction in you. When Paul met the Lord on the road to Damascus, The first word out of his mouth was, who are you, Lord? Lord, that meant you are God, you're above me, I'm listening. So since God has the right to advance his plans for Israel, which is kind of what these verses are about, by whatever means are necessary, as long as he doesn't disregard his character, or change his promises because he's righteous.

Why couldn't he use a pagan nation and a pagan king like Egypt and Pharaoh to bring himself glory through Israel solely on the basis of his grace and mercy? Why couldn't he do that? Well, he can do that. And if this is okay then, Why couldn't God use unbelieving Israel today to bring himself glory through the church, which is also solely on the basis of grace and mercy? We're vessels of mercy. Why couldn't he do that? He can do it. He did it.

So concerning the rights of the divine powder over the human clay, When you look at Jeremiah 18.3, and I think I went through these verses last week, Jeremiah said, then I went down to the potter's house and there he was making something on the wheel. But the vessel that he was making of clay was spoiled in his hand of the potter so that he remade it in another vessel as it pleased the potter to make. Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, can I not, O house of Israel, deal with you as this potter does? Declared the Lord, behold, like the clay in the potter's hand, you are in my hand, O house of Israel.

So it's interesting that God is, put it this way, he is in charge. You are who you are, in the circumstances you're in, you're saved, you served in the capacity that he determined. He did it. So, now, introduce the verses for today. What if, question, what if, although willing to demonstrate his wrath, he's willing to do that, and to make his power known, he endured with much patience the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction. Question, what if he did that? That what he did, he was willing to demonstrate his wrath, and he's willing to make his power known, and he's gonna do that, but he endures with patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction.

The absolute authority of God over the creature has been so demonstrated that no one can reasonably dispute it. But this is far from being the whole case. The mind of God, in the mind of God, is to display his wrath in this evil world. What does Romans 1 tell us? That the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness. who are the ungodly, every human being, everyone. Display his wrath in an evil world to make known his power where men easily and willingly forget him.

Forget him. All you got to do is watch the news or read something on the web. We've forgotten about God. Romans 3, 10 through 12, if you read the whole thing, says, there is none righteous, not even one. There's none that seek after God, not a single one. All have turned, all have turned aside together. They have become useless. There is none who does good. There is not even one.

So you have to wonder, why is this statement? 1 Corinthians 15, 23, for as in Adam all die, every human being shows up dead to God, separated from Him. Now this is the God of the universe. Is He gonna just let this pass? So God was willing to demonstrate His wrath, to point out and to show forth, means He's gonna show it out. We're gonna see it, we're all gonna see it. And he's gonna show his power coming up. So you have to ask yourself, can God do this by long suffering and enduring with somebody like Pharaoh and the Egyptians? If God's purpose is to demonstrate his glory or to show it forth, then he can, show mercy to some, and he can harden others. Example, Israel deserved wrath. What did they get? Mercy. How about my friend Rahab? She deserved wrath. What did she get? She got mercy. How about Pharaoh? Pharaoh deserved wrath, and that's what he got.

So it's interesting to watch how God does things. because he never does anything haphazardly. In the same verse towards the end, it says, endured with much patience the vessels of wrath, prepared for destruction. Now the word prepared is the key word here, because the question has to be asked, who did the preparing? God can make, and he does, and man can will, and he does. Is it right for God to put up with the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? Well, he's doing it, prepared. It means to put a thing in its appropriate condition, to establish it. This word meant in Greek to reset a broken bone. prepared as either in the middle voice or passive voice.

Some scholars I read were all over the middle voice. Other scholars were all over the passive voice. But what's great about this, we know what voice is. It's a verb, and it means who's doing the action. If it's active voice, I'm doing it. I hit the ball. If it's middle voice, I was involved in hitting the ball. I swung the bat and hit it with the bat. If it's passive voice, the ball hit me. Okay, so which is it?

The middle voice would indicate that the Egyptians did the action that set themselves up for destruction. They did it to themselves. Or in the passive voice would indicate that their own nature as sinners, their culture and their religion acted against them and caused their rejection of the one true God. So when you read this verse, which patient vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, you have to ask the question, who did the preparing?

Because people will read that verse and say, well, God prepared them for destruction. No, he didn't. They did. They did because you have volition. Now, did God prepare them for destruction? God is not the one acting here. God was not preparing them for wrath or destruction. Either way, they caused or allowed their own destruction via their response of rejection of the one true God. But the way God unfolded it was admirable because it fit his nature. God is not unpredictable, he's totally predictable, but he is long-suffering. There's so much evidence of that every day, long-suffering, he is definitely that. So he endured a long time, the corruption and the violence of guilty men. How long did he endure the nation of Egypt? How long has he endured nations for 7,000 years? How long will he endure our nation? How long will he endure the earth?

If he didn't endure, if he was pretty quick, God, Could man then honestly charge God either with a lack of compassion for himself, or he's rushing to show his iniquities? In other words, God is in a hurry to demonstrate his wrath against those who Don't acknowledge him. He's very slow. He takes time. And it's a good thing that he is, because without that, it's impossible that a holy God could have fellowship with evil or to be indifferent to it. He can't be, because he's righteous.

But instead of promptly blotting out of this life the rebellious creature, who makes the world a field of nonstop warfare against what they know of God and who live negligent of his will through, though he has revealed it fully. Instead of that, because that's really what the world's all about, and the history of the world since the nations began is the proof, the fullest proof of the endurance on God's part. He never made them as they are, but the sin of man now fallen, he endured in spite of countless and constant provocation. They sinned, they transgressed, they despised his mercy, they took on his wrath, but he endured with much long suffering.

I don't think we think about God very often as one who is a long sufferer. We are just as silent as before, though in boundless, endless gratitude apart from mercy, we too would be the vessels of wrath if it wasn't for his mercy. I want you to note carefully that while it's God's wrath and power that are to be made known in the vessels of wrath, and though the glory of God would be accordingly to his justice exhibited, yet he does not use the word glory in connection with the damnation of the wicked.

There's no glory in that for him. God will not joy over the lost. All you have to do is witness John 13, 21, where he has sorrow over Jerusalem. Or even in Zekiel 28, 11, where he laments over the fall of Lucifer, figured as a king of Tyre in an incredible passage. He wills that none should perish. He doesn't have joy over that kind of thing.

His idea is that I'll endure as long as possible, as long as possible, that they may come and turn to me. It is just there that the human spirit is the most ready to dispute with God. I don't know if you are ready to admit it. It's hard to admit that I dispute with God all the time. I say to Him, what do you think you're doing? Why are you doing it this way? Why do I have these circumstances? Why is that person so and so? Why this, why that? What am I really doing? I'm disputing with them.

The Jews were preparing themselves for destruction by rejecting the Messiah. Oh, that's what they were really doing. Today, the Gentiles do the same thing by rejecting the Lord Jesus Christ and his salvation. But the day's coming when his power will be publicly exhibited, an overwhelming and eternal visit on the vessels of wrath. Most of us are hoping that happens today. It's not gonna happen today, hopefully.

So when you look at this, you find that certain were filled with destruction, but it's not said, oh good, that didn't show up up there. Certain were filled with destruction, but it's not said that God is the one that filled them. In chapter two, we find that there are those who despise the goodness and forbearance and longsuffering of God, not knowing that the goodness of God was meant to lead them to repentance. of these humans who said they treasure up for themselves in the day of wrath. Then God had, and in their earth life, dealt with these with much longsuffering, these vessels of wrath. They never learned, however, as Peter said, take into account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation.

Second Peter 2.15 says, forsaking the right way, that they've gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the sons of Baor, who love the wages of unrighteousness. So what you find out when you go through these verses is that these people aren't just passive, and they're not just passive-aggressive, they're aggressive. Third point is that accordingly they became vessels of wrath, those in and through whom God could publicly and justly display his righteous anger against sin and godliness for a warning of all ages and creatures to come. It's interesting that God intends to demonstrate publicly his righteous anger against sin and the victims of that are going to be the vessels of wrath. They're the ones. It's not just going to be a video. He's really going to do it.

Consequently, these came to destruction. unto their sin was duly fitted them. Now, destruction is not that they just get wiped out and don't exist anymore, but they're going to feel the destruction deserved fitting for them because they turned away from God. 2 Thessalonians 1. and to give, 2 Thessalonians 1, it says, and to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well when the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels of flaming fire. These will pay the penalty eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power. An eternal expression and inspection of divine anger and flaming fire.

I was at a conference one time, and there was a speaker there. His name was Mike Stollard, and he was really a good speaker. And at the end of his talk, he talked about this, and he literally, to the audience, he begged them to come to Christ because of this. He begged them, and he said that, I beg you today, if you have not come to Christ, do so, because this is what your fate's gonna be. This is where you're going. So in the words, when he says, what if God, at the beginning of this verse, what if God, great question, should proceed accordingly, what if he proceeds? All creatures, questions are quieted. He says, I'm gonna be long suffering and patient, but not forever. If not today, someday. Now what's the difference here?

And he did so, why did he do that? He did so to make known the riches of his glory upon the vessels of mercy. which he prepared beforehand for glory. So God is longsuffering so that he can do what? He can make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy. Through his longsuffering and endurance with the vessels of wrath, Pharaoh in Egypt in this example, God made known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy. Who were they? It was Israel. He told Pharaoh, I raised you up. specifically to demonstrate my power and make my name known. That's what you're here for.

So how did he do it? God didn't immediately wipe out the Egyptians, but rather destroyed them kind of slowly. And then he showed his power over a period of time involving the plagues and the Red Sea Crossing. And we also know that on the way out of Egypt, the Israelites plundered the Egyptians.

They didn't hold them up. The Egyptians were standing by the side of the road with their gold and their goods and said, here, take this stuff. Get out of here. And we'll pay you to leave. Excuse me. So of their own free will, what God did is he had the Egyptians give them their gold. and their clothes, and their silver, and anything they had of value, because when they got out in the desert, where did they get the gold to build the calf? Came from the Egyptians.

So when God blesses somebody or he's gonna show his kindness on the vessels of mercy, what he'll do, and he did this for the Jewish nation, it's remarkable. He took care of them all the way to Kadesh Barnea, all the way, now. How do the vessels of mercy get what they got? You're a vessel of mercy, how do you get what you got?

Which he had prepared beforehand for glory. Prepared beforehand means to make ready or to appoint before, it literally means to predestinate or determine beforehand. When did God do this? He did it in the covenant with Abraham when he promised to make them a great nation with land and blessing beforehand. And he prepared them for this.

Take the example in Israel of the seventh day of the week. They were supposed to not do any work, farming or anything on the seventh day. And on the seventh year was a jubilee year. They weren't to plant any crops or harvest to do anything. And God made sure that they had enough food and what they needed, even though that seventh year. They took off, so to speak. But you know what? They didn't take it off. And what did God do? He took them into captivity. They didn't take it off, so they went to captivity for how long? 70 years, to make up for the seven.

In contrast, he prepared in verse 22. This word translated prepared before him is not middle voice, not passive voice, but active voice. God did the preparing. God did the preparing for you and me, indicating that God himself prepared these vessels of mercy for glory. He did that. But when God speaks in verse 23, the vessels of mercy, it is at once said that he beforehand prepared them for glory. He beforehand prepared every one of us for glory.

That is for entering his own glory, Romans 5.2. and that they will be the means of making known throughout eternity to come the riches of his glory with no hiccups.

He speaks in Ephesians 2, 4, but God, God being rich in mercy because of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead. In our transgressions, he made us alive together in Christ. by grace you have been saved and raised us up with him and seated us in him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Why? So that in the ages to come he might show the surpassing riches of his grace and kindness towards us in Christ Jesus. Rich in mercy. That's what he did. And he prepared us beforehand for that.

If this is true, that where our treasure is, our heart is also. Imagine what God's heart is like, infinitely more true if you're the treasure. Judgment is the execution of wrath, and he calls it his strange work. Strange act, Isaiah 28, 21. Mercy is the work that's dear to his heart. He loves doing that.

Verse 24, even us, even us, whom he also called, not from among the Jews only, but also from among the Gentiles. Now you have to remember the context of what chapter nine's all about. It's all about why God made a lot of promises to the Jews. Does he intend to fulfill them or is he unrighteous and he's gonna change his mind? The point is here is that even us, we're called among not only those Jews that he called out, but among the Gentiles. So you have to ask yourself, is it okay for God to work out a plan that brings him glory even if it involves somebody other than Israel? In other words, can he use Israel as the bad guys? who he called initially refers to the Jews, especially in light of the example Paul was using regarding Egypt.

Look how he protected Egypt. But here's the bigger question. If it was okay for God to use Egypt and Pharaoh as vessels of wrath to bring him glory through Israel, vessels of mercy, Is it not okay for God to use unbelieving Israel to also bring glory through additional vessels of mercy, believing Jews and Gentiles in the church?

Sure it is. Sure it is. So, let's look at the handout. I told you what Hal did with this, which I thought was really good. And I'm gonna, I thought about every week I teach, I have to do a handout, and I think to myself, well, what am I gonna do this time? And I go through my notes, but I thought this was really good.

If you look at the top right here, back to verse 14, the question was asked, is God unfair by making choices? So if you say yes, It can never be because of his essence. And then Hal says, go to no. So you go over to no. God is sovereign. He makes choices. He chose, God chooses rebellious ones and chooses mercy versus justice. He also chooses rebellious ones and demonstrates his power. So, 9.16 says, mercy is not of man's will. Mercy is not as man's work. Mercy to some, hardening to others.

And then you go over here and it says, human viewpoint. How can God blame man? Oops. How can God blame man? Man can't resist his will. That's what men will say to God. You can't blame me. I can't resist your will. Well, you have volition. So he shows mercy over here to the vessels of mercy here. He hardens these Pharaoh and the Egyptians, and they produce the hardening themselves. They're vessels of wrath. God's essence is manifested through this whole thing.

Riches of his glory. long-suffering, mercy, wrath, justice, power, omnipotence. And ultimately, divine viewpoint is, man, who do you think you are to question God's sovereignty, sovereign bestowal of mercy? So, overriding the principle, overriding principle and concept, God has concluded all in unbelief that he might show mercy to some.

When you look at the equation from the standpoint, here's God, and here's his creation, and the whole creation is against him, what do they deserve? What do they deserve? Do they deserve favor? No, they deserve destruction. But because they all deserve destruction, God in His sovereignty can say, I'm gonna save you, and I'm gonna save you, and I'm gonna save you, and I'm gonna save you. He decides.

And it's a hard question for us to understand because we don't think it's fair. Well, the problem with fairness is that if God is fair, we all go to hell. It's real simple. You know, so the fact that he just picks us of his grace, but then at the same time, he sends out the message that says, whosoever will may come. Doors open, just come. I pick you, I pick you, I'll pick you all if you're willing.

So, let's pray. Father, how we thank you. We thank you that you are the kind of God that you say you are. That you're a God of mercy, and you're a God of grace. And your desire is to bless your whole creation, every single one of us. And yet, sin has intervened, and it puts you in a position where you still are righteous, but you're gracious at the same time. So we pray for the lost, that they all would come to the saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, every single one of them, so that you may be joyful and there'll be joy in heaven. We pray in your son's precious name, amen.