Please turn with me in your copies of God's Word to the book of Romans 9. Romans chapter 9. And we'll also be reading and referencing the Vows of Confession of Faith, Article 16, which can be found in your Trinity Psalter hymnal on page 860. Let us ask the Lord to bless the reading and preaching of his word this evening. Holy Spirit, we come to you today asking that where it would be needed, you would break our hearts in submission to your Lordship, that you would mend our hearts in faith and comfort our hearts in the promises of God. That, Lord, you would give us clarity, that you would illuminate the scriptures to our minds, helping us to grow in the knowledge of our salvation. And, Lord, that this knowledge would not just be something we know, but that it would give us joy in our hearts and peace of Jesus Christ. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, amen. Hear now the word of the Lord from Romans chapter 9. I am speaking the truth in Christ. I am not lying. My conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen, according to the flesh. They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen. But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel. And not all are children of Abraham, because they are his offspring. But through Isaac shall your offspring be named. This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring. For this is what the promise said, and about this time next year I will return, and Sarah shall have a son. And not only so, but also when Rebecca had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, though they were not yet born and had done nothing, neither good or bad, in order that God's purpose of election might continue, not because of works, but because of him who calls, she was told, the older will serve the younger. As it was written, Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated. What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God's part? By no means. For he says to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion. So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God who has mercy. For the scripture says to Pharaoh, for this very purpose I have raised you up so that I might show my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth. So then he has mercy on whomever he wills and he hardens whomever he wills. You will say to me then, why does he still find fault? For who can resist his will? But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, why have you made me like this? Has the potter no right over the clay to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use? What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory, even us whom he has called not from the Jews only, but also from the Gentiles? As indeed, he says in Hosea, those who are not my people, I will call my people. And her who was not beloved, I will call beloved. And in the very place where it was said to them, you are not my people, there they will be called sons of the living God. And Isaiah cries out concerning Israel, though the number of the sons of Israel be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will be saved. For the Lord will carry out his sentence upon the earth fully and without delay. And as Isaiah predicted, if the Lord of hosts had not left us offspring, we would have been like Sodom and become like Gomorrah. What shall we say, then, that Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have attained it, that is, a righteousness that is by faith, but that Israel who pursued a law that would lead to righteousness did not succeed in reaching that law? Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as if it were based on works. They have stumbled over the stumbling stone, as it is written, behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. And whoever believes in him will not be put to shame. This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. As we consider the doctrine of election, which is in our main text this evening, Romans 9, as well as other texts that we'll be reflecting upon. It is helpful that we first read this summary from the Belgic Confession of Faith, which itself is not scripture, but is a faithful summary of all that scripture says to this doctrine of election. I'm reading from page 860 in the Trinity Psalter Hymnal for those who want to follow along. It says this about the doctrine of election. We believe that all Adam's descendants, having thus fallen into perdition and ruined by the sin of the first man, God showed himself to be as he is, merciful and just. He is merciful in withdrawing and saving from this perdition those whom He, in His eternal and unchangeable counsel, has elected and chosen in Jesus Christ our Lord by His pure goodness, without any consideration of their works. He is just in leaving the others in the ruin and fall into which they plunged themselves. Election people of God is a difficult doctrine to understand, yet it is so important that we try to, that we strive after these difficult doctrines and try to grow in our knowledge of them. As we study this doctrine in Romans 9 and in other texts this evening, we'll see five brief points on why the doctrine of God's election is just and true. and follow that with a reflection upon what this doctrine of election means for our witness to this world, for our evangelism. These first five points as to how the doctrine of God's election is just and true are these. First, we are saved by mercy alone. Second, God's mercy is his to dispense of as he wills. Third, God doesn't keep people from going to heaven or force people into hell. Fourth, that God's justice is satisfied for those who he elects to give mercy. And finally, that election means that Jesus was successful. First, we see that the doctrine of God's election is just and true in the fact that we are saved by mercy alone. We see in our text that we are not saved by a bloodline. Verses 7-6 show that not all in Israel are Israel. Not all of Abraham's physical descendants are truly children of Abraham, children of the promise. We look not long into the lineage of Abraham's descendants and we see examples of this in Isaac and Ishmael. One was a child of the promise of God, but both were children of Abraham. We see it again in Esau and Jacob, these children of Isaac. Both were children of Abraham, and yet God chose one. We also see that we are not saved by our works or by foreknowledge of our works or anything good inherently about us. See again in verses 11 through 13 how God has chosen Jacob. It says this, though they were not yet born, and had done nothing either good or bad, in order that God's purpose of election might continue, not because of works, but because of him who calls. She was told the older will serve the younger. As it is written, Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated. The Lord God chose Jacob before he was born, before Jacob knew him, before Jacob had a chance to do anything good or evil. God chose Jacob not because he knew Jacob would become such a great guy. We see that Jacob was a very deceitful and flawed man. as was his brother Esau. And yet God chose to show mercy to Jacob. We also see, people of God, that it is not by human desire or effort Verse 21 in our text makes it very clear that Israel pursued a law of righteousness, but they did not attain what they desired to pursue. They had a human desire, a human effort to find salvation in the law of God. They certainly desired it wholeheartedly to be reconciled to God and to earn this salvation through hard work. But despite their efforts to pursue a law of righteousness, they did not attain this goal because they tried to attain it by works and not by faith. We are not saved by what we know either. For we see that Israel had many benefits in verses 4 through 5. They knew so much. They had such an advantage, so to speak. It was to their people that God had been revealing His Word throughout history, His commands, His promises. They had come from the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They had the temple worship, the sacrificial system, which was a shadow of Jesus Christ to come. All of this was to their advantage. And yet, in verse 31, We see that many of them failed to attain the righteousness they pursued. Their knowledge, people of God, was not enough. We see in verse 16, the simple truth that we are saved by mercy of God alone. It says, so then it depends, not on human will or exertion, but on God who has mercy. The people of God, God does not give this saving mercy to all people. He has mercy on whom he wills. But does this mean that God is unjust in his election? Our second point this evening is God's doctrine of election is just and true. And that God's mercy is his to dispense with as he wills. Boys and girls, imagine that you have a big bag of M&Ms. No one deserves your M&Ms. They belong to you. Doesn't matter how big the bag is, no one has a claim on them. They belong to you. They're yours to use as you will. If you choose to share those M&Ms with some of your friends, that does not mean that every child in this world deserves some of your M&Ms. They are yours to dispense with as you wish. While it might be kind to share with others, they are completely yours to do with as you please. And we see the same thing is true of the mercy of God. No one has a claim on the mercy of God. No one can say, I deserve the mercy of God. Or because he has mercy on some, he must have mercy on all. But the mercy of God is completely his. It is his to use as he wills. Look at Jacob and Esau again, both sinners who were sinful since their mother conceived them, yet God chose to have mercy on Jacob. Esau did not deserve the mercy of God, but neither did Jacob. And Esau did not deserve God's mercy anymore once God showed it to Jacob. But what does this mean in our text that God hardens whom He chooses to harden? Could this mean that God keeps people from coming to saving faith who otherwise would have? Well, our third point is that God doesn't keep people from going to heaven or force people into hell. Condemnation for sin is just. All of mankind has completely fallen into sin. There is no part of our humanity that is untouched by that fall. But in total, all of our parts, every aspect of our lives, of who we are, has been touched by this fall into sin. Everyone deserves the just wrath of God for sin. No one is worthy of heaven or unworthy of hell. Without God's intervention, we cannot turn to Him. We cannot choose Him of our own will. We are so fallen in our sinful nature that we want nothing else but to sin and rebel against a holy God. We are held accountable for this, for we are created with free will. And yet our sinful nature has such a hold on us, it's such a part of us, that why would we ever choose something against our nature? Why would we want something that we don't really want? What we need is a heart change, that we can't work in ourselves, that only the power of God can bring into our lives. There is no spark of good within us that we can just sort of puff on and add some embers to and turn into a blazing fire of holiness in our lives. We are so dead in our sin, so snuffed out with no dry or burning wick there. That we're much like those logs you find on the sandbar in Lake Michigan. Those waterlogged logs that are just completely filled with water that would not burn. There is no way that we can bring ourselves to turn to God. We're naturally hard in our hearts and unable and unwilling to soften them for ourselves. And so when God must soften our hard hearts by His Holy Spirit to bring us to saving faith, this means that God, when He chooses to harden a heart that is already hard and cannot soften itself, He does not worsen their situation or take away some chance that they had already of turning to Him in faith. So how can it be just if God leaves some to face the just penalty for their sin that we all deserve, while others He spares from it in His mercy? The fourth point this evening, people of God, is that God's election is just, it is true, because God's justice is satisfied for those who He elects to give His mercy. When you or I are at a restaurant and we receive a free meal, there is no such thing as a free meal. Someone else paid for that meal. We do not have those cool devices from Star Trek, for any who remember Star Trek, where you could press a button and it just materializes a cup of Earl Grey. We don't have free food. Someone pays for that food, whether it is your best friend who took you out to eat, or whether it is the restaurant which is trying to kind of build a customer base, or somehow that farmer would have to pay for that food. Everything has a cost. Likewise, all the people who are under the judgment of God for sin have a debt of guilt that they owe. God would not be just And He is just. It is essential to the character of God that He is just. But He would not be who He is. He would not be just if He could only wave away the debt or make it vanish. That debt, that bill has to be paid for there to be mercy. There would be no need for Jesus Christ if God could just wave a hand and brush aside that bill of debt. If God could have done such a thing and would have done such a thing and would have been consistent with His nature, why would He have not done it right away after the fall of Adam and Eve? No, He is just and He is merciful. And they will not conflict. They are held together, not in tension, but completely in unity and harmony in who He is. He would not sacrifice His justice for His mercy. But the just requirement of obedience and the penalty of our sins, of the sins of the elect, did not disappear, but needed to be paid for, for there to be mercy. And Jesus Christ, God's only begotten Son, satisfied the law's requirement of obedience to God in His life. In His life of sinless, perfect obedience. And He paid the full penalty of disobedience and sin on the cross for the sake of those who God had chosen in His election to receive His mercy. Finally, election is just, election is true, because election means that Jesus was victorious, that Jesus was successful in what he came to do. Jesus did not come into this world to die for all people so that they would be saved, whether they believed in him or not, as some universalists may claim. The Bible is abundantly clear that it is through faith in Jesus Christ that we are saved, that we will have the mercy of God in eternal life, becoming His sons and daughters. Christ did not die to make salvation available to all people so long as they choose to believe in Him, because then Christ would have failed to save some of those who came to die for. because they did not choose to believe in Him. His precious blood would have been wasted and spilled in vain for those who did not choose Him. Was there a limit to the sufficiency, to the adequacy, to the ability of Christ's sacrifice, which means that it could only have saved, effectively, of a certain amount of people are only atoned for a certain amount of sin? No. The election of God is not a limitation of the sufficiency of Christ's sacrifice, of the potency, of the power of the blood of Christ. The power of Christ's sacrifice does not limit election. God's choosing to save some and not others, that is what limits the number of the elect. That God chose to have mercy and show grace to those who He had purchased in Jesus Christ. The blood of Christ is so powerful that it would have been surely sufficient for all the sins of all the world. But the problem of Christ dying for all sinners not only for those who were chosen by God and brought to saving faith by the Holy Spirit, is that for those who did not choose Him, for those who did not believe in Him, He would have failed to save those He died for. So why, so how, is this atonement of salvation limited to the elect? Jesus Christ came into this world. He came to earth, lived a perfect life of obedience to God, and died on the cross and rose again from the dead. But he did not do it for an unknown number of unknown strangers. He did not come to save unknown people. He did not just do it for a known number, a set number in his head of the elect who were unknown to him. But the Lord Jesus Christ came to save specific people on that cross, chosen by God, who He knew by name. And He did not fail to save any one of those who He came to save. People of God, in Luke 15, verses 4-7, Jesus tells this parable saying, And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors saying, rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep, which was lost. I say to you that likewise, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 just persons who need no repentance. Notice, people of God, what this parable reveals to us about the saving work of our Lord Jesus Christ. The shepherd does not go and blow a horn and wait to see what sheep will come and gather around him. The shepherd does not gather together a specific number of random sheep he collects in the wilderness. He does not just accept the fact that 99 turn up when he expected 100 and go about his way. No, the good shepherd knows who belongs to him and he would not leave his sheep behind. The same is true for Christ's work as Savior. He knows his sheep by name. He came to save a set number of named sinners who God had chosen for himself out of his mercy. Jesus says that He knew who He came to save, and that they are the same people that He did save. He knew who He came to save, and they are the same ones that He did save. John 6, verses 37 through 40, Jesus says this, All that the Father gives me will come to me. And the one who comes to me I will by no means cast out. For I have come down from heaven not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that all He has given Me, I should lose nothing. that of all He has given me, I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. And this is the will of Him who sent me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life, and I will raise Him up at that last day. All who God has elected to save will come to Christ in faith. It is not we who believe who give ourselves to Christ, but the Father has given his chosen people to Jesus Christ. All who the Father gives to the Lord Jesus Christ will not be lost, but will be raised up by Christ on the last day. We are not elected simply to hear the Gospel, or elected simply to believe it possibly to backslide and become an apostate, become one who turns away from his Lord. We are elected, people of God, unto regeneration. That is, being brought to faith by the power of the Holy Spirit in us. We are elected to justification. That being, being made right in Jesus Christ before God Almighty. We are elected unto sanctification. That is, the continuing work of the Holy Spirit in the life of a Christian. Making Him grow in holiness and righteousness through His whole life. And we are elected, people of God, to one day be glorified at the resurrection. Meaning that we will be given perfect bodies and souls. That we will be perfectly made free from sin and from our sinful nature once and for all. All of these things, people of God, are one together. You cannot be elected to just some of it. But it is true that if you are elected to any of this, you are elected to all of it. For God does not leave unfinished the work He does in our hearts if we are chosen by Him. All who are elected will be brought to faith, saved, made to grow in holiness and righteousness, will be preserved in faith and salvation to the very end when they will be made glorious in Christ. Christ did not come with just an open-ended mission. that may have had unknown results or potentially failed altogether. Christ came with a defined mission to save the elect and to accomplish His mission completely. And He did that. He accomplished that mission completely at the cross. Having seen that this doctrine of election is in fact just, is in fact true, we now must consider what it means for our witness in this world, for our evangelism as Christians, as the Church of Jesus Christ. And this doctrine does have many implications for how we are to be a light in this world. The results of our witness in this world are not determined by our persuasiveness. The results of our witness is not determined by our persuasiveness, people of God. God chooses to use you and me as the body of Christ, as members of his church in this world, as a light, as a witness. He calls us in the Great Commission to make disciples of all the nations. Our witness in this world, in word, in deed, is the means by which God has ordained for spreading the gospel which saves sinners like you and me. He will work through his chosen means to effectively call his elect to repentance and faith by his word proclaimed by his church and by the regenerating work of his Holy Spirit. This means, people of God, that you and I do not need to water down the gospel of Jesus Christ. We do not need to soften the blow that it has on the sinner's heart. We should not settle for teaching people around us to say hollow words of a sinner's prayer that they do not know and do not mean. We do not need gimmicks or tricks or lures like those fake $100 bills, which are deceitful and quite the letdown to the person who picks it up off the street. We do not need these things. We simply, openly share the whole life-changing truth of God's Word with gentle patience and faith that God is going to call the hearts of His lost sheep to Himself. So it is not by our persuasiveness that we will be effective in our witness to this world, but it is also not based on the convertibility of our audience. Everyone you witness to is already chosen or not chosen to be saved by God, but this is only known by God and not by us, nor is it something that we should be guessing at. This is incredibly a relief, to me at least, and I hope it is to you, that the people we come up to, who have not at all heard the name of Jesus Christ, are not sitting on a teeter-totter of will they believe, will they not believe, determined by our attempt, where we would be too afraid to even make an attempt, that they might be cast headlong into hell. But they are elect or not elect already. It is only known by God. And this means, people of God, that we witness to all people with the hope that they may be elected by God unto salvation. Since the results of our gospel witness depend on God and not on who our audience is, we should witness to all people, no matter how unlikely their conversion may seem to us, Because conversion, people of God, does not depend on the will of the witness or the hearer, but on God's will. And no one is outside of God's saving reach. Do you believe that this evening? Do you believe that no one is outside the saving reach of our Lord Jesus Christ? That there is no one bad enough. No one evil enough. No one broken enough. that they cannot be touched, that they cannot be reached by the power of His Holy Spirit and brought to new life in Jesus Christ. We are at times tempted to forget this truth and to focus our efforts on those who we feel will be most receptive or most likely to accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ, to be converted by this good truth. But if anyone was seemingly an easy convert, it would have been the Jews in the times of the New Testament. In the times in which Paul lived and wrote the letter to the Roman church. They knew who God was. They had many benefits. They were aware of their need for righteousness and were actively seeking after it. Who better to hear the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ? Who more likely to convert and believe? And yet many of them, many of them were still lost and stumbled over the gospel because they were not elect to salvation. God had not opened the eyes of their hearts. He had not brought them to faith by His Spirit. And similarly, the Gentiles of the first century of the Roman world were some of the most unlikely converts that they could have been. They did not know the one true living God. or what he had revealed in his word throughout the ages. They did not have the sacrificial system of the temple, which pointed to Christ's sacrifice on the cross. And they were not searching for the righteousness that the Jews desired. And they were pagans worshiping false gods, committing heinous sins. Yet even among the Gentiles of the first century, God elected many to be saved. It's not our persuasiveness. It's not the convertibility of those we speak to that determines the effectiveness of our witness to this world. Because election is just and true. And it is also not in my time, not in your time, but in the timing of God that His Word will be brought to bear on the hearts of His elect. Election means that God saves who He wills as He wills and in His own time. If you are elect, it does not mean that the first time you hear the name of Jesus, you fall onto your knees and you become a Christian. God says that he saves his elect in his way, in his time. and those we witness to who do not seem to be affected at all by the words of the truth of Jesus Christ. That does not mean that they are unelect, that they will not ever come to faith, that we should give up praying for them, give up witnessing to them, being in a relationship with them. But because God saves in His own time, We can have patience. We do not need to feel a pressure that we must achieve conversion in the time of one hour or in the first meeting we have with a person, even if it may be the last time we ever meet. Because the doctrine of election is true and just, we as Christians can humbly witness to anyone and trust that God will bring the results that He desires. It also shows that you and I are not the ones who save people. You and I are not the ones who must go out there and change hearts. But God does use us, people of God. You may speak to someone who seems to have no effect, nothing comes from your speaking to them about the Lord Jesus Christ. And they may be approached by many more throughout their lifetime. And then, With one last witness, it is overflowed. And they are brought to faith. God can use many witnesses, not just one, to bring His elect to faith. So be encouraged when you bear witness. And it seems that it is fruitless. It seems that no one fell down on their knees and wept and gave their life to Christ. Praise God when they do. But know that you bring glory to God when you speak of Jesus Christ and all that He has done. When you proclaim your faith to those around you, you give praise to your Savior. And He can use that. He can use the most feeble attempt that you make. Charles Spurgeon was called the Prince of Preachers. He was one of the most eloquent, most I heard men in England, perhaps in the history of Protestantism, millions or hundreds of thousands, lots of people, regardless of the exact number, came to hear Him preach, came to hear Him speak. And many, many were touched by His words. And many were brought to faith. Yet, you know how Charles Spurgeon himself was brought to faith? He wandered one day into a church building where a few people were gathered. not even filling the room, and where one poor deacon found himself at the pulpit, reading the word of God and trying his best to say something meaningful about it. And in his feeble attempt, that deacon was used by God to bring Charles Spurgeon to faith. Brothers and sisters, we do not need to be something special, like Jonathan Edwards, like Billy Graham, like Charles Spurgeon, to be used by God in a powerful way, to bring the good news of salvation to those who he has chosen to hear and believe. Because the Good Shepherd knows His sheep, and He calls them by name. He does not leave His lambs behind, but He searches out the lost ones who are His. He finds them, and He gathers them to Himself. For His sheep know His voice. Amen. Heavenly Father, we thank you for this Doctrine of Election, for the comfort that it brings to us, knowing that those who you have chosen, you have saved, and you will not cast out, but will raise on the last day as your own. Lord, we grieve over those who seem to have been true believers, yet proven that they were not by denying you as Lord, who show that they did never have true faith. For true faith is not a choice that we make, but it is worked in us by your Spirit, and it will not be undone. It may be weak at times. It may struggle. Yet, Lord, it is a gift. by from you, by your spirit. We know, Lord, that if we are yours, we are yours forever. Lord, there are people who are chosen by you right now in our town, in our city, in our neighborhoods, in our families who do not know you or even are hostile to your name. Give us opportunity, Lord. to praise your name before all people, to speak of what you have done for us, that they might hear and believe and hear their shepherd's voice, that they would feel the Holy Spirit working on their heart, that you would bring many lost sheep to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. in our day, and in our town, in our land. In Jesus's name, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, we pray these things. Amen.