So now let's talk about Saul of Tarsus. If God didn’t stay with him and bring him to the knowledge of His grace, I wouldn’t be writing this revelatory teaching right now. Come on. God does not remove His gifts and callings. He uses the broken and beaten to bring the message of His kingdom to others. He takes the down and out and brings them to the up and in status. Continuing with Romans 11.
30 Once, you Gentiles were rebels against God, but when the people of Israel rebelled against him, God was merciful to you instead. 31 Now they are the rebels, and God’s mercy has come to you so that they, too, will share in God’s mercy.
Look what happened. The tables turned. Now they are the rebels. God’s mercy has now come to us to make them envious and wanting to share in His mercy.
32 For God has imprisoned everyone in disobedience so he could have mercy on everyone.
Wow. Look at that verse. God is so excited and interested in getting grace to us that He made sure it would be impossible for us to be obedient on our own. Now without study that can sound cruel and as if God is a manipulator and control freak. That’s not it at all.
Graham Cooke says – “If you really knew God, you would know the last thing He wants to be is in control. He is in charge, but He is not in control. Why? Because if God was in control of your life, you wouldn’t have any freedom, you’d be controlled. The Bible says it is for freedom that Christ has set us free. So God doesn’t want to control our lives, He wants to teach us how to be mature.”
You see. He wants us to be mature in His desires, promises, and protections. The law was not given for us to follow, but to show us how much we needed Him. “The law reflects the parameters of God’s desires, but it does not reflect the parameters or boundaries of God’s love”. You've heard me say that before and I'm sure it will come up again.
Even though the chosen ones of Israel became enemies with God and did not keep all the law, He still loves them, because He chose them. God is a fanatic about His grace and love and can’t wait to get it to all of us.
Here’s Isaiah the prophet, prophesying about what God’s full intentions are.
Isaiah 30:18 in the Amplified bible. “And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]!
I mean, if you miss everything else in this teaching, don’t miss this. It should make you get up and run Holy Ghost laps around your house or wherever you are studying this. Just look at it.
The Lord earnestly waits. That means He’s serious in intention, purpose, or effort. He’s sincerely zealous about this. About what? What is He so eager about and yet is able to wait? It’s right there. It’s that He’s waiting to be gracious to you. But that’s without the emphasis added. The emphasis is that He’s expecting, looking, and longing to be gracious to you.
Well then why doesn’t He just do it. Because He’s waiting for us to respond and receive it. Look a little further down the verse. It says Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]!
You see. We have a part to play here. We can expect and look and long for Him. Expecting His victory, favor, love, peace, joy and matchless unbroken companionship. How many do this? How many have received the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness and have received all that God has for us, rather than trying to conform to a set of rules and traditions?
Going back to the verse just look at the part that says “He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you”. God goes effortlessly out of His way (if that were possible) to lift Himself up so that He may have mercy and show loving-kindness to us. Wow. This alone should set you free everyday at 10, 2, and 4. Actually that was just for affect. It should set you free every moment of everyday.
Well we are not done with the 30’s just yet. Here’s one more. 1 Corinthians 1:30 reads “God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin”.
The truth of scripture just keeps coming back around and confirming itself. No wonder, the author is the same. The Holy Spirit inspiring Paul to write about all of this.
Romans 3:30 reads – “There is only one God, and he makes people right with himself only by faith”.
Romans 8:30 reads – “And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory”.
Romans 9:30 reads – “What does all this mean? Even though the Gentiles were not trying to follow God’s standards, they were made right with God. And it was by faith that this took place”.
Romans 11:30 reads – “Once, you Gentiles were rebels against God, but when the people of Israel rebelled against him, God was merciful to you instead”.
1 Corinthians 1:30 reads – “God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin”.
Now just look at those 30’s. He made us right only by faith. He gave us right standing and He gave us His glory. God was merciful to us instead of to His people. God united us with Christ Jesus. Christ made us right with God. He made us pure and holy and freed us from sin.
So what is there to dispute? This teaching should so fully set you free from works, performance, false humility, and whatever else is keeping you from the freedom that is found in Christ. Rest in the knowledge that He is absolutely crazy about getting His favor, love, blessings, and joy to you all the time. Grace and Peace.
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