Take a moment to read the entire chapter of Romans 9 before reading the devotional below.
We are reading all of Romans 9 today instead of splitting it into two pieces because this chapter is really one whole part of Paul’s theological framework. Recall that Paul is writing to a mixed church of Jews and Gentiles, and this idea of allowing Gentiles into relationship with God feels very new to the Jewish people. In reality, there are several examples throughout the Old Testament of God accepting Gentiles into his family (like Rahab and Ruth). But overall the Jewish people had God all to themselves and they had to protect that from outside influence for generations.
Here Paul is trying to prove his commitment to the Jewish people. His focus on the salvation of the Gentiles does not mean he has left the Jews behind. Paul affirms the special place of the Jewish people, but he also points out that God chose specific people along the way. He uses Jewish history to trace this journey and makes the argument that God can save whoever he wants to save.
Here’s your freedom for today: you have been invited into God’s grace. You can’t get to God by yourself no matter who you are. Even God’s special people who had his law and his promises could not keep up their end of relationship with God. The Gentiles didn’t have this spiritual awareness, and they too proved to be sinners. We are all in the same boat, whether you were raised in church or know the right prayers to pray or have never heard of Jesus before. We are sinners saved exclusively by the grace of God. Not grace plus a good job on our part. Grace. Period. Not one ounce of your relationship with God depends on you.