Is God Free to Choose Some and Reject Others?

This week, we are looking at a section of a letter in the Bible called the book of Romans, where Paul was sharing his heart regarding the Jewish people. In spite of all of the privileges that the Jewish people had received from God, it was apparent that most of the Jewish people, according to the words that Paul had just written, were not called and rescued by God. And this grieved Paul’s heart.

And this also provokes a huge question. And that question is this: Is God really sovereign? Paul responded to this question by explaining that not every person who is Jewish ethnically or physically was in a right relationship with God spiritually. Now as you might imagine, this statement by Paul would have been greatly offensive to the Jewish religious people of the day. This statement would be like someone saying, not everyone who attends church is going to be in Heaven. And not everyone who attends church is going to be in Heaven, because church attendance makes you a Christian about as much as sleeping in the garage makes you a car. Just because you show up in church and say well “I’m a Christian because I go to this church and was born in a Christian nation and into a Christian family” that does not make you a Christian.

And that was exactly what the Apostle Paul was saying to the Jewish people of his day. And to further his point Paul makes a second strong statement that he backs up with a story of Abraham and Sarah from the history of the Jewish people. Paul then unpacks this old testament story by explaining that it is not those who are born of the flesh, or by natural descent and effort, that are chosen and adopted by God as His children. Instead, just as it was for Isaac, the timeless reality is that those who become adopted as children of God come about as the result of God’s activity as He fulfills His promise. As one famous theologian wrote “What counts is grace, not race”. Paul then reminds the members of the church at Rome and followers of Jesus throughout history of the promise that God made to Abraham and Sarah, which is recorded for us in Genesis 18:10.

But Abraham and Sarah were not the only example from the history of the Jewish people that revealed that not every person who is Jewish ethnically or physically was in a right relationship with God spiritually. Paul points us to a second story, beginning in Romans 9:10:

And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac; for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God's purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls, it was said to her, "THE OLDER WILL SERVE THE YOUNGER." Just as it is written, "JACOB I LOVED, BUT ESAU I HATED."

Here we see Paul point followers of Jesus throughout history another story that is recorded for us in the very first letter of the Bible called the Book of Genesis. And just like the previous story, to understand this story we first need to understand the context in which the story takes place. In Genesis 25, we enter into God’s story as Isaac has grown up and is now married. However, Isaac’s wife Rebekkah was also unable to bear children. And it is into this context that we read the following, beginning in Genesis 25:21:

Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD answered him and Rebekah his wife conceived. But the children struggled together within her; and she said, "If it is so, why then am I this way?" So she went to inquire of the LORD. The LORD said to her, "Two nations are in your womb; And two peoples will be separated from your body; And one people shall be stronger than the other; And the older shall serve the younger."

Paul then unpacks this Old Testament story in verse 11 by stating “for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God's purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls,”. Now a natural response to this statement by Paul is to say “well that does not seem to be fair. What is God up there flipping a coin? Esau never had a chance. And if that is how God is then I want nothing to do with Him”. Maybe I have just described your reaction to what Paul is saying here. And if you are wrestling with this same response, I just want to let you know this is a very important response to wrestle with. And you are probably like most people who read this section of the Bible, so let’s wrestle with this together.

To fully understand what Paul is communicating here, we must understand and consider the connection between God’s choice and God’s foreknowledge. When Paul uses the word choice here, he is referring to God’s special choice of people to experience forgiveness and the relationship with God that they were created for. Theologians refer to God’s special choice as election. As we discovered last week, foreknowledge refers to God knowledge of everything that happens in human history before it happens. God knew all of humanity before they came into existence on this earth. God is all knowing. He not only knows what you did yesterday; He also knows what you will do tomorrow, next week, and for the rest of your life.

Now with these definitions in mind, let’s now consider the connection between God’s choice and God’s foreknowledge. Because of God’s foreknowledge, He already knew all of the actions, decisions and intentions that Jacob and Esau would have. Before they were born God already knew what they were going to do. And in light of all that God knew that Jacob and Esau were going to do; and in light of God’s divine purpose and plan that would stand, which means to remain active and at work, God chose Jacob. And God’s choice of Jacob was not based on anything that he did for God; God’s choice was based on God’s choice and God’s choice alone.

Paul then reinforces this reality by quoting the beginning of the very last letter that is recorded for us in the Old Testament, called the Book of Malachi. In Malachi 1:2-3, we read that God loved Jacob, but hated Esau. Well that sounds harsh, doesn’t it? What is interesting here is that the word hated here, in the language that this letter was originally written in, literally means to disregard or reject someone. The word loved, by contrast, in the language that this letter was originally written in, literally means to bestow love for someone who is in need. You see, neither Malachi nor Paul were simply referring to an emotional response here.

In addition, let’s consider for a moment the lives of Jacob and Esau. In the Bible, we read that Jacob deceived his father in order to receive the blessing that belonged to Esau and manipulated his brother Esau into handing over his birthright and the larger inheritance that the birthright represented. So did Jacob have selfishness and rebellion in his life? Most definitely. Then there is Esau. Esau despised his birthright and selfishly sold it for a bowl of soup. Then Esau married women that he knew his parents disproved of in order to rebel against them. So did Esau have selfishness and rebellion in his life? Most definitely. Were both Jacob and Esau equally guilty of having a huge problem with God? Yes they were. Were Jacob and Esau each equally needy of rescue? Yes they were. And did God, in His foreknowledge know that they were both going to be in equal need of rescue? Yes, He did.

You see, it was not Jacob and Esau's works, or what they did for God, that resulted in them having an opportunity to be right with God. Their works deserved God’s right and just response to their selfishness and rebellion. Instead of giving them both what they deserved, God chose Jacob and God rejected Esau. And it is in these Old Testament stories involving the Jewish nation that we see the Apostle Paul reveal for us a timeless truth that is necessary to embrace if we are able to balance God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility. And that timeless truth is this: The sovereign God is free to choose some and reject others.

God, who is large and in charge of all humanity throughout history, is free to choose some and reject others. God, who knows everything that happens in human history before it happens, executes His Divine plan and purposes by choosing some and rejecting others. And that choice is based not on our race, not on our performance, not on our intelligence. That choice is based on God’s grace and God’s grace alone.

Now, this timeless truth alone does not resolve the lack clarity and confusion that balancing the truths of God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility creates, does it? What about our will? What about choice? And if God is sovereign, if God is large and in charge, then how can man be held responsible for what God ordains and causes? Next week we will see these are not new questions. We will see Paul address and answer these questions and the tension that comes from balancing God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility.

In the meantime, however, we have clearly seen through the history of the Jewish people that the sovereign God is free to choose some and reject others.