SERMON TITLE: Is God Unfair?
SCRIPTURE: Romans 9:10-18 (ESV)
SPEAKER: Josh Hanson
DATE: 10-6-24
Sermon Discussion Guide
Take notes here
As always it’s a joy to be with all of you this weekend at Gateway Church. And there’s one thing I want you to know — and this is true if you’re worshiping with us for the first time — if you’re joining us at our North Main Campus or are with our friends in Bucyrus — I want you to know that God loves you and that I love you too.
We’re continuing our series in the book of Romans this weekend. We returned to Paul’s letter three weeks ago having made it halfway through Romans — a couple of years ago — before taking a break from it. And our goal now is to finish it. And — unlike the last two weeks — we’ll be in some new verses today. But first — a quick reminder.
After demonstrating to his readers — and us — of his love for his fellow Israelites — a love so deep that — if it were possible — Paul would’ve gladly gone to hell on their behalf in order to save his fellow countrymen. And then — having reminded us of the undeserved blessings God had bestowed upon the Jewish people — and that — even though they — as a people — had rejected God’s blessings — God’s Word did not fail — Paul will continue his explanation as to why so many of his fellow Israelites had rejected Jesus as the promised Messiah — a word that means Savior. For the Messiah was a promise to the Jewish people — and yet they — overall — rejected Jesus. They had him killed. They opposed him while he was here on earth. Not all of them — but overall — as a people — they did not receive him as the fulfillment of God’s promise.
And — remember — this is personal for Paul’s audience. Most of them were Jews and they had family members and friends who didn’t believe that Jesus was the promised Messiah. And they don’t understand how this has happened because — according to their beliefs — when the Messiah came — all Jewish people would recognize him and receive him as their Savior. And that didn’t happen. And what Paul is doing is explaining to his readers why that didn’t happen — why did so many Israelites not believe that Jesus was the fulfillment of the promise God had made to them?
Again — keep that in mind as it’s so easy to read the Bible without taking into account what was going on and what was actually being addressed. For centuries the Jewish people assumed that all Israelites would recognize the Messiah and receive him as their Savior — and that didn’t happen. So their question is our question: Why not Paul? Why did so many Jews reject Jesus as the Messiah?
And — with that as our introduction — let’s turn to our verses for today. We’ll be in Romans chapter nine — looking at verses ten through eighteen. The verses we’ll focus on today are found in Romans chapter nine — verses ten through eighteen — but we’ll start a few verses earlier so we follow Paul’s thought. We’ll start back in verse six where — after listing out the promises and blessings God had made to the Israelites — Paul writes…
Romans 9:6–18 (ESV)
6 But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel, 7 and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” 8 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. 9 For this is what the promise said: “About this time next year I will return, and Sarah shall have a son.” 10 And not only so, but also when Rebekah had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, 11 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 — 12 she was told, “The older will serve the younger.” 13 As it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.” 14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means! 15 For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” 16 So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy. 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.” 18 So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.
Is God unfair? That’s the question we’ll be exploring today because this is inevitably the question we all must face given Paul’s answer as to why so many Jews had rejected Jesus. We won’t get to our answer until later but — for now — think of your answer to our question: Is God unfair?
It’s an uncomfortable question, right? Or it should be. If you’re comfortable with the question because you think you’ve figured God out — and how he works — my guess is you’ve never experienced something like being with grieving parents when — after a completely healthy pregnancy — their baby unexpectedly dies during birth. Early on in ministry — there were two stillborn deaths in the same week in the church I was on staff at. And all I can remember is it didn’t feel very fair to the parents — especially for the couple who previously had multiple miscarriages and were so excited to have finally had a healthy pregnancy go full term. Two sets of parents — in one week — left to grieve while I went home to my kids.
Now — as hard as those kinds of situations are — Paul’s going to an even more unsettling place. Remember — he’s been defending God’s Word — that it cannot fail even when God’s people reject it — and their question — if you can put yourselves in Paul and his audiences’ shoes — is this: Why did so many Jewish people — who are part of God’s chosen nation — reject Jesus? And Paul’s answer — an answer inspired by the Spirit of God — is disturbing.
As Paul continues down the patriarchal history of the Israelites — he first says that ethnicity is not what makes a person a child of the promise — meaning — those who receive Jesus as the Messiah. Paul says…
Romans 9:6b (ESV)
6 For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel,
Not every ethnic Jew was a child of the promise — even though this is exactly what they all had assumed. Though the Israelites were given promises as a nation — the promises were only for those who were children of the promise.
For decades — here in the US — to be a US citizen was nearly synonymous with being a Christian. But never in our nation’s history has it ever been the case that every individual citizen was a true follower of Jesus. Not even all who claim to be a Christian today are true Christians. Our ethnicity, national citizenship, and self-proclaimed religious identity bear no weight on whether or not someone is actually a child of God. And this is the first blow to our pride.
Paul says not every Israelite was actually a child of the promise — the promise being referred to is God’s promise to Abraham — that he would be the father of a people who are the children of God. You see, Abraham had two sons. Ishmael — though the oldest son — was not the child of the promise. Isaac — the younger son — was the child of the promise. But — in this first example — Paul gives no reason as to why it was Isaac and not Ishmael — or why it wasn’t both boys — other than quoting from the twenty-first chapter of Genesis when God said to Abraham…
Genesis 21:12b (ESV)
12 “for through Isaac shall your offspring be named.”
That’s Paul’s defense in this first example — God’s Word simply says that Isaac was the child of the promise. We can conjecture all we want about why it was Isaac and not Ishmael — but Paul doesn’t. He just quotes God’s Word.
But now — in our verses — things get both more detailed and more disturbing at the same time. We’re in verse ten.
Romans 9:10–13 (ESV)
10 And not only so, but also when Rebekah had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, 11 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 — 12 she was told, “The older will serve the younger.” 13 As it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”
And — in verse sixteen — Paul says…
Romans 9:16a (ESV)
So then it depends not on human will or exertion...
And now we come to the second blow to our pride in answering the question: Is God unfair? The second blow to our pride is this: Our works — what a person does — is not what makes a person a child of the promise. What we do — for either good or bad — means nothing as to whether or not someone is a child of God.
Twice in verse eleven Paul makes this clear in writing, “Though they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad…” and later when he says it was “not because of works…” Yet — here’s the situation: we’ve got a set of twins — Jacob and Esau. And one is a child of the promise and the other isn’t. They both have the same father Isaac and — remember — he was the child of the promise — his brother Ishmael wasn’t. But since Paul has ruled out ethnicity already — his readers — like us — are thinking, “Well, since they both have the same dad — and he’s the original child of the promise — maybe the reason why Jacob ends up being the chosen one and Esau doesn’t is because of something they did — aka — their works.”
The argument being something like, “You know — maybe God knew that Jacob was going to grow up to be a moral guy, who followed all of God’s commands, never cheated anyone, the kind of guy you’d want your daughter to marry, and so on — while he knew that Esau was going to be a real creep, cheat, scoundrel, the kind of guy you dread your daughter bringing home. Surely — right — surely the reason why Jacob’s the child of the promise and Esau isn’t is because of their decisions — their choices — their actions.”
Having said that — the biggest hiccup for most of us are the words, “Esau I hated.” Another Bible translation says, “Esau I rejected” — which — though somewhat softer to our ears — regardless if hated or rejected is used — the implication is, “Esau wasn’t chosen by God.” Which goes back to God’s reason for choosing Jacob and not Esau — was it based on something either of them were going to do? And Paul says, “No! Being a child of the promise — or not — has nothing to do with our works.”
And this is incredibly unsettling for most people because we live in a works-based culture — which is nothing new. It’s where your value is based on what you do. And this is why our society is so busy, it’s why you're so exhausted, it’s why your marriage is miserable, why you hate or love what you do, it’s why we dread aging and idolize youth — because we’re just breathing in and out this lie that “our value is based on what we do, on how we look, and on what we accomplish.” And this thinking made its way into the evangelical church decades ago — but know that this has been an enemy of the gospel since Paul’s day.
I’m going to ask you to do something that’s going to feel odd, are you ready? Question why you so easily believe that what you do is what defines you. We all struggle with this because — works-based salvation — at its core — believes that our salvation is earned and kept because of what we do. It’s the religious version of the secular definition of self-worth. The religious version is this: If I do a lot of good things today — I’m saved — but if I have a bad day — maybe I’ve lost my salvation?
Now — a little church history for you: works-based salvation was declared a heresy way back in the fifth century— the heresy is called Pelagianism after the guy who taught it. And this ugly heretical snake just won’t die. Martin Luther — of the protestant reformation — said this about works-based salvation. He called it “the most damnable and pernicious heresy.” (Ron Rhodes, 1001 Unforgettable Quotes about God, Faith, & the Bible; Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers, 2011).
Yet when we take into consideration what God’s Word says about us, sin, and salvation — we remember statements like…
Ephesians 2:8–9 (ESV)
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
And we remember…
Galatians 2:16 (ESV)
16 Yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.
Did you catch what Paul is saying? Salvation is by grace — through faith — and even the faith we have is a gift given to us by God. Faith isn’t even a work we do — because salvation isn’t a result of works.
And then — in Galatians — Paul makes it clear that not even doing the works of the law can save you. And if doing God’s law — think of the Ten Commandments — if obedience to the Ten Commandments is not something that can save us — then what set of rules that we make up do you think can?
And that’s all that living according to a works-based salvation is: making up your own set of rules to live by. Then we divide ourselves up into tribes who agree with our works-based view of salvation. And our group are the good guys — the saved — those on the right side of history or whatever you want to call it. And — unless you convert to my group — you’re the other, you’re the opposition, you’re the enemy.
Maybe a somewhat gross illustration will help us understand how futile all of this is. Say you’re coming over to my house and we’re doing a breakfast for dinner deal. As you’re scooping some scrambled eggs onto your plate, I just happen to mention that a few of the eggs were rotten but — don’t worry — most of the eggs were good — just a few rotten eggs thrown in. That’d be gross and you’d be right to be disgusted with both the eggs and me for serving them to you. But imagine that I get all mad at you for being such a stickler about the eggs.
Now — if we’re that picky about eggs — and you know that you are — why would any of us think that God looks at our works — which are tainted by our sin — and think, “What’s the big deal?” Do any of us want to worship a God who has a lower standard for what he accepts from us than we do for the quality of eggs we eat?
Which shows us why the whole dividing people up into good guys and bad guys is both incredibly sad and ironic at the same time. Because — when it comes to good guys and bad guys — Paul’s made it clear that we’re all lumped into the same category: those who oppose God — those who don’t seek him — those who gossip and lie and steal and are greedy or — to sum things up — those who are his enemy. Which means — it should astound us that Isaac was a child of promise — same for Jacob — because neither were perfect men — they were just as imperfect as Ishmael and Esau and you and me.
And — now — we’re getting into some really disturbing territory, right? Because — as we’ve learned — it’s not ethnicity that saves a person and makes them right with God — nor is it what we do. So being born into the right family or nation means nothing — as does all of the ways we like to compare ourselves against each other to make us feel good about how “not as rotten as those people” we are. None of this means anything in regards to our salvation and being right with God.
“So where are we going to go from here Paul?” We’ll skip his punchline for now — but in verse fifteen he writes…
Romans 9:15–18 (ESV)
15 For he (God) says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” 16 So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy. 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.” 18 So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.
Something challenging — about reading these verses — is that we do so having quickly forgotten what Paul’s already told us: Both ethnicity and what we do mean nothing in regards to our salvation and being right with God. And — why this is so hard — is because if I was the one saying, “I’ll have mercy on whom I have mercy — and I’ll have compassion on whom I have compassion” — I can’t help but read these words through some kind of filter like, “I’ll have mercy on my kind of people” or “I’ll have compassion on people based on what they’ve done.” You see — I can’t help it — maybe you can — but I can’t help but read these words through the two lenses that Paul’s already said have no influence on a person being made right with God.
Instead — verse fifteen — is meant to be read this way — and this is God speaking: “I have mercy on whom I have mercy and I have compassion on whom I have compassion. And — in case you’re hearing me say, ‘I do so based on the group they’re part of — or because of what they’ve done’ — you are not hearing me correctly. Regardless of a person’s group — and regardless of what they have done, are doing, or will someday do — to some people I give my mercy and compassion and to others I don’t.”
What a blow to our pride. What a statement about who God is. What a statement about what it means for God to be sovereign — in control of all things. What a statement about how dependent his creation — including all of us — are upon him.
Yet — and be honest — this stirs up inside of us and reveals a detestable disease we’re all plagued with: Our desire to be our own savior — even our own god. Yet — being a child of the promise — someone who’s made right with God — Paul says, “Depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.” Or said another way…
Romans 9:16 (NLT)
16 It is God who decides to show mercy. We can neither choose it nor work for it.
To which Paul gives another example. We’ve looked at Isaac and Ishmael — we’ve looked at Jacob and Esau — now Paul turns our attention to Pharaoh — the great enemy of God and his people when they were slaves in Egypt. And — in defense of God’s sovereign mercy — Paul quotes Moses again. Earlier he quoted from Genesis — now he quotes from Exodus. To Pharaoh God said…
Exodus 9:16 (ESV)
16 But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.
Some of us are familiar with Pharaoh’s story — others may not be. His story ends with his death as the waters of the Red Sea drown him and his army while chasing after God’s people. The Israelites were shown mercy. They were rescued — not because they deserved it — not even because they would be recipients of God’s promise — for — if you know their story — you know that this group of Jews will all die in the wilderness because of their unbelief. It will be their children — not them — who experience the fulfillment of God’s promise of entering the Promised Land.
But — back to Pharaoh: God tells Pharaoh that he has raised him up — meaning God had orchestrated the events in Pharaoh’s life to lead to this moment so that God’s power would be displayed in the rescue of his people and the judgment of their enemy.
Back to my egg illustration. Was Pharaoh a rotten egg? Absolutely! Were the Israelites all good eggs? Absolutely not! They’re rotten eggs too. Isaac, Ishmael, Jacob, Esau, Pharaoh, the Israelites — none are good. None are righteous. All are rotten eggs. None deserve mercy — because mercy isn’t deserved — it’s not earned — it’s given to whomever God chooses. This is what Paul says in verse eighteen when he writes…
Romans 9:18 (ESV)
18 So then he (God) has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.
Which leads us to our original question. Here’s how Paul asks it.
Romans 9:14a (ESV)
14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part?
Here’s another way of asking the question.
Romans 9:14a (NLT)
14 Are we saying, then, that God was unfair?
Or how about this one.
Romans 9:14a (MSG)
14 Is that grounds for complaining that God is unfair?
So what’s your answer?
Let me say something important here: I understand why you might answer with something like, “Well it sure seems like God’s unfair” — especially if you’re not a Christian. But — even if you are a follower of Jesus — I understand the tension you’re feeling. This all seems so out of our hands, doesn’t it? Completely out of our control. If what Paul’s saying is true — then there’s nothing we can do to become a child of the promise and this is really all up to the mercy of God.
And now we’re getting somewhere — getting exactly to where Paul is wanting us to get to: God’s mercy. You see, our understanding of the word unfair sets us up to be unsettled and disturbed by all of this. Even our definition of the word injustice leads us astray. You see — what Paul is asking is this: In all of this — in God choosing Isaac and not Ishmael — in God choosing Jacob and not Esau — in God choosing the enslaved Israelites and not Pharoah — in all of this — has God acted unrighteously? That’s what the words injustice and unfair in our English Bibles are implying: Has God acted unrighteously?
Which means we have to allow the word unrighteous to be our definition of injustice and unfair — so what does it mean to be unrighteous? To be unrighteous is to be sinful — it means to be unholy — to be wicked — to be evil. And what’s Paul’s response to his — and our — question?
Romans 9:14 (ESV)
14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? (Is God unrighteous?) By no means!
Romans 9:14 (NLT)
14 Are we saying, then, that God was unfair? (In choosing some and not others — has God done something unholy or wicked?) Of course not!
Romans 9:14 (MSG)
14 Is that grounds for complaining that God is unfair? (The fact that God is merciful towards some and not others — does that mean he’s evil?) Not so fast, please.
Which means our definition of God’s mercy is way to puny. For we all naturally lean towards defining God’s mercy to be something he owes us — or his mercy is something a person can earn — or not earn — by what they do. Yet — what we’ve learned about God and his mercy today — is that he doesn’t owe it to anyone — it can never be earned. Which is exactly what Paul wants his Jewish readers to understand. His mercy has always been his to give to whomever he chooses.
Which leaves us with some big unanswered questions and with an assurance that no philosophy of this world can give. What’s the big unanswered questions? Why Isaac? Why Jacob? Why be merciful to the enslaved Israelites if they’re all going to die in the wilderness? Why you and not him? Why me and not her? What about my child who’s running hard away from you God? Why, why, why?
Which is why we can’t forget where Paul’s thought began. Has God’s Word failed? With all of the promises God had made to the Israelites — and yet so many of them rejected Jesus and have him killed — does this mean God’s Word can’t be trusted? And Paul’s answer is, “Absolutely not! For God’s mercy has always been his to give to whomever he chooses.”
And this same merciful work of God continues today. Why Isaac? Why Jacob? Why me? Why you? Because God is merciful. Not because he has to be — but because he chooses to be. And it’s his choice — and — to paraphrase what Paul will say to us soon — who are we — a bunch of rotten eggs — to question the sovereign mercy of the God who does no wrong. Who are we — who are sinfully biased in our giving of mercy — to judge the One who shows no favoritism? Who are we to say that God cannot be merciful to whomever he chooses — or be compassionate to whomever he wills? Who are we to say that for him to do so is for him to be unfair? And questions like these reveal to us something quite unexpected — and that is how humbling it is to be a recipient of God’s mercy. Let’s pray.
Father, forgive us for playing judge and jury of you and your mercy. For you are the God who is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. (Ex 34.6) Because you are merciful — you don’t forget the covenant you’ve made with your people. (Ex 4.31) When we repent, your Word tells us that you are “gracious and merciful and that you will not turn away your face from us.” (2 Chron 30.9) That when — like David — we cry out to you, “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions” — you hear and answer our prayer. (Ps 51.1)
Holy Spirit, we ask you to wash us clean — to give us new hearts — to renew us — not because of the works we have done or will do — but to do so according to your mercy. (Titus 3:5)
And — Jesus — to you — along with so many in the Bible, we cry out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David. Have mercy on us.” (Matt 9.27) And — in response to your mercy — we agree with Paul and say “But I have received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the worst of sinners, you might display your perfect patience as an example to all who will believe in you for eternal life.” (1 Tim 1:16)
God, we thank you for your mercy. And we ask for even more of your mercy — knowing we don’t deserve it — but we ask knowing that it is yours to give. And we pray all of this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
And now we turn to the Lord’s Table — a visible display of God’s mercy to his people.
The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. - 1 Corinthians 11:24-26
With these words our Lord commands all believers to eat this bread and to drink this cup in true faith and in the confident hope of his return in glory. But — before we do so — let’s spend a moment in silence confessing our sins to God.
- Moment of silence -
Now hear and receive the good news: In this supper God declares to us that our sins have been completely forgiven through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, which he himself finished on the cross once and for all. Therefore all of you, who are truly sorry for your sins, who believe in the Lord Jesus as your Savior, who have confessed his name, and who desire to live in obedience to him — may your faith be assured that you have received God’s mercy.
At this time, I’d like to invite forward those who are going to be serving us. And — while they make their way forward — know that as the bread and cup are passed down your rows, you’re to take the bread on your own — but save the cup — which we’ll drink together. Also — in the trays with the bread — there’s a gluten free option in the center of the tray. Eat the bread on your own — but save the cup — which we’ll drink together.
The blood of Christ, shed for you.
Father, we give you thanks for your Son, Jesus Christ, for his willing obedience and suffering during his life on earth, and especially for his giving up of his body and blood on the cross. Give us assurance that our sins are forgiven through his blood and may your perfect love drive out all fear. Fill our minds with your peace and turn our eyes to Heaven, where Christ is at your right hand interceding for us. Give us the strength and faith we need to offer ourselves in service to you and may no trouble or sorrow distract us from this loving service. And unite us with each other through your Spirit so we continue in the living hope of our Savior's return. Hear us now through our Lord Jesus, who taught us to pray, saying these words — which are on the screens if you need them…
Congregation: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.” (Matthew 6:9-13 ESV)
May God’s mercy towards you be the foundation upon which the hope of your salvation is built. Amen.
God loves you. I love you. You are sent.
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