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God Does Get a Choice


I had a discussion with our college group recently on the book of Romans, specifically how we solve the riddle of God's choosing versus Man's choosing. Don't worry, several hundred years of great minds have not come to any solutions which answer all the questions, so you won't find that here. But it did get me thinking.

"In God We Trust" - landscape format

What is the point of this discussion?
I believe God’s sovereignty shows just how much God loves us. The detail God goes to, in leading all of world history to the point where Jesus was an amazing revelation to the world, shows us, even beyond the Cross, just how far God was willing to go to draw us all back to Himself.
God calls a man by the name of Abram. He called him, knowing the guy would stumble along the way, because God knew it would lead to Jesus.
God calls a man by the name of Moses. He called him, knowing this guy had blood-stained hands and would question Him every step of the way, because He knew it would lead to Jesus.
God allowed a Pharaoh to rise to power. God did this, knowing the evil intentions this Pharaoh would pursue, enslaving and oppressing an entire nation. God did this because He knew it would lead to Jesus.
I think if we take a look at the stories a bit closer, we see just how much God extends His grace to people who imperfectly lived out God’s calling. One example would be Jonah, who took his sweet old time doing what God wanted, only to sulk when it was all done. Since we know that God values contents of a man’s hearts far more than his outward actions, this had to be painful for God.
Why does God go through all of this? It all led to Jesus, the living, breathing, walking declaration of His love for the world.
What does all of this mean for us? It means we can remain content in our situation, good or bad, having a peace that God is in control, no matter what our other senses tell us. I believe we are each called to gaze upon the cross of Christ and understand, once and for all, the immense love God has for all mankind. “For God so loved the world…”
We can begin to look beyond the choices we make and the significance we think we have and center our attention back to the Creator and Sustainer of all things.
John the Baptist said it well when he said, “He must become greater, I must become less.” (John 3:30)
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