Posts
I am finding my study of Romans 9 to be stimulating, enlightening, challenging and productive. It is helping me to face more of my misconceptions about God and some of the assumptions and inconsistencies I have inherited from mainstream religion that needs to be exposed and challenged.
When I looked at this verse this morning I began to remember some of the problematic reasoning that I have been taught over the years. Typically, if we ran across a passage that seemed to conflict with our preconceived ideas about God, that passage or word was simply forced into the preexisting mold of our established belief. This very often lead to quite a strain in distorted reasoning and the necessity to assign different meanings to many of the words used in religion.
I still believe that it is necessary to view things in the light of preconceived ideas about God. In fact, preconceptions are quite unavoidable in our thinking. The problem arises when we are unwilling to continually challenge our preconceptions in the light of expanding truth revealed to us about God by the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. Real truth is never afraid of close examination. But tradition and subtle errors in our thinking about God's character and our own condition often lead to bending and forcing the Word of God to fit what we think we want to believe. This is often propped up by “proof-texting” where we string together a number of somewhat disparate verses that sound plausible in that particular arrangement to support our own ideas or those we have inherited. This also sometimes necessitates clinging to a certain outdated wording found in only one version of the Bible and so we attack any and all alternatives as a threat to our pet theories. To me this is a sure sign of a bitter and poisonous spirit that closes many hearts against the true Spirit of God.
The kind of preconceived ideas of God that need to be the filter through which we view the rest of Scripture needs to be the life, example and teachings of Jesus who is declared to be the perfect revelation of God to the universe. So if an idea or belief is found to be inconsistent with the life and example of Jesus, it must be the belief that comes under suspicion, not the Son of God. This is the only safe way to read the Bible if I want to grow in grace and in a true knowledge of God.
Romans 9 may be a classic example of this kind of problem. I observe several different ways of approaching this passage to resolve the apparent discrepancies that at first cause our minds and hearts discomfort in these verses.
First, upon reading this we could simply refer immediately back to what we already assume about how God treats us and then try to force everything else to fit that belief, particularly the idea that God is arbitrary in choosing who will be used for His glory and who will be used as objects of His wrath (read human-like anger and vengeful spite). 
Given that presupposition, when we read the above text that God is not unjust, we simply force our concept of what justice is to include an arbitrary God who is Sovereign and cannot be questioned or understood at all. We just have to live with His predetermination and hope that somehow we turn up in the right group so we can get saved.
There is actually a very large number of Christians that subscribe to this line of thinking. And there are many more who use this kind of logic though they may be uncomfortable with the logical conclusions arrived at by this reasoning. The bottom line for these people is usually the emphatic insistence that we should not think very hard about this or try to understand it with our reasoning for that will only put us at odds with a powerful God who might get upset about our resistance and then use us as examples of His “wrath”.
Then there are those who simply cannot force their minds to accept this picture of God because it is so incompatible with their innate sense of justice. They are unwilling to force the idea of justice to that level of distortion and so they choose some other alternative like rejecting the existence of God altogether. I believe this reaction may be much more pervasive than is seen on the surface. Not only those who openly reject the idea of God may feel this way but many who conform to religious dogma on the surface secretly hold to these feelings as well. They just don't advertise that fact so that they will not become targets for those who want to be the thought police for God's people.
Actually, the souls who find a great deal of uneasiness with the notion of an arbitrary God may be much closer to responding to the real Spirit of God than the more virulently religious. I believe that in very many hearts, the rejection of God is a protest against the lies about God that have been broadcast wholesale by most of religion for centuries. I believe that rejecting these lies about God is not so much an act of rebellion against God but a protest against injustice that was legitimately implanted in their hearts by the very God they think they are protesting against. We would all do well to reject a god like that, for any ideas of an arbitrary god who is fickle and selfish and seems to delight in outbursts of vengeful wrath to vent his emotions is really a description of the enemy of God, not the true God of heaven. So in reality, many are actually rejecting Satan's distortions of God as promoted by most religions, not the reality of God.
I strongly believe that Romans 9 cannot be understood properly or benefited from without using the filters of preconceptions gained from a previous and careful look at the heart of Jesus and how He related to people. That filter needs to be firmly in place before one can arrive at safe conclusions when dealing with confusing passages like this. But that is not to say that this passage is somehow false or even necessarily misleading. When viewed through the right lenses I believe there will be found here wonderful revelations about God that may have remained hidden from our view under the confusion that appears on the surface. If we are willing to first examine our glasses and get them clean and focused properly, we can then be delighted and amazed at what clarity and beauty will be able to be seen while reading these verses.
I do not believe that it is incidental that this verse is placed where it is in the text. It is a very emphatic statement that must be kept clear in our mind as the context for everything read in the surrounding and following verses. Whatever Paul is trying to say and no matter how awkward it is said, it has to conform to the indisputable reality that God is just. And in the process of applying this standard to the surrounding passages we must also not compromise what constitutes justice itself. If we want to see the beauty and the truth hidden in this chapter we have to keep the light of justice untainted while we examine other verses that seem to contradict that declaration. And if we want to know what justice looks like, we must understand it from the life and teachings of the only just Person who ever lived on this earth.
This seems to be a tool that Paul uses throughout his writings. When he wants to state something that is going to seem contradictory or confusing he will include very emphatic declarations like this to use as anchors that we must stay connected to while he takes us on a tour through the surrounding swirling waters. It we stay connected to the anchor we can be safe and will enjoy the ride much more. If we get trapped in the intensity of the surrounding turbulence without staying firmly linked to the anchors he secured for us, we will end up with all sorts of troubling and distorted conclusions that will only muddy the waters as we drag along the bottom and stir up the filth and lies about God that pollute the pristine waters of truth.
So whatever this chapter is trying to reveal to me it must be understood in the context of a just God. And justice is incompatible with arbitrariness. God is absolutely adamant in His insistence on real freedom for the will of all His creatures. To do anything otherwise would be to violate His very essence which is love. Love can only truly exist and flourish in the pure atmosphere of freedom. And freedom necessarily involves the option of choosing to reject or to respond to love without coercion. Whatever else I draw as conclusions from this passage must be consistent with this understanding of God or it will undermine the most important truths about God that will eventually lead to a total distortion and rejection of Him.
