Romans 9

Devotional:
So it is God who decides to show mercy. We can neither choose it nor work for it. (Romans 9:16)

This is a difficult chapter to understand. If it doesn’t depend on us, then why doesn’t God save everyone? The easy answer is that it doesn’t depend on us; it depends on God. God is a God of justice and mercy. It is easy to say that justice is unfair, but in reality, it is really mercy that is unfair. Why does God save anyone? We all deserve death and hell, and yet, Jesus gave us a way out. Who is the clay to question the potter? So far, the Book of Romans has told us that we are justified through Christ. Rest and rejoice in the fact that God loves us enough to show mercy, and then share that gift with someone who needs to hear it today!

Pray it:
Father, I thank you that you are rich in mercy – and that mercy is extended to me so that I do not receive the punishment I deserve because of Jesus’s death in my place. As I marvel at your mercy, help me to speak of and show this mercy to others. Amen!

Share it:
Who is someone you can share a verse or thought from this passage with?