There are some Bible passages that are difficult to interpret. We wonder just how to handle them, especially when they say things that are uncomfortable for us to hear. This, of course, is especially true for those passages that speak of the sovereignty of God over our salvation. For most of us, the first time we see such a thing in Scripture, we will twist and turn and battle against that truth, because it is a very uncomfortable notion the first time you try it on.
In my daily readings, I recently ran across one of the passages that did the most to convince me of the biblical teaching about God’s sovereignty over our salvation, Romans 9. In that chapter of Scripture, we see that God is moving behind the scenes in human hearts to accomplish his will in a way that shows us that God, not man, is the ultimate decision-maker. This is not at all to remove human responsibility; nor does it relieve us of the command to share the gospel. But it is most certainly something that shows that God is ultimate.
What I found most helpful and convincing in Romans 9 regarding sovereignty was the way that Paul handled the argument. You see, Paul makes a declarative statement that, if left to itself, looks like God is fully sovereign over salvation, and I mean sovereign in the way that Augustine and Calvin talked about. But the question is whether or not Paul was trying to say what Calvinists think he was saying.
Romans 9:18 – So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.
In verse 18, it looks as though Paul is saying that God has mercy on some and hardens others according to God’s will. Again, note that this has nothing to do with the question of human responsibility. It has everything to do with who, at bottom, is responsible for our salvation. But how could this be true? How could that hardening and mercy be what God is telling us. That just feels wrong when compared to what I was taught growing up.
But then comes verse 19. Paul anticipates the objection to what he was saying. If Paul was not saying that God is ultimately responsible for saving people, then Paul would have been wise to clarify his point.
Romans 9:19 – You will say to me then, “Why does he still find fault? For who can resist his will?”
Does Paul fix the problem for us? No. Instead, Paul knows that our objection to what he just said would be, “That’s not fair!” Paul knew that what he had said would smack against human autonomy and be terribly off-putting to many. He saw that. We would interpret verse 18 as God being over all and we would not naturally feel it to be appropriate for God to treat us that way.
The anticipation of the natural objection is an indication that verse 18 should be, must be, taken at face value. God has mercy on whom he has mercy. God hardens whom he hardens. We object that this seems unfair. We object that our own freedom is not apparently taken into consideration. We object that God seems to be the ultimate decision-maker when it comes to salvation. We object that God seems to be choosing in a final sense. We object that his choice appears ultimate where our choices are secondary.
And Paul after seeing that objection, does not do anything to clarify for us and take off of our shoulders the discomfort.
Romans 9:20 – But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?”
Instead of comforting us in our objections to ultimate sovereignty being in God’s hands, Paul responds with a question that puts us in our place. Who are we to question God and his ways? If God is the potter and we are the clay, he is the one who has all the rights. He is the one who shapes us. He is the one who is free, more free than us.
Again, I will say that this actually has nothing to do with human free will. God, in his sovereignty, shapes our free will. Thus, those who come to him will feel they are doing so based on their desires. We will not, however, be able to see that it was God who first moved our hearts to desire him. Those who reject the Lord will also do so based on their freedom, a perfect and uninterrupted freedom to continue in the direction they most desire. At no point does Scripture tell us that God pushes people toward sin they do not desire to commit—that is not what hardening is about (see Pharaoh). In fact, Scripture shows us the opposite, that God holds people back from being as sinful as they naturally would be. And, Scripture shows us that God reaches into the hearts of some people to change them so that they will desire to come to him in faith and repentance.
Sovereignty in salvation is and has always been a tough issue. Some simply believe this doctrine to be terribly unbiblical. And, most often, the reason for the argument is that it appears to make God unfair and unloving. How could God choose to save some and not all? It must be that God leaves all the decision-making up to us. But that is precisely what Paul refuses to say here in Romans 9. Instead, Paul owns the emotional friction and finally declares the ultimate freedom of God as the potter and our lack of rights to question him as to how and why we were shaped as we are.
Pastor Travis Peterson 