Judicial Hardening

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Tonight we are going to continue through Romans

The subject tonight is “Judicial Hardening”

What is Judicial Hardening?

An act of judgment by God with reason

There are two sources of hardening that can take place:

Divine Hardening

Human hardening

Tonight we will explore this doctrine and hopefully get a better grasp of it and the issue os salvation

Prayer

Verses 1-5

Israel was the chosen nation by God’s sovereign choice

Paul says he wished he were accursed for the sake of his brethren

The majority of Israel has rejected Christ

To Israel belonged the adoption, the glory of the covenants, the Law, etc

From Israel came the Christ (in the flesh)

In God’s perfect plan He chose Israel to be His covenant people

God called Abraham

From Abraham came Issac, then Jacob, the 12 sons who made up the 12 tribes of Israel

Israel was unlike any other nation because they had the One true living God as their God

But when Christ came something happened

Israel rejected Jesus, and Gentiles began to receive Him

Application:

Paul was willing to sacrifice his own salvation to see his people saved

How much more should we be burdened over our lost friends and neighbors?

I want us all to pray that God gives us a burden for the lost like Paul had

Verses 6-9

The true Israel knows God only through Faith (Verses 6-9)

“Nor are they all children (Israel) because they are Abraham’s seed”

All of Israel considered itself in God’s covenant because of their bloodline

Paul is telling them it is not enough to be a Jew

Paul quotes a passage, “through Issac your descendants will be named”

Sarah was promised to have a son

Sarah was over the child bearing age

Instead of trusting God by faith she took matters in her own hands and gave Hagar to Abrahm

The n came Ishmael

Then later Issac came juts as God promised

There were two sons now

This represents the two covenants

One covenant of faith (through Sarah)

One covenant of works (through Hagar)

Ishmael did not inherit the promises of Abraham just because he ascended from Abraham

Only Issac inherited the promise given to Abraham because he was the child of faith

Application:

It does not matter who we know, who we have, or who we are related to…the only way to God’s promises is by faith

Abraham recieved the promise of God through faith

Issac was the promised son through faith

We can only belong to God if we have a living faith in Him

Righteousness cannot be obtained by works but by God’s Sovereign choice (verses 10-13)

Just like Abraham had two sons representing two covenants, Sarah had twins

Both boys in the womb

Neither had yet been born

But God could only choose one for his divine purpose

“Jacob I loved and Esau I hated”

Does this mean God hated Esau? NO

Luke 14:26 NASB95

“If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.

The word hate here means to choose

And what God did was choose Jacob over Esau not because one was bad or good but because God has a plan and

What Paul is saying is God chose Jacob over Esau

“not because of works, but because of him who calls”

The issue was that most of Israel had rejected Christ

They had rejected the Messiah

But not all had rejected

Paul is saying God has the right to choose who He wishes

Application: A relationship with God happens by God’s initiative

Salvation is not just a choice of man

It is a response to God’s call of that man

John 6:44 NASB95

“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.

The stumbling block for Israel was the Cross

“It is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs”

Israel was not outright rejecting God

They believed they were righteous

They believed they were right with God

But they tried to make their own righteousness by obedience to the Law

Romans 9:31–32 NASB95

but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone,

In a sense, they did what they thought was best rather than God’s plan

They pursued the law of righteousness

They tried to work their way to God but never made it…WHY?

Lack of knowledge

Romans 10:2–3 NASB95

For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge. For not knowing about God’s righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God.

They had a zeal for God but not in accordance with knowledge

They followed all of the observances

They were faithful in worship

They knew all the religious practices yet never understood what it meant to be saved

Their failed by rejecting Christ who is God’s righteousness

Application: It does not matter what we do for God, if it is not in line with the knowledge found in the Word of God

It is a dangerous thing to take Christianity into our own hands and do as we please with it

It is a dangerous thing to think that we know better than God

It is a dangerous thing to think we do not need the wisdom and guidance of the Holy Spirit

It is a dangerous thing to think we can know the will of God apart from prayer

I am a firm believer every answer to every problem is written in the Word of God

One man wrote: “Inspiration of the Bible does not mean God dictated every Word the author wrote, but that the authors wrote every thing God wanted us to know”

Verses 17-29

One the other side of mercy is divine hardening (verses 17-29)

When someone has rejected Christ they begin a process of hardening their heart on their own

Every rejection of Christ makes the human heart a little harder

We begin the process of hardening

And after so many rejections, God begins to harden our hearts

Pharoah is the example Paul used

Exodus 7:1–3 NASB95

Then the Lord said to Moses, “See, I make you as God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet. “You shall speak all that I command you, and your brother Aaron shall speak to Pharaoh that he let the sons of Israel go out of his land. “But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart that I may multiply My signs and My wonders in the land of Egypt.

God did not harden Pharaoh’s heart here, He is speaking with foreknowledge

Exodus 7:13–14 NASB95

Yet Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he did not listen to them, as the Lord had said. Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is stubborn; he refuses to let the people go.

Pharoah hardened his heart

Exodus 7:22 NASB95

But the magicians of Egypt did the same with their secret arts; and Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he did not listen to them, as the Lord had said.

Exodus 8:15 NASB95

But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and did not listen to them, as the Lord had said.

Exodus 8:32 NASB95

But Pharaoh hardened his heart this time also, and he did not let the people go.

Exodus 9:12 NASB95

And the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had spoken to Moses.

This is the first time God hardened Pharaoh’s heart

Hardening does not change a heart, it locks it in

To say God did this to Pharaoh is inaccurate

All God did was lock in what Pharaoh had already done

Application: To reject Christ is to play Russian Roulette

We are taking a chance every time we hear the gospel

Every rejection of Christ hardens the heart

And there is line we cross when God begins to lock in what we have began

Final thoughts:

Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, but after the 10th plague Pharoah let the Israelites go

Just because a heart is hard doe not mean it will be so forever

Just because God hardens someone does not mean it is permanent

Hardening is not always a salvation issue

We can harden our hearts to other people

We can harden our hearts to God calling on our lives

We can harden our hearts towards repentance

Hardening our hearts always has penalties

What is the answer to a hard heart?

Respond by faith

What ever God is speaking to you about, trust Him and do it by faith

Final Remarks

Love you all, see you Sunday at 10:00!