A Miracle Of God.

In Romans 9, Paul wrote, “It is not as though God’s word had failed. For not all who descended from Israel are Israel. Nor because they are his descendants are they all Abraham’s children.” (vs 6-7) What is Paul talking about?
Paul was talking about being chosen. He was talking about being born again. He was talking about what it means to be saved. And you should know that what he wrote was jaw-dropping and a source of much contention among the Jews of his day.
Many of Paul’s Jewish brothers were waiting for God to keep His promises to them. The first of those promises was made to their forefather Abraham, saying, “Look up at the heavens and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then He said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” Genesis 15:5. The second promise that baffled many Jews was the promise of a Messiah who would save them. In both cases, it appeared to many Jews that they were still waiting for God to fulfill them. This waiting was something they were accustomed to. 42 generations had passed since God made His promise to Abraham. But it might as well have taken 1000 generations; they never would have recognized it. Every promise was fulfilled in Jesus Christ, in whom they did not believe.
Paul’s declaration, “It is not as though God’s word had failed,” is equivalent to saying, “You think nothing has happened yet, but God has already fulfilled His promises, and you missed it.”
God considers you and I descendants of Abraham because we are born again. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we have been saved. We are the children God promised to Abraham as they looked at the stars in the night sky. Thus, Paul states, “It is not the natural children who are God’s children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham’s offspring” (v8). Of course, this was very offensive to the Jews. Not only was Paul declaring that many of them are not included in God’s promise of salvation, but he was also saying that many Gentiles were Abraham’s descendants! How could this be?
It never occurred to the Jews that “descendants” could come to Abraham any other way than the union of a man and a woman. They forgot or ignored the fact that Sarah was barren, but the Lord granted her a child at age 100. Her daughter-in-law, Rebekah, was also barren. Rebekah’s daughter-in-law, Rachel, was also barren, yet a nation came from this line of women. Every step of the way, God miraculously granted conception when there was no hope. He established this history of the Jewish nation to show that He is a faithful God of miracles, and that the fulfillment of His promises would be beyond what any person could conceive or do.
From first to last, salvation is a miracle of God. You are a miracle of God. Before the beginning of time, He chose to save your soul through the gift of faith in His Son. Nothing about who you are is based upon the physical things of this world, but on the promises of God. Nothing that matters in the kingdom of God depends upon the things of this world. We live by faith. “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are all ‘Yes” in Christ. And so through Him the “Amen” is spoken by us…” 2 Cor 1:20