Read: Romans 9:14-24; Jeremiah 18:1-6
Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?” (Rom. 9:20)
When I first met my wife, she told me her older sister “throws pots.” New in the relationship, I didn’t ask her what this meant—but of course, it meant the act of molding the clay on a potter’s wheel.
Reading Romans from back to front helps us understand the context of Romans 9-11. Paul’s focus here is not on individual election, but rather on God’s great salvation story. Paul explained that Israel’s failure to believe was like Pharaoh in the exodus story resisting the liberation of Israel (9:17). God could have taken Israel and thrown her away, like a finished piece of pottery that doesn’t pass inspection. However, Paul envisioned a scene much earlier in the creative process, when Israel, as God’s clay, is reshaped into something beautiful. Israel’s failure to believe and follow the Messiah would not lead to Israel being broken and tossed aside. Instead, there would be a reshaping of salvation history so that the Gentiles are included with Jewish brothers and sisters in the one family of God.
The Jewish believers in Jesus complained that God was not fair, bypassing Israel and welcoming a great number of Gentiles. Paul argued that God remolds his people precisely because God is faithful to them. The reshaping of Israel is the means by which God brings his salvation glory to the nations (v. 23). The same holds true for us today: How are we recognizing and celebrating God’s shaping work throughout the global church?
As you pray, give thanks for God’s shaping work for all believers.
Kent Fry is a retired pastor and visiting research fellow at the Van Raalte Institute in Holland, Michigan. He and his wife, Joyce, are active members of Second Reformed Church in Zeeland, Michigan. Kent is an active cyclist, and he and Joyce enjoy time with their children and grandchildren.
