Vessels of Wrath, Vessels of Mercy

Had an interesting talk with a Christian brother of mine at a local pub with some of other of our buddies from our bible study (I was not drinking however).  We had talked on many subjects relating to God and marriage, community, etc.  One discussion that stuck with me was on predestination.  It's one of John Calvin's main tenants and a topic that has been in debate in this Christian world for a long time.  I hadn't really heard of some of the scriptural references of this idea until that night.  My buddy brought up Romans 8-9, specifically in Romans 9.  Calvinists take this passage and postulate that God decides whom is he wants to save and whom is will not be saved, that god predetermines our fate, negating our free will to chose his grace.  I pondered the thought and can see where they might come to this conclusion based on the scripture's face value.  But all scripture must stand up against its context and other parts of God's word as well. 

I decided to ask a former pastor of mine to shed some light on the other side of the debate.  He states the passage referring to 'vessels of wrath' and 'vessels of mercy' refer back to Jeremiah 18:1-10. Paul in Romans is responding to the claim from the Jews that they are the 'chosen people', justified by their obedience  under the law.  But, God is just to blind an already rebellious people (Israel), referring to the potter analogy from Jeremiah, hence 'vessels of wrath'.  He is stating to the Romans that they, too, can be 'vessels of mercy'.  God is sovereign through Christ Jesus all can be made into righteous vessels, Jews and gentiles alike.  Admittedly I am still a little confused about this debate, and would love some feedback.  Let me know (from scripture) what you think. God Bless.

Collossians 4:2-6

Today Pastor Rob took us through some more on Paul's letter to the Collossians.  We are continuing to dive into Collossians and understand more about the ways Jesus is enough for us.  Today we talk about how He's enough for our mobility as a church.  Paul talks about how we need God to help us to better our speech in mobilizing the Church and the Gospel to others.  In doing so, we must rely on Him to seek opportunities to talk to  others.  When we find those opportunities we have to use the right speech to communicate with Love and effectiveness.  Man has done a good job in distorting the message of Christ to the world with anger, fear, and unenthusiastic messages.  It should be an amazing message that communicates Love and forgiveness and a hope for their lives.  Paul also touches on praying for others in the faith that suffer persecution because of the Gospel message.  Without God's leading we cannot effectively proclaim this to others.  Only God truly save others.  We are the hands and feet of Christ, but only through His leading can we really know what to say and how to share His message.  I pray that all of you out there in cyberspace can learn more about Jesus and what He has to offer in your life.  For more on this message, read the Vintage blog on the right sidebar of my blog.  It has updates from all Rob's sermons.  'Till next time. Blessings.

James.