What does it mean to truly belong to God? In this sermon on Romans 9, Pastor Mengsteab follows the Apostle Paul’s aching love for his own people and uncovers a startling truth: the true Israel is not defined by bloodline but by faith. Through the surprising story of Jacob and Esau, we see that our place in God’s family rests entirely on His grace and His call, never on our own works, and that the same Savior who bore the cross for Paul bears it for us.
This episode centers on the Epistle reading, Romans 9:1-13, with the sermon also drawing on Romans 7, Hebrews 11, and the Great Commission of Matthew 28:19-20. The Sunday lectionary readings were the Old Testament from Isaiah 55:1-5, the Epistle from Romans 9:1-13, and the Holy Gospel from Matthew 14:13-21.
Along the way the message explores God’s election by grace, the difference between the children of the flesh and the children of the promise, a heart of evangelism that presses on despite rejection, the comfort of being declared righteous from the cross, and the assurance that adopts believers of every nation into the Israel of God.
