Slices
Prepare
Do you ever feel in a minority as a Christian? Reflect on this often-used saying: ‘one with God is a majority’.
Bible passage
The remnant of Israel
11 I ask then: did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew. Don’t you know what Scripture says in the passage about Elijah – how he appealed to God against Israel: 3 ‘Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars; I am the only one left, and they are trying to kill me’? 4 And what was God’s answer to him? ‘I have reserved for myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal.’ 5 So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace. 6 And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.
7 What then? What the people of Israel sought so earnestly they did not obtain. The elect among them did, but the others were hardened, 8 as it is written:
‘God gave them a spirit of stupor,
eyes that could not see
and ears that could not hear,
to this very day.’
9 And David says:
‘May their table become a snare and a trap,
a stumbling-block and a retribution for them.
10 May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see,
and their backs be bent for ever.’
Explore
God had not rejected his own people, but they had rejected him (vs 1,2; 10:21). For Jewish believers (and Christians today) there is hope in the Old Testament story of Elijah (1 Kings 19:10,14). The prophet, in his faithless society, felt as if he was the only believer left (v 3). Yet God told him he wasn’t on his own (v 4); there were many who remained faithful to him, dependent on his grace (v 5).
The coming of Jesus didn’t mean that Jews were cut off from God (10:21). For Jew and Gentile alike there are many today who do not come to him because they are blind and deaf to the good news God offers (v 8). Paul’s quote from Psalm 69 (v 9) was originally about the Israelites’ enemies, but here Paul swaps the meaning around to point to the Jews who were rejecting Christ. Their works and burdens of ritual weren’t going to help them in knowing God (vs 9,10). But the faithful ‘remnant’ were (and still are) being saved by God’s grace (vs 5,6).
On your own at work or in your family? Here’s reassurance – there are other believers, and God sees your faithfulness. You are not alone.
Respond
Ask God to reassure you of his presence with you now, and to help you to find the encouragement of other believers.
Bible in a year
Read the Bible in a year: 2 Chronicles 3–5; Galatians 5
Pray for Scripture Union
Join Sharon Esnard, Director of Finance and Services, in giving thanks as she approaches her one-year anniversary of joining the SU staff team. Pray that God will give her wisdom in decisions that she needs to make and that as we finalise our year end audit things will run smoothly.
