ENCOURAGEMENT FOR THE DAY

Confirming What's Already There

Romans 9:17-18
For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: "I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth." Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.

Don't feel too badly for Pharaoh. Scripture tells us twenty times Pharaoh's heart was hardened: Ten by God and ten by Pharaoh himself. What isn't quite as evident from our passage today is when God hardened Pharaoh's heart, the Lord only confirmed what was already there -- a lack of compassion and willingness to submit to His divinity and power. It didn't matter whether the Word of God was being preached to him, or numerous miracles were being performed around him. Pharaoh still chose to harden his heart.
This really worries me as I look around my own community. No one wants to hear about the Lord. It seems everyone's mind is made up. Their hearts are hardened. When I was younger there was more openness, but no longer. Only in tragedy are eyes sometimes turned toward God. Is it out of desperation? Perhaps. My greatest concern is when heartbreak, trouble, turmoil, stress, or calamity appear in life -- will a heart be too hardened to allow God to ease the suffering? Will the Lord finally harden a heart and by doing so confirm what is already there?

Is it ever too late to turn toward God? Is it too late for your neighbor? What about the guy who sits next to you at work? Only God knows when it's too late, but it is still our responsibility to offer testimony of God's forgiveness and mercy in our own lives. When the Spirit urges, do you speak of your faith or do you believe your words will fall on deaf ears, so why bother? No life is unredeemable or worthless. To whom do you need to speak regarding Jesus?