His Perfect Love

Matt VanderVen: The great privilege of sharing the gospel in these last days, next on His Perfect Love.

There are people walking around that are ignoring the word of God and the scripture on the days we're living. They don't know how close we are. Jesus is coming again and he's coming soon. There are so many today that are ignorant because they don't know the Bible. And we have the greatest privilege of all. We get to tell them the good news, the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Guest (Male): Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so. We teach the song to our kids, but need to remind ourselves too. Hello, welcome to His Perfect Love. We're making our way through Romans with Pastor Matt VanderVen, and in chapter nine, the topic is God's sovereign working in the world and history, endeavoring to bring us into a loving relationship with him. Yet, some resist. Perhaps there's something holding you back. Here with today's message is Pastor Matt.

Matt VanderVen: Paul's argument through all of chapter nine and honestly part of chapter 10 is all about why Israel, have you rejected the word? I would say why, Christian, have many Christians rejected the word today? Because when we get away from the word, he says faith comes by hearing, hearing by the word of God. It's by the word of God. He's trying to warn not only that generation, but the Holy Spirit uses this for every other generation to come.

We're living in the last days. We need to get our perspective from God's word. We can't trust our own intellect. We can't trust our own emotions. We certainly can't trust what the world is serving up on a platter. It's mental insanity. Let's define it for what it is. Let's call it what it is. It is a debased mind. It's mental insanity that when we think if we do something different, that we're going to end up with a different result than what we see throughout all of the scriptures when we don't walk in the will of God.

So let's continue here. He says, "Therefore, he who has mercy on him whom he wills, he hardens. You will say to me then, why does he still find fault? For who has resisted his will?" But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? He begins to say, how dare you question God? There's a sovereignty here. He's not your pal. He's God.

"Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, why have you made me like this?" Isn't that what we're seeing in this whole transgender and gender argument today? Oh God, why have you made me a male but I'm supposed to be a female? No, biologically you're male and you're meant to be a male. Anything else is mental insanity. We can help you. Don't run away from God, run to him. God can heal the broken heart. He can right the wrong. And it's not that we don't love. We do love. We are to love. We don't ignore someone that's struggling with that and say, oh we don't want nothing to do with it. No, we love them. We love them right to Jesus.

Why have you made me like this? I think of sovereignty, reverence, submission, and humility, all that need to be part of that. But "Does not the potter have the power over the clay, for the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor?" He does that without violating free will. "What if God, wanting to show his wrath and to make his power known, endured with much long-suffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction?" He says, "What if?" It's really not a what if. He does. Why does he allow it? We already read it earlier. "That I've raised you up that I may show my power in you, that my name may be declared in all the earth." That's why he allows it.

Exodus chapter 18, verse 52, Exodus chapter 8, verse 32, both times Pharaoh hardened his own heart. What if, isn't that interesting? "Endured with much long-suffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, that he might make known the riches of his glory in the vessels of his mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory, even us whom he called." Remember, he called all of us, not of the Jews only, but of the Gentiles. He's restating that. "Also as it says in Hosea, I will call them my people who were not my people." He's speaking of Israel. "And her beloved, who was not beloved. And it shall come to pass in the place where it was said to them, you are not my people."

Do you remember Hosea had a son, and one of his sons was Lo-ammi? What's that mean? It means "not my people." That's what it means. I screw up the English, let alone the Hebrew. "There they shall be called the sons of the living God." Praise Jesus. There's a promise to restore. But he reminds them for where they came from. That they weren't a people but they've been made a people, and God has a plan for them. God didn't forget his chosen people, Israel. He's just allowing them to follow their own will, but there'll be a time when he gives them a new heart.

Isaiah also cries out concerning Israel in Isaiah chapter 10, verses 22 and 23. "Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, the remnant will be saved. For he will finish the work and cut it short in righteousness, because the word will make a short work upon the earth." What's he talking about? When he wrote that, he was speaking to Israel who would soon be consumed in the Assyrian battle, the destruction in 722 BC, the Assyrian invasion. Because of why? Because the northern tribes had gone and begun to practice pagan idolatry. They looked more like the world than they did God's chosen people.

That's what he's sharing here. And then he also is going to quote Isaiah 1:9, and that's speaking to the southern tribe. Who is the southern tribe? Judah. He's speaking to Judah and he's going to say, even in the Babylonian invasion, this is going to come, this is going to happen. God prophetically was not only warning them, but he was saying this is the destruction that awaits you when you don't walk in my word.

I pray that an unbeliever today, I pray that a Jew, someone hears this and the scales fall from the eyes and they begin to be set free. I pray this for a believer that has been walking contrary to the will of God for this morning. This isn't to beat anybody down. This word liberates. This word sets free.

And as Isaiah said before, "Unless the Lord of the Sabbath had left us a seed," he's speaking again of a remnant, "we would have become like Sodom." He's saying it could have been a whole lot worse, by the way. "And we would have been made like Gomorrah." What happened to Sodom and Gomorrah? They were destroyed. They began homosexuality, practicing that. They even turned around and consumed themselves with sin, and God destroyed and judged, righteously judged the wickedness. And when Christ comes again, he's coming as a righteous judge.

We need to repent. We need to turn to God. "Well, what shall we say then?" Paul adds. "The Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have attained to righteousness?" He said, what happened here? He said the Jews who had the law, God's chosen people who had the prophets, the entire word of God, he says how is it that the Gentiles who believed without all this understanding, without understanding all of this, how did they come into salvation? And he said they believed by faith. It's the same thing that was accounted to Abraham for righteousness. It was faith. It's always been faith. It's not a new teaching. Oh no, thank you Jesus. You're the Ancient of Days. It's always been about faith, a system of grace.

He says they "have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness of faith." It was found outside the law. "But Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, have not attained to the law of righteousness." Why is that? Because no one fulfilled the law but Jesus Christ. And that's why he's the only one that's able and willing. Look, you may have a lot of friends, but your friends can't save you. Your friends could even go to the cross and be crucified, but they have a sin nature. Before they accepted Jesus Christ, no one but Messiah could have saved us. He who is outside of creation came into creation to set the captives free for those that would call on the name of Jesus Christ and believe and be saved and have newness of life.

Why did Israel reject Messiah? Because they didn't seek it by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. It's the same thing we see today. Many denominations, many religions out there are still setting up works-based mentalities of religion. And none of them draw you closer to Christ. They might keep you busy, but since when has that had anything to do with relationship? "For they stumbled at the stumbling stone." This is powerful. With our remaining time, we're going to finish up here chapter nine. We're going to stop here today, but I'd like to spend our remaining time looking through what this idea of a stumbling stone is.

Let's read the first passage in verse 33 here. It says, "As it's written," he's quoting Isaiah, "Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and a rock of offense, whoever believes on him will not be put to shame." Seems simple enough. Turn in your Bibles to Psalm 118. Again, is this a New Covenant idea? Did God actually prophesy thousands of years ago that when he sent Messiah, that he would be a stumbling stone and that Israel would respond that way? And is it still in the word of God and in the Torah so that they could read this and see the day that this was all prophesied and that God still has a plan of redemption if they would welcome him into their hearts?

He would save them and complete them. Look at Psalm 118, verse 22. "The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone." What's a chief cornerstone or what's a cornerstone? A cornerstone's used to align something, isn't it? What do you think Jesus was aligning us with? Not only with his word, but his plan for salvation. What do you think he was trying to align Israel with? Not that the law could save, but faith in Jesus Christ is the chief cornerstone. And if you align that cornerstone correctly, the foundation has been set and everything is built upon it. He was pointing it out to them. Anybody that's got a building background or a construction background, this should be speaking to your heart. This is elementary in an envelope or a foundation or a footer. I mean, the chief cornerstone, he's telling us what it's all foundational.

He was trying to help them. "This was the Lord's doing," it actually says. Do you see that? This was the Lord's doing, much like Pharaoh, who hardened the heart. "It's marvelous in our eyes. This is the day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it." And then what does he say right after that in verse 25? It's where we get Hosanna in the Hebrew or what do we say, Hosanna? But what does that mean? It means "save now." As Jesus was making his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, what were they crying out? Hosanna, Hosanna. They were crying out, why? Save now. They recognized him as the King of Kings and the Lords of Lords, Messiah, save now. They understood this. They quoted this very passage.

The religious leaders, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the scribes, they all heard it because they were angry and says, why do you get the people upraising like this? And what does he say? He says if they didn't do that, these very stones would cry out. Did he not say that? He says these very stones, there's no way you could deny it. Why was he pointing them back to Psalm 118? Save now. He was showing them, I'm that cornerstone that was prophesied. Receive me that you might be saved.

He didn't do this in secret. This mystery was revealed. And Paul's going to talk more about that. Look also in your Bibles at Isaiah chapter 8. Look at verse 14. And again, this is when Isaiah was talking about the Assyrian invasion and what would be coming predominantly to the northern tribes. Look at verse 14. "He will be as a sanctuary, but a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense." What do we often say today? Jesus is an offense to many, right? "To both the houses of Israel." He says actually to both houses of Israel. What's he speaking of? Judah and obviously the northern and southern tribes. "To both the houses of Israel, as a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And many among them shall stumble, they shall fall and be broken, be snared and taken. Bind up this testimony, seal the law among my disciples and I will wait on the Lord."

You see, he was telling them this is coming. This is what they were to be looking for. It should have been like neon when they started to reject him and want to murder him. Some of the high priests and some of the religious leaders should have looked and said, this was prophesied. It wasn't what they expected Messiah to come and establish his earthly kingdom the way that they thought they would overthrow Rome because of the oppression. Israel had always been under oppression really since 722 BC and then thereafter. Really from that time on, they're under some type of control of someone, whether it's Assyria or eventually Babylon or even in the intertestamental period, the silent times, Antiochus Epiphanes comes in, desolates the temple and then thereafter Christ comes, but who are they under oppression under then? Rome. They were under oppression.

It was not that Christ was going to come to establish the kingdom the way they thought initially, because they thought he's going to overthrow Rome and they were going to crown him King. John chapter six. But what was he saying here? He's saying this is what you look for when Messiah comes. Many are not going to believe. It's going to be a rock of offense. They should have said, but this was prophesied. Isaiah said this would happen. And this is what Paul is making very clear to them that in chapter 10 especially, he's going to really bring that out in verses 15 and on through 20. He's going to say, but they ignored my scripture. They ignored my word. They didn't know.

Friends, why is this important to us today? Because there are people walking around that are ignoring the word of God and the scripture on the days we're living. They don't know how close we are. Jesus is coming again and he's coming soon. There are so many today that are ignorant because they don't know the Bible. And you know what? We have the greatest privilege of all. We get to tell them the good news, the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Look at Isaiah chapter 28, look at verse 16. A cornerstone in Zion. "Therefore, thus says the Lord, behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation. Whoever believes will not act hastily." Look at that. That's incredibly powerful. Turn to Matthew chapter 21, verse 42. What about when Jesus Christ was physically manifested on the earth? Did he give a testimony right before them, specifically when his authority was being questioned? We just read, I just had brought us to Matthew chapter 22 if you remember. So now I'm back up a couple of verses. The context is the same. They're questioning Jesus's authority. They're questioning how he does the things he's doing.

Look at verse 42. What does he say? Jesus said to them, "Have you never read the scriptures? The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord's doing, and it's marvelous in our eyes. Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. And whoever falls on this stone will be broken, but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder." And for a moment, and we don't want to be too hard on the Pharisees or the scribes for that matter, but for one moment they get it. Look at verse 45. "Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard his parable, they perceived that he was speaking of them."

So it's not a misunderstanding. It's not a matter of, well, they weren't tracking. Oh no, they were tracking. What does that called when scripture clearly says this is the will of God and you follow something contrary to that? You're doing what's right in your own eyes. You're not following the will of God. It's never been about a lack of knowledge, friends. It never has. It's a battle of wills. It's either going to be his will or your will be done. And that's why he told us pray his will be done.

And because of that, we'll conclude with 1 Peter 2:7. And once again to the church, he writes this even to the church. He wants to remind them and encourage them because I imagine as they were being martyred and many of them losing friends and loved ones, maybe children, spouses, different things like that, maybe they began to doubt. Did we get this right? Well, what's he say to them in 1 Peter chapter 2, verse 7? Really you can back up to 6, he requotes Isaiah again. "Therefore it is also contained in the scripture, behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect and precious, and he who believes in him will by no means be put to shame." Isn't that the truth?

"Therefore to you who believe, he is precious." Those who believe on the name of Christ, he is so precious to us. Isn't he? We love him. He's everything to us. He says he is precious, "but to those who are disobedient, the stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. They stumble being disobedient to the word," to which they were also appointed. Peter's pointing this out, that they've rejected the word.

But then he reminds us who we are and what our role is in this. We're going to read this and then we're going to stand and pray and ask for God to give us boldness this morning because he says, "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a peculiar as I like to use the word from the King James in the Textus Receptus, but as you read in your Bible, a precious, a special people. A royal priesthood, a holy nation, his own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light, who once were not a people but now are the people of God who have obtained," there it is again, what was it? "Mercy." He will have mercy on whom he chooses to have mercy on. He will show favor unto whom he shows favor. "But have now obtained that mercy." Amen.

Guest (Male): Well thanks for joining us today for His Perfect Love. You can hear this study from Pastor Matt VanderVen again when you visit hisperfectlove.org. Catch up on what you may have missed in Romans at hisperfectlove.org. Look for us on oneplace.com and most of the major podcast platforms. The Calvary Chapel Harrisburg mobile app is another great way to listen to Pastor Matt's messages shortly after they're delivered. We can help you get started when you visit hisperfectlove.org.

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Men, mark your calendars for the Men of Calvary Conference 2026 at Calvary Chapel Harrisburg West Shore. Join us on Saturday, September 19th for a powerful day centered on the theme "Unity in Faith," based on Ephesians 4:12 through 13. Connect with other men through worship, biblical teaching, prayer, fellowship, and encouragement as we grow stronger together in Christ. The conference will be held at Calvary Chapel Harrisburg West Shore, 28 North Locust Point Road in Mechanicsburg. Registration is just $20 and includes breakfast and lunch. Register today at ccharrisburg.org. That's ccharrisburg.org. Men of Calvary Conference 2026, United in Faith, Strong in Christ. And then we'll come back to our study of Romans next time on His Perfect Love with Pastor Matt. See you then and God bless.