Read Romans 10:19-21
We often see people with hardened hearts towards God and the Gospel. Friends and family and wider relatives may have told us not to bring up that religious stuff again. They may have even threatened us with excommunication or loss of certain privileges. We often think that these hardened person are beyond the gospel and we ‘give up’ on them.
But be encouraged! History is full of hardhearted unbelievers who were turned to Christ in repentance and faith. Paul the Apostle is one such example. In his pre-Jesus days he was a Christian hating murderer who devoted his life to purging Christians from the face of the earth. He wanted to wipe out the followers of Jesus. He was an angry and violent blasphemer! But God changed his heart and brought him to Christ in repentance and faith.
The nation of Israel is another case in point. She proved to be hard hearted time and time again. In fact, the entire Old Testament could be seen as the story of the failure of God’s people to live up to God’s calling. Adam and Eve failed in the Garden of Eden and ate from the tree from which they were forbidden to eat. Israel failed in the Promised Land and bowed down to false gods, gods of wood and stone. When the exiled people returned to their homeland they again failed to fully worship God.
It would have been easier for Paul to simply walk away and to use his time to take the good news to others who would listen. But he persevered because he understood Romans 9:15 and 18. It is God who hardens hearts or softens
The plan of God is that Israel will, at least in part, be brought back to God out of their hard heartedness. Like Paul, Israel is not beyond hope. As we’ll see in chapter 11, God’s plan is to bring Israel to Christ by grace. It’s the same plan that God has for the Gentiles!
We too should never think that anyone we know is beyond hope. Hope continues to live while they continue to live. People we know may reject the gospel for years before God grants them a new heart and a mind that yearns for Jesus. Some might even be converted on their death bed. Our job in all of this is to continue praying faithfully and seeking opportunities to share the good news as God opens doors for us. Our job is to live a life that resembles and shines Jesus and as opportunities arise we are to speak Jesus into these people’s lives. One lady I know prayed faithfully for 25 years before her daughter and grand daughter came to faith in Christ. Be faithful and keep praying!
Prayer:
Having read today’s passage and notes jot down various prayer points in each:
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¨ Pray for the people in your life that are hard hearted towards Christ at present. Pray for a new heart to be granted them but also pray that God would use you and your life to model Christ for them. Pray for open doors to preach Christ to them and that you would proclaim it clearly as you should.
¨ Pray that nations where Christians are persecuted, nations such as Nigeria, would see a mass movement towards Christ and that the persecution would subside as more and more people come to Christ in repentance and faith.
Haven’t you ever wondered why we spell Sunday with an ‘o’ and not a ‘u’? The word Sunday was originally named after the Roman sun god. As believers in the glorious Lord Jesus Christ we worship God through Christ. We refuse to worship any other so called god. Christ rose eternally from the dead a day after the Sabbath (ie on Sunday) and that day has often been called, in Christian circles, the Lord’s Day.
Rather than give glory to the Sun god we give glory to the Son who is God, the one who came into our world to save us from our sins. We give glory and honour and worship to the Son because He died for our sins and rose to eternal life for our sakes. We glory in the Son because the Son is the radiance of God’s glory, the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful word.
So rather than writing ‘Sunday’ we write ‘Sonday’ as a courtesy to our Lord and Saviour and to remind ourselves that Sonday is the day we dedicate wholly and solely to the Lord. It’s not the day we give a few hours to the Lord and indulge the rest of it for ourselves, it’s the day we give entirely to the Lord.
Added to this, by using Sonday and not Sunday, we will inevitably be asked why we do this. People will inevitably point out the spelling error and that in itself opens doors for conversation. This has opened up many opportunities to speak of Jesus’ Lordship for me personally.
Don’t let people that are hard hearted to Christ phase you. Keep living for God and keep taking opportunities when they arise.
1. How should you act towards a non believer that remains hard hearted towards Christ?
2. It’s very easy to become proud or conceited when we think of Israel’s failure. How can we guard against this?
3. If you have seen God turn a hard hearted person to Himself, share that story.
Intro: God is loving and gracious and really wants all men to be saved. He yearns for everyone to come to Christ in repentance and faith. If God wants this we should want it too.
Discuss the people in your life who are currently hard towards Christ. Share how you have tried to speak Jesus to them.
Read 1tim 2:3-4
What does God want?
What is our role in this?
What is God’s role in this?
Pray together that many would come to Christ through you.
Intro: God is loving and gracious and really wants all men to be saved. He yearns for everyone to come to Christ in repentance and faith. If God wants this we should want it too.
Discuss the people in your life who are currently hard towards Christ. Share how you have tried to speak Jesus to them.
Read 1tim 2:3-4
What does God want?
What is our role in this?
What is God’s role in this?
Pray together that many would come to Christ through you.
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