Ignorant Of God’s Mystery Series

INTRO.- ILL.- Professional golfer Tommy Bolt was playing in Los Angeles and had a caddy with a reputation of constant chatter. Before they teed off, Bolt told him, "Don't say a word to me. And if I ask you something, just answer yes or no." During one round, Bolt found the ball next to a tree, where he had to hit under a branch, over a lake and onto the green. He got down on his knees and looked through the trees and sized up the shot.

"What do you think?" he asked the caddy. "Five-iron?" "No, Mr. Bolt," the caddy said. "What do you mean, not a five-iron?" Bolt snorted. "Watch this shot." The caddy rolled his eyes. "No-o-o, Mr. Bolt."

But Bolt hit it and the ball stopped about two feet from the hole. He turned to his caddy, handed him the five-iron and said, "Now what do you think about that? You can talk now." "Mr. Bolt," the caddy said, "that wasn't your ball."

I don’t know much about golf, but I think I’d know which ball belongs to me. In life, we all need to be smart enough to know which ball belongs to whom and where the ball is or who has the ball. Ignorance is something that affects us all, just on different subjects. I know some things you don’t know and you know many things I don’t know. And the worst ignorance of all deals with God.

ILL.- Kenny Boles is a Greek teacher at Ozark Christian College. And Greek is all greek to me, meaning I don’t understand it. Even though Kenny Boles knows the Greek language he doesn’t use much of it in his preaching, not in the sense of constantly throwing Greek words at the audience. In fact, Kenny told me one time that he prepares all his sermons for the Jr. High age level. He says that way his sermons reach all ages and if you’ve ever heard him preach you would know this is the truth. HE’S EXCELLENT.

Our text is about the mystery that deals with the salvation of the Jewish people Are they saved? Will they be saved? This text, however, gives us some ideas.

PROP.- The mystery of God about the salvation of the Jews.

1- God’s plan

2- God’s mercy

3- God’s wisdom

4- God’s glory

I. GOD’S PLAN

25 I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob. 27 And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins.”

ILL. - British sculptor Sir Jacob Epstein was once visited in his studio by the eminent author and fellow Briton, George Bernard Shaw. The visitor noticed a huge block of stone standing in one corner and asked what it was for. "I don't know yet. I'm still making plans." Shaw was astounded. "You mean you plan your work. Why, I change my mind several times a day!" "That's all very well with a four-ounce manuscript," replied the sculptor, "but not with a four-ton block."

It doesn’t make any difference whether it’s a paper manuscript or or a four-ton block of stone when it comes to God. God change anything, any time. And it’s nice that God does have a good plan for mankind. God changed His mind early on in the history of the human race. Do you remember?

Genesis 6:5-7 5 The Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. 6 The Lord was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. 7 So the Lord said, “I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth—men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air—for I am grieved that I have made them.”

It’s nice to know that God has a good plan for mankind. His plan called for Jesus to come to earth in a human form and become a sacrifice for our sins so we could be saved in eternity. WHAT A GREAT AND GRACIOUS PLAN! For God so loved the World!!!

God also had and has a plan for the people of Israel.

25 I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob.