A Reflection from Sunday's Sermon

My pastor is teaching through the book of Romans, and we have just entered the explosive 9th chapter.
Yesterday we went through the first five verses. But before Greg began this teaching and analysis of this chapter, he, last week, gave his testimony of how the Lord saved him. Greg wanted to identify with us, his sheep, and allow us to see his heart's affections for the Lord and for the people of God.

And this is what Paul does in the first 5 verses before he explains the sovereingty of God through the next few paragraphs.
Paul says, "I have great heaviness, and continual sorrow in my heart."
Paul also says, and this is amazing, "I wish I could be accursed from Christ for my brothers".
What affection he has here. Astounding really.

I am nowhere near to having a heart like this heart. Paul would have been cursed for his Jewish brothers. This is tremendous and I pray that the Lord would shape my heart like Paul's.
I believe Paul had only one higher affectionate heartfelt burden, and that would be the Gospel being kept pure, which IS Christ Himself.
Paul said in Galatians the first chapter, "If any one preaches a different Gospel, even an angel, or even myself, then let them be accursed."
Here Paul says let me be accursed if I preach a perverted Gospel. In Romans he said I wish I could be accursed for those who are lost and don't believe the gospel. What an amzaing man he was. I'm looking forward to meeting this great man of God, who lived by faith through grace, and with such love for Christ, His church, and for those who were lost.

May the Lord grant us hearts like Paul's, for if the Church would have such affections for the Gospel and the lost, then I believe we would see the power of God like we never thought we could see it move upon this earth.

I'm looking forward to these next few weeks of hearing Romans nine preached and taught by my pastor, Greg Dutcher. It is a deep portion of Scripture, and I pray it will stir us up, and manifest God as God in a bigger and more genuine light than we have ever seen Him.