Sermon Study Guide | Series: Inspired and Uncomfortable | Sermon: Why does God choose some and not others?
Scripture: Romans 9:13–24; Genesis 12:1–3; Ephesians 1:4–6
Date: July 13, 2025

CONNECT - “A Personal Reflection”

This section is designed to help you relate personally to the theme of the sermon. It encourages you to reflect on your own life experiences and how they connect to the message.

Have you ever had a moment when your idea of who God is was challenged? Maybe you heard a verse or a teaching that made you wrestle with the version of God you had grown up with or assumed was true. What did that experience stir up in you? Fear? Curiosity? Doubt? Gratitude?

This week, we explore one of the more challenging truths in Scripture—that God chooses. That idea alone can feel unfair or uncomfortable, but it’s actually an invitation to discover a bigger and more beautiful picture of God than we may have imagined. Let’s sit in that tension together, trusting that the same God who reveals mysteries is also the One who saves and sustains us.

ENGAGE - “Exploring the Scripture”

This section invites you to dive into the biblical passage, discuss its meaning, and apply it to your life through thoughtful questions.

• Read Romans 9:21-23 together.  
  
  • Paul invites a tough question here: Is there injustice with God? 
  • How does Paul respond, and what do you think he means by comparing God to a potter and us to clay?
    
    
• Reach Genesis 12:1-3 together
  
  • What’s the significance of God choosing Abraham? 
  • How does that covenant connect with the broader idea of being “chosen” in Ephesians 1?
    

• Consider the phrase “God gets to decide much more than you think, and He isn’t giving you a vote.” 
  
  • How does that idea hit you? Does it feel freeing, frustrating, or something else?
  • Read 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 together
    
    
• How can both of these be true at the same time: God desires that all would be saved (2 Peter 3:9) and God has mercy on whom He wills (Romans 9:18)? 
  
  • How can we live in that mystery without trying to resolve it completely?

APPLY - “Putting the Scriptures into Action”

This section challenges us to take what we’ve learned and implement it in practical ways in our daily lives.

• If you’re someone who has wrestled with feeling “left out” or “not chosen,” how might this week’s teaching shift your perspective toward God’s mercy and grace? Write it down.
  
  
• Are there areas of your life where you still try to negotiate with God? Name them. 
  
  • What would it look like to surrender instead of striving?
    
    
• How might embracing God’s sovereignty deepen your confidence—not only in your salvation but in your witness to others? Think it through.
  
  • How would you share the sovereignty of God in your life with someone else?
    
    
• Consider someone in your life who feels like they are too far from God. How does this message shape the way you pray for them and show up in their life? 
  
  • Write their name down and commit to a week of daily prayer for them. 
  • Call or message them at the end of that week to check in on them.

PRAY - “Seeking God’s Guidance”

This section offers a short prayer to help us center our hearts and invite God to work in our lives through his scripture.

God, You are sovereign and full of mercy. Thank You for choosing to love us not because of our goodness or our efforts, but because of Your grace. Help us to rest in the mystery of Your will and trust that Your ways are higher than ours. Teach us to surrender more fully—to release our need for answers and embrace Your heart instead. Remind us that we are not saved by our strength or knowledge, but by the power of Your love. Use us to reflect that love in a world desperate for hope. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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