“When I think of all this, I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus for the benefit of you Gentiles… assuming, by the way, that you know God gave me the special responsibility of extending his grace to you Gentiles. As I briefly wrote earlier, God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me. As you read what I have written, you will understand my insight into this plan regarding Christ. God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now by his Spirit he has revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets.”
God’s plans are a mystery, and I cannot begin to explain to you why God has done certain things in a certain order any better than Paul can. So let’s start with what we know: God chose people. He first offered his grace to the Jewish people, at times sparing non-Jewish people groups in Old Testament times as well, and through Jesus extended grace to the whole world.
We don’t always know how things will turn out in life. Sometimes even when we think we know the plan, there are things that come later we never expected. Or sometimes a story seems over until God opens a door that didn’t seem possible. We don’t always understand, but we do know that God loves giving gifts and offering grace.
Here’s your freedom for today: God is an includer. There is room for you at God’s table, no matter what your background or who you are. Grace is offered to you. We forget that grace is by definition undeserved. You don’t have to earn it or do something to get it. God is more than able to embrace you in whatever filthy condition you show up in. And he’s more interested in loving you than making you look good on the outside. He doesn’t want to fix you, he wants to bring you to a place where you are totally free. It’s a mystery, but God wants me and you for all of eternity.