God's Pet
Romans 9:18
"Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth."
Do you remember when you were in school how there seemed to be one student who everyone called the teacher's pet? The reason this student was called this was because they seemed to get away with things that others did not. You could say that the teacher showed them mercy when they would not show others mercy.
How would you like it if you could be God's pet? I know, God has no favorites, but I do believe that God is a merciful God. God's mercy will often cause Him to protect someone from doing things that would cause them much harm in life. This is nothing more than the mercy of God. I can recall in my life many times when God protected me from doing something that would have changed the whole course of my life for the worse. I don't know why God did this other than He is a merciful God. You may wonder how you can obtain this mercy so that you could become God's pet? The answer is found in the previous verse.
First, you need to realize your purpose. Christian, you must realize that God made you for a specific purpose in life. It does not matter what you consider your weakness, God made you with that weakness for a specific purpose. You will never obtain the mercy of God on your life if you are not living according to your purpose. Why should God give mercy to those who are running from the purpose for which they were made? God made you to do something for Him, and when you run from that purpose you are running from the very reason that would cause God to exercise His mercy. When a person sincerely desires to live in the purpose for which they were made, God will protect that person from things or decisions that would pull them away from their purpose. If you want God's mercy on your life, then you need to live to fulfill the purpose for which you were made.
Second, you need to realize your power. You will notice in verse 17 that God raised Pharaoh to show His power through Him. God also made you for a purpose so that His power can be shown through your life. You will never fulfill God's purpose for your life without the power of the Holy Spirit. God's Holy Spirit will empower you to be able to fulfill that purpose. You may think that you can't do it, and you are right; however, with God's power you can fulfill that purpose. This is why you must yield yourself on a daily basis to the power of the Holy Spirit, because only through God's power can you fulfill your purpose. Without God's power you will fail at God's purpose for your life.
Third, you need to realize your source. The biggest reason that Pharaoh did not obtain God's mercy is because he took credit for that which God did. Christian, when God fulfills His purpose in your life, you need to be sure that you give Him the credit. The quickest way to lose God's mercy is to start taking credit for what God does. Always give God the glory for everything that He does in your life.
Being God's pet is accomplished by doing these things. Yes, if you will fulfill the purpose for which God made you through the power of the Holy Spirit, and if you give Him the glory for this work, then you will find God's mercy will protect you from things that will pull you away from His purpose. Anybody can be God's pet, because anybody who will do these things will see God's mercy on their life.