Romans 11:13-15
Can a noble act be misunderstood? When you look in the Scriptures at the life
of Jesus Christ, is there anyone more misunderstood? His acts of kindness, His message, and the
people He chose to carry the message of God’s love for a world basking in sin
and death. What about the cross, and
what about His birth, all of the above were misinterpreted by the very people
who were the most learned, the scribes and the Pharisees.
The rejection of
Jesus by His own people from a Gentile viewpoint was a door that allows this
Gentile to enter; by God’s grace and by the faith God has given us to enter
into a relationship with God the Father and the Son, and to have the Holy
Spirit as our Counselor, and Helper.
The apostle Paul gives us the analogy of branches being
broken off of a good olive tree, and we the Gentiles are referred to as a wild
olive shoot being grafted into the good tree.
“Now if
some of the branches were broken off, and you, though a wild olive branch, were
grafted in among them and have come to share in the rich root of the cultivated
olive tree, do not brag that you are better than those branches. But if you do
brag—you do not sustain the root, but the root sustains you. Then you will say,
“Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” True enough; they
were broken off by unbelief, but you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but be
afraid. For if God did not spare the natural branches, He will not spare you
either. Therefore, consider God’s kindness and severity: severity toward those
who have fallen but God’s kindness toward you—if you remain in His kindness.
Otherwise you too will be cut off. And even they, if they do not remain in
unbelief, will be grafted in, because God has the power to graft them in again.
For if you were cut off from your native wild olive and against nature were
grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these—the natural
branches—be grafted into their own olive tree?”
It is clear we were grafted in because of the Jewish peoples
trespasses and salvation has been open to us, but it is still by God’s grace,
and the faith God gives to each of us.
The root of the tree of Life is Jesus, and it is by Him and through Him
you live and have been blessed, so do not become arrogant, but share this hope
you have found in Jesus.
If you are a follower of Christ living in the USA you are
blessed, but do not let your blessing of money and the stuff it will buy steal
the real wealth you have in Christ. I
found this quote and the author is not known, “Being
wealthy isn’t all about having what money can buy. Having all that money can buy is being rich
but having what money cannot buy is being wealthy.”
From the Back Porch,
Bob Rice
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