Pride cometh before the fall – Romans 11:19-23

Romans 11:19-23 (ESV)
Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear. For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off. And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again.

What is the cure to pride?

Fear.

In our natural, sinful selves, most of us have a tendency to become proud. It may not be pride as you often think of it either, but something more insidious and subtle.

Obvious pride is someone who walks around with their head held high, willing to promote to any and all their high station in life, be that learning, or wealth, or good looks, or many other things. Pride can even be the monk who walks down the street in 15 year old tattered robes, proud he is living a ‘holy life’ above all the ‘common rabble’. Pride comes in many forms.

But there is a more subtle pride, the pride of salvation.

Walking down the street you might see a guy with a cigarette in one hand, bottle of cheap wine in the other, drunk and swearing at a lamp post – and you think to yourself, thank God I am not like that man.

Driving to church you see a guy shoot past you on the freeway in his expensive European convertible, hair blowing in the wind so all the world can see him and his car and his riches, and you say thank God I am saved, not like that sinner.

After church you talk with friends and hear the latest gossip about an elder caught doing wrong, and you say to your friends thank God I am a true Christian, and don’t do those things.

Do you see it? Subtle, insidious pride sneaking into our lives. We become proud that we are saved, and therefore we are ‘better’ than everyone else because of it. Yes, maybe we do have higher moral standards – but what are they really? Yes, we do honor God (or at least think we do), but why do we do it?

We do it because we were saved by Jesus Christ, when there was nothing that we could have done to save ourselves. We were, and some of us still are, dirty, rotten sinners. There was nothing at all that God would want from us, because there was no value left in us at all. It was only at His work, at His call that a way was made for us to become the people we are today. And yet, there is a path back to that life of sin and condemnation – spiritual pride.

So remember, it was not you who saved yourself – but Jesus. And it is not you who maintains and guides your life – it is Jesus. It was not you that made you a ‘good person’ – it is only by the blood of Jesus that we have been freed from our sins, and it is through the blood of Jesus that the rest of the world can be freed as well.

Lord God, help us not to be proud of our salvation, as if it was something we achieved through our own strength and will. Teach us what it truly means to be humble, and direct all glory to you, in Jesus Name, Amen.

Who supports who? Romans 11:17-18

Romans 11:17-18 (ESV)
But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you.

An interesting question to ask yourself is – am I essential to the Kingdom of God?

The answer, which comes quickly, should be ‘no’.

You are not essential. Wanted? Yes. Loved? Yes. More important than the other members?

Not so much.

God loves you, and God has called you to do something for Him, for His glory. To do that, He has also empowered you, and gifted you. He supports you continually, that you can do what you are called to do.

But do you see the key there? He supports you. He gifted you. He empowers you. Some of us, especially those of us who might stand up in front of a congregation and preach or teach, might be tempted to think of ourselves as more important than others. Maybe you are the worship leader, or you are an elder, a member of the board. These are things that God has gifted to you to do for His glory.

The moment it becomes your glory rather than His, you are no longer doing it for God – you are doing it for yourself. The moment you think of yourself more highly than others, any others at all, you have exalted yourself higher than you truly are. Even worse, you are claiming what God has given you as your own, and therefore setting yourself higher than God!

Romans 12:3-5 (ESV)
For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.

God has called you and gifted you for something – so do that something in all humility, knowing that it is for God’s glory, not your own. For the moment you exalt yourself, God can empower, gift and equip someone else for that work that you do. You are but a branch, and it is still the root that supports you.

Heavenly father, help us to all be humble, trusting in you always. Teach us not to be proud of the things that we do, falsely thinking we have done them in our own strength, with our own wisdom and our own power, but remind us constantly that it is through You that our strength comes, it is through you that our talents come, it is through you that we are daily empowered to do what You have called. Help us to direct all glory to you as is fitting, rather than try and steal it for ourselves. Help us to be humble, and not to think more highly of ourselves than we should. Convict us that we might be right before you, rather than trying to be exalted before others. In Jesus Name. Amen.

Life from the dead! Romans 11:13-15

Romans 11:13-15 (ESV)
Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them. For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead?

What is the power of the Gospel?

It is able to bring to life that which is dead.

What was Paul’s focus in his lifetime of ministry? His sole focus, his overriding goal, was to bring the good news of Jesus Christ, His life, death and resurrection from the dead, to as many people as possible. Even Paul knew that he was called primarily to work with the gentiles, despite his life and experience as a Jew. But despite his primary calling, he never failed to keep his ‘family’ close to his heart. Though he shared with the gentiles, he always wanted his message to also be clear to the Jews, and made it clear he prayed regularly that their eyes would also be opened to the truth of Jesus.

Even as Paul had a massive ministry, travelling around the Roman empire, speaking to churches, slaves, kings and governors alike, he still wanted to share more. He remained faithful to his ministry – he didn’t shirk the responsibility of what he was called to do to follow his ‘pet project’, but kept a heart also for his own people, that some of them might also be saved.

What an example! Paul didn’t see one person saved and thought ‘that is enough’. He didn’t see 100 people saved, and claim ‘I’ve reached the highest level’. He continually preached the good news of Jesus Christ to all people, in the hope that as many would be saved as possible. Why?

Jesus has the power to bring to life that which is dead – and through personal experience, that was the heart of Paul’s ministry.

Almighty God, thank you for your servant Paul, who can be an example to us in faith and life, living what You had called him to do, and always striving to bring Your message to as many people as possible. Help us to be like Paul, not in identical ministry, but zealous in the area you have called us, and always wanting for more people to hear your good news and be saved. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Israel’s Place – Romans 11:7-12

Romans 11:7-12 (ESV)
What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.” And David says, “Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a retribution for them; let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and bend their backs forever.”

So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous. Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion mean!

On first reading, this is a pretty harsh section regarding Israel from Paul. If we were to quickly ‘gloss over’ it with our eyes, we would think that undue hard punishment has been placed on the nation of Israel.

But what is it really saying? The first section is pretty clear – God, in His foreknowledge, hardened those who weren’t going to believe. But the rest is much more insightful.

Firstly, it is through the stumbling of much of Israel over Jesus (1 Cor 1:23) that the Gospel then was preached to those of us who are not in the bloodlines of the Jews. For in the great commission that we have heard so often, First the Gospel was to be preached to the Jews, then the Samaritans (who were essentially what is left of the other 10 tribes of Israel), and then the rest of the earth (Acts 1:8).

Secondly, and more importantly, Paul is drawing us back to both the remnant of Israel, and their future roles that are still promised! Yes, Israel still has an important place to play in our world, and in world history. Even when we look at the news now (which I admit to doing less and less), you can see that Israel remains a focus all over the world.

Let’s have a quick review of some facts about Israel (the nation). It has a population of around 7 Million, which is 1/10th of 1 percent (.01%) of the world’s population. I would call that ‘statistically insignificant’ (this is not an insult, but an observation that such a small point of a percentage in any number is generally insignificant. For example, if you had $100, and lost 10 cents, this is the same comparison – its still a loss, but you still have $99.90 of your initial $100). Interestingly enough, it also has around the same percentage (0.01%) of the world’s landmass enclosed in its borders.

So how does a country that is so small, with such a small population in comparison to others, take up so much of the world stage, and continually figure in so much of the world news? How does a population that is smaller than inner city New York (8 million) and just over a third of the population of the full New York metropolitan area take up so much ‘space’ in this world?

Because God has chosen it to be so. The nation of Israel was at one time specifically God’s chosen people – and the rest of the world has never forgotten, or forgiven. Despite being having a population that could be called not much more than a ‘rounding error’, they remain the centre of attention of a world that knows God, but refuses to admit it.

And this is what Paul is talking about. Many of the Jews have rejected Jesus, and that has meant riches for the rest of the world. But there is still a plan for the nation of Israel that will see them once again come back to God, and find Jesus, their prophesied Messiah. And when that happens we will all be amazed.

Almighty God, thank you that Your good news has spread throughout the world, starting with Your chosen nation of Israel. We can all see that your hand is still active in Israel, and that you still have plans to use them in the world for Your glory. Teach us not to show partiality towards them, but treat them as you treat us, as a people loved by God, despite our sins. Guide us in Your Word we pray in Jesus Name. Amen.

The Remnant of Grace – Romans 11:1-6

Romans 11:1-6 (ESV)
I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he appeals to God against Israel? “Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life.” But what is God’s reply to him? “I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace.

We know that in the Old Testament times, salvation was through the nation of Israel. One thing that we often don’t think about though – was all of Israel saved? It’s certainly something I’ve never really spent much time thinking about – I just think of the nation as ‘covered’ under the Mosaic Law, with the temple and their rituals of feasts and sacrifices.

So since salvation came through this chosen nation of Israel, was everyone’s sin forgiven, and did they all see God?

The answer is quite obviously no. Whilst salvation did come through the Israelites, culminating in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, still only those that followed God were saved. Within the nation of Israel you could say it was like the world now – there are some Christians, and there are plenty of non Christians. In that time, there were some who followed and honored God by following the law through as recorded in the books of Moses, and plenty who did not. You have only got to take a look through the Historical records through Joshua and the Kings, to see hundreds of examples of a people who weren’t interested in what God had for them.

What is Paul’s point though? That the promises given to Abraham are not null and void now that salvation is available to all through Jesus, not through the Mosaic law. When was the promise given to Abraham? It was before the Law. All through the history of Israel there was only ever a portion of people who truly followed God – and there remains even now, a group of ‘true Israelites’ who follow Jesus and are saved. Paul was one of the first generation of these believers, and so was part of the continuation of God’s chosen people.

So what then can we take away from this? Firstly, that God is not done with the nation of Israel, and He still preserves through grace a remnant of people who are loyal to Him – just as He has always done.

And if you want to take it a little further, even when it looks like there is nothing left of the Church – when all of the world seems determined to race down the wide road to eternal punishment and hell, that God has a remnant, set aside for Him, that worships and honors Him.

So trust in God. He knows what He is doing, and He will preserve you, and those around you, for His glory and purpose. Sure, you may have absolutely no idea what is happening, or why, and where all of the true Christians are gone, but God has it in control, and it will turn out for Good.

Lord God, how amazing it is for us to look on Your grace and know that we are part of your remnant, part of the people chosen by You in Your foreknowledge as vessels of grace, as ministers to you in a fallen world. Teach us to live in Your will, guide us in Your will, and help us to truly know that You are sovereign and in control. In Jesus Name, Amen.