MattGlover.com

After making it through the 40 Days of Community program and a fairly hefty Easter, we returned to our series on Romans last Sunday night. This time it was Romans 11:11-24 where Paul uses the illustation of grafting to explain the relationship between the Jews and the non-Jews in the Roman church.

As a recap, the new Christian church in Roman was a mixed bunch of people. Paul was writing to them to encurage and instruct on how to live life as a follower of Jesus. Up to this point, he has laid a strong theological foundation and now begins to turn the corner and describe what that means practically. But there is one more thing he needs to tackle first.

It seems that the Jews and Gentiles still have a fair bit of rivalry happening. This time it is the Gentiles that are out of step - they want to leave behind all of the Jewish stuff and just get on with this new way of living. But, Jewish heritage is part of the Christian faith and it was very important to Paul.

The Jews were the people chosen to tell the story of God through history and Paul likens them to an olive tree. AS the story of God unfolded, it was clear that the story was good news for more than just the Jews, so new branched began to be grafted onto the olive tree. Some of the native branches were removed because they had rejected the story - God the gardener was doing some pruning.

Anyway, Paul had a great love for his Jewish brothers and sisters and desperately wanted them to come back to God. It was his hope that the Gentiles coming to faith would make the Jews envious and force them to look at themselves and return their calling. The Gentiles, Paul says, should have the same regard for the Jews instead of wanting to turn their backs on them completely.

I only know a hadful of Jewish people. The ones I know are Christians anyway, so the whole Jewish thing is not a big deal. While the Jewish heritage to my faith plays some part in what I believe (Jesus was a Jew remember!) it doesn’t impact me on a conscious level. My heritage lies elsewhere - with my family.

At different times I’ve wanted to walk away from my extended family as they’ve done and said things that have come up against what I believe. Surely it would be easier to cut ties with them altogether and make God’s family my primary support? But that attitude makes me no different to the Gentiles in the Roman church. The fact is that God loves my family in the same way God loves me.

God desperately wants my family to come to faith and be part of the community of his people, regardless of what I think about them or what they’ve done to me. That can be really hard to hear. When there is pain, hurt or even abuse, it is tempting to want to pray that they will all end up in hell for the sins they have committed against us. Yet, this is not God’s way. Forgiveness and grace is…

Jesus told the dicsiples to tell his story, starting in their home town and moving out from their. It is right for us to be involved in mission to our communities and go on short term mission trips overseas, but we should never neglect the mission to our homes. We should pray for them or, at the very least, ask others to do so.

And that’s how we ended our time together. We gathered around the communion table, god’s table, as the community of God’s people. As we took some bread and juice, we prayed for those members of our families that should be gathered around the table, but have yet to do so. And we silently committed ourelves to not turn our backs on them.

May those prayers continue and may those prayers be answered!