Tuesday, August 22, 2017

New Branches; Old Trees

Tuesday, August 22, 2017
Notice how God is both kind and severe.  He is severe toward those who disobeyed, but kind to you if you continue to trust in his kindness.  But if you stop trusting, you also will be cut off.  And if the people of Israel turn from their unbelief, they will be grafted in again, for God has the power to graft them back into the tree.  You, by nature, were a branch cut from a wild olive tree.  So if God was willing to do something contrary to nature by grafting you into his cultivated tree, he will be far more eager to graft the original branches back into the tree where they belong.  
Romans 11:22-24(NLT)
The metaphor of garden goes back to the creation.  Adam and Eve were placed in Eden and instructed to be fruitful.  The whole point of being part of God’s creation is to be productive as God himself watches over everything He created:
The LORD God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it.  
Genesis 2:15(NLT)
Paul called himself the Apostle to the Gentiles.  An “apostle” is literally a messenger, one who speaks for GodIn writing to the believers at Rome he took care to explain that they needed to keep a watch on their attitude.  The apostle pointed to God’s chosen nation, Israel, and how their disobedience and arrogance caused them to be outside of God’s will.  The Gentiles were considered a new branch grafted into the old tree.  This was a warning that just as an old olive tree in a grove can become unproductive, and is removed by the gardener, in the same way a disobedient and unproductive new branch of people can be removed from God’s vineyard.   
The New Testament church is coming up on its 2,000th birthday.  That is about the same age Israel boasted during the time Paul lived and warned the Gentiles about becoming stodgy and full of themselves with pride.  That makes this warning is as poignant today as it was then!  The whole issue is of trust.  Paul’s warning was about how God will cut off those who stop trusting Him, but be very kind to all who trust Him fully.  So, it’s never a matter of past tense (what you have done for God); it’s a matter of present tense – whether you are trusting Him or not.
One of my acts of 4 year-old childish disobedience was the zipper on my jacket.  I could never get that thing right.  It frustrated me to no end!  Mom knew it and would get the zipper untangled and start it over again.  As soon as I saw her get it right I would reach out and grab the zipper to finish the job.  Now, a child needs to learn to operate zippers and other everyday functions in life…but with respect due his teacher.  In the same way a Christian must understand that whatever we accomplish is really not because of our power; it is Christ in us.  We are like gloves, totally useless unless the hand is placed inside, moving the fingers to the will of the body.  The gloved hand, having grasped, lifted, and placed an object in the right place, that glove can no sooner take credit for the accomplishment than a wolf baying at the moon can claim he caused the sun to rise.
But we are like that as soon as we begin to think we can get along without abject, worshipful humility before God.  And it shows in places like Charlottesville when, instead of unity in the Spirit there is hatred in the heart; that is the inevitable result when people become bored with being servants of God and begin to imagine themselves being god. 
The branch imagines itself the Gardener.

For You Today

Let’s hear the last word today from Paul:
Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.  Romans 12:3(NLT)
You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road…have a blessed day!


[1] Title Image: Courtesy Pixabay.com

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