Grafted onto the tree

by Neil Bergmann

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Do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches. If you do, consider this: you do not support the root, but the root supports you (Romans 11:18).

Read Romans 11:13–24

In today’s reading, Paul writes to believers in Rome about the relationship between their new community of Gentile believers and the Jews with whom God has ancient covenants as his special people. Among the Jews were those who accepted Jesus as Messiah and those who rejected him. How do they all fit into God’s plan for salvation?

Christians have been arguing about the place of the Jews in God’s kingdom for 2,000 years. Unfortunately, passages like today’s have been misused in the past to justify religious persecution. With tensions in the Middle East currently at extreme levels, anti-Semitism and anti-Muslim rhetoric are again on the rise around the world. Peace seems impossible.

Paul reminds us in today’s reading that it is not our job, as individuals or as religious communities, to decide who is ‘in’ and who is ‘out’ in terms of God’s kingdom. We are the branches, and we receive our spiritual nourishment, including our eternal salvation, from God, who is the root of all life.

We often view the world through a very simplistic philosophical lens. We think that there must be exactly one correct way to understand God’s plan for salvation through Jesus Christ, and (not surprisingly), this one correct way just happens to correspond to our personal understanding. The reasoning goes: if my interpretation of God’s plan for redeeming the world is correct, then all others are, at best, human-inspired superstitions and, at worst, schemes of the devil to thwart God’s plans. Or like this: if my Lutheran understanding of God’s self-revelation in Christ is right, other denominations (or even other Lutheran synods) with different understandings are in error and should be avoided. Really?

Instead, I believe that we are called to intellectual and spiritual humility, since the mysteries of God are beyond our ability to comprehend. We know that we are saved through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. We are called to spread that message throughout the world. We are also called to respect, care for and love all of humanity, whatever their faith, because God loves and cares for all.

Father of us all, you are the root of our life and salvation. Help us to love what you love – all people, all creatures and all of creation. Amen.

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