Today’s Scripture Reading (January 8, 2015): Romans 11
When I was a
youth pastor, a family moved into the church that had all boys. The ages of the
boys ranged from young men (enjoying their early years of college) to the
youngest who was not quite old enough to be included in the youth group. And I
looked forward to spending time and getting to know each of the guys. But there
was a problem. As much as I wanted to spend time with each of the guys, they
had no desire to spend time with each other. While I wanted to spend time with
them, and I hoped that they wanted to spend time with me, that had to happen on
an individual basis. It was impossible to spend time with more than one of the
bothers at a time. No matter what the activity, they didn’t want to be involved
if there was another brother participating. (The one exception of the rule
seemed to be playing in our pick up football games – then they would be
involved together.) But all other activities seemed to depend on an absence of
other brothers involved.
Paul makes
an observation with regard to the division that existed between the Jews and
the Gentiles that in some ways make them seem to be, well, brothers. First, he
is afraid that his Gentile readers will take too much pride in the failings
(hardening) of the Jews. Like a pair of siblings, Paul was afraid that one (in
this case the Gentiles) would rejoice over the problems of the other (the Jews.)
So Paul reminds the Romans that God still has a plan for the Jews, and that
they will never be abandoned – in fact, they will be actively saved by their
God.
But Paul
also raises the idea that the inclusion of one just might mean the exclusion of
the other. For the Jews, that was not just a possibility; it was a reality. The
Jews had considered themselves to be the chosen of God, and they had developed
a number of rules which restricted their contact with anyone who was not
Jewish. This exclusion continues today. One of the stumbling blocks that the
Christian faith faces with regard to the Jews is that it has largely become a
Gentile faith. Jews continue to fear that accepting Christianity will mean the
death of their culture (not just a re-adjustment of their belief system.) And
the death of their culture is too large a price to pay. But from the other
side, there were practices among the Jews, including circumcision and dietary laws,
which the Gentiles found to be offensive. So if Christianity remained as solely
an extension of the Jewish faith, the Gentiles would likely be excluded.
So Paul says
that God moved beyond the exclusions. For a time, he opened the door wide to
the Gentiles, even though he realized that that would mean that some Jews would
be automatically excluded. But he also warns the Romans that this situation would
not last forever. One day, the door would be opened once again to the Jews. The
opportunity to be the people of God would be universal. And the Jews would not
be saved through some Jew centric laws. They would be saved the same way that
the Gentiles were saved – through the belief and faith in Jesus Christ. And In this
way, all can be saved.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Romans
12
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