Romans - Week 26

Blessings and Snares

READ

Romans 11:9-10

9 Likewise, David said, “Let their bountiful table become a snare,

a trap that makes them think all is well. Let their blessings cause them to stumble,

and let them get what they deserve. 10 Let their eyes go blind so they cannot see,

and let their backs be bent forever.”

Paul here refers to Psalm 69:22-23, “Let the bountiful table set before them become a snare

and their prosperity become a trap. Let their eyes go blind so they cannot see, and make their bodies shake continually.” The Israelites gloried in their blessings, but those blessings became a trap because they did not turn to God in faith. God had turned to the Gentiles to make Israel jealous, and this is what Paul refers to here.

REFLECT

Think about how God wants us to be thankful for the blessings He has given. But don’t let God’s blessings keep you from wanting to please Him in all you do.

RESPOND

Talk with your disciple about all the blessings you experience now. Do not forget to mention things often taken for granted, such as enough to eat, comfortable shelter, and friends. Pray for those who don’t have these. Also pray that others will be ready to enter eternity.

Not Too Late

READ

Romans 11:11-12

11 Did God’s people stumble and fall beyond recovery? Of course not! They were disobedient, so God made salvation available to the Gentiles. But he wanted his own people to become jealous and claim it for themselves. 12 Now if the Gentiles were enriched because the people of Israel turned down God’s offer of salvation, think how much greater a blessing the world will share when they finally accept it.

This passage reveals Israel is not beyond recovery. Paul says, “Of course not!” When Israel rejected the Savior, God offered His blessings to the Gentiles. This major change took place on the Day of Pentecost, as recorded in Acts 2. Paul’s argument is that if blessings resulted to others when Israel rejected the Messiah, think how many more blessings the world will experience when Israel comes back into relationship with God.

REFLECT

During this Church Age, Gentiles are experiencing many blessings from God. All those not of Jewish ethnic origin should thank God for the blessings they have received.

RESPOND

Read Acts 13:45-47 to see an example of Paul turning from preaching to the Jewish people and taking his message to the Gentiles.

Apostle to the Gentiles

READ

Romans 11:13-14

13 I am saying all this especially for you Gentiles. God has appointed me as the apostle to the Gentiles. I stress this, 14 for I want somehow to make the people of Israel jealous of what you Gentiles have, so I might save some of them.

Paul explains more specifically to his Gentile readers why he was pleased to be an “the apostle to the Gentiles.” It was to make his fellow Jewish people jealous so he might be able to save some of them. Paul’s desire was always to be a faithful witness wherever he was, whether with his fellow Jewish brothers and sisters, or with the Gentiles. In spite of all the physical problems he endured for witnessing, Paul’s focus was always on eternal matters.

REFLECT

Let this be a reminder to keep your eyes on that which is eternal. Thank the Lord for His spiritual blessings no matter what you are physically experiencing.

RESPOND

Read 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 to see how Paul expressed his desire to save as many people as he could.

The Roots of the Tree

READ

Romans 11:15-16

15 For since their rejection meant that God offered salvation to the rest of the world, their acceptance will be even more wonderful. It will be life for those who were dead! 16 And since Abraham and the other patriarchs were holy, their descendants will also be holy—just as the entire batch of dough is holy because the portion given as an offering is holy. For if the roots of the tree are holy, the branches will be, too.

The word “holy” means “set apart.” It does not necessarily mean all the descendants of Abraham and the patriarchs were right with God, but that they were set apart because of the special relationship God had with the nation. When Israel experiences national conversion, which Paul will allude to later in this chapter, “their acceptance will be even more wonderful.” Paul was saying, “The best is yet to come.”

REFLECT

Even though you see many problems in the world, focus your eyes on the sovereign God of the universe and realize in His program “the best is yet to come.”

RESPOND

Read Isaiah 11:5-7 and 35:1-7 to see what conditions will be like when God establishes His kingdom on earth.

Sharing in the Blessing

READ

Romans 11:17-18

17 But some of these branches from Abraham’s tree—some of the people of Israel—have been broken off. And you Gentiles, who were branches from a wild olive tree, have been grafted in. So now you also receive the blessing God has promised Abraham and his children, sharing in the rich nourishment from the root of God’s special olive tree. 18 But you must not brag about being grafted in to replace the branches that were broken off. You are just a branch, not the root.

“Some of these branches from Abraham’s tree” that were broken off would refer to unbelieving segments of Israel. This has permitted the Gentiles, in God’s program, to be grafted in. Paul warns about not being anti-Semitic, however, because even the Gentiles are “just a branch” and they could be broken off as well. Romans 11 is a reminder to Gentiles that they have inherited blessings because of the Jewish people. Even the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, obtained His humanity through Israel.

REFLECT

Have you thought about the blessings you have because of the Israelites. The Old Testament is available to tell how God worked with the Jewish nation and the New Testament tells how the Church has benefitted. The first-century Church was composed of a majority of Jewish believers in their Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ.

RESPOND

Read John 4:21-23 to see what Jesus said was the origin of salvation. Talk with your disciple how this should affect our attitude toward the Jewish people.