Doctrines

Rom 11

There are some church leaders that reject the Jews because, in their opinion, the Jews were the ones that killed Jesus. That is flawed and dangerous.

This question had been around even in the first century. In Rom 11:1, Paul emphatically stated that God had not rejected his people (the Jews).

‘I ask then, did God reject His people? Certainly not!’

Paul then said that it was precisely because of the sins of the Jews that Gentiles (non-Jews) were given the opportunity of salvation (Rom 11:11). He went on to use the analogy of plant grafting in Rom 11:17-24 to explain this beautiful picture – Gentile Christians were like wild olive shoots grafted into the ‘nourishing root of the (cultivated) olive tree.’

Gentile Christians are specifically reminded

‘do not become proud but fear’ (Rom 11:20).

Peter explained in Acts 3:17 – ‘I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. But what God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ would suffer, he thus fulfilled.’

We will never fully understand why these things happened but it is all part of the greater scheme of God’s overall plan to save his people for himself. Rom 11:25 describes this as a ‘mystery’ –

‘I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you will not be conceited: A hardening in part has come to Israel, until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved’