Romans 11:17-24
Scripture: Romans 11:17-24 (ESV)
“But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear. For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you too will be cut off. And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again. If you were cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, the natural branches, be grafted back into their own olive tree?”
Devotion
What is it like to be adopted into a family? Imagine being welcomed into a family you don’t belong to. Not just to visit, but with a permanent place at the table. That’s quite the picture of grace, isn’t it? Now the thing with being adopted is that you actually become part of the family and being part of the family means you’ve got responsibilities, not just privileges. You can’t strut around the house as if you built it. You were brought in, remember? You were given a seat at the table. You don’t actually belong, but for the grace of the head of the family.
In these verses, Paul is talking to the Gentiles who’ve been welcomed into God’s family. He’s reminding them (and us) that getting a spot at God’s table is something special. It’s not about how good you are at finding the right seat but about how generous the host is. And when we start thinking we’re special because we found the house, we’ve missed the point entirely. We are special only because of the one who invited us in.
But isn’t that what often happens? We start thinking that we own salvation, or that we are owed it. We start strutting around the house as if we own it, but we forget that we were invited in precisely so that we can invite others in too. Once we become arrogant about our place at the table, we have gone astray.
Paul here reminds us that we are only part of the family because Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross grafted us in. We are like wild olive shoots who have finally been grafted on to the living olive tree. That does not give us the right to judge the olive branches who have been cut off. We are no better than them. We have life only because we have been grafted.
So stay humble, remember we get life from the olive tree. Remember the grace that has brought you in.
Prayer
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Father, thank You for grafting us into Your family, for making us a part of something we could never earn or deserve. Help us to remember our place, not as builders but as grateful guests, humble and reliant on Your grace. Teach us to live in the balance of Your kindness and severity, never taking for granted the gift of being part of Your family. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Spiritual Challenge for the Day
Today, find a way to express gratitude for your place in God’s family. It could be a prayer, a note of thanks to someone who’s shown you God’s love, or a moment of reflection on the grace that brought you here. Let humility guide you as you remember the root that supports you.