To The Word – Day 164

₁I ask, then: did God reject his own people? Certainly not! I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin. ₂God has not rejected his people, whom he chose from the beginning. You know what the scripture says in the passage where Elijah pleads with God against Israel: ₃“Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars; I am the only one left, and they are trying to kill me.” ₄What answer did God give him? “I have kept for myself 7,000 men who have not worshipped the false god Baal.” ₅It is the same way now: there is a small number left of those whom God has chosen because of his grace. ₆His choice is based on his grace, not on what they have done. For if God's choice were based on what people do, then his grace would not be real grace.

₇What then? The people of Israel did not find what they were looking for. It was only the small group that God chose who found it; the rest grew deaf to God's call. ₈As the scripture says, “God made their minds and hearts dull; to this very day they cannot see or hear.” ₉And David says:

₁₁I ask, then: when the Jews stumbled, did they fall to their ruin? By no means! Because they sinned, salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make the Jews jealous of them. ₁₂The sin of the Jews brought rich blessings to the world, and their spiritual poverty brought rich blessings to the Gentiles. Then, how much greater the blessings will be when the complete number of Jews is included!

₁₃I am speaking now to you Gentiles: as long as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I will take pride in my work. ₁₄Perhaps I can make the people of my own race jealous, and so be able to save some of them. ₁₅For when they were rejected, the human race was changed from God's enemies into his friends. What will it be, then, when they are accepted? It will be life for the dead!

₁₆If the first piece of bread is given to God, then the whole loaf is his also; and if the roots of a tree are offered to God, the branches are his also. ₁₇Some of the branches of the cultivated olive tree have been broken off, and a branch of a wild olive tree has been joined to it. You Gentiles are like that wild olive tree, and now you share the strong spiritual life of the Jews. ₁₈So then, you must not despise those who were broken off like branches. How can you be proud? You are just a branch; you don't support the roots — the roots support you.

₁₉But you will say, “Yes, but the branches were broken off to make room for me.” ₂₀That is true. They were broken off because they did not believe, while you remain in place because you do believe. But do not be proud of it; instead, be afraid. ₂₁God did not spare the Jews, who are like natural branches; do you think he will spare you? ₂₂Here we see how kind and how severe God is. He is severe towards those who have fallen, but kind to you — if you continue in his kindness. But if you do not, you too will be broken off. ₂₃And if the Jews abandon their unbelief, they will be put back in the place where they were; for God is able to do that. ₂₄You Gentiles are like the branch of a wild olive tree that is broken off and then, contrary to nature, is joined to a cultivated olive tree. The Jews are like this cultivated tree; and it will be much easier for God to join these broken-off branches to their own tree again.

₂₅There is a secret truth, my brothers and sisters, which I want you to know, for it will keep you from thinking how wise you are. It is that the stubbornness of the people of Israel is not permanent, but will last only until the complete number of Gentiles comes to God. ₂₆And this is how all Israel will be saved. As the scripture says:

₃₃How great are God's riches! How deep are his wisdom and knowledge! Who can explain his decisions? Who can understand his ways? ₃₄As the scripture says:

₁So then, my brothers and sisters, because of God's great mercy to us I appeal to you: offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to his service and pleasing to him. This is the true worship that you should offer. ₂Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind. Then you will be able to know the will of God — what is good and is pleasing to him and is perfect.

₃And because of God's gracious gift to me I say to every one of you: do not think of yourself more highly than you should. Instead, be modest in your thinking, and judge yourself according to the amount of faith that God has given you. ₄We have many parts in the one body, and all these parts have different functions. ₅In the same way, though we are many, we are one body in union with Christ, and we are all joined to each other as different parts of one body. ₆So we are to use our different gifts in accordance with the grace that God has given us. If our gift is to speak God's message, we should do it according to the faith that we have; ₇if it is to serve, we should serve; if it is to teach, we should teach; ₈if it is to encourage others, we should do so. Whoever shares with others should do it generously; whoever has authority should work hard; whoever shows kindness to others should do it cheerfully.

₉Love must be completely sincere. Hate what is evil, hold on to what is good. ₁₀Love one another warmly as Christian brothers and sisters, and be eager to show respect for one another. ₁₁Work hard and do not be lazy. Serve the Lord with a heart full of devotion. ₁₂Let your hope keep you joyful, be patient in your troubles, and pray at all times. ₁₃Share your belongings with your needy fellow-Christians, and open your homes to strangers.

₁₄Ask God to bless those who persecute you — yes, ask him to bless, not to curse. ₁₅Be happy with those who are happy, weep with those who weep. ₁₆Have the same concern for everyone. Do not be proud, but accept humble duties. Do not think of yourselves as wise.

₁₇If someone has done you wrong, do not repay him with a wrong. Try to do what everyone considers to be good. ₁₈Do everything possible on your part to live in peace with everybody. ₁₉Never take revenge, my friends, but instead let God's anger do it. For the scripture says, “I will take revenge, I will pay back, says the Lord.” ₂₀Instead, as the scripture says: “If your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them a drink; for by doing this you will make them burn with shame.” ₂₁Do not let evil defeat you; instead, conquer evil with good.

₁Everyone must obey the state authorities, because no authority exists without God's permission, and the existing authorities have been put there by God. ₂Whoever opposes the existing authority opposes what God has ordered; and anyone who does so will bring judgement on himself. ₃For rulers are not to be feared by those who do good, but by those who do evil. Would you like to be unafraid of those in authority? Then do what is good, and they will praise you, ₄because they are God's servants working for your own good. But if you do evil, then be afraid of them, because their power to punish is real. They are God's servants and carry out God's punishment on those who do evil. ₅For this reason you must obey the authorities — not just because of God's punishment, but also as a matter of conscience.

₆That is also why you pay taxes, because the authorities are working for God when they fulfil their duties. ₇Pay, then, what you owe them; pay them your personal and property taxes, and show respect and honour for them all.

₈Be under obligation to no one — the only obligation you have is to love one another. Whoever does this has obeyed the Law. ₉The commandments, “Do not commit adultery; do not commit murder; do not steal; do not desire what belongs to someone else” — all these, and any others besides, are summed up in the one command, “Love your neighbour as you love yourself.” ₁₀If you love someone, you will never do them wrong; to love, then, is to obey the whole Law.

₁₁You must do this, because you know that the time has come for you to wake up from your sleep. For the moment when we will be saved is closer now than it was when we first believed. ₁₂The night is nearly over, day is almost here. Let us stop doing the things that belong to the dark, and let us take up weapons for fighting in the light. ₁₃Let us conduct ourselves properly, as people who live in the light of day — no orgies or drunkenness, no immorality or indecency, no fighting or jealousy. ₁₄But take up the weapons of the Lord Jesus Christ, and stop paying attention to your sinful nature and satisfying its desires.