THREE SIDES OF GOD

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. After all, if you were cut out of an olive tree that is wild by nature, and contrary to nature were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more readily will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree!”

Romans 11:22-24

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

The Jews had rejected Jesus and therefore had passed on their chance for salvation per the requirements of the new covenant enacted by God, a covenant that only asked for a person to believe in Jesus as Savior in order to be saved. In yesterday’s message, we saw where they were likened to branches that ended up broken off an olive tree, destined to wither and die separate from the life providing root which was Jesus in Paul’s illustration from the passage.

While non-compliance to the God’s new covenant resulted in loss suffered by the Jews by way of their disobedience and stubborn rejection of Jesus, the Gentiles, who had before been considered distant and disconnected from any relationship with God, now gained a new opportunity. For Jesus came to bring salvation to everyone, whether Jew or Gentile (a non-Jew). No one would be excluded from eternal life as long as they believed in Jesus.

Going back to Paul’s olive tree analogy, the Gentiles were the branches grafted into the olive tree in place of the branches that had broken. They were the branches from the wild olive tree that were grafted into the cultivated tree where they would be nourished by Jesus, the life-sustaining root.

Through these two sets of people, the Jews and Gentiles, and their vastly different outcomes based on the attitude they carried toward Jesus, we see two sides of God, two sides mentioned in today’s passage. Look again at these words from Paul:

“Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. After all, if you were cut out of an olive tree that is wild by nature, and contrary to nature were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more readily will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree!” Romans 11:22-24

On one hand, we see the sternness of God when we look at the case of the Jews. God had offered His people the chance to be saved through the His Son, the Messiah who had been foretold by the prophets of old, but the Israelites refused to believe and as a result, God brought His judgment. The non-believing Jews were destined for Hell and eternal damnation for their staunch rejection of God’s offer of salvation.

On the other side, the side of the Gentiles, we find the kindness of God, a kindness that wasn’t willing to allow anyone who wasn’t a Jew to perish. And so through deep mercy and love, God opened up the gates of heaven to all people if they would place their faith and hope in Jesus His Son.

Sternness and kindness. Two sides of God that were polar opposites.

But the title of this devotion is “Three Sides of God” so you may ask yourself, “What is the third side?”

Paul tells us.

“And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again.” v.23

Through His sternness, God may have judged any Jew who chose to reject Jesus but note that He opens up the opportunity for repentance, for an about face where someone would shift from unbelief in Jesus to belief. In these cases, the scriptures tell us that these people can always be grafted in again. In other words, God would gladly welcome them back into His fold.

This shows us the third side of God, the side where we find forgiveness and redemption. Indeed, we serve a merciful and gracious God who can blot out our transgressions through the shed blood of His Son on Calvary’s cross. A person can change their heart and mind right up to the moment they draw their last breath and find their way to salvation. You may remember the thief crucified on a cross next to Jesus finding his way to Paradise with Jesus just before he died from his crucifixion. This was a classic example of God’s saving work through His Son.

Three sides of God: sternness, kindness, and forgiveness. In life, we can experience all three when we choose to have a relationship with our Maker and Master, the One who saves us through the atoning gift of His Son Jesus.

Thanks be to God for all He has been, all He is, and all He is yet to be.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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