The Grafted Olive Tree--The Tree of Love; Romans 11:13-36

This Advent I have been doing a series on the theme of trees. If you are interested, you can find prior messages on my blog: pastorparato.blogspot.com. One is an audio recording and the others are manuscript versions. And I will be posting today’s message on there as well. I started with the Tree of Life as a symbol of hope. The Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden shows us that it was God’s plan from the beginning to give eternal life to people. The Tree of Life in the New Jerusalem, in the new heavens and new earth, shows us that God’s plan has not changed, that our hope of eternal life is a sure hope. It’s just now been given to us by a different means, which brings us to the second Sunday of Advent, in which I shared that the cross is the tree of our peace. Instead of eating from the tree of life, God sent Jesus to die for us to make peace and to give us eternal life. Colossians 1 says that we have peace through the blood of the cross of Jesus. This peace isn’t just between us and God but broke the curse over all creation. God is reconciling all things to Godself through Christ, and Jesus’s death also helps us to have peace with each other. The beams of the cross point to our reconciliation—the vertical beam, our peace with God, the horizontal beam, our peace with other people. Last week, I preached that the tree of Jesse is the tree of joy. The tree that grows up from the root of Jesse is a person—Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the source of our joy. On this last Sunday of Advent, I aim to show that the grafted olive tree as heard in our Romans passage this morning is the tree of love. We often think of olive trees as the sign of peace. And certainly they are. The first mention of the olive branch in Scripture is when the dove flew back with one in its beak after the flood, letting Noah know that it was okay to open the ark. Consistently throughout Scripture, the olive tree is used as a symbol of prosperity and peace between people. But the gift of peace and reconciliation is also a sign of God’s love. The promise of God not to destroy the earth again by water is a sign of mercy. The sparing of Noah and his family was mercy and grace. All of God’s actions stem from the root character of God which is love. God is love. God’s work of reconciliation is the work of love. Last week, in looking at the Tree of Jesse in Isaiah 11 and Romans 15, we heard that the Gentiles were repeatedly told to rejoice because the Tree of Jesse was and is their hope too. Jesus is the hope of the Gentile and the Tree of Joy. Jesus reconciles both Jews and Gentiles to God and with each other, which is what we see in today’s Romans passage in this image of the grafted olive tree. I did some research on olive trees and grafting. When I was in Israel, I saw some olive trees, including ones on the Mt. of Olives, which are over a 1000 years old. I even picked an olive and bit it, which I don’t recommend. They must be cured in order to be edible. But grafting olive trees is a common thing to do. Cultivated olives produce tastier fruit. Wild olives produce better olives for oil not used for eating purposes, for example for fuel, as a lubricant, in medicine, soap, etc. Native olive trees can be more acclimated to the environment whereas cultivated olive trees need more tending. Grafting is usually done by adding cultivated branches to wild root stock, so good fruit will grow from strong rootstock. Rarely would the reverse occur, but that is precisely what we read about today in Romans 11. God grafts wild branches into cultivated root stock. Last week in Isaiah 11, we saw that the Jesse Tree had been cut down. It was a stump. It started out as a cultivated tree. Out of all the families on the earth, God chose Abraham and his line to bless the earth. God chose a son of Jesse, the youngest son, David to be king of those descendants. God chose God’s people Israel, carefully cultivated, to be a model for the nations and to use them to point the nations to God, but they failed miserably. Yahweh’s people pursued other gods, broke the Lord’s commandments, were violent and greedy, and buy the time Isaiah writes, they had become so corrupt, that the Lord pronounced judgment upon them. Israel had been destroyed by Assyria, and Judah had been carried off to Babylon. The tree of Jesse had been cut down, but the rootstock was still healthy. God always keeps God’s promises, and God had promised that the line of David would not die out. And so Isaiah prophesies that a shoot would grow out of the root of Jesse. We know that shoot is Jesus, the Righteous Branch. With the coming of Jesus, the Branch is now a healthy tree. God’s people have been redeemed. The cultivated olive tree is producing some good fruit. But Paul notes in Romans 11 that some of the cultivated branches still had to be cut off. They weren’t producing. We know that many Jews rejected Jesus, and so because of their unbelief, they were cut off from the trunk. But the God who keeps promises, also kept God’s promise to the Gentiles in Isaiah 11. God has grafted the Gentiles, wild olives that don’t produce good fruit, into the cultivated olive tree. God makes them part of God’s family in Jesus. And something amazing happens. The wild olive branches are able to bear good fruit! Paul says in Romans 11:16-17, “If the root is holy, the branches are too, but if some of the branches were broken off, and you being a wild olive, were grafted in among them, and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree.” We are made holy and are able to bear good fruit because the strong, good root, Jesus, passes His holiness on to us. Paul warns that while this is indeed a great reason for us to rejoice, it is not a reason to become arrogant. Our promise keeping God is able to graft in the branches that have been pruned away for their unbelief. And Paul says, that it will be easy to graft them in again, because they were part of the cultivated tree to start off with. They are of the same stock as the root. Paul emphasizes the nature of our Promise-keeping God when he writes in verse 29 that “the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.” God is in the process of bringing all God’s people back together into one tree. Praise be to the God of love. God’s original plan to give eternal life to people is being fulfilled. In warning us not to be arrogant and prideful because we are grafted into the tree nor to be envious of the cultivated branches that have been there all along, we are called to be people of love. Jesus reiterated that the greatest commandment is to love God with everything we have and everything we are and to love our neighbor as ourselves. We are called to love our brothers and sisters in Christ and to work for reconciliation in the world. Paul warns us that if we are unkind, we risk being cut off as well. If we do not want to be cut off again, we must abide in the trunk of the tree. Using the image, not of an olive tree, but of a grapevine, Jesus said, “I am the vine and you are the branches. Those who abide in Me, bear much fruit.” The fruit of the wild branches and cultivated branches may be different, but when grafted into Jesus, the fruit will be good fruit. Jesus goes on to say that abiding is to abide in His love and the love of the Father. “As the Father has love me, I have also loved you; abide in my love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love.” Obedience is key to not being cut off from the trunk. Obedience is the way we demonstrate our love for God. Kindness is the way we demonstrate our love for one another. Too often today, we confuse niceness with kindness. They are not the same. Niceness is cultural, kindness is self-sacrificial. We can be nice when we don’t want to upset or offend people. But kindness can be misconstrued as being not nice. When you are acting on behalf of another’s wellbeing, they may think you are being mean, when you are trying to be kind. Houston Kraft points out that kindness requires empathy, intention, vulnerability, and perspective. Niceness does not necessarily require any of those things. Being nice can be a burden because it can mean that you are not being authentic. But being kind is being a blessing to others. And as you are a blessing, you will find that you are filled with joy. God has shown love to us by making us part of God’s family through Jesus Christ. Have you been grafted into God’s olive tree of love? If so, rejoice and be glad. Pray that all of God’s branches will be grafted back into the main trunk of God’s olive tree of love. Are you bearing good fruit? Are you at risk of being pruned or are resting in Jesus? How might you spread God’s kindness this week?

The Tree of Jesse--The Tree of Joy; Isaiah 11:1-11, Romans 15:7-13

This Advent I have been doing a series on the theme of trees. If you are interested, you can find prior messages on my blog: pastorparato.blogspot.com. One is an audio recording and the other is a manuscript version. And I will be posting today’s message on there as well, and will provide a link for you on your Facebook page. I started with the Tree of Life as a symbol of hope. The Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden shows us that it was God’s plan from the beginning to give eternal life to people. The Tree of Life in the New Jerusalem, in the new heavens and new earth, shows us that God’s plan has not changed, that our hope of eternal life is a sure hope. It’s just now been given to us by a different means, which brings us to last Sunday, in which I shared that the cross is the tree of our peace. Instead of eating from the tree of life, God sent Jesus to die for us to make peace and to give us eternal life. Colossians 1 says that we have peace through the blood of the cross of Jesus. This peace isn’t just between us and God but broke the curse over all creation. God is reconciling all things to Godself through Christ, and Jesus’s death also helps us to have peace with each other. The beams of the cross point to our reconciliation—the vertical beam, our peace with God, the horizontal beam, our peace with other people. Today, on this Sunday of joy, we will see that the tree of Jesse is the tree of joy. The Jesse tree I shared with the children this morning is a great tool for learning the metanarrative of Scripture—the one big story that Scripture tells. All those pictures point to one person, who is the main character of the story. That person is Jesus. In our readings today, we hear that Jesus is the tree that grows from the root of Jesse. And if there were any doubt at all that these passages are talking about Jesus, we can go to Revelation 22:16, where Jesus Himself says, “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these thing for the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright and morning star.” Our Romans passage tells us that we are to rejoice because the Ruler of the Gentiles has come Root of Jesse and that God will give us peace and joy when we believe in Jesus. So today we see that the source of our joy is in this Tree of Jesse. The source of our joy is in a person—Jesus Christ. We heard it this morning in our Advent lesson—when Jesus is born in us, we have joy. I’ve been doing a Bible study this fall with some other ladies on the topic of joy, particularly as it is described in the book of Philippians. Each week, we are given a joy builder idea or two to practice because we allow so much to steal our joy, but when we realize that joy is in a Person, a Person who is always with us, Jesus, Immanuel, our joy remains despite our circumstances, even in our circumstances, regardless of our circumstances. We might not be happy, but we can have a joy that cannot be quenched, that can be revived when we remember what we have been given, WHOM we have been given. Let’s take a closer look at this tree that grows from the root of Jesse. At the time our Isaiah passage was written, Israel had been obliterated by Assyria and Judah had been reduced to a remnant by Babylon. The small leftover part was the stump the root of Jesse, but sometimes stumps grow back. My parents recently dug up a stump in their yard because it kept growing back in a place where they did not want a tree to grow. This root of Jesse was still alive, even though it had been cut down. God promised it would grow again. What had been growing in Israel and Judah was not healthy. God allowed it to be cut down. But the roots of the tree never stop growing, and God was going to keep God’s promise to God’s people by allowing something new to spring up from that root. Sometimes we have to undergo a severe pruning in order to grow back healthy. That’s a good thing to keep in mind as we look at things happening in our world right now. We ought to ask God, “What needs to be removed? What do you want to grow back, Lord?” Last week, I shared how Jesus had to die to bring us peace and to break the curse brought about when Adam and Eve ate of the fruit of the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. In order to receive that peace and life that Jesus gives, we have to die to sin and self and be raised with Christ to new life. Christ then bears fruit in our lives through the power of the Holy Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faith, and self-control. Roots anchor a tree. They absorb water and nutrients from the soil that help the tree to grow. The Root of Jesse symbolizes permanence, firmness, source, and cause. God is the giver and sustainer of life. In the Scriptures, Jesus is not only called the Root of Jesse, but also the Righteous Branch. Jesus as the Root, shows us that He is the Giver and Sustainer of Life. He is fully God. The shoot that grows from the stump is an extension from the trunk. They are the same. Jesus as the shoot from the stump of Jesse represents Jesus’s humanity. He is the same as His people. He is of the people. He is one of them. He can identify with them. The Messiah foretold is both fully God and fully human. Our Isaiah passage tells us that the shoot that grows out of the stem of Jesse will rule the world. He is qualified to do so because He has the fullness of the Spirit of God resting upon Him. For the Spirit to rest is to remain, it’s not a temporary filling. Verse 3 says that the Messiah has eyes to see beyond the way they appear to be. Christ sees things the way they are. He can see through and into. He see into our hearts and minds. Verse 5 says that righteousness and faithfulness are the Messiah’s belt. This reminds me of the NT descriptions of the armor of God which we are called to put on. When we put on our spiritual armor, we are putting on Christ—His righteousness, His faithfulness. In Isaiah 11:6-9, we have these images of the peaceable kingdom. These images aren’t necessarily meant to be taken literally. For example, many scholars believe that wolves, lambs, snakes, calves, and lions represent different types of people all getting along. With Christ as King, there will be no more cutthroat, utilitarian relationships. The sons of the snake will become saints. We won’t be eating at each other, tearing one another apart with our words and actions. Divisions of inferior and superior will be erased because all will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord. There will be no more war, evil, or even the fear of evil. In our Romans passage, Paul tells us that we are to accept each other because Christ has accepted us. In other words, we are to live as if we are in the peaceable kingdom because Christ has come. Therefore the peaceable kingdom has begun. Instead of letting others steal our joy, we can bring joy to others. Some of the joy builder ideas from the Bible study I’m doing are being conscious to say “thank you” when someone helps you—be intentional about finding at least one person to thank every day, and then say a prayer of blessing for that person. Another is to thank God daily for your spouse. For some people, that’s very easy. For others, it can be a challenge. Another is to confess sin daily and be as specific as you can and to say a prayer of thanksgiving for God’s mercy, and to ask for wisdom to make reparation if you have wronged another person. Also to consciously forgive anyone who has wronged you that day and to thank God for God’s grace. This is accepting others as Christ has accepted us. And of course, we rejoice in Jesus. Praise the Lord for who He is. Name the attributes of God and praise God for them. Name the actions of Christ, and thank Him for them. I love how this last verse we read, this benediction Paul gives us sums up the first 3 Sundays of Advent, “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Hope, peace, and joy are all here. Brothers and sisters, I pray that you may be filled with the joy that is found in the Tree of Jesse—that wonderful shoot that grew up from a stump that was cut down, but from a root that would not die, the promised Messiah, who has now come and is coming again, Immanuel who is always with you. I pray you are filled with the joy of Jesus, joy that no one and no circumstances can take away. May you be those who spread that joy to others, so that they may even ask you about the hope that is in you!

The Cross--The Tree of Peace; Genesis 3:1-21, Colossians 1:19-23

Last week, we saw the tree of life as a symbol of the sure hope we have of eternal life. We heard that it was God’s plan from the beginning to give eternal life to people, freely offering it to any and all who will receive it. We also saw that although neither Adam nor Eve, nor any other human being, were permitted to eat of the tree of life after choosing to disobey God, the tree is present at the end of time, showing that none of us are without the hope of eternal life. It just comes to us differently. Today we see the promise of peace that was given to Adam and Eve and has been given to us—peace given to us through the death of our Lord Jesus Christ on the cross. So what was so wrong with what Adam and Eve did? Was it wrong to want wisdom? We are told to ask for wisdom. Was it wrong to want to be like God? We are called to be like Jesus, and He even gave us the Holy Spirit so that we can be like Him? No, it was wanting to be equal with God, something that the Son of God had from the beginning but didn’t grasp and hold on to, but willingly relinquished for our sake, as the Christ hymn in Philippians 2 tells us. And yet, our Colossians passage tells us that “it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Christ.” He was fully God. By the way, this part of our passage is part of a Christ hymn as well. So in addition to simply being disobedient, which is a big enough problem on its own, the problem with eating of the tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil was defining for ourselves good and evil, wanting to be in the position of God. This is something we have problems with all the time today. We do what is right in our own eyes, just like they did in the Book of Judges. When we try to do good, there are often unintended harmful consequences. That which we label as evil is often not as bad as we make it out to be. We’ve just come through one of the closest elections ever, and some offices are still too close to call, and yet the two main parties constantly demonize the other, even though each group represents almost 50% of the population. The world views held by each position are radically different. Both views have flaws. And there are many more world views out there. This is what happens when we try to discern for ourselves good and evil. We end up divided and confused, and we fall into the same blame game that Adam and Eve did. But there is a solution to the problem. Adam and Eve were not left without hope for eternal life, even though they couldn’t eat from the tree. They had to wait for a promise, a promise of peace, and Someone in whom they could put their trust. We see that promise given by God in Genesis 3:15. Even as God is pronouncing curses and will continue to pronounce the curses, the consequences for breaking the covenant, God offers a solution by way of a promise. God tells the serpent, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, between your seed and her seed. He shall crush your head, and you shall bruise Him on the heel.” The curse the serpent received is the promise of hope and peace for Adam and Eve. Though strife between the serpent and the woman would exist, the seed of the woman would be victor. We know that this is a prophecy fulfilled only by Jesus Christ. Women do not have seed. That is a term used for male sperm. But Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary without contribution from any man. Rather, she conceived by the Holy Spirit. The cross was a bruise to the heel of the Promised One, but on that same cross, Jesus crushed the head of the serpent, because it was through His death that He purchased reconciliation for people—reconciliation not just with God, but also between people. Horizontal and vertical relationships could be restored, symbolized in the shape of the cross. And His victory was in the fact that He conquered death through death by rising again from the dead. Our New Testament reading this morning tells us that Jesus reconciles all things to God—all things, all of creation that has been disordered can be put back to right. Jesus has made peace through the blood of His cross, according to Colossians 1:20. I Peter 2:24 says Jesus “Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree.” He carried out sins up to the cross, so ‘that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.” Colossians 1:21 goes on to tell us that we were hostile to God in our minds and alienated from God, engaged in evil deeds. We needed a change of mind, and we need a change of mind if we want to see things from God’s perspective. According to Romans 12:1-2, our minds are renewed as we offer ourselves as living sacrifices. We surrender ourselves to the will of God. We go back to what God wanted for us in the beginning, and now we are capable of doing so. Though we were subject to the consequences of eating from that tree of knowledge of Good and Evil, Christ reconciled us through His bodily death, so that we can stand before God as holy and blameless if we continue in the faith and the hope of the gospel. There is an emphasis on the body of Jesus, because not only is He fully God but fully human. He had to be fully human to bear the curse. In Galatians 3:13, Paul tells us, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us. For it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree,” according to Deuteronomy 21:23. What was intended to be a curse provided the removal of the curse and became the instrument of peace. By the cross, the power of the curse was broken. I have been introduced this Advent to paintings called “Mary Consoles Eve.” These paintings of two women, one pregnant, Mary, comforting a shamed and remorseful Eve, showing her that her child is the Promised One is coming who will break the curse. I love the image of restoration and healing. The promise given to Eve is being fulfilled. She has not been forgotten by God, and she can receive peace and life. Jesus gives us lasting peace that takes away guilt and shame. Partaking of a forbidden tree led to strife, but Jesus’s death on a tree restores us to peace. Do you have the peace of Jesus? Are you still quick to decide for yourself right and wrong, or are you genuinely seeking God’s best? How will live into peace this season with so many divisions in our world? Jesus calls us to be peacemakers. He has passed His ministry of reconciliation on to us. Where in your mind does hostility still reside? Is it with God? Is it with certain people or a person? Will you surrender it to Jesus so that your mind can be renewed?