The last post in this Romans Study For Kids we looked at Romans 11:7-16. Today we will be digging into Romans 11:17-24.
Romans 11:17-24
17 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,
18 do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you.
19 You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.”
20 Quite right, they were broken off for their unbelief, but you stand by your faith. Do not be conceited, but fear;
21 for if God did not spare the natural branches, He will not spare you, either.
22 Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off.
23 And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again.
24 For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree?
Before we dig into our next section of Scripture, let’s watch this video on grafting.
Now as we dig into these next verses in Romans we will be able to use this grafting lesson to help us understand Romans 11:17-24
But first let’s take a look at what Jesus teaches us in the book of John.
Read John 15:1-17 and use them to answer the questions below.
Who is the true vine?
__ __ __ __ __
Who is the vinedresser
the __ __ __ __ __ __
What happens to the branches in the vine that do not bear fruit?
He __ __ __ __ __ them __ __ __ __
What happens to the branches that DO bear fruit?
He __ __ __ __ __ __ them
Who is the “He” that does all this to the branches?
__ __ __
Why does He prune the branches that bear fruit?
so that they will __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ fruit
Can the branch bear any fruit if it is not in the vine?
Yes No I don’t know
Can we bear fruit if we do not abide in Jesus?
Yes No I don’t know
Look at John 15:16. Who chooses who? Circle the correct answer.
you choose Jesus
Jesus chooses you
No one chooses it just happens
What does Jesus choose us to do? What does He appoint us to do?
to go and __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
THINK ABOUT IT….
We have been looking at God’s choice over and over in Romans 9-11 and we have also talked about what it means to bear fruit… and not just any fruit, but good fruit.
Are you beginning to see how important it is to read the books of the Bible from the beginning of the book to the end? We would not begin a letter written to us from out mom or dad from the middle and we would not just read a couple of the words they wrote and not read the rest.
The books in the Bible are letters that God has written us, so we should not do His letters to us that way either. We will never understand what He wants us to know if we do.
It’s okay to pick out favorite parts of the letter, I bet you do that with other letters too, but not until you have read the whole letter first. Read the whole letter first, then you just might be surprised by how many special and favorite parts you could have missed if you had not read the whole thing.
Now lets get back to Romans 11:17-24!
Read Romans 11:17. First of all we need to figure out who is the natural branch and who is the wild olive. Draw a line connecting which one you think is which.
Jews (Israel) wild olive
Gentiles natural branch
When we look back at Romans 11:7-16 we can see that Paul is using the natural branches to describe Israel and the wild olive to describe the Gentiles. Circle which group you belong to.
Jew (Israel) Gentiles I don’t know
If you are of Jewish descendant and you are a Christian, then you are part of the remnant that we have been studying about… how cool is that!
Now if you are not of Jewish descent then you are a Gentile. Romans 11:17-24 is directed to Christians who were Gentiles.
Read Romans 11:17 again what was broken off?
__ __ __ __ of the __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
What was grafted in to the rich root of the olive tree?
the __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
Before we go any further, look up and read Revelation 22:16 and Romans 15:12. Who is the root?
__ __ __ __ __
How is the wild olive that is grafted in NOT to act toward the branches that were broken off?
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
(To be arrogant means having or showing the insulting attitude of people who believe that they are better, smarter, or more important than other people)
Read Romans 11:18. Who supports who? Circle the correct answer.
you support the root the root supports you
Read Romans 11:19-20. Why were the branches broken off?
their __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
How does the wild olive stand?
by __ __ __ __ __
Read Romans 11:21-24. What will God do if they do not continue in unbelief but believe?
He will __ __ __ __ __ them in __ __ __ __ __
THINK ABOUT IT…
Do you remember the video you watched at the beginning of this lesson? What did the gardener put around the branches he grafted in?
Look up and read 2 Corinthians 1:22 and Ephesians 1:13. How does what the gardner did in the video relate to what God does for us?
That’s enough for today!