Romans 11: The Olive Trees: Natural vs. Wild.

Transcript and extract from The Bible Answer Man November 1, 2007.

"...and the essence of Romans is clear, concise, and relevant, the just shall live by faith. And of course the just that Paul has in mind consists of both Jewish and Gentile believers. As such Romans is bent on eradicating attitudes of superiority that are based on racial affiliation and today being fomented by men like John Hagee. The message in the book of Romans in its entirety is that the Church has not replaced the Jews as the true people of God, but rather that it has been placed or planted into the one cultivated olive tree representing the one true people of God the tree symbolizes true Israel, its branches those who believe in its root Jesus Christ. Natural branches broken off represent Jews who reject the Messiah. Wild branches grafted in, according the Apostle Paul, represent Gentiles who receive Jesus. You know Paul says it about as clearly as it can be said for they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham, that is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not, says Paul, the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as the seed. Jesus is the one genuine seed of Abraham, and all clothed in Christ constitute one congruent, chosen, covenant community connected by the Cross, and so Paul can say in Romans 11:26 "All Israel will be saved" and of course we have that beautiful picture in the book of Revelation of the 144,000, the twelve tribes of Israel, the twelve apostles of the Lamb times thousand, as a beautiful numeric component pointing to the full compliment of God's people, not based on their racial affiliation but their relationship to Yahweh the God of Israel. God is not a racist and He's not a land broker. So again Romans is a beautiful book to get into and absorb and its very eerily relevant to what’s going on today particularly with respect to people's view regarding the Middle East."

Be it true that the natural branches cut out represent Jews who reject their Messiah, and wild branches grafted in represent Gentiles who receive Jesus. Yet how do you explain how the believing wild branches are subsequently cut out, and the rejecting natural branches are grafted back in? We believe that these wild branches cannot lose their salvation, and likewise it is impossible to renew the natural branches again to repentance. The meaning of this passage is beyond what Hank Hanegraaff has assigned. Salvation cannot be the primary thought expressed in this parable. That is why the Gentiles are warned not to boast against the branches, not to be high-minded but fear, not to be wise in their own conceits, not because they will lose their salvation but be removed from the place of witness, as the saints of Ephesus are told to repent lest He remove their candlestick out of his place. The chapter deals primarily with the question: "Hath God cast away His people?" If the subject of the chapter were about the unity of true Israel, why does Paul not answer the question "God forbid, for I also am a Christian of the spiritual seed of Abraham." In view of the salvation of true Israel, how can there be any question of God casting them away? The fig tree is a better representation of Israel than the olive tree. The olive tree speaks rather of testimony. Israel having failed to bear testimony to the nations, and the Gentile is grafted in his place. When the fullness of the Gentiles comes in, perhaps the collapse of the Christian era, the apostasy (2 Thessalonians 2), represented by the wild branches being cut out, the Jew is again restored to the place of testimony. That is why Paul exhorts the wise Gentiles not to be ignorant of the mystery of the olive trees and the blindness of Israel. The "all Israel" is the natural branches which are grafted back in subsequent to the wild branches being cut out. To say "They are not all Israel which are of Israel" is not the same as to say "they are Israel which are not of Israel." Hank Hanegraaff is fomenting doctrine that is contrary to the true meaning of passages regarding Israel.