Romans 11 Do you have someone you love and pray for, yet they have refused to believe as of this date? As Paul writes to the Roman church, he inserts his heart, which is sad beyond words. Listen to what he penned regarding his Israelite family: “As it is written, God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.[Deut 29:4 and Is 29:10] Yet, even amidst this sad note, he is encouraged that one day they would turn and believe. To help us understand this, he writes using the illustration of pure dough: “If the dough offered as first fruits is holy, so is the whole lump, and if the root is holy, so are the branches.” [Rom 11:16]

By the branches, he means the Gentiles, and we are proof of that even while the Jewish people remain in darkness, refusing to believe Jesus is the Messiah. Continuing on, Paul reminds us Gentiles that we are not to become arrogant in what we believe but to remain steadfast in our prayers for them to accept Jesus as Messiah. Paul reminds the Romans and us, in turn, that their hardening is only for a while until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.

Precious reader, continue to pray for the softening of hearts, both Jew and Gentile.