Did you know that some of the oldest living olive trees are in the Mediterranean area. Some are estimated to be 4,000 years old!  The Explore the Bible Study and Video: Mercy, help us understand the mercy God has expressed to all of us by grafting us into the rich root of the cultivated olive tree (Romans 11:17). 

The illustration in Romans 11:17-32 of the cultivated olive tree and the wild olive tree was given to explain God’s plan to graft both believing Jews and believing Gentiles into the same root, where both would grow together. Everyone has the same opportunity we have had to receive Christ and to be grafted into the tree that springs up from the root of Jesus Christ. We cannot look down on any people because we have all been saved by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ. But we should especially not look down on Jews. It is from their root that salvation came. It should be our prayer that all will receive Christ and we should work to that end by sharing and showing the good news of Jesus to all.

DOWNLOADABLE TEACHING IDEAS
There are several ideas you might want to incorporate into your online discussion or Bible study emails to your group this week. I have also included an 8-minute video that describes how a farmer grafts a tree. This could be shared in advance of your online meeting in order to introduce the session.

OTHER RESOURCES

• LifeWay is providing an additional resources you might want to consider: Discussion Guide for Online Teaching
• Click on this link to preview the video and to better understand Paul's context in the passage: https://youtu.be/Ryf0248Od60