BE ROOTED IN LOVE

by Tammy Phillips
October 4. 2020

I love fall and all its colors.  I saw one little, vibrant, red leaf growing off a single stem out of a tree stump.  It was so cute.  I bent to pick it up.  I don’t know what I was thinking.  When I plucked the tender plant from the stump, its expansive roots followed.  I was reminded of the description of Jesus in Isaiah 53:2, “For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, And as a root out of dry ground.”  And, then  Paul’s words  in Ephesians 3:17-18 , “that you, being rooted and grounded in love,  may be able to comprehend with all the saints what [is] the width and length and depth and height”  I was amazed at the size of the root system for this tiny plant. How wide and long and deep must be our roots in the limitless love of God?

In Revelation 22:16, Jesus says: “I, Jesus…I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.”  David’s name means beloved.  This verse could be interpreted to read: “I am Jesus. I am the Root of the Beloved.” He is the Beloved of God, Root of the Beloved and He calls us his beloved.  He is our Root.  He is Love.  We are rooted in the Root and rooted in Love, when we are in Him.  We must grow up in Him.

Roots are necessary for growth and stability.  Jesus is our Necessity and Rock.
Roots are the lifeline of a tree.  Jesus is our lifeline.
Roots take up air, water, and nutrients from the soil.  God is the very air we breathe.  He is our Living water. He is our Source of Life.
Roots are the cornerstone of plant function.  Jesus is the Cornerstone of our existence.
Roots serve as the plant’s anchor.  Jesus is our Anchor
Roots occupy a larger space than the plant it supports.  God occupies the universe in which we are supported.
Roots exude things in the soil that help protect the plant from disease. The Root of David poured for his blood to deliver us from all sickness and disease. 
Roots lengths can reach hundreds of miles!  How deep and wide, long and high is our Root. 
Roots drive the trees growth. The bigger and healthier the root system, the bigger and healthier the plant. 

Where are we rooted?  Are we rooted and grounded in love?  Or, are we rooted in disappointments?  Is our confidence in God or man?  Is our faith in Jehovah Rapha, the Great Physician or in mere doctors?  Is God our supply or do we depend on others?   Is our trust in money, government or is Jesus our root?  Are we firm in faith or fear?  Trust or unbelief? Hope or Despair? Love or Hate?  Are we rooted in the Truth of God’s word or the lies of the enemy?  As Christians, we are to be “rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith.” (Colossians 2:7 NKJV)

Our Root, our source of strength, life, love and all things good is Jesus.  We are to be rooted and firmly planted in Him.  We are to be united to Him in love and well established in faith that He is who He says He is and will do what He says He will do.  As we increase in the knowledge of His great love and realize that we are greatly loved, our roots grow deep in faith in Him.  When we nourish ourselves with the word of God, we strengthen our foundation.   No word…no food…no growth.  We feed, fertilize, and water our roots by digging into His word and spending time in prayer with God.  We ultimately grow and “may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.” (Isaiah 61:3 NKJV) He rooted, grounded, planted and grows us into His trees for His glory.

I enCOURAGE you to examine your roots. Are they sustaining you? Are you firmly established?  Are you growing in Love?  I enCOURAGE you to fertilize your roots by reading God’s word and exercising your faith.  Dare to believe God.  Go to Him in prayer everyday and all the time.  Watch as He further grows you, step by step, into His tree of righteousness.