WHO, THEM?
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Opening Prayer
Lord God, quiet my mind and heart so that I can hear what you would say to me through your Word today.
Read EPHESIANS 2:11–22
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
Jew and Gentile Reconciled Through Christ
11 Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (which is done in the body by human hands)— 12 remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
14 For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, 16 and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. 17 He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
Is your church or Christian community multicultural? If so, what things are in place to encourage a unity that leads to true koinonia (sharing in the grace of God)?
A Jewish person in Jerusalem would have lived in the shadow of the temple. This site was connected to the belief that God had once dwelt alongside his people in the land and the hope that he would return and do so again. The temple displayed the hope of the intimate closeness of God, but also the separation between God and humanity due to sin. A gentile would have been viewed as someone excluded both from the people of God and from the blessing of God. It has long been a human trait to create groups of people who are included and others who are excluded.
God’s work in Jesus Christ rends the very fabric of reality and creates a new order. Those who were far off now have peace with God: they are brought near. Maybe more challenging is when Paul writes that the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, has been destroyed. Those markers which were used to separate people have now been dismantled and the two groups are recreated as one new people. Throughout the passage, Paul repeats the word peace: Jesus is our peace, the new humanity is at peace, and Jesus preached peace. Peace, here, does not mean tranquility, but the daily sacrificial work of reconciliation and unity that the church is to embody.
Paul’s call to the Jew and the gentile was to see that now they are one group, fellow citizens, and members of the same house. They have been united by Jesus. That long-awaited hope that God would return to dwell with his people was happening, not in the physical temple, but rather in the beauty of the diverse church. We are called to cross barriers, extend apologies, break down walls, and see others as our family, not our enemy.
Apply
If there is a broken relationship in your life, what would it look like to extend peace? Spend time praying for the person and asking the Spirit for healing.
Closing prayer
Jesus Christ, by your blood the whole of humanity is brought near; in your flesh, a new humanity is created. Mold my heart to live in this truth.
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