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How Homeless Aliens Change the World (Ephesians 2:18-22)

By Jeremy Myers
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How Homeless Aliens Change the World (Ephesians 2:18-22)
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Ephesians 2:18-22 is the final section in Ephesians 2 which shows us how God brings peace and unity to this world through the church. If we want peace and unity in this world, then it begins by living in peace and unity with other members of the family of God. Ephesians 2:18-22 shows us how this happens.

Church Community and Unity

Before we study this text, we consider a question from a reader about why he no longer senses God’s work in his life.

Question from a Reader

I’m 63 and I grew up in church. I used to do small things in the church. I would give out tracts and talk to people. I believe Jesus is the son of the living God and became human. I used to read my Bible all the time. But recently, I don’t get any spiritual understanding when I read the Bible. The Holy Spirit does not witness to me. I cry out to God to save me and change me, but I don’t get answers. Can you help me?

Take heart! What you are describing is a very common experience for all Christians. Ancient Christian teachers called it “The Dark Night of the Soul,” but I prefer to call it “the spiritual winter.” Either way, the idea is the same.

It is very helpful to think of your life with God as a cycle or pattern that imitates the daily pattern of day and night, or the yearly pattern of four seasons: spring, summer, fall, winter.

When you feel that God is close, that your prayers are answered, that you are being fed and sustained through Scripture, and that the Spirit is actively at work in your life, these are the spiritual days, or, the spiritual spring and summer. Life is good. Joy abounds. There is sunshine and chirping birds and gentle breezes that carry hints of summer flowers.

But such times do not last forever. Day always gives way to the night, and summer gives way to fall and winter. In the night, everything is dark. It is hard to see. It gets cold and sometimes scary. The same is true for the fall and winter. Trees and grass whither. The snows and ice fall and everything dies. God is silent. Prayers go unanswered. The Bible seems dead and uninteresting.

But guess what? Morning is coming. Spring is coming! The cycle of light and growth will come again.

So when you find yourself in the dark night of the soul, or in the spiritual wasteland of a bleak winter, just be patient. Have faith. Persevere. Because this season too shall pass.

Now why does God do this to us? Why do we go through these seasons? Because this is how true growth occurs. It is in the dark night and the bleak winter that our convictions are tested, our faith is solidified, and our roots grow deep down into the soil. We need these times in order to prepare for the next stage of growth and abundance. These nights and winters are the times God provides so we can practice what we have learned in the bright days of summer.

So keep doing what you are doing. Keep patient. Keep the faith. Dawn is near. Spring is coming.

How Homeless Aliens Change the World (Ephesians 2:18-22)

Strife, division, and hostility are not new in our day. They have been present since the beginning of the world when Cain killed Abel, or even before that when Adam blamed Eve for why he ate the forbidden fruit. Blame, accusation, violence, and death are the foundational characteristics of our culture.

But it does not need to be that way, and this is not what God wants.

God calls us to live differently in this world, and Jesus showed us how this could be done. In Ephesians 2, Paul explains how Jesus showed this to us and how we should live in light of what Jesus showed us.

One of the primary areas of division in Paulโ€™s day was the religious/political division between Jews and Gentiles. If you took all the religious, racial, economic, cultural, and political strife of our day, that is what you have with the Jew and Gentile strife of Paulโ€™s day.

And in Ephesians 2:18-22 he tells them, and therefore us, how to live in peace and unity with each other. These verses show us that if we want to live in peace and unity with those who would normally be our enemies, we need to change our mindset about who we are and who other people are.

You see, division and strife occurs when we focus on the things that make us different. But as followers of Jesus, there are several key truths about all of us that help unite us together, despite our differences. If we are able to focus on the things that unite us, then the things that make us different will no longer divide us because we will see that they are insignificant compared to who we are and what we have in Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 2:18-22

Let’s begin with Ephesians 2:18.

Ephesians 2:18. For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.

We talked about this some in our study of Ephesians 2:13-17, where we saw that in the days of Jesus and Paul, Gentiles and Jewish women did not have the same access to God in the temple as Jewish men did. But Jesus broke down all these barriers and dividing walls of hostility, so that now everyone has the exact same access to God.

There is no hierarchy. There are no favorites. There are no classes of people who have a special “in” with God. Paul is saying, โ€œAll have access. Both Jews and Gentiles have access. Both men and women. There is no privileged race or person or sex. There is no privileged class or position.โ€

Some religions and cults teach that only priests and pastors have access to God. That is not true. Catholicism teaches that Mary, the mother of Jesus has privileged access to Christ. That is not true either. First Timothy 2:5 says there is one mediator between God and manโ€”Christ Jesus. If you want to go to God to confess your sins, or to ask for a request, you can! You donโ€™t have to go through Mary. You donโ€™t have to go through a priest or a pastor. You don’t even need to go to a special building such as a church or temple. You have Top Level Access to God all the time, anywhere you are. Hebrews 4:16 says that now we ourselves can come boldly before the throne of grace.

And of course, Paul writes that this access to the Father is provided by the Spirit, which is the Holy Spirit.

Here’s how this helps us today.

Today, we all have the tendency to think that some of us are closer to God than others. Some of us think that pastors have a better chance of getting their prayers answered because they are closer to God. So when we have a prayer request, we ask our pastor to pray for us. But pastors are not any closer to God than anyone else. God hears and answers your prayers just as much as the prayers of a pastor or priest. We all have equal access.

Some people think that church attendance, or political views, or vaccination status, or educational degrees, or moral ability makes one person closer to God than someone else. But again, none of this is true. We all have equal access to God the Father through the Holy Spirit. There is no special class of people. And the minute you start thinking that you are on better spiritual footing than someone else is the minute you start dividing from them.

So when it comes to living in unity with others, the first step is to realize that all of us have equal access to God through the Holy Spirit. Nobody is first in line.

The second truth is similar, and is found in Ephesians 2:19.

Ephesians 2:19. Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.

The term strangers (xenos) is a word for a short time residentโ€”a transient. In todayโ€™s terminology, we would say โ€œhomeless.โ€

The term alien or foreigner, (paroikos) is a word for a person who is living in a country other than the one they were born in. They have no inheritance rights, no secure protection under the law, no voting rights. In our day, we would call them illegal aliens.

These two terms together show how much we do not belong. These are repeated ideas from Ephesians 2:12.

We were strangers and foreigners. We were homeless aliens, without rights or protection.

But we no longer carry that description.

Rather, also in Ephesians 2:19, we are fellow citizens with the saints. We often think of saints as having special rights and privileges; special access to God. But Paul says we are fellow citizens with them. Whatever they have, we have. Whatever rights they own, we own. In fact, in Ephesians 1:1, Paul wrote that all believers are saints, and therefore, all believers are citizens.

Citizenship was a prized possession in the time of Paul. Men and women would work their whole lives and pay huge amounts of money in order to become citizens of Rome. But if being a citizen of Rome was special, imagine how great it is to be citizens with the saints? According to Ephesians 2:19, that is what we are.

But more than just citizens, we are also members of the household of God. Now think about it. What is better? Being a citizen of Rome, or being a heir to the throne of the Roman Empire? America is not a monarchy, so think of England. Which would you rather be? A citizen of England, or a prince or princess of England? Of course we would want to be the prince or princess! And Paul says here, that is what we are.

Our third title is that we are members of the household of God. Not only are we saints because we are citizens, we are princes and princesses because we are members of Godโ€™s household. These are the titles we have in Christ.

There are two ways that this helps us live peacefully in this world with others.

First of all, similar to what we saw in Ephesians 2:18, all followers of Jesus are on equal footing with each other in the kingdom of heaven. Yes, we are royalty as members of the household of God, but we areย allย royalty. That means that we are all on equal footing. Seeing other Christians as other princes and princesses in the family of God will help us live in peace and unity with them, even if we have areas of disagreement.

But here is the second thing to understand, and this second truth helps us live in peace and unity with the rest of the world … with those people who are not Christians.ย Since we are citizen of heaven and members of the household of God, this means that we now are aliens inย this world.ย Although we were aliens and strangers to the kingdom of heaven, we are now aliens and strangers to the kingdom of this world.ย  Since we are citizens of heaven, this makes us foreigners and strangers in this land, in this world.

So when we see the world doing things that are contrary to God’s will, or that we disagree with, we can now respond in two ways. Rather than condemn the world and create division and strife, we can first of all just shake our heads sadly and think to ourselves, “What a strange way of doing things … it seems backward and updside-down, but then, this is a different land I am in, and they do things quite differently here.” You see, when it comes to living in this world, it is we who are the strangers in a strange land. It is we who are aliens in a land not our own. And this world lives and operates quite differently than the kingdom of heaven, from which we come.

However … and here’s the key … it is true that the way this world operates is destructive and damaging. Why? Because it operates according to the principles of the kingdom of darkness. The ways of the kingdom of God truly are better.

But since we are aliens and strangers to this land, we do not have a voice here. We do not have rights here. So we cannot just go around accusing and condemning people for their backward ways. We are the foreigners and do not have the right to do that here.

Instead, what we can do is live in such a way amongst ourselves that the watching world sees how we live in love and unity with each other, and says to themselves, “Hey, I want that too!” When we live the rules of the kingdom of God before a watching world, they want what we have and will learn from our example to live in love and unity as well. We show the world by how we live thatย there is another way, a better way. A way of peace, love, grace, forgiveness.

Indeed, this is exactly how Jesus showed us the new way of living, and we are now expected to follow His example, and show the world this new way of living as well. This is exactly what Paul writes in Ephesians 2:20.

Ephesians 2:20. โ€ฆ having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone,

The foundation of the apostles and prophets that Paul refers to here is the teachings of the apostles and prophets, which we now think of as the Old and New Testaments of Scripture.

The apostles were those who personally witnessed Christ and were taught directly by Him. There are no more apostles today. But the apostles left something for usโ€”they left writings about Christ. We know these writings as the New Testament. Paul says here that the first foundation we have is the writings of the apostles which is the New Testament. The writings and teachings of the prophets are found in the Hebrew Scripture, which we call the Old Testament.

Jesus Christ the cornerstoneAnd as Paul points out in the last part of Ephesians 2:20, Jesus Christ is the chief cornerstone. In other words, Jesus Christ is the central truth of Scripture, to whom all Scripture points, and in whom all Scripture is fulfilled. Jesus is the scarlet thread on every page. He is the fulfillment of every law. He is the beginning and the end. He is what it is all about (John 5:39).

The cornerstone is the foundational stone of a building. When a building in ancient times was being constructed, the first and most important stone to be laid was the cornerstone. If it was prepared and laid correctly, the building would be square and strong. If it had imperfections and was laid poorly, the building would be flawed and weak (cf. Isa 28:16).

It is just like when youโ€™re laying shingles on a house, or plowing rows in a field. The first shingle and the first row must be perfect, or all the rest will be out of place.

Paul is saying that Jesus, as the chief cornerstone, showed us how to live with one another in this world. Jesus did this by following, fulfilling, and even guiding and inspiring the teachings of the apostles and prophets. So when we follow the example of Jesus, we are also obeying and fulfilling the teachings of Scripture.

And when we do this, this is how we show the world a better way to live. A way guided by love and forgiveness, that results in peace and unity.

In fact, a focus on Jesus as the chief cornerstone will in itself create peace and unity. We humans so often get dived by how we identify ourselves.

Today, we are divided by who we follow: Moses, Mohammad, or Mahatma Gandhi. We are divided by our political persuasion: Democrat or Republican. We are divided by our vaccine status. We are even divided by our pronouns.

But what if we as followers of Jesus stopped identifying with these divisive things, and started instead to identify as a follower of Jesus. How do you identify? I identify as a follower of Jesus. That’s unifying, isn’t it?

When we live in these ways, this is when the church comes together as God wants, lives in this world as God desires, and therefore, shows the world a better way to live.

Ephesians 2:21-22. In whom the whole building, being joined together grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

There are two words in Greek for “temple.” The first, hieron, is used for the whole building and vicinity. It is used for the temple grounds. That is not the word used here.

The word used here isย naos. It has in view just the part of the temple where God dwells.

During the time of Solomon’s temple, Godโ€™s presence was in the Holy of Holiesโ€”the most sacred part of the temple. That is what is in view here. But, as I mentioned, only the High priest could enter the Holy of Holies, and that only once a year.

But when Jesus died on the cross, the veil which separated man from God in the Temple was torn in two from top to bottom. This symbolized that the breach had been filled. The separation had been spanned. The wall had come down.

In A.D. 70, the temple was destroyed. Does that mean that God no longer has any temple? No! 1 Corinthians 3:16 and 6:19 tells us that Christians are now the temple of God. We are each a temple individually, and we are also being built into one glorious temple for God. We are the new Holy of Holies.

wall of hostility in the temple

And that is what Paul is saying here. When we follow the example of Jesus by living with love, grace, and forgiveness toward each other and toward the watching world, God forms and grows us into a temple for Himself, a dwelling place for God.

God does not dwell in a building made by human hands, but in the body of Christ, which is formed by the Spirit of God, and which goes forward into the world with the love of Jesus.

Only in this way will Godโ€™s temple in the world rise up, not as a temple built with human hands, but as a the people of God who follow Jesus into the world to love and serve whomever we meet.

This somewhat goes back the question from a reader we discussed above.

Many of us Christians want to see God more at work in our life and in this world. Well, that happens by loving and serving others in this world the way Jesus loved and served us. As we live and act like Jesus in this world, God forms His temple, His body, in our midst. As we live together in peace and harmony with one another, working to reveal Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God to this world, God shows up among us, and people will say, โ€œTruly, God is in their midst. Truly God is dwelling among them.โ€

This concludes our study of Ephesians 2.

Back at the end of Ephesians 1, in the study of Ephesians 1:20-23, I pointed out that God wants His way of life to become reality here on earth. We all want this as well. We want God to rule and reign on this earth. We want peace and justice and truth to become the norm.

But this world seems to be dominated by the opposite. Rather than peace and justice, we have hatred, violence, deception, and injustice.

So if God wants His way of life to rule and reign, how does this happen? How does it come about? Ephesians 2 was Paul’s answer to that question.

God wants to solve the problems of this world, and He did so by sending Jesus to create the church. While Jesus is the answer to all the problems of the world, the church is how Jesus lives and talks and acts in this world.

The church is how Jesus accomplishes changes in the world.ย 

When the church steps up as the body of Christ, we, as the hands, feet, and voice of Jesus Christ, will fill everything in every way, and the power of God will flow through us to transform this world in ways that Jesus wants and desires.

Jesus is the head of the world and the head of the church, and as such, the church fills the world and transforms it into the ways of the Kingdom of God.

We have now seen in Ephesians 2 how the church as the body of Christ becomes the catalyst the creates love, peace, and unity in a world filled with hatred, violence, and division. We show the world a better way to live by following the example of Jesus through living in peace and unity with each other. As we live in peace and unity with other brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ, the world takes notice, and learns from us how they too can live in peace and unity. In this way, the peace of God spreads over the earth.

Paul takes this theme and builds on it further in Ephesians 3, which is where we pick up next time.

God is Redeeming God, Redeeming Scripture, z Bible & Theology Topics: church unity, ephesians 2:18-22, kingdom of god, love, peace, Redeeming God podcast, unity

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The Things that Divide Us (Ephesians 2:11-12)

By Jeremy Myers
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The Things that Divide Us (Ephesians 2:11-12)
https://media.blubrry.com/one_verse/feeds.soundcloud.com/stream/1134016861-redeeminggod-six-sources-of-strife-and-division-eph-211-12.mp3

There were six things that caused division and strife between Jews and Gentiles. Paul discusses these in Ephesians 2:11-12. These same six things are found in various ways today in our culture and country. As we learn how Paul wanted the Ephesian Christians to respond to these sources of division, we can learn to live at peace with others today as well. All of this is covered in this study of Ephesians 2:11-12.

Before we look at that, however, we consider a question from a reader about the difference between a believer and a disciple.

Question from a Reader

I have read over your page on the difference between a believer and a disciple more than once. Recently I have started reading the Bible again after not reading it systematically for a long time-I tried being a disciple when I was about 18, I went to church for a few years, then I lost faith in God and quit. Now I’m 48 and my faith in God has returned … Your article says that if someone tries to be a disciple and fails then God will teach them, call them etc., so they can become a productive member of God’s family. Are you saying that if someone fails at discipleship, they have to become a disciple again? Or are you saying that God will simply try and make all believers productive in one way or the other?

You often hear pastors and Bible teachers talk about “the path of discipleship.” Thinking of discipleship as a path or a road is a helpful analogy.

disciple

I used to live in New York, but I now live in Oregon. When I moved from New York to Oregon, I drove on numerous roads and highways to get here. Now imagine if I stopped driving. I would no longer be making any progress on the road to Oregon. But I also wouldn’t necessarily have to start over in New York. I would just be stuck wherever I was.

At the same time, if I mistakenly or intentionally made a wrong turn, then I might actually be going backwards and headed back to New York, thereby, negating any progress I had made so far. Or maybe I would just be driving around in circles for a while, lost and confused.

But if I followed the map and the directions for getting from New York to Oregon, then I would eventually arrive at my destination. As I did.

This is the way it also works with discipleship. Yes, God wants all believers to become disciples and to make progress on the path of discipleship, and so God has provided in Scripture numerous instructions and directions for how to proceed as a follower of Jesus. If we follow these instructions, then we make progress. However, if we disobey, ignore, or even misunderstand the instructions, then we will stop making progress, and might actually go backwards a bit. But we don’t have to start all over.

And the best part about the path of discipleship is that we don’t have to travel it alone. God has not only given us Himself, Scripture, and the indwelling Holy Spirit to help us on our journey, but also provides us with fellow human travelers to encourage us and aid us on our way. Hopefully, I am someone who is helping you make progress on the path of discipleship as I show you where I have traveled and help you make better sense of the instructions God has provided in the Bible.

The Things that Divide Us (Ephesians 2:11-12)

โ€œIt is a part of sinful human nature to build barriers that shut out other people. In New Testament times one of the greatest barriers was between slaves and freemen, especially between slaves and their owners. Those who were free looked down on slaves as being inferior, slightly above animals. Many slaves looked on their masters with contempt and resentment. Consequently, one of the greatest problems of the early church was in getting Christian slave owners and Christian slaves to treat each other as spiritual equals.

โ€œFor the most part, women were also looked down on as inferior beings. Husbands often treated their wives little better than they did their slaves. When a wife became a Christian, her entire life, outlook, and value system changed. An unbelieving husband would likely divorce her simply because she had made such a radical decision without his consent.

โ€œThe Greeks were so proud of their culture and supposed racial superiority that they considered everyone else to be barbarians, a belief to which Paul alludes in Romans 1:14 and Colossians 3:11. The Greek language was considered to be the language of the gods. The Roman statesman Cicero wrote, โ€˜As the Greeks say, โ€œAll men are divided into two classes, Greeks and barbarians.โ€[1]

We must not forget as well, the constant animosity between Jews and Gentiles. From the very beginning with Abrahamโ€™s two sons, Ishmael and Isaac, this has been an issue. 4000 years later, the struggle has only become worse with nearly the whole world taking sides between Israel and Palestine and current affairs right now in the Middle East.

And of course, it is not just the religious, racial, and cultural issues that divide, but also political and scientific issues. Take the current vaccination battle that is being waged around the world. A person’s vaccination status is a great source of division and strife in the world right now. I hope that you are not a person who divides from someone else based on their vaccination status.

All of this division and strife between people is a result of sin. In fact, I argue elsewhere that division is the ultimate Christian heresy.ย  Those who divide from other Christians are guilty of the greatest and most sinful Christian heresy.

But Jesus came to remove all of this division and strife. This is the overall message of Ephesians 2.

Summary of Ephesians 2:1-10

Most Christians think that Ephesians 2 is about how we humans were all sinners and so Jesus came to offer us eternal life. And while that could be a proper reading of Ephesians 2:1-10, that message does not fit with Ephesians 2:11-22. And since Ephesians 2:11-22 is the application section of Ephesians 2, this means that the entire chapter must fit together into one cohesive argument.

And since Ephesians 2:11-22 is all about how the church is supposed to lead the world out of division and strife and into a life of love and unity, this means that the message of Ephesians 2:1-10 is how God revealed to us the true nature of sin, and a better way to life in Jesus Christ.

Up to this point in Ephesians 2, Paul described the normal way of life in this worldย  as one of being dead in our sins and dead to God. We lived in a state of blame, accusation, vengeance, violence, and retaliation (Ephesians 2:1-3). But God then stepped into this situation in Jesus Christ and showed us a whole new way to live (Ephesians 2:4-7). We were raised up to a life in Jesus Christ that is the the life God always wanted for us and which He had planned and prepared for us since the foundation of the world (Ephesians 2:8-10).

In Ephesians 2:11-22, Paul now seeks to show us how to live differently, and also how to lead the world into a different way of living.

Six Sources for Strife (Ephesians 2:11-12)

We’re looking at Ephesians 2:11-12 today, where Paul begins by describing six of the differences between Jews and Gentiles. He describes six of the things that caused strife and division between these two people groups.

All of these damaged relationships are the result of sin. Now if Paul was writing today, he could have written about blacks vs whites, Republicans vs. Democrats, rich vs. poor, police vs. inner city residents, vaccinated vs. unvaccinated, or Christian vs. Muslim.

All of the racial, political, economic, religious, cultural, and health-related division that exist today existed in the days of Paul between Jews and Gentiles. In Ephesians 2:11-12, Paul commands them to remember six things in regard to their human relationships before they were saved. The first of these six is found in Ephesians 2:11.

Ephesians 2:11. Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the fleshโ€”who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by handsโ€”

So the first division is that they were Gentiles in the fleshโ€”who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by handsโ€”

Paul is talking here about the differences between the Jew and the Gentile. Prior to Abraham, there was no difference. But God, in choosing Abraham, created a difference. Now God created this difference so that His people could be a blessing to everyone else. The problem, however, was that many Jews saw this difference as a reason to boast and be proud and think that they were superior to the others.

But God did not choose Abraham so that the Jews would think they were superior to the Gentiles, but so that they might be a blessing and a help to the Gentiles.

wall of hostilityAnd the aspect that Paul mentions here in Ephesians 2:11 about this difference between Jew and Gentile is circumcision. Since circumcision was the outward sign of the covenant with God, the Jews considered any uncircumcised male to be outside of Godโ€™s blessing and purpose. The Jews were proud of this outward sign of the covenant, and they despised anyone who was not circumcised.

In fact, โ€œJews said that the Gentiles were created by God to be fuel for the fires of Hell; that God loved only Israel of all the nations that he had made; that the best of the serpents crushed, the best of the Gentiles killed.

โ€œIt was not lawful to render help to a Gentile woman in childbirth, for that would be to bring another Gentile into the world. The barrier between Jew and Gentile was absolute. If a Jew married a Gentile, the funeral for the Jew was carried out. Such contact with a Gentile was the equivalent of death; even to go into a Gentile house rendered a Jew unclean.โ€[3]

When a Jew went on a journey and returned, before he stepped back into Israel, he would shake the dust off his feet because he didnโ€™t want to bring Gentile dirt into the holy land.[4]

As we can seeโ€”the Jewish people at that time were arrogant, and despised Gentiles. But this was not always the case, and is not the case today either.

In Ephesians 2:11, Paul, although he was a Jew himself, mocks their arrogance by saying that the Jewish circumcision which they took so much pride in was nothing more than something done in the flesh by the hands of men. In Philippians 3:2, Paul calls them โ€œmutilators of the fleshโ€ and in Romans 2:29, he shows us that the real circumcision that God desires is not of the flesh by the hands of men, but of the heart, by the Holy Spirit. It is those who believe in Jesus alone and not in their own works of the flesh that are circumcised of the heart and not of the flesh.

So the first thing Paul wants them to remember is that they were Gentilesโ€”despised by the Jews. The Jewish people thought they were superior to others because they had a covenant with God. They had special revelation. They had better morals. They had a piece of skin cut off their body.

Does any of this sound familiar today? It should.

There are some who think they are superior to others because of how they vote, or because of what religion they belong to, or have more money, fame, or power than others, or because they got a vaccine. And Paul is going to say “Stop dividing over such silly things! All such division is satanic.”

But Paul is not yet done describing the things that cause division. There are five more in Ephesians 2:12. The second is that at that time you were without Christ.

What Paul means is pretty obvious. They did not have Christ. The Ephesians lived under the same problem that the rest of the world live under. They still, just like everyone else, lived under a system of rivalry, violence, scapegoating, blame, slander, accusation, and victimization.

The Ephesians, for the most part, worshipped the goddess Diana, and before the coming of the Gospel, knew nothing of Jesus Christ. They were without Christ, and as such were under condemnation.

Now how did this cause division? Well, the word for Christ here is the Greekย Christos,ย but is the Greek word for Messiah. The Messiah, orย Meshiachย in Hebrew, is one of the things that caused division between Jews and Gentiles. The Jews has prophecies that the Messiah would come through them. This gave them a sense of superiority over others. But the Gentiles didn’t have a Messiah.

And in fact, many Jews at that time thought that when the Messiah came, He would only be a Savior for the Jews, and everyone else would get destroyed by the Messiah. So yes, the aspect of a promised Messiah caused division.

The third source of division was that Gentiles were aliens from the commonwealth of Israel.

Another way of saying this is that we were excluded from being a part of Godโ€™s people, or excluded from citizenship with Israel. They were without citizenship in Israel, and therefore, many Jews thought that God didn’t love or care for Gentiles either. Gentiles were separate from the special blessing, protection, love, covenants, priesthood, sacrifices, promises and guidance that God gave to Israel (Deut 32:9-14; 33:27-29; Isa 63:7-9; Amos 3:2).

Again, the issue of how to treat people from other countries is a divisive issue today. We currently have a major humanitarian crisis at our southern border, and there is a huge debate about the best way to care for the aliens … the immigrants … who are there. Everybody in our country wants to help the immigrants, but the question is how. Do we just let anyone and everyone come into our country who wants to? Or would it be better to seeks ways to improve the living conditions in the countries they come from so that the immigrants can stay in their home country and gain access to good opportunities there?

The issue of citizenship and alien immigrants is a huge divisive issue.

The fourth item from Ephesians 2:12 that causes division is that the Gentiles were strangers from the covenants of promise.

God never made any covenants with Gentile nations. Gentiles were included in the covenant with Abraham, and since Noah lived before Abraham, we could consider him as a Gentile, I suppose, but in broad terms, God did not make covenants with Gentile nationsโ€”only with the nation of Israel. Gentiles were considered strangers and aliensโ€”and the Jews never let them forget it.

Many of the Jewish Pharisees would pray daily, โ€œO God, I give thanks that I am a Jew, not a Gentile.โ€[7]

Why did they have this view? Because God had not made any covenants or promises with Gentile nations. Therefore, Jews believed that God did not love the Gentiles as much as He loved the Jews. Since God did not make any promises to them, this meant that God did not really have any plans for them.

Again, this perspective is sometimes found in various churches, where non-Christians are viewed as second-class humans from a divine perspective. I once spoke with a man who was a strong Calvinist (see my posts here for more about Calvinism) who said that due to his belief in divine election, he never shared the gospel with unbelievers because the Bible said to not cast pearls before swine. That’s an extreme view, even among Calvinists, but it is not uncommon for Christians to rarely interact with non-Christians. It’s not that we hate non-Christians, but we just sort of view them with a disdain and bit if disgust for how they live and what they believe. Once they become Christians, however, then we accept them with open arms … as long as they do what we say and believe what they are told.

You see? Being a stranger from the covenants of promise is a source of division.

Fifth, Gentiles were without hope.

one body in ChristThis, of course, is from a Jewish perspective, for many Gentiles at that time did indeed have hope, just as today, almost everybody has hope of some kind for the future.

But Jews thought that Gentiles were hopeless. That they had not prospects. No real future. Gentiles were nobodies going nowhere.

Again, sometimes Christians today are guilty of viewing non-Christians in the same light.

And finally, and sort of as a summary of all the others, Gentiles were without God in the world.

The term here in the Greek is atheos from which we get our word โ€œatheist.โ€ Now, the fact that they were atheos doesnโ€™t mean that they didnโ€™t believe in God. Just the opposite in fact. Rather than being atheists the way we think of them today, most Gentiles in Paul’s day were polytheists. They believed in many gods.

Remember Paulโ€™s sermon on Mars Hill in Athens? He talked about all the gods they had. So it was not an issue of them being without gods, it was that they did not know the one true God. They were without the God of the Bible.

But this was a source of contention between Jews and Gentiles. Jews looked down upon Gentiles for not worshipping the One True God, but instead worshipping many false, manmade gods.

And again, a similar strife is often found today between various religious groups. Nearly every religious group looks down upon all the other for worshipping a false god or gods.

So the six things Paul lists here as descriptive of some of the things that caused division and strife between Jews and Gentiles.ย All six things caused enmity and hatred and discord between Jews and Gentiles.

Why is Paul Reminding the Ephesians Christians Of This?

Paul is not simply trying to remind the Ephesians Christians of how they were once treated and viewed. I believe Paul was writing these things to them, and telling them to remember how they were treated, because the Ephesian Christians were starting to look down upon their non-Christian neighbors and friends with scorn and derision. They had started to feel superior, to feel smarter, to feel like God loved them more than anyone else.

So Paul comes along here and says, โ€œRemember! As Gentiles, you used to be in a position where another group of people looked down upon you, and scorned you, and judged you, and thought that God hated you. You didnโ€™t like that very much. So now that you are part of the family of God, make sure you donโ€™t fall into the same trap. Donโ€™t start treating your non-Christians neighbors the way your Jewish friends once treated you.โ€

This is a good reminder for us in the church today. Donโ€™t forget your past. If you did not grow up in the church, then you might have had the experience of feeling judged, ridiculed, shamed, or even hated by certain groups of Christians. Some Christians look down upon non-Christians, condemning, criticizing, and accusing them of all sorts of things. Paul would say to you, โ€œDo you remember what that felt like? Now that you are a Christian, make sure you donโ€™t do the same thing.โ€

You were called to be part of Godโ€™s family for the same reason that Abraham was called and the Jewish people were called and all of Godโ€™s people are called โ€ฆ not to lord your position over others and think that you are smarter and more blessed than others, but rather to be a blessing and a help to them. To love them.

If you start to treat others with hate and derision, then you are still living in the way described by Paul in Ephesians 2:1-3. We used to live lives of rivalry, blame, accusation, scapegoating, slander, and violence, but now God has called us to live lives of love, forgiveness, grace, faith, and blessing. If we go back to blaming, accusing, scapegoating, and judging the world, then we have learned nothing about Jesus Christ or why He came.

Nevertheless, it is not uncommon for Christians and even pastors to revert back to the old way of living. For example, a certain pastor has said the following: โ€œScripture teaches โ€ฆ that God eternally hates some men; has immutably decreed their damnation; and has determined to withhold from them Christ, grace, faith, and salvation.โ€[9]

Hereโ€™s a hymn that used to be sung years ago in certain churches around the country: (I donโ€™t know the tune, but the words go โ€ฆ)

โ€œWe are the Lordโ€™s elected few,
Let all the rest be damned;
Thereโ€™s room enough in hell for you,
We wonโ€™t have heaven crammed!โ€[10]

Are you as horrified as I am that certain Christians feel this way about the unsaved? We wonder how the Jews could have hated the Gentiles so, but then we look at some of our own brothers and sisters hating non-Christians in the exact same way!

None of us, I hope, feel this way about any non-Christian. None of us, I hope, despise our neighbor because they are not Christians. Rather, we love them, and are concerned for them, and want to share with them the love that Christ has for them so that they too may be saved. That is the Christians duty. That is our God given responsibilityโ€”to bring blessing, not cursing.

In Ephesians 2:13-22, we will begin to see how we can make sure we are a blessing to this world, rather than a source of hate, division, and strife.

Footnotes for the Study on Ephesians 2:11-12

[1] MacArthur, chapter 7, intro.
[3] Barclay, 107.
[4] MacArthur, chapter 7.
[7] Wiersbe, 22.
[9] David Engelsma, quoted in Vance, 293.
[10] In Vance, 300.

God is Redeeming God, Redeeming Scripture, z Bible & Theology Topics: division, Ephesians 2, Ephesians 2:11-12, heresy, peace, racism, unity

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4 Ways the Gospel Creates Unity in the Church

By Jeremy Myers
8 Comments

4 Ways the Gospel Creates Unity in the Church

Once we begin to understand how the gospel creates peace, mocks our vain claims to self-importance, and teaches us to live as agents of joy and delight in the world, how will these truths begin to create unity among the bickering factions of Christianity?

Let me propose four ways the gospel creates unity in the church.

First, the gospel teaches us that truth is only true if carried out in love.

church unityWhile we can agree that there is no love without truth, it is essential for doctrinally-minded Christians to remember that there also is no truth without love. True truth will always express itself in love.

If you are warring and fighting with your brother, especially over doctrine, it is probably a good indication that you have misunderstood the truth of that doctrine. True doctrine and theology leads always and only to love (1 Cor 13).

Second, the gospel brings peace to the various sides of the โ€œworks vs. faithโ€ debate.

The debate has raged over whether or not the gospel requires works as a way to earn, keep, or prove oneโ€™s eternal life.

Yet this debate comes from a simple categorical mistake of confusing a small part of the gospel with its entirety. If two people are arguing about what qualifies as true โ€œfruitโ€ and one has apples in mind and the other has oranges, but they keep using the world โ€œfruitโ€ the argument quickly becomes quite messy.

Gospel debates are like that. The gospel is a wide-ranging message about what God has done for the entire world through the life, teachings, crucifixion, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It not only contains truths about how a person can go to heaven when they die, but also about how a follower of Jesus can live here on earth.

So if one person is thinking only about the parts of the gospel that tell a person how to go to heaven when they die or receive eternal life (faith alone in Christ alone), while another person is thinking about the parts of the gospel which tell followers of Jesus how to live on this earth (discipleship, obedience, faithful living), but both persons keep using the term โ€œgospel,โ€ the argument quickly becomes quite messy. But when we understand that the gospel contains both truths, about how to receive eternal life and properly live this life, then we can stop arguing about the role of faith and works in the gospel and see that both have their proper place with proper results.

Third, the gospel is about learning more about Jesus AND doing more with Jesus

unity of the Body of ChristWhen we see that the gospel contains a whole host of truths and doctrines to believe and teach and also a broad spectrum of behaviors to practice and obey, those who believe Christians should be listening to more sermons and attending more Bible studies can nod and smile toward those who prefer to be out feeding the poor and tending the sick, and vice versa.

Both sides recognize that if they are truly following the gospel, there will come a time when their roles must reverse, or at least become more balanced.

There is a time to study, and a time to serve; a time to learn, and a time to love.

The gospel reminds us that we are all one family

Ultimately, the gospel teaches us that no matter what, we are all one family. And just like any family, there will be internal disagreements, struggles, and arguments. There may need to be some discipline that takes place, some separations that must occur.

But when these arguments and breakups happen, the gospel reminds us that we are still family, and that despite our hurt feelings, theological disagreements, and interfamily strife, the goal of the gospel is reconciliation and redemption, not just of each of us to one another, but ultimately and eventually, the redemption and reconciliation of all things under the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

But church unity is not easy

None of this means that the development of unity is easy. In fact, unity is a bit like humility: both vanish the moment you think youโ€™ve achieved it. Unity, like humility, can never be our goal. Unity is a byproduct of living within the gospel.

Unity occurs naturally as a result of following Jesus as He leads us into peace with God and each other, into a gentle mocking of our own pride and ambition, and into a full-fledged delight at the beauty and wonder of life in this world.

When viewed this way, the gospel is a truth that binds us all together in unity, whether we are high church or low church, mega church or house church, or some mixture in between. The gospel is not something that divides, but unites, and brings us together into the unity of the faith.

The Gospel According to ScriptureWant to learn more about the gospel? Take my new course, "The Gospel According to Scripture."

The entire course is free for those who join my online Discipleship group here on RedeemingGod.com. I can't wait to see you inside the course!

God is Redeeming Life, Redeeming Theology Bible & Theology Topics: biblical living, church unity, following Jesus, good news, gospel, unity

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Christian Unity and the Church

By Jeremy Myers
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Christian Unity and the Church

So-Called ChristianI recently read a book titled So-Called Christian by Jim Turner. This book is part confession, part exhortation. In it, Jim Turner confesses to his own sins of pride, jealousy, and discord, and explain how he came to see that such behavior is not only damaging to himself and his relationships, but also to the church at large and the churchโ€™s witness to the world.

By sharing personal stories and biblical insights, Jim Turner calls the church to restore unity and love within the Body of Christ.

Ironically, or maybe not surprisingly, I donโ€™t agree completely agree with all the theology or biblical interpretations shared by Jim in his book. Howeverโ€”and here is the pointโ€”I am in full agreement (and unity) with Jim in his call for Christian to live in unity despite our differences. Thatโ€™s the key. We will never all act the same way, dress alike, or believe the same things. But we can choose to get along in love and unity, knowing that others may see things differently than we do, but in Christ we are all one.

Jim shows that when we disagree with each other, we can practice unity by being kind, gentle, loving, and patient with others in our disagreements.

And yet, unity is much easier to write and talk about than to actually achieve. For example, in a short chapter about where to draw the line on unity, Jim Turner points to many texts which seem to teach that Christians should separate from those who stray from apostolic teaching (p. 121). But that is exactly the problem, isnโ€™t it? What one person thinks of as a โ€œfringe opinionโ€ may be included in other personโ€™s list of critical โ€œapostolic teachings.โ€

Of course, Jim recognizes this tension, and spends a couple chapters at the end of the book saying that while this tension exists, we can still move toward unity by focusing not on doctrines and dogmas, but on Jesus Christ and the grace of God. When we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, and remember the grace that God has shown us, it becomes much easier to live in unity with others.

To check out the book for yourself, get a copy on Amazon: So-Called Christian

God is Uncategorized Bible & Theology Topics: Books I'm Reading, unity

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Unity vs Uniformity in the Church

By Jeremy Myers
25 Comments

Unity vs Uniformity in the Church

unity vs uniformityThere has been a huge push toward unity in the church over the past 40 years or so. People are tired of the numerous divisions and splits that seem to occur with increasing frequency within the church. And while some of our divisions involve important issues, such as whether or not Jesus was truly divine (He is) and whether or not God loves gays (He does, of course), a lot of church division seems to occur over stupid stuff, like what kind of music to play on Sunday morning, whether or not there should be donuts in the foyer, and what color the new carpet should be.

Personally, I don’t think all church splits are a bad thing. I don’t think that deciding to leave one group of people so that you can join with a different group is always bad. To some degree, this is just the way life is, and sometimes, these sorts of reorganizations are simply one way of keeping the peace. When we view all different denominations and types of churches as parts of the universal Body of Christ, we begin to see that we are not in competition with one another, but are simply different parts of the same Body working in unison toward a common goal. I’ve written about this before in my post: The Church is Broken? Nope.

Of course, there does not always seem to be a whole lot “unison toward a common goal.” Instead, there is a lot of name calling, finger pointing, back stabbing, and heretic burning. I fully admit that I have engaged in a fair bit of this myself over the years. And I sometimes still do. I’m guilty too.

But here is what I am trying to come to recognize: Unity is not the same thing as uniformity.

I believe we can have unity within the church without uniformity. In fact, since there can never be true uniformity in all things, the only way to achieve unity is to recognize, accept, and celebrate our diversity.

Maybe some quick definitions are in order.

Unity vs Uniformity

Unity is when we are one. We are of one mind, spirit, purpose, mission, and goal.

Uniformity is when we all believe the same thing and practice the same thing. We are uniform in our beliefs and behaviors.

I think that in general, all Christians everywhere are in unity. We have one Spirit, the Spirit of God. We have one purpose, to glorify God. We have one mission, to spread the good news about Jesus Christ. We have one goal, to lift up the name of Jesus and live like Him in this world.

Yet despite this unity, there is no uniformity whatsoever on how to do these things, what it looks like, or where and when to do these things.

Just take the “gospel” we are supposedly in unity about. Regarding the gospel, we cannot agree on the the definition and message of the gospel we are to proclaim! We cannot agree on who gets to proclaim it, or to whom it should be proclaimed, or what should happen after we proclaim it. There is even disagreement in some circles on what we should wear when we proclaim the gospel and what Bible translation we should use. Let’s be honest: It gets quite ridiculous.

Unity Without Uniformity

I think it is possible — even desirable — to have unity without uniformity. 

It is possible to have unity within the church only if we give up on uniformity. Unity is a Godly goal; uniformity is not. 

unity of the Body of ChristI can be happy that that certain members of my Christian family like Southern Gospel music even though it makes me want to cut my ears off. I don’t think that they should like my kind of music (which is pretty much no music at all) to be real Christians, and I hope they can extend the same grace toward me despite our lack of uniformity.

Similarly, though I am not a big fan of sitting in a pew on Sunday morning and calling that “church,” I know that for many people, this is an important part of the way they follow Jesus. Since this used to be essential for me as well, I understand where they are coming from, and can be in unity with them regardless of our differences in how we try our best to follow Jesus. I hope they can extend the same grace toward me despite our lack of uniformity.

I could go on and talk about my Calvinist friends, or those who think women should be silent in church, or those who vote democrat. I may disagree with these perspectives quite passionately, but in the end, I choose to put aside my differences and love others for the sake of unity in Christ, not expecting them to become a clone of me, and hoping that they do not expect me to fall into step behind them.

It is exactly this unity without diversity which best expressed the love of Jesus, and which paves the way for us to invite the world into our midst. The world, I believe, wants to follow Jesus, but they are not sure they want to become “Christians.” If we can open up our arms and say, “No problem! There is room among Jesus followers for all kinds of Christians,” this sort of loving unity would go a long way in glorifying God, spreading the good news about Jesus Christ, and living like Him in this world.

So do you want Christian unity? Begin by recognizing, encouraging, and celebrating our immense diversity.


This post was part of the April Synchroblog, where various bloggers all write on the same topic. Below is a list of the other contributors this month:

  • The Virtual Abbess โ€“ Abi and Aprilโ€™s Synchroblog โ€“ Bridging the Divides 
  • Caris Adel – Emotional Pacifism: Laying Down My Weapons 
  • Ty Grigg โ€“ Speak Truth 
  • Jon Huckins โ€“ Gay Marriage, World Vision, and a Unified Church? 
  • Mark Votava โ€“ Faith Presence in the Parish 
  • Mary at Lifeinthedport โ€“ let us meet in the borderlands
  • Michael Donahoe โ€“ Healing Divisions in the Body of Christ  
  • Juliet at Still Learning โ€“ A Catholics Love Letter to Evangelical Women 
  • Dago at Scripture Insights โ€“ Jesus the Divider 
  • Glenn Hager โ€“ The Lowest Common Denominator 
  • Sarah Quezada – Standing on Church Bridges 
  • Doug Webster โ€“ Truth Is Not a Process, Belief Is
  • Michelle Van Loon โ€“ Bridging the Divide 
  • Happy at Simple Felicity โ€“ are we there yet? 
  • Travis Klassen โ€“ The Church: Coming, Going, or Being 
  • Bec Cranford – Biblical Interpretation and Inerrancy: Moving beyond myopia to a grander vision of unity
  • Teresa Pasquale โ€“ Bridging the Divide: Translating Between Dialects, Culture Contexts, and Heart Stirring 
  • Miguel Labrador โ€“ I might be willing to reconsider church hierarchies, ifโ€ฆ
  • Paul Meier โ€“ Healing the Divides Begins Within 
  • Liz Dyer โ€“ You Canโ€™t Get There From Here 
  • K.W. Leslie โ€“ Humility 
  • Kathy Escobar โ€“ 10 ways we can build bridges instead of bomb them 
  • Loveday Anyim โ€“ The โ€œnon-Gospelized Ritualsโ€ of Pentacostalism 
  • Caedmon Michael โ€“ Bridging the Divides
  • Carly Gelsinger โ€“ โ€œChurch Shoppingโ€ at the Wrong โ€œMallโ€: A Story of Easter Sundays
  • Mallory Pickering โ€“ A Splintered People
  • Pastor Edwin Fedex โ€“ Tearing Down Fences and Building Sidewalks

 

 

God is Uncategorized Bible & Theology Topics: body of Christ, church, conformity, Discipleship, synchroblog, Theology of the Church, uniformity, unity

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