MESSAGE BY PASTOR ROB INRIG
FROM BETHANY BAPTIST IN RICHMOND, BC.
I invite you to pray with me, Father God hear our prayer, and we humbly cry to you as it is written in your word, Lucas 11:9:” Keep asking and it will give to you, Continue searching and you will find it, Keep knocking and it will be open for you)” We are requesting healing for our dear members of our family and also dear friends who are suffering from illnesses in their lives fighting and suffering under a lot of pain, You know them by their names; (Gaby P, Vicky O, Nancy R, Tere G, Liz N, Gloria F, Stevie A, Les N, Miguel A H, Socrates D, Sara's mom H, Sergei B, Margarita G, Fega G. Manuel D, Marlen C. Rosy Ch) Also, some of them are tired of spiritual struggles, losing their faith in you, Strengthening their trust in you with a miracle in their lives, oh! Father God, hear our prayer, and we also pray for all the people around the world, especially the children who are suffering from wars, devastation, hunger, pain, hate and disbelieving in you also, bless the ones who are reading this message and their families. Heal the Land of those Countries at war; you love them so much, oh Father God, hear our prayer, we ask you in the name of Our Lord of Lords and King of Kings, your beloved son Jesus Christ. AMEN!
We live in a world of divide. Arabs against Jews. Politician against politician. Employee against employer. Spouse against spouse. And in a time experienced not long ago, social distancers against those who could care less.
Walling in. Walling out. The side we represent, obviously right and the others? - simply wrong. And if stakes are high enough, not just wrong but treacherous or at least, not to be trusted.
Walls of division have been with us forever – evidence that the issue is far deeper than viewpoint or custom or race. At issue is our heart and more accurately, our sin that elevates our needs, our rights, our views. Threaten these and it’s soon apparent what Scripture talks of when it says, The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.
As we look at our passage this morning, the Apostle Paul briefly steps out of what he’s been reminding us of in the previous verses about the amazing things we have in Jesus and as part of that, the great value He places upon us. Paul will get back to that but not before reminding us that the identity and blessings we now possess hasn’t always been the case.
We pick it up in :11 of chapter 2: Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in His flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that He might create in Himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. And He came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through Him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In Him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.
Packed in these verses is a lot of theology about salvation, about the Trinity, about the Church. Obviously, too much to cover in the time we have, so this morning I want to look at 3 things: Jesus, the answer to identities that divide; Jesus, the answer to identifies that are made completely new and Jesus, the answer to identities being redesigned for what’s ahead.
1st Jesus, the answer to Identities that divide
With this in mind about what you now have, Paul reminds, don’t forget who you were and what things were like before Christ. Sometimes you and I also need to sit in this place and pause to remember in full colour that where we are is not where we once were.
For the Jews his reminder was about how they had lived, tied up and strangled, trying to live by “Law” – always failing - not understanding that the identity God wanted them to take hold of was rooted in His “promise” not His law. God’s law pointing them to their sin; law they were reminded of again and again, they could not keep and God’s promise pointing them to His forgiving grace.
Another problem that came with the Law was, as :11 & 12 tell us, there was separation - a divide between the circumcised and the uncircumcised. Namely, those who were God’s children and those who were not. On one side, the :12 commonwealth of Israel or (the Jews) and literally, the ‘foreskins’, God picturing the ‘divide’ using the physical to illustrate a spiritual truth. The physical demonstrating God’s mark of relationship associated with the most intimate part of who we are. In some ways, I think this illustrates that there’s no part that needs to be hidden from Him. No part that needs to be kept from Him, but in our failure to understand who we are in Christ, we hide or worse, we don’t let God in. Because it’s in the places we keep from Him where we fall, where we are most prone to sin. The picture given here in circumcision, represented by males but applicable to all, is that everyone has been created by God but only those who bear the evidence of being changed, being transformed, are those God uniquely calls His children.
These, :12 tells us, bear undeniable evidence of God’s Covenant of Promise. Without the evidence of a ‘cut in blood’ transformation – circumcision - the determination was clear, strangers to the covenants of promise, a people alienated from God. Kept away. And the result of this separation :12 tells us, a people without hope and without God in the world. Maybe some of you listening are in this place – without God and that means, without hope. Because simply put, it was and still is, ‘no covenant, no hope’. The divide between the two – unmistakable. Literally ‘cut-off’ - this was a case of the have’s and the have not’s and in this case, the have not’s take it! That is the old cut off and the new gratefully received.
But that’s not how most of those living in Ephesus saw it or how those around us see it. As far as they were concerned, they were the ones who lived life to the full, while the Jews were the self-righteous peculiar ones with their religious practises and belief in one God. ‘They’ were the ones out of step with the Gentile world. The Jews’ perspective was 180o different, only the Gentiles weren’t merely ‘out of step’, they were held in contempt. Jews used the term, uncircumcised as an expression of scorn. There’s a hint of this in David’s evaluation of Goliath, when he says, “Who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” 1 Sam 17:26. William Barclay notes that the Jews said “that the Gentiles were created by God to be fuel for the fires of hell!” Strong words illustrating the divide of which Paul speaks.
So as you can see, this was far more than the clash of two beliefs. This was hostility. So much so that if a Jew married a Gentile, they were considered dead, that death observed with a funeral.
And in stark contrast? - what Paul has told us in Ephesians 1 that as believers IN Jesus there is no Jew or Gentile but a completely different people, those: chosen in, adopted in, forgiven in, inherited in, IN CHRIST! - those who knew Jesus and far more importantly, those who Jesus knew. Which in our context means, there is no such thing as a Jewish Christian, an African Christian, a Swedish Christian, a Chinese Christian, an Iranian Christian, a German Christian. What there is, is a blood bought, blood saved, blood redeemed Christian who has been united with our Lord Jesus Christ. Distinctives – yes but ‘unities’ a MUCH larger yes! For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body. If anyone be in Christ, he / she is a new creation. The old has passed away, the new has come. All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ 1 Cor 12:13, 2 Cor 5:17,18.
That’s what we’re told in :13 His amazing good news is this – in Jesus, God cut covenant in a completely different way. But now in Christ Jesus YOU WHO ONCE WERE FAR OFF have been brought near by the blood of Christ. But now are great words. Once without hope, once excluded – now no longer the story. There is no external that marks me as God’s child. Instead, there is another cut that identifies me as His, a cut that still draws blood only this time the blood is not drawn from me, but from Him. The cuts made are on Him. The external marks are His. The shed blood is His. The guarantee of possession is His. No other cut is sufficient. The blood of Christ is what brings us near to God.
But now in Christ, brought near. At first glance, the expression the far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ could convey that we have been brought in the vicinity of. Close but not in. But close is not what Paul is saying. Bringing us near is bringing us into the very presence of God. With Him. Near in the understanding we now have but near in a far greater way that in a time soon to come, we WILL have in the full truth of what that means.
To get what this is picturing, go back to the OT when Queen Esther risked her life coming near the presence of the king. If the king had not reached out his scepter granting her access to come, she would have been killed. But now, you and I have come into the presence of a King far greater than any king Esther could come to. We’ve been allowed to draw near to God because the scepter of invitation has been extended to us by the blood of Jesus. We come near because He, God’s Son, has paid the price allowing us to do so. But better yet, He comes into God’s presence with us. Our entry based on His entry. Jesus, not only the answer to identities that divide but:
2nd JESUS, THE ANSWER TO IDENTITIES THAT ARE MADE COMPLETELY NEW
Prior to this :15,16 tells us there was a wall that kept us apart - them and us, a wall of separation. A wall we are told was a wall of hostility – that marked friend from foe. Israel – God’s chosen people – a relationship made by Covenant. And standing apart from them - the excluded – but IN CHRIST the law of commandments was abolished that He might create in Himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God. In Christ – united. The divide is gone.
IN Christ – something entirely different. A different people! Changed from the inside out. Because of Jesus’ shed blood, brought near, telling us what Romans 8 emphatically states, no thing and no one can separate us from God’s love – not our failures, not our stumbling, not our sin - Neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor present nor things to come, nor powers, no height , nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. :38,39.
When we have confessed and accepted Jesus’ forgiveness for our sin, every wall has been torn down – there’s no dividing wall of race, religion, culture, education. There’s no separation of the clean from the unclean; the ‘worthy’ from the unworthy. This wall Paul speaks of is far more than just a metaphor. Around the Temple, areas were marked off. There was the Court of the Priests, and marked off from that, the Holy of Holies. Around that, 2 other courts, the Court of Israel and the Court of Women – all of these courts on the same level. Then several steps down there was the Court of the Gentiles, a large area surrounding the inner courts. Here, the Gentiles could gather and look up and see the Temple but they couldn’t draw near. To make certain they didn’t, a 4.5’ wall, with warnings, posted in Latin and Greek: “No foreigner may enter within the barrier and enclosure round the Temple. Anyone who is caught doing so will have himself to blame for his ensuing death.”
But once animal blood was replaced by Jesus’ blood, the paradigm changed. The restrictions were gone. The divide was gone. The hostility was gone. The Covenant was rewritten. At first glance, this was WWII Times Square – a time to dance and kiss and hug. The war was over. No more young lives taken. No more blood spilled. But now, instead of separation – invitation - invitation to all.
And the completely new? Because of Jesus, PEACE. Note 3 things :14 He IS our peace, :15 He is the One who makes peace and :17, He is the One who preaches peace.
Which is to say what? First, that He IS the only place real peace resides. Consider the current state of what’s seen in the Middle East, on the outskirts of the conflict, the US promoting a peace agreement between Israel and the surrounding warring nations. However even if such an agreement were to be reached, you won’t have peace. You might have a cessation of hostilities but you would not have peace. The absence of one does not mean the presence of the other, despite what anyone chooses to call it. Real peace isn’t tactical it is spiritual – what happens within.
And above all, it’s this Paul speaks of - peace with God - that our sins can be forgiven; that we can become a child of God. His peace that makes the two into one – not cosmetically or tactically but the peace of a new creation where the old is gone and the new has come. Ray Stedman observes, “True peace is oneness. It’s not the absence of conflict. It means being one.” Think of it in terms of marriage. A husband and wife can live as one – without battles, without wars but that doesn’t mean there’s oneness. Just 2 with the appearance of one. ‘Oneness’? Far from it. Just 2 holding on to their demands, their right of how things should be done. Think of it as Arab and Jew, not those separated by geography - Gaza and Israel - but of those living together in Jerusalem. Together in proximity but different at the core.
But the peace IN Jesus is true peace. His peace calls us to place all our sin on Him. Our failures placed on Him. Our guilt placed on Him. And in Christ, God is satisfied. Jesus uniting the ‘ununitable’. He is our peace also means that He is the peace we run to when things threaten and when things disturb. Secondly, we are told that He is the One who makes peace and preaches peace, His peace offered to all who will come. Not just peace for some time to come, but peace now.
His peace when armies gather to conquer and destroy. When one person is at odds with another. When some virus or diagnosis throws our world into chaos. When sleep will not come. When anxiety won’t quiet. HE is our peace – the One to whom to go to, Cast all our cares upon Him for He cares for us. 1 Pet 5:7 asking Him to do what we cannot. But above all, He is our peace, His blood making us right with God.
As :18 makes clear, this means being invited into a different place. Not just into the presence of a King. Not just into the presence of a Holy God but invitation into the presence of this King who is our Father. In Christ with whom we now have access to the Father.
And in that access we have been given everything new! A new invitation. A new access. A new identity. A new relationship. Doors wide open. So, Jesus the answer to identities that divide; the answer to identities that are made completely new and:
3nd JESUS, THE ANSWER TO IDENTITIES BEING RE-DESIGNED FOR WHAT’S AHEAD
The church at Ephesus was a picture of Jews and Gentiles together as one but Paul is aware the old divisions were just waiting to re-attach themselves. So they needed pictures of what this new would look like living together as one so he gives them 3.
The 1st – you are part of a new family. :18 told there’s one way in and we all came in the same way. None of us had special entry. None of us had special merit. There’s no hiving off to our special group because we think we have a better look, a better way, a better heritage. No what we have are marks of better blood. Far better blood. Blood that’s redeemed. Blood that’s forgiven. Blood that’s made new. Blood uniting us as one, part of the household of God If you missed that, a full member of the family of God, no preference given to years already spent in the family.
The 2nd, you are part of a new country - fellow citizens with the saints :19. No visitor visas, no rental accommodations. No tent city living. No high rent, low rent. Only home! Citizens of a kingdom that is God designed that will never lose its lustre, never lose its awe.
The 3rd we are told :20,21 we are part a new Kingdom - the Temple being built by God. When we think of a Temple it’s easy to go to a place of solemn assembly, hushed tones, muted voice. But Scripture tells us something very different. God’s Temple is simply this – the place God dwells. Where we are told, “the heavens declare the glory of God. Night and day they pour forth praise” Ps 19. Where He is worshipped as He deserves. That tells me glory, and radiance, and joy and celebration and praise. This isn’t a place of muted tones. Because this is where God is! And we are part of that Temple Without question, there’s a whole lot about that which is beyond me. But for starters, I can say with confidence, it means as believers in Jesus, we will dwell with Him, you and I as part of God’s plan. His plan since the beginning of time. Designed for His purpose. Placed where He knows best. Fashioned with the skills and personality as we are. Is He changing us – yes as He knows best, so others will see and know His great love. In our differences, united as one who one day will forever be with Him – together in the dwelling place of God.
With no walls. No barriers.
All this in Jesus – SO remember who you were and knowing that,
dive deeply into the identity that is ours in Jesus.
Because in that place, it is celebration time!
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