United Through Christ

Ephesians 2: 11-22

Have you ever had someone do something for you that changed your life forever? Well, I want to tell you a story about how my wife and I met. My sister and I am sure God had something to do with it as well, knew that if she did not intervene I would probably never get married. I was a police officer at that time in my life, so I was focused on my career and dating was the last thing on my mind. After some prodding and encouragement I gave in. So I was set up on a blind date and 15 years later here I stand today!

Now you may be wondering, what is the purpose of this story? Often times in life and in our relationships we need help. Sometimes it is to bring two people together who have never met, like my wife and I, or some times to bring people back together who may have had some differences or a broken relationship. Either way we often have someone who is working on our behalf. I think most of us probably have friends or family members who fit this bill. I am thinking of someone in particular whose name is Jesus Christ.

In Jesus Christ we have someone, the Messiah who died for each one of us. To fully understand the context of this sacrifice, just imagine before Christ, Gentiles, that is you and me, did not know the God of Israel. Had God not sent Christ to us, we would not be sitting here today! We would be hopeless. But, because he did send Christ we are reconciled to God as well as to the Jews of Israel and therefore to one another.

I have 3 primary points I want to make with you this morning.
1. We are all one in Christ Jesus
2. We have peace in Christ
3. Christ is our foundation

So, as we read in Ephesians 2: 11-12

11 So then, remember that at one time you Gentiles by birth,* called ‘the uncircumcision’ by those who are called ‘the circumcision’—a physical circumcision made in the flesh by human hands— 12remember that you were at that time without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.

Paul spent a great deal of time and energy persuading the Ephesians that Gentile believers were spiritually equal to their circumcised Jewish counterparts. His repeated conversations on this subject to reveal problems in the early church that continue to plague present-day would-be worshipers. Namely existing church members making newcomers feel like a stranger in a new sitting, or unwelcome in this environment. We must welcome folks in the Church as new parents welcome an adopted child into their home.

In the context of this scripture vs. 11-12, Christ did not come so that we could be separate from our Jewish brothers and sisters. He came to unite all! Jew and Gentile. For one day Christ will come to unite his church. In Hosea 3:5 Afterwards the Israelites shall return and seek the Lord their God, and David their king; they shall come in awe to the Lord and to his goodness in the latter days. This verse references God’s desire to reunite the divided people of God, Jew and Gentile!

I had the pleasure this year of attending a Passover meal the night before Easter. This Passover meal is referred to as a Sedar meal (which is a Jewish ritual feast held at the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover to describe the Exodus from Egypt) EXODUS CHAPTER 12/13. Each of you should have received handout this morning with your bulletin that goes into more detail about the Sedar. If you ever get the opportunity to do this, please do it! You will be glad you did. Just a little helpful hint though, do not do like did. I like horseradish, but a teaspoonful on Matza bread is a tad too much!

Seriously though, God is doing amazing things in the Messianic Jewish congregations and Jews are coming to know Christ in all places. I feel we as Christian’s have a duty to pray for our Jewish brothers and sisters for we must remember that we were at one time without Christ, but praise God we do have hope with God in the world through the power of Jesus Christ.

You may be setting there wondering why this is important. Before his death, Christ participated in a Sedar; one could refer to it as “The Last Sedar”. Everything that Christ did for us has deep symbolism rooted in the Old Testament. It is imperative that to understand the life of the messiah and why He came to die on our behalf we must understand the Passover in the context of the Old Testament.

In order to fully understand who we are as Christians we must understand the whole story of the bible and in a Jewish context, for if you didn’t know. Jesus was a Jew! Jesus did not have the New Testament. His Bible and his scriptures came from the Torah! This story is about God’s family, both Jew and Gentile, and we are called to be one for Christ himself, for we are all brothers and sisters in Christ.

John Wesley was quoted as saying “I want the whole Christ for my Savior, the whole Bible for my book, the whole Church for my fellowship and the whole world for my mission field.”

As we read on in Ephesians 2: 13-18

13But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us.15He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, so that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, 16and might reconcile both groups to God in one body* through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. 17So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; 18for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father.

In vs. 13-18, Paul is pointing out two very important concepts. These two concepts may seem contradictory or be seen as contrasting concepts. The first is Peace and the other reconciliation.

1. Christ is our peace who has made us both Jew and Gentile one in the Church. Peace is a very important word in this context especially in the fact it is used 4 times.

John Wesley’s commented on the subject of peace and said “For he is our peace - Not only as he purchased it, but as he is the very bond and centre of union. He who hath made both - Jews and gentiles, one church.”

The Second important concept Paul makes is:

2. Reconciliation- Occurs through the cross
a. Reconciliation with God
b. Reconciliation of the Church
c. Reconciliation of one to another or the unity of mankind. Vs 18 notes one Spirit to the Father


If you do not know this, it is important to know. Listen! Christ did not come to create Christianity. He came to reconcile both Jew and Gentile into one faith. Early Christians were known as “The Way” Christ Disciples were “Followers of The Way” They met in Synagogues early on and were a sect of Judaism, but eventually a struggle for power came into play and the Jewish leaders rejected Jesus, at least the majority of them and you know the rest of the story!

Why is this important? How does knowing Jesus was a Jew or the fact he did not come to create Christianity relate to our lives? Being a Christian also requires much. It is not easy, but it is worth the eternal reward.

As St. Clement of Alexandria said, “For the sake of each of us he laid down his life--worth no less than the universe. He demands of us in return our lives for the sake of each other.”

Just as God reconciled all through Christ you can through prayer and the Holy Spirit’s guidance reconcile your differences with that family member or friend and mend that broken relationship. Christ demands of us in return our lives for the sake of each other.

Just as the Blood of the cross reconciled mankind, Jew and Gentile, to God, don’t allow your own personal broken relationships go un- reconciled. Come to the cross. Lay your burden down and ask Christ for guidance so that you can reconcile those broken relationships in your life, just as Christ did for our relationship with God!


The last part of today’s Scripture is Ephesians 2: 17-22

19So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, 20built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone.21In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; 22in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling-place for God.

In this last part, we learn Christ came to bring us peace to our world in the merging of Jew and Gentile into one family! In this house of God none of us are strangers for we are one in the spirit and Jesus Christ is the rock of our foundation!

The story of Ephesians which we have just experienced is that the mission of Christ is to tear down walls of division in every place where worshipers gather in God's name. We want to welcome all who come to hear the word. Reach out to those you do not know, welcome strangers with open arms so that we can as the body of Christ, bring them into the family of God. For we are all reconciled in oneness with Christ!

We are not reconciled with one another simply because we decided to "bury the hatchet" and move past our differences. We are reconciled because of something that God has done within each of us. No matter who we were before, we are made members of the household of God only by his saving grace.
Christ is our peace and we have access to God in one Spirit through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savoir. It does not matter who we were before, we become one new community unified through the cross. There are no aliens and strangers here we are a community of worshippers here in this Church of God!

I close with a story, Arthur Burns, the chairman of the US Federal Reserve System and Ambassador to West Germany, was a man of considerable gravity. Medium in height, distinguished, with wavy silver hair and his signature pipe, he was economic counselor to numerous presidents from Dwight D. Eisenhower to Ronald Reagan. When he spoke, his opinion carried weight and Washington listened.

Arthur Burns was also Jewish, so when he began attending an informal White House group for prayer and fellowship in the 70’s he was accorded special respect. No one in fact quite knew how to involve him in the group and week after week when different people took turns to end the meeting in prayer, Burns was always passed by out of a mixture of respect and reticence.
One week, however, the group was led by a newcomer who did not know the unusual status Burns occupied. As the meeting ended, the newcomer turned to Burns and asked him to close the time with a prayer. Some of the old timers glanced at each other in surprise and wondered what would happen. But without missing a beat, Burns reached out, held hands with the others in the circle, and prayed this prayer: “Lord, I pray that you would bring Jews to know Jesus Christ. I pray you would bring Muslims to know Jesus Christ. Finally, Lord, I pray that you would bring Christians to know Jesus Christ.

Most of us here today are Christians. I leave you with this thought. Don’t be just a Christian, be a follower of Jesus Christ!