Jesus is our Peace

Intro

Each time we gather, one of my goals is to build in a little equipping time

Practical instruction for how we can grow as followers of Christ and grow as a church

We started that last time we were together talking about having an elevator pitch ready to go if someone asks you about this new church you are involved with

Tonight, I want to simply integrate that as the intro to my message

A storm such as a hurricane is so disruptive to people’s lives

It can, sometimes literally, destroy the foundations upon which people had built their lives

My encouragement to you: be intentional and be aggressive in reaching out to people

I have one friend who he and his family are going to be out of their house for at least a year and lost almost everything in it this week

I have another friend who is out of town but said all he could tell me was what it was like at his house until his cameras went offline

And then the damage all the way up into the Carolinas is really unprecedented

The responses are often some variation of “we’ll be ok” or “we’ll be alright”

But I believe there is an opportunity for us, the church, to be people of peace and hope

Who can you reach out to? Who can you check in on?

Kim and I had the privilege of spending significant time in post-Katrina New Orleans

Over the course of about 4 years, Kim and I served in the city on several occasions

It was during one of those trips - maybe the last one - that I was speaking with a woman who said something I had never heard before

“Katrina was the best thing that ever happened to me”

Woah, what? Of course I asked her to elaborate as I needed to know more

She then went on to share how she lost everything in Katrina - her home, her family

Didn’t sound like the start of a story that ends with “the best thing that ever happened to me”

But she went on to tell me how God used that storm and the loss of everything she thought provided the foundation for life to draw her to himself

She discovered that peace and hope are found in Christ alone

I share that story both because it sets up our passage for tonight nicely and because should be an encouragement to us to act

Start a conversation, text a friend, check in with people

Again, who can you reach out to or check in on that may be experiencing disruption this week?

Maybe God will allow those simply questions or check ins to open the door to sharing about Christ with them

Transition: Sometimes He Calms the Storm

As a transition into our text, I’d like to read the lyrics of a song called Sometimes He Calms the Storm

All who sail the sea of faith Find out before too long How quickly blue skies can grow dark How gentle winds grow strong

Suddenly fear is like white water Pounding on the soul Still we sail on knowing That our Lord is in control

Sometimes he calms the storm With a whispered peace be still He can settle any sea But it doesn’t mean he will

Sometimes he holds us close And lets the wind and waves go wild Sometimes he calms the storm And other times he calms his child

Scripture Reading: Ephesians 2:11-22

Ephesians 2:11–22 ESV

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.

Pray

Main Point

Remember your past that you might delight in your future in Christ

Break down our passage tonight in 3 parts

Remember (vs 11-12)

But now (vs 13-17)

So then (vs 18-22)

Jesus is your peace

So before we unpack the passage, want to take us to the lynchpin in the middle

Jesus is your peace

Notice the words of Eph 2:14

Ephesians 2:14 “For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility”

Not simply that Jesus promises peace, which he does

Not simply that Jesus brought peace, which he does

Not simply that Jesus bought peace, which he did

But that Jesus is our peace

Remember (vs 11-12)

Ephesians 2:11–12 “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.”

Word “Remember” in the Bible

Notice that the word “remember” occurs in each of these two verses

So before we look at what Paul is telling the church in Ephesus to remember, let’s talk about that word

I think there is a really unhelpful concept that floats around Christianity

And that is that we should forget our pasts because God forgets our sins

After all, just one example

Hebrews 8:12 “For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.””

So doesn’t God forget our sins?

Two problems with that

First, God does not forget

He doesn’t get some case of voluntary amnesia

One of attributes of God is that he is omniscient

Omniscient, by definition, means that God knows everything

One of the questions from the Children’s Catechism that we teach our kids is

“Does God know all things?”

“Yes, nothing can be hidden from God.”

So this is not a case where God forgets

God does not forget and never forgets anything

He knows everything

Second, that is not how the Bible uses the word “remember”

When the Bible uses the word “remember” it is often with the context of “intent to act”

So at the beginning of the book of Exodus, when God “remembered” Israel it was not that the plight of the Israelites in slavery in Egypt had slipped his mind

No, it was that he intended to act

So when Hebrews 8:12 says that God “will remember their sins no more” it means that he will not act against us

We have been forgiven in Christ and he will not hold them against us anymore

So we come to the use of the word remember here in Ephesians, we do so with a sense that some of this should be front of mind

Why remember?

Because as we remember what was true, as we remember our pasts, we can delight in our futures in Christ

What are we to remember?

Remember our past

Similar to how verse 1 that we looked at a couple weeks ago opens with “And you were dead”

Verse 11 opens with “remember that at one time”

Both of these invite us to recall our status apart from Christ

Verse 1 tells us that our status is “dead” and goes on to elaborate in verse 3 that we “were nature nature objects of wrath”

Then here in verse 11, the Gentiles - meaning those who did not grow up Jewish which represents nearly everyone Paul is addressing in the book of Ephesus and is descriptive of most of us here tonight

Here Paul says that the Gentiles were outsiders and were even mocked for their roots by those who thought themselves the insiders, the “circumcised Jews”

So remember your past - your story - wherever God has allowed your story to go

And certainly not claiming it has been easy because if I had to guess, your story is marked by moments of deep sadness, deep ridicule, deep sorrow, deep pain at some point

Remember our broken relationships

Why can I be so certain of that?

Look at the second “remember”

Ephesians 2:12 “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.”

You were separated from God

And you were separated from others

The very relationships for which God made you - with himself and with others - were broken

Aside on Trinity as perfect community

As I’ve done a couple of times in Ephesians already, I want to draw attention to the Trinity

The one true God is 3 persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit

And again, we see all 3 present and active in on our passage tonight

To note just a couple of verses

Verse 18 - we have access to the Father through the Spirit

Verse 20 - Jesus is the cornerstone upon which our faith is built

Again, I could elaborate further, but I want us to see and be looking for God the Trinity

And I want us to see that these three persons are both one God and perfect community unto himself

But it also helps us remember that we were built for relationships, for that type of community

First with God

And second with others

As those made in the image of God, one way we reflect God is that desire for belonging, that desire for community, that desire for deep relationships

But our relationships with God and with others are broken leaving us alienated and alone

And we are called to remember that - don’t forget, don’t let them go

But remember

Remember the consequences

Ok, let’s be honest, this isn’t very hopeful

Don’t you want to forget about this or pretend it never existed?

Because I sure do

But sticking our heads in the sand like an ostrich won’t change the reality

There are consequences to these broken relationships

As verse 12 summarizes, we, like those Paul was originally writing to, were “having no hope and without God in the world.”

The consequence of our past is that we were without hope

The path is not to ignore it and hope it goes away

It is to remember that all this is true to remember our path - because only then can we delight in a changed future through the work of Christ

Transition

And maybe you are here tonight and are thinking that a broken past with broken relationships both with God and with others and without hope is descriptive of who you are right now

And instead of trying to ignore or forget your past, embrace that story because we have a God who makes beautiful what is broken - and that includes you!

Encourage you to hear this next part of the message

Because here comes peace where these is no peace and hope where there is no hope

But now (vs 13-17)

Ephesians 2:13–17 “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.”

What a transition from no peace and hope to peace and hope in Christ!

Christ is our peace

Two things to see here

First, Christ is our peace

Not just that he makes peace or bought our peace, but he is our peace

And how is our peace?

By the shedding of his own blood

We were far off, but now have been brought near

As a new church, we partake of the Lord’s Supper every time we gather

People have asked why that is a highly held value for me as we build this new church

The answer is simple: to remember

Not only that we would remember that we were far off but also that we have been brought near

Remember that we were separated from God and now are reconciled

Remember that our peace is Christ alone who gave his body and shed his blood for us

Remember that this peace may be offered freely to us but came at a very high price: the life of God the Son, Jesus Christ, for us

Reconciled relationships

The second thing to see here is the effect on our relationships that Jesus Christ is our peace

We had a broken relationship with God

In our sin, we were separated from him

But now we are reconciled to God

That relationship for which you were first and foremost made, relationship with the God of the universe, can be reconciled and restored by Christ

And second, we had broken relationships with others

Ephesians 2:16 “and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.”

Do you hear that language?

“One body”

“Killing the hostility”

Those phrases are speaking to the broken relationships with one another

Let’s be really honest here: hostility feels like it is at an all time high

At really global scales with multiple wars happening around the world

At racial levels

At interpersonal levels

We’ve lost the ability to disagree well

To argue a topic and then remember that we are all on the same side

To believe that just because someone sees a subject differently than you doesn’t mean they are less than you

Jesus, who is our peace, kills hostility

There is an offer of oneness, of reconciliation and restoration, in Christ that does not exist anywhere else

And what a great testimony we could have to a watching world if we are one in Christ!

So then (vs 18-22)

Ephesians 2:18–22 “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.”

So then

A phrase that describes what could or should be true as a result of Christ being our peace

So then we have access to the Father

So then we are no longer outsiders but now citizens of heaven!

So then we are no longer strangers, but members of the household of God!

So then our foundation is no longer shattered by the storms around us, but is strong and secure because it is built with the Word of God as the foundation and with Christ as the cornerstone!

So then we are no longer divided, but joined together to grow into a holy temple - the Church of God!

So then now you are the dwelling place of God!

When I dream about we as a new church could be, this is my dream

A church that is built on the cornerstone of Christ and who radiates with the beauty of restored relationships with God and with others

Conclusion

I opened with the lyrics from one song about Jesus being our peace

Let me conclude with lyrics from another, one of my favorites, My Lighthouse

I won’t fear what tomorrow brings With each morning I’ll rise and sing My God’s love will lead me through You are the peace in my troubled sea, oh oh You are the peace in my troubled sea, oh oh

And then continues in the bridge

Fire before us, you’re the brightest You will lead us through the storms (4x)

And in the chorus

I will trust the promise You will carry me safe to shore

I don’t know the source of all the storms or disruption in your life

It could be a physical storm like the hurricane that has wreaked havoc and left your home in shambles and your stuff fit for nothing but the trash

It could be a trauma you have experienced that you are reliving every single day

It could be shame or guilt or embarrassment or grief that shows up at the most inopportune times, making you feel like you are carrying a scarlet letter on your forehead for everyone to see

It could be a hidden illness that you don’t understand or you feel like has isolated you from the world

Maybe it’s the sin and darkness in your own heart that you know has isolated you from God and from all those around you

Hear the word of God for you tonight

It’s not to forget

But to remember who you were

To remember where you were at

Maybe to remember where you think you are right now

And it’s certainly not to minimize the effects of the storms in your life

The effects on your relationship with God

The effects on your relationships with others

The effect on the state of your soul

Rather, we are called to remember

Remember and then cling to Jesus who is your peace

He is the one that restores the relationship between you and God the Father

He is the one who can restore you to a community of God’s people

He is the one who makes aliens and strangers into citizens of his heavenly kingdom

He is the one who makes those who were far off into members of the household of God

My friends, remember your past - the good, the bad, and the ugly - and then delight in your future in Christ

How? By believing that Jesus is our peace

Pray