Christ Makes Us One (Ephesians 2:11–22)

Introduction

We’re continuing our series in the book of Ephesians. Today, we are in Ephesians 2:11-22, examining how Christ unites us.

As our mission statement states, we are a diverse people united in Christ and transformed by Him. We are God’s people sent to bring hope to our community in Paradise Hills and beyond. We are people that God has brought together in Jesus Christ. Christ has made us one people through the cross.

The church must not be a divided people, even if Catalyst Church has some Los Angeles Dodgers fans.

We have so many divisions today. My pastor in New York City mentored me. I came into his office one day and asked about politics in the pulpit. I asked him why he did not take many political stances from the pulpit.

He responded to me, “I have Democrats in the church, and I have Republicans in the church, and I have to preach to both of them.” That has always stuck with me. We must never let the divisions that exist in this world override the importance of being the light of the gospel to the world around us.

A good pastor friend wrote an article on a Southern Baptist website. To a readership that leans Republican, he wrote, “What do you do when Democrats come to Christ?” His point was to say, “Are you going to make their politics the issue, or are you going to put politics aside and help them grow in Jesus?”

We live in a divided world because we live in a world of sin. How can we prevent that from affecting the church? How can we be a church that lives as a diverse people united in Christ? We’ll see that today as we look at Ephesians 2:11-22.

Scripture Reading

Ephesians 2:11–22 CSB

11 So, then, remember that at one time you were Gentiles in the flesh—called “the uncircumcised” by those called “the circumcised,” which is done in the flesh by human hands. 12 At that time you were without Christ, excluded from the citizenship of Israel, and foreigners to the covenants of promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus, you who were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he is our peace, who made both groups one and tore down the dividing wall of hostility. In his flesh, 15 he made of no effect the law consisting of commands and expressed in regulations, so that he might create in himself one new man from the two, resulting in peace. 16 He did this so that he might reconcile both to God in one body through the cross by which he put the hostility to death. 17 He came and proclaimed the good news of peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So, then, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with the saints, and members of God’s household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building, being put together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you are also being built together for God’s dwelling in the Spirit.

Pray

In Ephesians 2:1-10, Paul describes how we were dead in our trespasses and sins, but God has made us alive through Jesus Christ.

God saved us by grace through faith. Our salvation comes from God. We are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works.

We now move into the unity that we all have in Jesus Christ. He’s no longer focusing on what salvation does for us individually. Instead, he’s focusing on what God has done for us corporately.

What has God done to bring all of us together as a community in him? He lays this out for us in a three-section format.

He encourages us to remember where we were.

He reminds us of what Jesus Christ has done to bring us to God.

He then urges us to live out our new identity in Jesus Christ as God’s people.

The words that Paul gave were true for the Christians in Ephesus, and they are true for us. We were people on the outside whom God has brought in through Jesus Christ. We are strangers who have become a family in Christ.

What is the first thing that we see in Ephesians 2:11-12? The first point is,

I. Remember Who You Were Without Christ

The Bible is clear that remembering our past before Christ is essential. It is not to shame us or to bring us down. It’s to encourage us in our faith.

Who were we before Jesus? We were people who were,

A. Cut Off from Christ

It says in Ephesians 2:12 that, "At that time you were without Christ." What time is he talking about? The time he is talking about was your pre-conversion state. It is the state that you were in before you heard the gospel and believed in Jesus Christ.

For the Gentiles, anyone who is not a Jew, he is also talking about the time before Christ came into the world. Before Jesus brought us the new covenant in his blood, Gentiles had no path to God.

When Paul says, "At that time," it serves as a reminder to us to reflect on our lives before Jesus. That is why it's good to remember and share your testimony. As much as sharing your testimony is a witness to others, it is also a remembrance to yourself of where you were before Jesus.

Before Jesus, we were without Christ and were,

B. Separated from God’s People and Promises

Ephesians 2:12 says Gentiles were "excluded from the citizenship of Israel, and foreigners to the covenants of promise." What does it mean that we were "excluded from the citizenship of Israel"?

The word translated as "excluded" means that we were foreign to the nation that God established under Abraham, the nation of Israel. God had established a line under Abraham, and Gentiles, you were not part of it.

Deuteronomy 7:6 says this about the nation of Israel,

Deuteronomy 7:6 CSB

6 For you are a holy people belonging to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be his own possession out of all the peoples on the face of the earth.

Deuteronomy 7:6 was a promise to the Jews, not to the Gentiles. Gentiles were foreigners to the identity of the Jews. They were all the people of the face of the earth who were not God's holy people and possession.

Gentiles did not have the covenant privileges of Israel.

They did not have God's law given to them.

They did not have God's temple or his priesthood.

They did not have God's promises.

They also did not have the hope of the Messiah. The Messiah was the promised redeemer who was coming to Israel, the future king who would reign on David's throne forever. Gentiles had no access to God's community or his promises.

As Gentiles, we were,

C. Hopeless and Godless in the World

Ephesians 2:12 says Gentiles were "without hope and without God in the world." The word that the CSB translates as "without God" is one word in the Greek. It is the Greek word ἄθεος, which is where we get the English word "atheist" from.

The Gentiles had many idols, and many things they called God. But they were godless, because there is only one God, the God of Israel.

We were all atheists, people who were without God. You can have many thoughts about God and make him look and feel the way you want him to. You can create all kinds of idols in your head, but unless you know God through Jesus Christ, you are without God.

People are chasing success, careers, relationships, and whatever they believe will bring them happiness. But being a person without God is being a person without hope.

It's like being in the middle of the ocean with no boat, no rescue in sight, and no land to swim toward. If there is no rescue, you can only float along in the water for so long until you drown. Without rescue, there is no hope.

We must remember where God has brought us from. Remembering where God has brought us from fuels humility and gratitude. Faith builds on the remembrance that we were lost and now we are found in Jesus Christ.

You should remember where God has brought you from and,

II. Rejoice in What Christ Has Done for You

Paul will walk us through what Christ has done to bring hopeless and godless people to God.

Do you know that your salvation is an absolute miracle? Your salvation is only possible because the Son intervened to bring you to the Father. What did Jesus do to bring people who were far away near to God?

A. Christ Has Brought You Near by His Blood

Ephesians 2:13 says,

Ephesians 2:13 CSB

13 But now in Christ Jesus, you who were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

The cross has bridged the distance between man and God. Without faith in the blood of Jesus, we are hopeless and without God. The blood of Jesus was the only way to bring us near to God.

The blood of Jesus saves us, and faith is the God-ordained means by which we receive the benefits of God's grace in Jesus Christ. It says in Romans 3:25 that,

Romans 3:25 CSB

25 God presented him as the mercy seat by his blood, through faith, to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his restraint God passed over the sins previously committed.

Without faith in the blood of Jesus, there is no sacrifice for sin. There is no way to pass over the sins you previously committed. Faith is the empty hand by which we receive what Christ has done for us on the cross.

Faith doesn’t add to the blood of Jesus. Faith is how we lay hold of the blood of Jesus that washes our sins away. We rejoice in what Jesus has done for us on the cross, bringing us near to God.

Another thing Christ has done.

B. Christ Has Made One New Humanity

Ephesians 2:14 starts by saying that Christ “is our peace.”

Ephesians 2:14 CSB

14 For he is our peace, who made both groups one and tore down the dividing wall of hostility. In his flesh,

The idea of peace, or shalom, in Scripture is the presence of wholeness, or completion. When you have biblical peace, you are right with God and living under his blessing. You are whole and complete in your soul.

In Ephesians 2:14, Jesus is our peace because he has "made both groups one and tore down the dividing wall of hostility." Who are the "both groups"? Both groups are Jews and Gentiles (Gentiles being anyone who is not Jewish). Jesus has brought us together into one new humanity.

When it describes that Jesus has torn "down the dividing wall of hostility," did you know that there was a physical wall dividing Jews and Gentiles in the Temple? It existed in the Court of the Gentiles.

The Temple in Jerusalem had four courts: the Court of the Priests (the innermost court), the Court of Israel for Jewish men, the Court of Women for Jewish women, and the outermost court, the Court of the Gentiles. These courts were open, enclosed areas where people would gather.

If you were a Gentile and you walked into the Jerusalem Temple, you could only be in the outermost court. You could go no further. Archaeologists have found a sign that would have been on the wall dividing the Gentiles from everything else in the Temple. It was written in Greek and said,

"No stranger is to enter within the balustrade round the temple and enclosure. Whoever is caught will be himself responsible for his ensuing death." (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_Warning_inscription)

The Jews were permitted to execute any Gentile who dared cross the sacred Temple boundary. Any Gentile standing in the outermost court would know that if he crossed past the dividing wall, he would die.

That dividing wall was also symbolic of the separation between Jews and Gentiles. The Jews viewed the Gentiles as unclean, idolaters who were without God. Even eating with a Gentile was considered defiling and unclean.

We also have all kinds of dividing walls of hostility.

We have dividing walls of hostility between races.

We have dividing walls of hostility in our politics.

We have dividing walls of hostility between social classes.

We have dividing walls of hostility within our neighborhoods and our families.

Unfortunately, sometimes, we have dividing walls of hostility within the church. But Christ has torn down the wall.

Christ has torn down the wall that divides us from God.

Christ has torn down the wall that divides us from one another.

Christ has torn down the wall of pride that keeps us from humility.

Christ has torn down the wall of hate that keeps us from loving one another.

Christ has torn down the wall of sin that keeps us from peace.

Christ has torn down the wall of death that keeps us from life.

Christ has torn down the wall, and at the cross, every wall came down. We have no right to put up a wall that Christ has already torn down.

Don't hold onto hostility where Christ has given us peace.

Don't hold onto unforgiveness where Christ has given us freedom.

Don't hold onto division where Christ has made us one.

We rejoice in the miracle of God, which brings disconnected and divided people together in Jesus Christ.

A third reason for you to rejoice is this,

C. Christ Has Given You Access to the Father

In Ephesians 2:16, it says that Jesus reconciled us “both to God in one body through the cross.” And then it says in Ephesians 2:18,

Ephesians 2:18 CSB

18 For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.

This language is purposefully Trinitarian. Your salvation involves the Son, the Holy Spirit, and the Father.

Jesus is the mediator between man and God (1 Tim. 2:5).

The Holy Spirit is the unifying presence that affirms our salvation and gives us equal access to the Father (Gal. 4:6).

The goal is fellowship with the Father (John 17:3).

Galatians 4:6 says,

Galatians 4:6 CSB

6 And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba, Father!”

You are saved in Jesus Christ because the Father desires to welcome you home. You are his.

Sometimes we pray like we're still in the outer court, apart from God. We're hesitant to come near God, carrying some guilt of sin, like we're still cut off from Christ.

The good news is that you have access to the Father. You can walk right in. No Christian is a second-class citizen in God's kingdom.

That's why the Scripture says in Hebrews 4:16,

Hebrews 4:16 CSB

16 Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need.

You can rejoice because Christ has given you direct access to the Father. Come to him boldly as his child, seeking God in all things in prayer.

We are to remember who we were without Christ, rejoice in what Christ has done for us, and third,

III. Live Out Who You Are in Christ

After seeing what Christ has done, we celebrate who we are in him, because we have a new identity and citizenship. What does it look like to live out who we are in Jesus Christ?

First, we must live as,

A. Fellow Citizens with the Saints

It says in Ephesians 2:19,

Ephesians 2:19 CSB

19 So, then, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with the saints, and members of God’s household,

We are "fellow citizens with the saints." Every Christian is a saint. We physically live in San Diego, but when we gather as Christians, we celebrate our heavenly citizenship in God's kingdom. It tells us this same thing in Philippians 3:20,

Philippians 3:20 CSB

20 Our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly wait for a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.

How would Paul understand citizenship? Being a citizen of Rome was highly prized in Paul's day. Several times in the book of Acts, Paul uses his Roman citizenship to get protection and legal rights.

As a Roman citizen, you enjoyed legal protection and special privileges. You took pride in your Roman citizenship. Being a Roman citizen meant having the privilege of belonging to Rome and the responsibility that came with it.

Paul points to our "citizenship in heaven" because heavenly citizenship is far greater than anything Rome could offer. Your heavenly citizenship is greater than anything the world has to offer.

Heavenly citizenship is belonging: You belong to God's kingdom.

Heavenly citizenship is an eternal privilege: You have eternal life in Jesus Christ.

Heavenly citizenship is earthly responsibility: God is calling you to live a life worthy of the gospel.

It says this in Philippians 1:27,

Philippians 1:27 CSB

27 Just one thing: As citizens of heaven, live your life worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or am absent, I will hear about you that you are standing firm in one spirit, in one accord, contending together for the faith of the gospel,

As a citizen of the kingdom of God, you have a responsibility to live a life of godly love, compassion, mercy, humility, gentleness, and kindness to others. Live a life that reflects the power of the cross to everyone around you.

We live out who we are in Christ because we are,

B. Members of God’s Household

Ephesians 2:19 states that we are "fellow citizens with the saints, and members of God's household." Remember, we started as outsiders, foreigners to the promise of God, hopeless and godless in the world. God has taken us from people who were far away from him to people who are now welcome inside his home. We are part of the family.

If you're in Jesus Christ this morning, you belong to the Father. As members of God's household, we enjoy the Father's provision, protection, and the inheritance we have as his children. Galatians 4:7 says,

Galatians 4:7 CSB

7 So you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then God has made you an heir.

As children of God, we look forward to the eternal inheritance that we have in God's kingdom. In Christ, you are a citizen of heaven, a child of God, and you also are,

C. God’s Dwelling Place in the Spirit

Paul uses architectural language to describe the church as God's holy temple, his dwelling place. He begins by discussing the foundation. It says in Ephesians 2:20 that this temple is "built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets." The message of the gospel unifies us as a church. The apostles and prophets preached the gospel, which is the foundation of the building.

In Ephesians 2:20, Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of God's holy temple. What does that mean? In ancient buildings, the cornerstone is the foundational load-bearing stone that anchors the structure. Every stone of the building aligns with the cornerstone. It is the crucial stone that keeps everything together.

In the same way, the church only stays together when it is aligned and anchored to the cornerstone, Jesus Christ. When we get away from the gospel, from sharing the good news of Jesus, everything will crumble. Notice in Ephesians 2:21 that "the whole building, being put together." It is an active work. Jesus Christ is still building his church. Every time God saves someone through the gospel, he adds another stone to his holy temple. Whoever you are, Jew or Gentile, every stone equally aligns with the cornerstone.

You have to realize how shocking a message this was in the first-century church. The Jews had no concept of a Gentile church. The fact that Gentiles are equal parts of God's holy temple is a radical message from God. You are a valued part of God's church in Jesus Christ.

How does being part of God's temple urge us to live out who we are in Christ? It is important to remember that the temple contains the very presence of God in the world. When you walk in the room, the presence of God is there in a special way, because the Spirit of God lives in you.

That means that holiness in your life matters. It matters to the people around you, and it matters to God. Does holiness matter to you?

Does holiness matter to you when no one is watching?

Does holiness matter to you when you're at work and you're under pressure?

Does holiness matter to you when you speak to your spouse, to your children, or to your grandchildren?

Does holiness matter to you when someone has hurt you, and forgiveness feels impossible?

Does holiness matter to you when the world tells you to compromise?

If we are God's temple, then holiness must matter everywhere, because God lives his presence to the world through you, and the good news is that God has not left you alone. His presence and power live within you. God also reminds us of this truth in Romans 8:1-2.

Romans 8:1–2 CSB

1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus, 2 because the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.

God's temple is a place where there is no condemnation in Christ Jesus. If you don't know Jesus Christ this morning, God wants you to be part of his family. The Father is welcoming you in.

Jesus Christ died on the cross to set you free from the law of sin and death. He wants to make you alive in him and make his presence known in you.

Conclusion

Through the death of Jesus Christ, God has broken down every barrier to reach people who were far away from him and bring them into his family. In Christ, you are a new creation. We are a new people united in the peace of Christ.

The blood of Christ brings you near God. Believe in Jesus, trust him, and watch him change your life.

Remember where God has brought you from, rejoice in the work of Christ, and live out every day to his glory.

Prayer

Last Song

Doxology

Numbers 6:24–26 CSB

24 “May the Lord bless you and protect you; 25 may the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 may the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.” ’

Jude 24–25 CSB

24 Now to him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of his glory, without blemish and with great joy, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen.

You are dismissed. Have a great week in the Lord!

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Sermon Reflection Questions

What does Ephesians 2:11-12 highlight about our status before knowing Christ?

How does understanding our past without Christ help us grow in our faith?

How has Christ united us as one humanity?

What is the significance of the 'dividing wall of hostility'?

Why is it important for Christians to remember their identity as citizens of heaven and members of God's household?