Trinity 2 June 13, 2021
Ephesians 2:13-22
Peace for All in Christ
v.17 And He came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near.
Dear friends in Christ, our text for this morning is St. Paul's letter to the church in Ephesus. The Christian church in Ephesus was similar to many early Christian churches in that it was composed of both Jewish and Gentile converts to Christianity. This sometimes led to conflict and difficulty in the early church, especially as some Jewish Christians thought it was necessary for Gentiles to practice Jewish ceremonial and dietary laws in order to be good Christians. Paul's full discourse on this subject can be found in his letter to the Galatians, but you can still see that there was some tension between these two groups in the body of Christ in this letter to the Ephesians. And so Paul sets out to encourage them—and remind them—how they are both one people now through faith in Jesus Christ.
Indeed, Paul began chapter 2 by hammering home the full extent of the Law and the Gospel to both Jew and Gentile. "And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked…by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast." While Paul recognizes the fact that the Gentiles were once far off from the grace of God—not having been the primary recipients of the Word of God and the revelation of the hope of the Promised One who would be born of the Jews—yet he is now urging them all to recognize that whether one is a Jew or a Gentile—we are all one in Christ who shed His blood to bring us near to the throne of heaven.
As Paul writes (Eph. 2:13-16), "But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off [Gentiles] have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made us both one [Jew and Gentile] 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."
So, beloved, though the Gentiles were once far off—separated from God in the Old Testament ceremonial worship laws—now they, too, have been brought near by the blood of Christ who has washed them clean of all sin. There is now peace between all and between God: well-being, unity, and salvation. All purchased by the saving blood of Christ shed on the cross. There is now no more separation between Jews and Gentiles in their worship of the one true God.
Prior to this there was a literal wall built in Herod's temple that served to separate the inner court of the temple where only Jews could gather for worship, from the outer court of the temple where Gentile converts were able to worship. No more! In Christ, Jews and Gentiles are no longer divided in their worship of God or the reception of His gifts, but are able to freely come together and hear God's Word and receive His Sacraments with joy and thanksgiving.
For the very precepts that once separated Jews from Gentiles are gone—they have been fulfilled in Christ. Indeed, Christ also overcame the Law's ability to condemn any believer. All humanity may now be unified as One through faith in Christ—no matter their ethnicity, language, tribe, or people—ALL are one in Christ Jesus. So, there is no longer any hostility between men and women of different backgrounds—we are all one family—brothers and sisters through our common faith in Christ!
What joy this should bring to us—and to the world in which we live. For we live in a world divided—a world filled with anger and hostility toward people who are different from us. This must not be so in the church of Christ. For He has come to unite us all to Him—and therefore to one another—by the blood He shed to redeem us all from our sin. So, we welcome all people into our church family—no matter what they look like—how they sound—what foods they eat—how they dress—etc. Our common faith in Jesus as the Savior unites us all—and serves as the basis to reconcile any divisions that may exist between us.
More importantly, of course, is the fact that through Christ there is no more hostility between God and man—period! The full and potent wrath of God for sin has been poured out upon Christ Jesus in our place. By virtue of our Baptism into Christ, His death on the cross has become our death—just as His resurrection from the dead has become our life and salvation.
The benefits of Christ's reconciliation by which He exhausted the wrath of God for us—is received in His holy Body, the Church. For here in the Church of Christ we freely receive God's grace and mercy in Word and Sacrament: we hear the blessed absolution that forgives our sins each week; we are reminded of God's cleansing us of sin through the Sacrament of Holy Baptism; and we are fed and strengthened in our faith through the very eating of Christ's own body and blood in the Lord's Supper. Nowhere else may these gifts be received, but in Christ's church—the gathering of the holy ones of God around the holy things of God—as we confess in the Creeds. And after more than a year of having our worship intermittently interrupted due to a pandemic—what sweet joy it is to gather together as the people of God in this way—so that our faith may be strengthened unto life everlasting.
For Jesus (Eph. 2:17-22) "came and preached peace to those 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."
It matters not who you are or where you come from—even what religious background you may have. Jesus preached peace to ALL. So that all people may hear of Him and His saving work—and so come to faith in Him and be saved—having peace with God, rather than His wrath on account of our sin. For apart from Christ and His saving work on the cross there is no peace with God—no salvation—for we remain dead in our trespasses and sins—subject to His eternal wrath. But through faith in Christ, all may be saved, taking refuge and comfort in the cross of Him who died for us—and in His empty tomb that guarantees us life by His name.
Indeed, through faith in Christ, all people now have access to the heavenly Father in the Spirit! We Christians are free to pray to the Father—to call God OUR Father!—through faith in His Son, which has been wrought in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. So, then in Christ, there are no strangers or aliens/sojourners in the kingdom of heaven/the household of God—for we are all fellow citizens by virtue of our unifying faith in Jesus. We have all been redeemed by the same blood of Jesus shed on the cross—we all have the same God as our Father—even as we have all been called to saving faith by the same Holy Spirit working through the Word.
Now, we are being built up together on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets—the Word of God—the Holy Scriptures! With Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone of the whole church, which grows into the dwelling place of the Lord. Jesus' work did away with the former way of worship in the temple of Jerusalem. No longer were there any more sacrifices needed for sin or guilt or thank offerings. For Christ Jesus is the perfect sacrifice—the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He has now erected a new spiritual house of God—the holy church—built on the teaching and preaching of the apostles and prophets—who proclaimed the Word of God concerning His Son, Jesus.
So now Jesus is the chief cornerstone of the church—serving as the foundation that anchors the walls together into a strong, united structure. Whether Jews or Gentiles—near or far—all are brought together and united in Christ Jesus our Lord. Indeed, in Him the Church as Christ's Body is now a living temple. You and I and all believers are new "stones" that have been added to the church so that it will continue to grow as more and more people come to faith in Jesus. We grow and mature in our faith by learning the truth of God's Word, rejecting error in all its forms, and loving one another as Christ has first loved us.
So, beloved, we do not look upon any human being with hostility or anger in our hearts—thinking that they must remain separated from us and from God. No, indeed, we have the answer that plagues our world right now as divisions continue to grow and spread among all people. And the answer is faith in Christ as Lord. We see in His word that all people are sinners before God, by nature subject to His wrath and everlasting torment in hell. Yet, we also know that Jesus has come to bring peace to all through His shed blood, thereby uniting us first to God, and secondly to our fellow human beings. May God grant us the strength—and the joy—to share this Good News with others—that we may all be built up together in the Church of Christ in peace and unity. Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.
Ephesians 2:13-22
Peace for All in Christ
v.17 And He came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near.
Dear friends in Christ, our text for this morning is St. Paul's letter to the church in Ephesus. The Christian church in Ephesus was similar to many early Christian churches in that it was composed of both Jewish and Gentile converts to Christianity. This sometimes led to conflict and difficulty in the early church, especially as some Jewish Christians thought it was necessary for Gentiles to practice Jewish ceremonial and dietary laws in order to be good Christians. Paul's full discourse on this subject can be found in his letter to the Galatians, but you can still see that there was some tension between these two groups in the body of Christ in this letter to the Ephesians. And so Paul sets out to encourage them—and remind them—how they are both one people now through faith in Jesus Christ.
Indeed, Paul began chapter 2 by hammering home the full extent of the Law and the Gospel to both Jew and Gentile. "And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked…by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast." While Paul recognizes the fact that the Gentiles were once far off from the grace of God—not having been the primary recipients of the Word of God and the revelation of the hope of the Promised One who would be born of the Jews—yet he is now urging them all to recognize that whether one is a Jew or a Gentile—we are all one in Christ who shed His blood to bring us near to the throne of heaven.
As Paul writes (Eph. 2:13-16), "But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off [Gentiles] have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made us both one [Jew and Gentile] 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."
So, beloved, though the Gentiles were once far off—separated from God in the Old Testament ceremonial worship laws—now they, too, have been brought near by the blood of Christ who has washed them clean of all sin. There is now peace between all and between God: well-being, unity, and salvation. All purchased by the saving blood of Christ shed on the cross. There is now no more separation between Jews and Gentiles in their worship of the one true God.
Prior to this there was a literal wall built in Herod's temple that served to separate the inner court of the temple where only Jews could gather for worship, from the outer court of the temple where Gentile converts were able to worship. No more! In Christ, Jews and Gentiles are no longer divided in their worship of God or the reception of His gifts, but are able to freely come together and hear God's Word and receive His Sacraments with joy and thanksgiving.
For the very precepts that once separated Jews from Gentiles are gone—they have been fulfilled in Christ. Indeed, Christ also overcame the Law's ability to condemn any believer. All humanity may now be unified as One through faith in Christ—no matter their ethnicity, language, tribe, or people—ALL are one in Christ Jesus. So, there is no longer any hostility between men and women of different backgrounds—we are all one family—brothers and sisters through our common faith in Christ!
What joy this should bring to us—and to the world in which we live. For we live in a world divided—a world filled with anger and hostility toward people who are different from us. This must not be so in the church of Christ. For He has come to unite us all to Him—and therefore to one another—by the blood He shed to redeem us all from our sin. So, we welcome all people into our church family—no matter what they look like—how they sound—what foods they eat—how they dress—etc. Our common faith in Jesus as the Savior unites us all—and serves as the basis to reconcile any divisions that may exist between us.
More importantly, of course, is the fact that through Christ there is no more hostility between God and man—period! The full and potent wrath of God for sin has been poured out upon Christ Jesus in our place. By virtue of our Baptism into Christ, His death on the cross has become our death—just as His resurrection from the dead has become our life and salvation.
The benefits of Christ's reconciliation by which He exhausted the wrath of God for us—is received in His holy Body, the Church. For here in the Church of Christ we freely receive God's grace and mercy in Word and Sacrament: we hear the blessed absolution that forgives our sins each week; we are reminded of God's cleansing us of sin through the Sacrament of Holy Baptism; and we are fed and strengthened in our faith through the very eating of Christ's own body and blood in the Lord's Supper. Nowhere else may these gifts be received, but in Christ's church—the gathering of the holy ones of God around the holy things of God—as we confess in the Creeds. And after more than a year of having our worship intermittently interrupted due to a pandemic—what sweet joy it is to gather together as the people of God in this way—so that our faith may be strengthened unto life everlasting.
For Jesus (Eph. 2:17-22) "came and preached peace to those 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."
It matters not who you are or where you come from—even what religious background you may have. Jesus preached peace to ALL. So that all people may hear of Him and His saving work—and so come to faith in Him and be saved—having peace with God, rather than His wrath on account of our sin. For apart from Christ and His saving work on the cross there is no peace with God—no salvation—for we remain dead in our trespasses and sins—subject to His eternal wrath. But through faith in Christ, all may be saved, taking refuge and comfort in the cross of Him who died for us—and in His empty tomb that guarantees us life by His name.
Indeed, through faith in Christ, all people now have access to the heavenly Father in the Spirit! We Christians are free to pray to the Father—to call God OUR Father!—through faith in His Son, which has been wrought in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. So, then in Christ, there are no strangers or aliens/sojourners in the kingdom of heaven/the household of God—for we are all fellow citizens by virtue of our unifying faith in Jesus. We have all been redeemed by the same blood of Jesus shed on the cross—we all have the same God as our Father—even as we have all been called to saving faith by the same Holy Spirit working through the Word.
Now, we are being built up together on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets—the Word of God—the Holy Scriptures! With Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone of the whole church, which grows into the dwelling place of the Lord. Jesus' work did away with the former way of worship in the temple of Jerusalem. No longer were there any more sacrifices needed for sin or guilt or thank offerings. For Christ Jesus is the perfect sacrifice—the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He has now erected a new spiritual house of God—the holy church—built on the teaching and preaching of the apostles and prophets—who proclaimed the Word of God concerning His Son, Jesus.
So now Jesus is the chief cornerstone of the church—serving as the foundation that anchors the walls together into a strong, united structure. Whether Jews or Gentiles—near or far—all are brought together and united in Christ Jesus our Lord. Indeed, in Him the Church as Christ's Body is now a living temple. You and I and all believers are new "stones" that have been added to the church so that it will continue to grow as more and more people come to faith in Jesus. We grow and mature in our faith by learning the truth of God's Word, rejecting error in all its forms, and loving one another as Christ has first loved us.
So, beloved, we do not look upon any human being with hostility or anger in our hearts—thinking that they must remain separated from us and from God. No, indeed, we have the answer that plagues our world right now as divisions continue to grow and spread among all people. And the answer is faith in Christ as Lord. We see in His word that all people are sinners before God, by nature subject to His wrath and everlasting torment in hell. Yet, we also know that Jesus has come to bring peace to all through His shed blood, thereby uniting us first to God, and secondly to our fellow human beings. May God grant us the strength—and the joy—to share this Good News with others—that we may all be built up together in the Church of Christ in peace and unity. Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.