ONE IN CHRIST

Ephesians 2:11-22

Ephesians 2:19,20   “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.” 

The first part of Ephesians chapter two shows how salvation comes about for the individual believer. It comes from grace alone, through faith. This is the gift of God. Now these latter verses we’re looking at today address the believers as a group, not as individuals.

The wording used here compares the church- or the body of believers- to a temple being built. The main purpose of the church is to be a unified entity where God dwells. How is this accomplished?  These verses encourage us to remain reconciled in Christ and to remain planted on the foundation that he made.

I: Reconciled in Christ (11-18)

Verses 11 and 12 reminds the Christians in Ephesus of their former spiritual condition. Let’s read those together, “Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called ‘uncircumcised’ by those who call themselves, ‘the circumcision’ (that done in the body by the hands of men)- remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.”  This letter was written around 62 A.D. At that time the church, which started from Jews, had begun to take in more and more Gentiles.

Verse 13 indicates that the Gentiles were considered as people who were far away from God. Implied throughout these verses is that the Jews were close to God. In what sense was this true? We consider the Jews as God’s chosen people. Why is this so? Because they were the first nation that God revealed himself to. They had direct knowledge of God. They had the scriptures given by the prophets. They had the temple to the one all-powerful God who created everything. But the Gentiles- no. They were foreigners to the promises of God since they did not have scripture or knowledge of the One Creator God.

The sad condition of the Gentiles described here is the same condition all of us were in before we met Christ. We lived ‘far away’ from God. If you think about it, the Jews and the Gentiles were all far from God, since everyone sins. All sin, whether they know holy scripture or have no clue about it.  It’s helpful to remember how far we stood from God, so that we may remain humble and our thankfulness to God’s saving grace may increase. It’s helpful to remember this so that one group of believers may not claim some kind of superiority or exclusivity.

So the apostle reminds the Gentiles that now, in Christ, they had come near to the Jews and both groups had come near to God. Through the blood of Christ, the two groups existed as one large family. They worshipped together in the church.   Sin had brought them all down to the same level, but the blood of Christ had brought them all up to the same level in the heavenly realms.

Christ reconciles all believers to be part of the same body. Let’s now read verses 15 and 16, “…by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.” 

Most of those Gentiles had grown up in Greek culture and spoke Greek. At that time, certain Jewish Christians insisted that the Gentile Christians follow some of the Old Testament laws such as the requirement for circumcising males, and observing holidays and Sabbaths. The letters to the Galatians  and Colossians, written at the same time period mention these controversies. But the Ephesian church didn’t seem to have such problems. The Jews and the Gentiles had reconciled in Christ. Thus the Ephesian church contained many spiritually mature believers. Paul was able to write to them about many deep spiritual mysteries because they had grown up and moved beyond a basic level. They were eating meat rather than sucking on formula from a baby bottle.

How had this come about? Christ abolished legalism by actually fulfilling all the requirements of law. He became the perfect sacrifice for the atonement of sins. Therefore, when we believe in him, we accept that the law is fulfilled in our life, too. When we have Christ living in us, we become inclined to naturally do what is right and avoid what is wrong. Adhering to the written code of law has no meaning because we intrinsically come to do what is right.

The two hostile factions of the Jews and Greeks found peace in Christ. Nothing else mattered to them but serving Christ together. They came to work together to serve the gospel. Thus, they put aside  their differences, and the church became unified.

So the reconciliation also came when the two groups starting serving a common purpose. Just what is the common goal of all believers? Christ told us to pray for God’s kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven. He commissioned his church saying “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28:19,20). Catholic, Protestant, or Orthodox, all churches do the same task of proclaiming the Lord Jesus until he returns.

Yet working toward the same goal in and of itself does not equal true peace or reconciliation. After all, look at the United Nations. It started as the ‘League of Nations’ after World War I for the purpose of avoiding another world war. Then World War II happened. At your workplace, clearly all employees serve the company’s common goals. But co-workers often dislike each other and gossip about each other. That’s not real peace. Even when outward cooperation is imposed, people may not be ‘at peace’ with each other.

So what is the answer? True reconciliation comes about through the cross of Christ. The cross alone puts to death our sinful nature. And what is the essence of sin? The essence of sin is selfishness. Selfishness motivates every sin you can think of. It prevents people from loving each other and working together. When selfishness is eliminated and replaced by love, then we have true and lasting reconciliation. But only in the cross of Christ is this accomplished.

In recent weeks, we have heard from various people who attend the ‘team meetings’. Many of these young people concluded that they are all quite different from each other. The people in the ‘Mustard Seed Team’ said that each one is from a different background and culture. Each has a different way of thinking. Yet they all cooperate to study the word of the Lord together and help each other out. In Christ there is no barrier or division. There is no rivalry between the East Coast and the West Coast. There is no Redskins versus Cowboys. When we are ‘in Christ’ we are one unified entity.  In fact, there are no separate nationalities since we are all citizens in the same nation- the kingdom of God.

We’re looking forward to the Harvest Festival two weeks from now. There, we’ll see many different people working together in the kingdom of God. No one will be excluded, whether from nearby or far away. People will come from as far away as northern Virginia. The big Potomac River cannot divide us. (Sometimes it seems that the beltway is a dividing wall of hostility!)  There won’t even be a generation gap. Why? Because CBF children will sing a song together for us. Everybody loves it when the children sing. Aren’t they cute? YDJ will put on a dramatic game show skit. College age people will tell us how the word of God is working in their lives by testimony reading. And what about us ‘old people’? Since we are the elders, it’s our job to properly teach the word of God.  We’re like a huge extended family in Christ. Not a dysfunctional family, but a close, loving family. Praise God who makes us one. Let’s pray and prepare well, and invite everyone- no exclusions.

Today’s scripture reminds us to continue looking beyond our differences and keep looking to the cross of Christ. It’s time to allow the cross of Christ to put to death our sinful, selfish nature. We have the same God, the same scripture, and the same mission.  We only need to remain standing on the firm foundation.

II: Planted on the foundation (19-22)

Let’s read verses 19 and 20, “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.”

This section compares the church universal to a temple under construction. Let’s think about the meaning of the analogy used here.

1) First, Christ unites all believers into one living entity. Broadly speaking, the ‘church’ consists of all believers of all denominations of all time periods. According to verse 21, all are joined together in Christ. We are one with Christ and with each other. We are inseparably linked, like the various parts of a building consisting of bricks, mortar, wiring, plumbing, doors and windows.  

What is the implication of this? I Corinthians 12:24-26 shows us: “But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.”  So if one of us is happy, all are happy. If one suffers, all suffer together. 2009 has been a year with some high profile weddings here. When the members got married, we all rejoiced together with them. Many people joyfully danced; others joyfully attempted to dance.  One of our sisters became seriously ill. When that happened, many of us went to the hospital repeatedly to see her, comfort her, and pray with her. Visitors from Chicago even took time to go see her and pray with her. This is the way it should always be; for the various elements that form the temple are inseparably linked.

2) Second, the apostles and prophets make the foundation. Look again at verse 20, “…built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets….”  Revelation 21 described the New Jerusalem. Do you remember? Revelation 21:14 says about the New Jerusalem that “The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”

The apostles and the prophets laid the foundation of the Christian faith because the word of God came through them. We do not claim that the word of God came from them, but through them.  Not from their own minds, but given to them by God. II Peter 1:20-21 explains it like this- “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”  

Everything we base our beliefs and practices on comes from scripture. But scripture comes through the apostles and prophets. The Old Testament was written by Moses, Samuel, David, and various other prophets. The New Testament was written by those with first hand knowledge of Jesus- the apostles. They lived with him, heard what he taught and saw him risen from the dead. The Holy Spirit worked through them when they wrote scripture.

We see then a danger in building off the foundation. Or worse, attempting to set a different foundation.  One group claims that it has ‘another testament of Jesus Christ.’ Another group claims that Christ failed in His mission, but their leader is the Messiah, so they should follow what he wrote.  We need to be alert to such divisive falsehood. We need to teach our students the foundation of scripture so they may remain on the firm foundation and not be led astray.  As Revelation 22 warns, scripture must not be added to or subtracted from.

Additionally, to remain on the foundation means to apply scripture in our life. It means actually putting the word of God into practice. Jesus explained that whoever listened to his words and put them into practice was like a wise man who built his house on a foundation of rock. When a storm came and blew against that house, the house stood.  When a person’s life is based on other foundations, it does not lead to eternal life. Other foundations can be various philosophies or legalistic rules that we use to attempt to be right with God.  Those systems eventually come crashing down.  Let’s keep the temple construction going straight up without toppling over as we remain on the firm foundation.

3) Third, Christ himself is the chief cornerstone.  Have you seen a cornerstone? There is one on the building where my wife works. There is even one on the front of this building.  The inscription says “A house of prayer for all nations, November 7, 1992”.  These blocks are not true cornerstones in the classic sense. They are strictly for decoration. But in ancient times, the cornerstone was the single most important component of the whole building. The cornerstone was set down first. Then all the other stones were lined up in relation to where the cornerstone had been set.

Jesus is like that all-important cornerstone. The entire church is ‘built’ in relation to him. Isaiah 28:16 prophesied about him, “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts will never be dismayed.”  Christ was tested. Satan tantalizingly tempted Jesus when he was at his weakest points.  When Jesus fasted and prayed for 40 days, Satan attempted to get him to miraculously make bread. Mmm, delicious bread. When Jesus submitted to the will of his Father and hung dying on the cross, Satan tempted him even more severely.  The people standing around mocked Jesus saying, “If you are the Son of God, come down from that cross.”  “He saved others, but he couldn’t save himself.” But Jesus passed the tests and remained sinless. This is the way he ended up saving himself and others. Since he is the only sinless one, whoever trusts in him will never be dismayed. Our life should be kept lined up in reference to the cornerstone.

4) Fourth, this unification allows God to dwell among his people.  Let’s read verse 22, “And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his spirit.”  As we throw out legalism and reconcile in Christ, we enjoy sweet fellowship with each other. Yet this close relationship is not an end in itself. Rather, the main purpose of the church is to form a vessel where God can dwell. It makes a vehicle that God works through.

Notice in verse 22 that God dwells in the midst of the church through His Holy Spirit. The Spirit is the invisible form of God, who works through us as we proclaim the good news to all nations. In the church, the Spirit ministers to us and through us. The work of the church then should not be hindered by a spirit of legalism or selfishness or any other spirit.

When even two or three believers gather together to pray, Christ is right there among them. May the Lord bless us to form and to keep this unified temple, built on the foundation of scripture with Christ as the chief cornerstone.