22 September 2024
SCRIPTURAL APPLICATION: Ephesians 2:11-22
SERMON REVIEW:
Who you were. (Before Christ) vs. 11-12
A Divided People
Separated
Alienated
Strangers
Without Hope
What God did. (Through Christ) vs. 13-18
A Devine Reconciliation
Brought us near (through blood of Christ)
Made us one people
Tore down hostility
Abolished traditions
Brought peace to one another
Who you are now. (In Christ) vs. 19-22
A Dwelling Place for God
Fellow Citizens
Members of the household
Built on a solid foundation
QUESTIONS:
Life Application:
The Ephesian church seems to have experienced friction between Jewish and Gentile Christians. That
would explain why Paul goes into a discussion of the relationship between those two groups at this
point. In verse 11, Paul shows the Gentiles’ hopeless condition before salvation by contrasting them
with the Jews. God’s plan of salvation in the Old Testament came through the Jewish nation. That still
didn’t mean that all Jews were truly redeemed. It only meant that the message of redemption came
through the Jewish nation. The Ephesians, as Gentiles, did not have natural access to that message of
salvation. Paul contrasts the conditions of the Jews and Gentiles to show the Ephesians how significant
their salvation is.
Circumcision was a source of pride for the Jews. It was a visible sign of their historic relationship with
God. Therefore, it was a term of derision—a religious slur, if you will—for the Jews to call the Gentiles
uncircumcised. The Jewish nation had forfeited their special position with God, because, while they
were physically circumcised, their heart attitude was not one of submission to God. So Paul says the
Jews were called to circumcision, which is performed in the flesh by human hands. He implies that, while
they were physically circumcised, their heart was not, as it were, circumcised (submissive to God).
2:12. Paul emphasizes that the Gentiles were:
• foreigners to the covenants of the promise
• without hope
• without God in the world
What a bleak litany!
Jesus was the Messiah, the Savior of the Jewish nation. The nation of Israel had been given promises
(covenants) by God that they would have a Messiah. This gave them hope and afforded an avenue to
God for them. Not being Jews, the Gentiles did not have these advantages. A Gentile might convert to
Judaism; but then he would no longer be a Gentile but a converted Jew. Therefore, true Gentiles were
utterly without hope even with their many religions and many gods. The one God did not acknowledge
them because they did not acknowledge him. [1]
Digging Deeper:
A. Citizenship in Israel (v. 12)
God did not choose Israel to the exclusion of all the other nations. God chose them in order to reach all
the other nations. All along, God intended to use Israel as an evangelistic instrument to bring the other
nations of the world to himself (Gen. 12:3). In Psalm 67, David invoked the blessing of God on Israel:
“May God be gracious to us and bless us, and make his face shine upon us” (v. 1). Then David stated his
reason for this request: That “your ways [may] be known on earth, your salvation among all nations” (v.
2). Then David encouraged the people and creation to praise God. In the final verse he returned to the
original theme: “God will bless us, and all the ends of the earth will fear him” (v. 7).
God chose Israel and asked them to be obedient to his commandments. When Israel was obedient to his
commandments, God promised to bless them abundantly (Deut. 28:1–14). When they were so
incredibly blessed by God, the other nations of the earth would look at Israel, recognize that the hand of
God was upon them, see the goodness of God, and desire to know the God of Israel because of his
blessing on Israel.
This was a wonderful system. God would draw the entire world to himself by blessing his chosen people.
This is why he chose Israel—not to exclude all other nations but to reach all the other nations of the
world. Of course, Israel was not very faithful in obeying God for any length of time. The strongest
spiritual period in Israel was during the latter part of David’s reign and the first part of Solomon’s reign.
During this time, also, Israel was greater, wealthier, and more powerful than at any other time in its
history. Its spiritual impact was also greater. In fact, the queen of Sheba came to Solomon in 1 Kings 10,
just to see the glory of the kingdom and hear the wisdom of Solomon. When she saw it, she burst out in
spontaneous eulogy to God (v. 9). This was the way it was supposed to work. People were to see the
blessing of Israel and turn to God.
B. Holy temple (v. 21)
The Old Testament presented physical reality designed to picture a spiritual reality to be realized in the
New Testament. For example, the tabernacle and temple of the Old Testament were designed to picture
spiritual redemption in Christ. In the Old Testament, God gave his revelation to Israel and asked them to
obey it. If they would, God promised to pour out on them staggering physical blessings: agricultural,
military, economic, health, and every other way. In the New Testament, God gave his revelation to the
church and asked them to obey it. If they would, God promised to pour out on them staggering spiritual
blessings: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control—the fruit
of the Spirit.
God was revealing himself to the world through physical glory in the Old Testament and is revealing
himself to the world through spiritual glory in the New Testament. In both cases, God’s intention was to
give a picture to the world of who he was through the blessing of his people. The resultant goal was that
the world would want to know him because of what they saw of him in the lives of his people.
In both the Old and the New Testament, the focal point of God’s blessing is the temple. The Old
Testament temple was a stunning building. A fairly small building, the central part of the structure
measured only thirty feet wide by ninety feet long, a mere 2,700 square feet. Many personal homes are
larger than that. Yet some estimates say that it might cost more than four billion dollars to reproduce
today. The inside was lavishly appointed with incredible amounts of gold, carvings, expensive wood, and
marvelous tapestries. The walls were constructed of the finest stone. Two astonishing bronze pillars in
front highlighted what may have been one of the most expensive buildings per square foot that has ever
been constructed. First Kings 10 records that when the queen of Sheba saw all this splendor, she
swooned (“she was overwhelmed”). The idea is that the people of the world would get some idea of the
grandeur, glory, and power of God by looking at his physical temple, the physical site of his presence on
earth.
The counterpart to the Old Testament temple is the New Testament temple, which is the totality of all
believers in Jesus. Instead of God investing the New Testament temple with his physical glory, his intent
is to invest the New Testament temple with his spiritual glory. Instead of gold and cedar and ivory and
tapestry, he has lavished his New Testament temple with love, joy, and peace. The idea is that the
people of the world would get some idea of the character of God by looking at Christians, his spiritual
temple, the spiritual home of his presence on earth. [2]
Discussion Questions:
1. What wall did Christ break down? Why? What is the result?
2. What does it mean to be God’s dwelling? [3]
PRAYER:
[1] Max Anders, Galatians-Colossians, vol. 8, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN:
Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 113–114.
[2] Max Anders, Galatians-Colossians, vol. 8, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN:
Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 121–123.
[3] Max Anders, Galatians-Colossians, vol. 8, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN:
Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 124.
SERMON REVIEW:
Who you were. (Before Christ) vs. 11-12
A Divided People
Separated
Alienated
Strangers
Without Hope
What God did. (Through Christ) vs. 13-18
A Devine Reconciliation
Brought us near (through blood of Christ)
Made us one people
Tore down hostility
Abolished traditions
Brought peace to one another
Who you are now. (In Christ) vs. 19-22
A Dwelling Place for God
Fellow Citizens
Members of the household
Built on a solid foundation
QUESTIONS:
- What did the message teach me about God/Jesus/Holy Spirit?
- What did the message teach me about the human condition?
- Is there anything I need to confess, repent, or be grateful for, because of this passage?
- How do I need help in believing and applying this scripture to my life?
- How can I encourage others with this passage?
Life Application:
The Ephesian church seems to have experienced friction between Jewish and Gentile Christians. That
would explain why Paul goes into a discussion of the relationship between those two groups at this
point. In verse 11, Paul shows the Gentiles’ hopeless condition before salvation by contrasting them
with the Jews. God’s plan of salvation in the Old Testament came through the Jewish nation. That still
didn’t mean that all Jews were truly redeemed. It only meant that the message of redemption came
through the Jewish nation. The Ephesians, as Gentiles, did not have natural access to that message of
salvation. Paul contrasts the conditions of the Jews and Gentiles to show the Ephesians how significant
their salvation is.
Circumcision was a source of pride for the Jews. It was a visible sign of their historic relationship with
God. Therefore, it was a term of derision—a religious slur, if you will—for the Jews to call the Gentiles
uncircumcised. The Jewish nation had forfeited their special position with God, because, while they
were physically circumcised, their heart attitude was not one of submission to God. So Paul says the
Jews were called to circumcision, which is performed in the flesh by human hands. He implies that, while
they were physically circumcised, their heart was not, as it were, circumcised (submissive to God).
2:12. Paul emphasizes that the Gentiles were:
- separate from Christ
• foreigners to the covenants of the promise
• without hope
• without God in the world
What a bleak litany!
Jesus was the Messiah, the Savior of the Jewish nation. The nation of Israel had been given promises
(covenants) by God that they would have a Messiah. This gave them hope and afforded an avenue to
God for them. Not being Jews, the Gentiles did not have these advantages. A Gentile might convert to
Judaism; but then he would no longer be a Gentile but a converted Jew. Therefore, true Gentiles were
utterly without hope even with their many religions and many gods. The one God did not acknowledge
them because they did not acknowledge him. [1]
Digging Deeper:
A. Citizenship in Israel (v. 12)
God did not choose Israel to the exclusion of all the other nations. God chose them in order to reach all
the other nations. All along, God intended to use Israel as an evangelistic instrument to bring the other
nations of the world to himself (Gen. 12:3). In Psalm 67, David invoked the blessing of God on Israel:
“May God be gracious to us and bless us, and make his face shine upon us” (v. 1). Then David stated his
reason for this request: That “your ways [may] be known on earth, your salvation among all nations” (v.
2). Then David encouraged the people and creation to praise God. In the final verse he returned to the
original theme: “God will bless us, and all the ends of the earth will fear him” (v. 7).
God chose Israel and asked them to be obedient to his commandments. When Israel was obedient to his
commandments, God promised to bless them abundantly (Deut. 28:1–14). When they were so
incredibly blessed by God, the other nations of the earth would look at Israel, recognize that the hand of
God was upon them, see the goodness of God, and desire to know the God of Israel because of his
blessing on Israel.
This was a wonderful system. God would draw the entire world to himself by blessing his chosen people.
This is why he chose Israel—not to exclude all other nations but to reach all the other nations of the
world. Of course, Israel was not very faithful in obeying God for any length of time. The strongest
spiritual period in Israel was during the latter part of David’s reign and the first part of Solomon’s reign.
During this time, also, Israel was greater, wealthier, and more powerful than at any other time in its
history. Its spiritual impact was also greater. In fact, the queen of Sheba came to Solomon in 1 Kings 10,
just to see the glory of the kingdom and hear the wisdom of Solomon. When she saw it, she burst out in
spontaneous eulogy to God (v. 9). This was the way it was supposed to work. People were to see the
blessing of Israel and turn to God.
B. Holy temple (v. 21)
The Old Testament presented physical reality designed to picture a spiritual reality to be realized in the
New Testament. For example, the tabernacle and temple of the Old Testament were designed to picture
spiritual redemption in Christ. In the Old Testament, God gave his revelation to Israel and asked them to
obey it. If they would, God promised to pour out on them staggering physical blessings: agricultural,
military, economic, health, and every other way. In the New Testament, God gave his revelation to the
church and asked them to obey it. If they would, God promised to pour out on them staggering spiritual
blessings: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control—the fruit
of the Spirit.
God was revealing himself to the world through physical glory in the Old Testament and is revealing
himself to the world through spiritual glory in the New Testament. In both cases, God’s intention was to
give a picture to the world of who he was through the blessing of his people. The resultant goal was that
the world would want to know him because of what they saw of him in the lives of his people.
In both the Old and the New Testament, the focal point of God’s blessing is the temple. The Old
Testament temple was a stunning building. A fairly small building, the central part of the structure
measured only thirty feet wide by ninety feet long, a mere 2,700 square feet. Many personal homes are
larger than that. Yet some estimates say that it might cost more than four billion dollars to reproduce
today. The inside was lavishly appointed with incredible amounts of gold, carvings, expensive wood, and
marvelous tapestries. The walls were constructed of the finest stone. Two astonishing bronze pillars in
front highlighted what may have been one of the most expensive buildings per square foot that has ever
been constructed. First Kings 10 records that when the queen of Sheba saw all this splendor, she
swooned (“she was overwhelmed”). The idea is that the people of the world would get some idea of the
grandeur, glory, and power of God by looking at his physical temple, the physical site of his presence on
earth.
The counterpart to the Old Testament temple is the New Testament temple, which is the totality of all
believers in Jesus. Instead of God investing the New Testament temple with his physical glory, his intent
is to invest the New Testament temple with his spiritual glory. Instead of gold and cedar and ivory and
tapestry, he has lavished his New Testament temple with love, joy, and peace. The idea is that the
people of the world would get some idea of the character of God by looking at Christians, his spiritual
temple, the spiritual home of his presence on earth. [2]
Discussion Questions:
1. What wall did Christ break down? Why? What is the result?
2. What does it mean to be God’s dwelling? [3]
PRAYER:
[1] Max Anders, Galatians-Colossians, vol. 8, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN:
Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 113–114.
[2] Max Anders, Galatians-Colossians, vol. 8, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN:
Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 121–123.
[3] Max Anders, Galatians-Colossians, vol. 8, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN:
Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 124.