Ephesians 2 - X Marks the Spot
All people want one thing: peace. Ephesians 2 tells us exactly where to find it.
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Ephesians 2 (ESV)
1 And you were dead
in the trespasses and sins
2 in which you once walked,
following the course of this world,
following
the prince of the power of the air,
the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—
3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh,
carrying out the desires of the body and the mind,
and were by nature children of wrath,
like the rest of mankind.
4 But God,
being rich in mercy,
because of the great love
with which he loved us,
5 even when we were dead in our trespasses,
made us alive
together with Christ
—by grace you have been saved—
6 and
raised us up with him
and seated us with him
in the heavenly places
in Christ Jesus,
7 so that in the coming ages he might show
the immeasurable riches of his grace
in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
8 For
by grace
you have been saved
through faith.
And this
is not your own doing;
it is the gift of God,
9 not a result of works,
so that no one may boast.
10 For we are
his workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus
for good works,
which God prepared beforehand,
that we should walk in them.
11 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—
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.
13 But now in Christ Jesus
you who once were far off
have been brought near
by the blood of Christ.
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
15 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,
16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body
through the cross,
thereby killing the hostility.
17 And he came and preached
peace to you who were far off
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 strangers and aliens,
but you are
fellow citizens with the saints
and members of the household of God,
20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets,
Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone,
21 in whom the whole structure,
being joined together,
grows into a holy temple in the Lord.
22 In him you also are being built together
into a dwelling place
for God by the Spirit.
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Previous DIG DEEPER posts on Ephesians
Ephesians 2 Summary
Christianity literally brings you from death to life.
You WERE:
Dead in sin;
Following this world and it's prince.
You are NOW:
Made alive in Christ;
By God's gift of grace;
So that you can do the good works God created you to do.
God's grace breaks down the dividing wall of hostility (v14) that normally separates differing groups of people. The conventional wisdom of our world trots out trite, meaningless phrases like our unity is in our diversity, but this passage makes clear that it is our universal dependence on God's grace that that unites people in Christ.
All people have an instinctual desire to restore the peace lost when mankind fell into sin. Often times, this quest for peace is ironically expressed in greedy, selfish ambitions, which unsurprisingly never lead to lasting peace.
Ephesians 2 gives the simple answer to the one thing all people are looking for:
Christ Himself is our peace... For through Him we have access in the Spirit to the Father (v14a, 18).
Dig Deeper
This chapter is foundational to the five key claims of the Protestant Reformation.
We are saved:
BY GRACE ALONE
For by grace you have been saved through faith (v8)
THROUGH FAITH ALONE
For by grace you have been saved through faith (v8)
BECAUSE OF CHRIST ALONE
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ (v13)
REVEALED IN SCRIPTURE ALONE
built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone (v20)
FOR GOD'S GLORY ALONE (Soli Deo Gloria)
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them (v10).
AAA Prayer:
ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: God has wrath for those who remain dead in their sin (v3), yet He is rich in mercy (v4)
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will understand what it means that you are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for you to do (v10).
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:
