‘One New Man’
“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— 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. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one 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. And he came and preached peace to you 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.” (Eph. 2:11-19)
The Apostle Paul makes a statement in Galatians 3:7 that’s quite provocative - “Know…that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham.” He’s saying that what makes one a child of Abraham isn’t their blood tie to him, but rather it’s their faith in Christ and the redemptive promise of God. This means that Gentiles can be true children of Abraham, a radical and offensive idea to Jews. This same idea is being emphasized here in Ephesians. Paul is underscoring the fact that the ‘Jew/Gentile’ distinction is eliminated in Christ.
Pre-Conversion Life
Paul wants these Gentiles converts to remember their lives prior to their conversion and affirm what their redeemed standing in the grace of Christ has provided for them. They were considered inferior by the Jews; they were the ‘uncircumcision’. The Jews considered them to be ‘created by God only to be fuel for the fires of hell’. Their desperate condition was described by the following strong words: 'separated’, ‘alienated’, ‘strangers’, ‘having no hope’, and ‘without God’. The most crucial aspect of their condition was that they were ‘separated from Christ’. Because of this they were ‘alienated from the commonwealth of Israel’, and ‘strangers to the covenants of promise’. They were cut off from God’s people and had no knowledge of the redemptive promise of God. Their ‘lostness’ was profound. They didn’t deny God; they hadn’t turned away from God; they had no knowledge of God. As a result, they were ‘hopeless’ and ‘without God’. They had nothing to hope for beyond this life. Because of their ignorance they were completely cut off from a reconciled relationship with God; this is a despairing condition.
Life in Christ
However, they were now in ‘union with Christ’ which indicates a profound change of standing before God. Once they were ‘without God in the world’, but now they have ‘been brought near (to God) by the blood of Christ’. The passive verb, ‘brought near’, is important because it indicates that they were acted upon - they were drawn. Salvation’s not an achievement we can take credit for. It’s not based on something we’ve done. It’s not a reward for human goodness, rather it’s grounded in what Christ has done for us. We’ve been ‘brought near by the blood of Christ’. We’ve been reconciled to God ‘through the cross’. Salvation flows out of the saving sacrifice of Christ at Calvary and that alone. The cross stands large in the gospel story! The gospel is all about Jesus - it’s not about us - we’re only the needy recipients of grace.
This gracious salvation is unifying - ‘for he himself is our peace’. Jesus doesn’t just point to where peace can be found; ‘he himself’ is actually the embodiment of the peace we need. We can’t have the peace we need without embracing him. And this peace is two dimensional: we’re put at peace with God (Rom.5:1), and this peace with God spills into our human relationships and reshapes them. We’re put at peace with one another - “For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility…(v.14).” Through the saving work of Christ God has made of these two hostile groups - Jews and Gentiles - ‘one new man’. He didn’t force Gentiles to become Jews or Jews to become Gentiles. God has dealt with the Jew/Gentile hostility by creating a third race. We now have Jews, Gentiles, and Christians. We have become members of a unique ‘counterculture’. We’re Christians, we’re citizens of God’s kingdom. We’re devoted to Christ and our first allegiance is to him. It’s this shared loyalty and life that unites us and does away with the divisions of race, ethnicity, and social standing. We now see each other through the eyes of Jesus and accept one another as ‘fellow citizens’ and ‘members of the household of God’. We’re family, we’re Christ’s disciples, so we love one another. Dr. Francis Schaeffer in his book, The Church at the End of the 20th Century, calls this the ‘final apologetic’ because Jesus said “By this all people will know that you are my disciple, if you have love for one another (Jn.13:35).”