Friday, May 30, 2014

The Perfect Messenger for the Message of Equality...


This week we have been looking at a section of a letter in the Bible called the book of Ephesians. Wednesday, we saw a man named Paul reveal for us a timeless truth when it comes to our identity as a follower of Jesus as we live in community with one another in that our identity as a follower of Jesus should result in equality amongst followers of Jesus. Just as it was in the church at Ephesus, just as it has been since the birth of the church, our identity as a follower of Jesus should result in equality amongst followers of Jesus. And while there have been times in the history of the church that the church has done a horrific job when it comes to this issue, as followers of Jesus we are called to live our lives in community with one another in a way that embraces equality.

Now, a natural and fair question that arises here is “well Dave, why did God choose to make fully known His Divine Plan at that time? And why Paul?  I mean Paul was a Kosher Jew, wasn’t he? Why didn’t God use someone more ethnically diverse? So why Paul? And why then?"

Those are great questions to be asking. And in Ephesians 3:8-12, we are going to see the Apostle Paul provide the answers to those questions. Let’s look at it together:

 To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things; so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him.

You see, the reason why Paul was the perfect messenger to make fully known God’s Divine Plan was because he was the least of all saints. If you were religious, Paul could trump your religiosity. Paul’s list of religious rules was better than your list of religious rules and he kept his list of religious rules better than you kept your list of religious rules. Paul kept his religious rules to the point the he killed people who didn't follow his religious rules.
 
And if you were irreligious, Paul could trump your irreligiosity. Paul was the least of all saints. Paul used to hunt early followers of Jesus down and kill them. So Paul’s irreligious behavior was worse than your irreligious behavior. “Ever killed anyone? How many?”

And yet, Paul was given grace; Paul experienced God’s transformational intervention and activity in his life so that he could do three specific things when it came to his role in disclosing God’s Divine plan. First, in verse 8, Paul explains that grace was given to him to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ. Now the word unfathomable here, in the language that this letter was originally written in means inexhaustible.

In other words, Paul experienced God’s transformational intervention and activity in his life so that he could proclaim the inexhaustible riches of the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel to the Gentiles. Paul was given the role of being the chief missionary to the non-Jewish nations of the world.

Second, in verse 9, Paul explains that grace was given to him to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things. In other words, Paul experienced God’s transformational intervention and activity in his life so that he could shed light upon God’s management of His Divine Plan. Paul here reveals for us the reality that God’s Divine Plan had been hidden for a long period of time. And the reason that no one was able to find out about God’s Divine Plan was due to the fact that the plan had been hidden in God who created all things.

Third, in verse 10, Paul explains that grace was given to him so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. But, this morning, what does that mean?

When Paul uses the word manifold, this word in the language that this letter was originally written in, literally means multifaceted. A great word picture of what this word conveys would be that of a prism. You see, when we shine light through a prism, what happens? If we were to shine a light through a prism we would see the full spectrum of light displayed on a surface. We would see something that looked like this.

Paul here uses this word to describe the wisdom of God. God’s wisdom is multifaceted in nature. And Paul experienced God’s transformational intervention and activity in his life so that the multifaceted wisdom of God might be made known. But did you see exactly how the full spectrum of God’s multifaceted wisdom was going to be made known?

God’s multifaceted wisdom was going to be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. Now the rulers and authorities refer to supernatural spiritual beings, called angels and demons, that exist in the spiritual sphere, which Paul refers to as the Heavenly places. 

In other words, God’s plan, from before time began, was that His multifaceted wisdom would be made known through His church to the angelic and demonic beings in heaven. Did you realize that God uses the church to demonstrate to angels and demons how smart He is? As the angels and demons observe humanity, they realize how smart God is by how He works across ethnic and cultural lines to unite all humanity as part of His new movement called the church.

In verse 11, Paul explains that God’s Divine plan was carried out and accomplished through Jesus Christ. As a result of Jesus Christ entering into humanity to live the life we were created to live but refused to live; as a result of Jesus Christ willingly allowing Himself to be treated as though He lived our selfish and sinful lives so that God the Father could treat us as though we lived Jesus perfect life; people from all over the world are united together as a part of the body of Christ, which functions to reveal Jesus to the world and show the angels and demons how smart God is.

And as a result of Jesus Christ accomplishing God’s Divine plan, as followers of Jesus, Paul explains that we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him. In other words, as a result of our confident trust in Jesus, regardless of whether we are Jew or Gentile, we have the confidence to enter into God’s presence. And as a result of our confident trust in Jesus, regardless of whether we are Jew or Gentile, we have a certainty that we can enter into God’s presence. As we discovered last week, prior to Jesus, that would have been unheard of.

Do we really get this? Have we really wrapped our minds around the reality that even though God does not need us to do anything, He chooses to use us as a church to display His multifaceted wisdom to angels and demons? Have we really wrapped our minds around the reality that even though God does not need us to do anything, He chooses to invite us to be the vehicle that He uses to reveal Himself to the world.

Have we really wrapped our minds around the reality that we have the confidence and certainty to be able to enter into God’s presence because of our relationship with Jesus? You see this is our identity as a follower of Jesus. And our identity as a follower of Jesus should result in equality amongst followers of Jesus. Paul then concludes this section of his letter by addressing his concern over the members of the church at Ephesus in verse 13:

 Therefore I ask you not to lose heart at my tribulations on your behalf, for they are your glory.

In verse 13, we see Paul explain to the members of the church at Ephesus that he wanted them to understand that his troubles on their behalf would result in their participation in the splendor of Heaven for all eternity. You see, Paul did not want the members of the church at Ephesus to become disappointed or discouraged at the trouble he was experiencing in prison. The members of the church were less than enthusiastic over Paul’s imprisonment because they knew that his life was at stake.

Instead, Paul wanted the members of the church at Ephesus to know that his temporary troubles would result in them experiencing the eternal glory of Heaven. Because Paul had fulfilled his role in proclaiming the unfolding of God’s Divine Plan that had now been made known, the members of the church at Ephesus would be able to participate in the splendor and radiance of Heaven as a result of placing their confident trust in Jesus. And for Paul, that was the most important thing.

Next week, we will see Paul, leave his “squirrel” moment and get back to penning the words of his prayer for followers of Jesus throughout history. In the meantime, here is a question for us to consider: Do we really believe that the ground is level at the foot of the cross? Do we really believe that every follower of Jesus is equal? And do we live out that reality as we live our day to day lives in community with one another?

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Our identity as a follower of Jesus should result in equality amongst followers of Jesus...


This week, we are looking at a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the Bible called the book of Ephesians. Yesterday, we looked on as Paul explained to the members of the church at Ephesus that he had been given a role in managing a timeless truth about God’s plan that had been hidden, but that had now been made known. Paul explained to the members of the church that this mystery, this Divine Plan of God, had not been made fully known to humanity in times past.

But now, at the birth of the church, Paul explains that God’s Divine Plan has now been revealed through His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit. In other words, God’s Divine Plan through Jesus has been brought to light and made known through His special messengers the Apostles and Prophets through the spiritual gifting and empowerment of the Holy Spirit.

 Now you might be thinking to yourself, “well Dave that is all fine and great, but what exactly is this mystery that was once hidden and had now been made fully known? Because it is still a mystery to me?” If that question is running through your mind, I want to let you know that is a great question to be asking. We see Paul answer that question and reveal for us another timeless truth when it comes to our identity as a follower of Jesus in Ephesians 3:6. Let’s look at it together:

 to be specific, that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel, of which I was made a minister, according to the gift of God's grace which was given to me according to the working of His power.

In verse 6, we see the Apostle Paul reveal in very specific terms the content of God’s Divine Plan that was once hidden, but has now been made fully known. And God’s Divine Plan that was once hidden and was now made known was this: that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. And it is in this single verse that we see Paul reveal for us three specific aspects of God’s Divine Plan that had now been made fully known.

First, we see that Gentiles were now fellow heirs. In other words, Paul wanted the members of the church at Ephesus to wrap their minds around the reality that God’s Divine Plan was for the Gentiles to be co-heirs with the Jews in the kingdom of God. The Gentiles now had equal rights to receive an inheritance and a share in the kingdom of Heaven.

Second, we see that the Gentiles were now fellow members of the body. Paul’s point here was that the members of the church at Ephesus needed to wrap their mind around the reality that God’s Divine Plan was for the Gentiles to belong to the body of Christ as part of the family of God. The Gentiles were not to be treated as the red headed step child, so to speak. Instead, the Gentiles belonged as a part of the family of God in the church of God just as much as the Jews belonged as a part of the family of God in the church of God.

Third, we see that the Gentiles were now fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. In other words, Paul wanted the members of the church at Ephesus to wrap their minds around the reality that God’s Divine Plan was for the Gentiles to partner with the Jews in the promises of God through the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel. Paul wanted the members of the church at Ephesus to clearly understand that the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel was an inclusive message, not an exclusive message.

Paul wanted the members of the church at Ephesus to wrap their minds around the reality that Jews and Gentiles were to partner together in the kingdom mission that had been given to the church to be the vehicle that God uses to reveal His Son Jesus and His message of rescue through the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel to the entire world.

Now it is hard for us to fully understand the shock waves that this mystery would have sent through the first century world, especially if you were Jewish. As we talked about last week, Jewish people historically felt a sense of ethnic superiority as a result of being God’s chosen people and looked down on Gentiles. And even in the first century church at Ephesus, there was racial tension, with Jews using racial slurs to demean and disrespect Gentiles.

And now, Paul had just told the Jewish members of the church at Ephesus that Gentiles were equal in every way, shape, and manner with them. Paul had just told the Jewish members of the church at Ephesus that the Gentiles were also members of the church and were also God’s chosen people.

To give us a little perspective, a culturally similar situation would have been for Paul to walk into a white, Southern Baptist church in South Alabama in the 1950’s and explain that African Americans should not only be allowed to attend church in their church, but should be able to use the same restrooms, ride in the front seat in the church van, and participate in the church potlucks with them. That is what we are talking about here.

And just to make sure that the Jewish members of the church at Ephesus did not push back any harder that they were already tempted to, in verse 7, Paul reminds the Jewish members of the church of Ephesus of his credentials. Paul reminds the members of the church that he was made a servant of God who was a messenger of the gospel by God. And as a result of being a servant of God, Paul was empowered by God’s grace. In other words, it was God’s transformational intervention and activity in Paul’s life that empowered him to serve God and proclaim this mystery.

And it is here that we see Paul reveal for us a timeless truth when it comes to our identity as a follower of Jesus as we live in community with one another. And that timeless truth is this: Our identity as a follower of Jesus should result in equality amongst followers of Jesus. Just as it was in the church at Ephesus, just as it has been since the birth of the church, our identity as a follower of Jesus should result in equality amongst followers of Jesus. And while there have been times in the history of the church that the church has done a horrific job when it comes to this issue, as followers of Jesus we are called to live our lives in community with one another in a way that embraces equality.

Now, as I said last week, there may be some of you who are pushing back right now because you are struggling with racism. I don’t know who you are but I am not naive either.

Or maybe a natural and fair question that arises here is “well Dave, why did God choose to make fully known His Divine Plan at that time? And why Paul?  I mean Paul was a Kosher Jew, wasn’t he? Why didn’t God use someone more ethnically diverse? So why Paul? And why then?

Those are great questions to be asking. And Friday we are going to see the Apostle Paul provide the answers to those questions...

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

A Tangent That Leads To A Mystery...


At the church where I serve, we have been spending our time together looking at a letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament of our Bibles called the book of Ephesians. As we go through this book, our hope and our prayer is that God would enable us to see our true identity, the identity that He designed us to live in, so that we would live our day to day lives in light of our true identity.

Last week, we discovered that our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers. Just as it was in the church at Ephesus, just as it has been since the birth of the church, our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers. The timeless reality is that there is no room for racism in the church, period. There is no room for a sense of ethnic and cultural superiority, period.

Our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers because Jesus has removed the barrier of the Law. Our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers because of Jesus message. Our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers because we all have access to God the Father the same way. And our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers because all races are included in His kingdom as part of His church.

Now this week, I would like for us to pick up where we left off last week. And as we jump into the next section of this letter that the Apostle Paul wrote to early followers of Jesus at the church at Ephesus, we are going to discover another timeless truth regarding our identity as a follower of Jesus that has the potential to change how we see our true identity, the identity that God designed us to live in, so that we would live our day to day lives in light of our true identity. So let’s discover this timeless truth together, beginning in Ephesians 3:1:

For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles-- if  indeed you have heard of the stewardship of God's grace which was given to me for you; that by revelation there was made known to me the mystery, as I wrote before in brief.

Paul begins this section of his letter to the members of the church at Ephesus with a seemingly strange statement: “For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles.” You see, Paul, was writing this letter from jail in Rome after being arrested for proclaiming the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel to the Gentiles.

As we discovered last week, when Paul refers to Gentiles, he is referring to people who were not Jewish ethnically or culturally. So basically anyone that is not Jewish would be considered a Gentile. And as Paul sat in prison awaiting trial, Paul had just reminded the Gentile and Jewish members at the church of Ephesus of the reality that their identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers. After reminding the members of the church of Ephesus that there was no room for racism in the church, Paul was prepared to pray for the members of the church. Next week, we will look at Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3:14-21.

However, before Paul began to pen the words of the prayer that we will look at next week, he experienced a “squirrel” moment, so to speak. Before penning the words of his prayer, Paul decided to take a tangent. We see Paul begin his tangent in verse 2, when he states “if indeed you have heard of the stewardship of God's grace which was given to me for you;”

Here we see Paul explain to the members of the church at Ephesus that he had been given a responsibility. And that responsibility was to manage the message of God’s grace, or God’s transformational intervention and activity in the world. You see, Paul was given the responsibility to proclaim the message of God’s transformational intervention and activity in the world to the known world.

Then, in verse three, Paul reveals for us exactly how he had been given that responsibility.  Paul explains to the members of the church that by revelation there was made known to me the mystery, as I wrote before in brief. Now to fully understand what Paul is talking about here, we first need to ask and answer several questions. The first question is, “what does Paul mean when he uses the word revelation here?”  This word literally means to make fully known. This revelation occurred as a result of His life transforming encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus.

After his encounter, Paul proceeded to become the chief missionary to the non-Jewish nations of the world and wrote the majority of the letters that we have that form the New Testament of our Bibles.  Paul then explains that what was made fully known to Paul during this encounter and subsequent to this encounter was the mystery.

Now that leads us to the second question, which is “what is the mystery?” As we talked about in the beginning of this series, when Paul uses the word mystery, this word refers to a timeless truth about God and His Divine Plan that was once hidden, but now has been made known through Christ. You see, Paul wanted the members of the church at Ephesus to understand his role in managing a timeless truth about God’s plan that had been hidden, but that has now been made known.

In addition, Paul reminded the members of the church at Ephesus that he had briefly mentioned this mystery to them in Ephesians 1:10. We see Paul remind the members of the church of this reality in verse 4. Let’s look at it together:

 By referring to this, when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit;

Now if Paul was communicating verse 4 in the language that we use in our culture today, it would have sounded something like this: By referring to what I wrote earlier, when you read it you will be able to comprehend how I have been able to wrap my mind around the mystery of Jesus Christ.”

Then, in verse five, Paul explains to the members of the church that this mystery, this Divine Plan of God, had not been made fully known to humanity in times past. While there were glimpses of this plan on the Old Testament of the Bible, the plan was not clearly revealed. But now, at the birth of the church, Paul explains that God’s Divine Plan has now been revealed through His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit.

Now as we talked about last week, apostles and prophets refer to a specific group of men who had seen Jesus after He was raised from the dead and were given the special spiritual gift to reveal and proclaim God’s message of rescue through the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel and the new verbal revelation of this mystery.

In other words, God’s Divine Plan through Jesus has been brought to light and made known through His special messengers the Apostles and Prophets through the spiritual gifting and empowerment of the Holy Spirit. You see, Paul wanted the members of the church at Ephesus to understand that God’s Divine Plan that was once hidden, but had now been made known through Jesus Christ.

Now you might be thinking to yourself, “well Dave that is all fine and great, but what exactly is this mystery that was once hidden and had now been made fully known? Because it is still a mystery to me?” If that question is running through your mind, I want to let you know that is a great question to be asking.

Tomorrow, we will see Paul answer that question and reveal for us another timeless truth when it comes to our identity as a follower of Jesus…

Friday, May 23, 2014

Our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers because all races are included in His kingdom as part of His church...


This week, we have been looking at a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the Bible called the book of Ephesians, where we have seen a man named Paul reveal for us the reality that our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers. Wednesday, we discovered that our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers because Jesus has removed the barrier of the Law. We discovered that our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers because of Jesus message. And we discovered that our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers because we all have access to God the Father the same way. Today, we will see Paul reveal for us a fourth reason why our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers in Ephesians 2:19:

 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.

Now verse 19, if communicated in the language we us in our culture today, would have sounded something like this: “So you who were Gentiles that are following Jesus are no longer living your lives as outsiders who are unfamiliar with God. Instead you are now insiders with your fellow Jewish followers of Jesus as part of the kingdom of God and are a part of the family of God living under the same roof as part of God’s house the church.”

And it is here that we see Paul reveal for us the reality that our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers because all races are included in His kingdom as part of His church. Every follower of Jesus, regardless of ethnicity or culture, is now a saint in God’s sight that is part of His family and part of His new movement called the church. And as Paul reveals in verse 20, God has been building His church for over 2,000 years and is actively at work to build His church. The phrase, having been built, is past tense and conveys the sense of building on something that has already been built.

So even in the first century, Paul wanted to let the members of the church at Ephesus know that God had built His church and was at work to continue to build His church. Now a natural question that arises here is “well Dave how does God build His church? And what is the church anyways?” As we talked about earlier in this series, the church is not somewhere we go, the church is something that we are. The church is the vehicle that Jesus uses to reveal Himself to the world.

When we become followers of Jesus, we are united in Christ by the Holy Spirit and become part of His body. And as part of His body, we experience God as we come together as the called out community called the church. And Jesus, by His Spirit, uses the church, which is His body, as a vehicle to reveal Himself to the world. In verse 20, we see Paul explain that the church was built, and is being built, on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone. But what does that mean?

Now to understand what Paul is communicating here we first need to understand who the Apostles and Prophets were. The Apostles and Prophets were a specific group of people who lived in a specific time in history that were given a specific spiritual gift. An Apostle was a person who had seen Jesus after He had been resurrected from the dead and who was given a specific spiritual gift by Jesus to supervise and authorize the special work of laying the foundation of the church.

A prophet was a person who received the spiritual gift to receive and communicate new truth about God and the kingdom of God by direct revelation from God during the founding of the church. A prophet, by definition reveals things about God that could not be known by another means and that was new. That is why we do not have Apostles and Prophets today. Apostles and Prophets were a specific group of people who lived in a specific time in history that were given a specific spiritual gift to do something new, which was to launch the church.

Now that leads to another question that we need to answer, which is what Paul means when He says that Jesus Christ is the cornerstone? Paul here is giving us a word picture to help us wrap our minds around the truth the he is trying to convey. In ancient building practices, the cornerstone was the principle stone that was placed at the corner of a building. The cornerstone was usually one of the largest, strongest, and most carefully constructed of any in the building. The cornerstone sets the standard for the building.
 
The cornerstone is important since all other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure.  If the cornerstone is off, then the entire building will be off.  Paul’s point here is that Jesus Christ and His message and teachings set the standard for the foundation of the church. Jesus proclaimed God’s message of rescue to self righteous religious Jewish people who considered themselves insiders when it came to God and to irreligious Gentile people who considered themselves outsiders when it came to God.

 And now, the apostles and prophets, who had seen Jesus and had been given Jesus message of rescue, were also proclaiming that message as they established new churches that were setting the foundation for what was to follow. And Jesus message that set the standard that these Apostles and Prophets were now communicating was new: that Jews and Gentiles had access to God the same way and were equally included in His kingdom as part of His church. The Apostles and Prophets were communicating God’s new message that the church was not for insiders but for outsiders of every culture and ethnicity.

And some 2,000 years later, Jesus is still building His church on the foundation that was laid by His new message that was communicated by the Apostles and Prophets and that continues to be communicated today as we read the message and teachings of Jesus, through the Apostles and Prophets, that has been preserved for us by God in the Bible. And as we have seen, as God continues to build His church and advance His kingdom, He has a desire for His followers when it comes to how we live out our identity as followers of Jesus.

And that desire is that our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers. Our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers because Jesus has removed the barrier of the Law. Our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers because of Jesus message. Our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers because we all have access to God the Father the same way. And our identity as followers of Jesus should remove racial barriers because all races are included in His kingdom as part of His church.

So here is a question for us to consider: Are you living out of your identity as a follower of Jesus when it comes to how you view and engage other races? Or are you still measuring the value and worth of other races and cultures by purely external standards. Do you still feel a sense of ethnic superiority as a result of externals that have nothing to do with one’s heart and character?

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Removing Racial Barriers...


This week, we are looking at a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the Bible called the book of Ephesians. Yesterday, we saw a man named Paul explain to the Gentile members of the church at Ephesus that while there was a time when they were far from God, they had been reunited with God through Jesus Christ.

As a result of Jesus willingness to enter into humanity in order to live the life that they were created to live but refused to live and then allow Himself to be treated as though He lived their selfish and sinful lives by dying on the cross for their selfishness and rebellion, they had been reunited with God in relationship with God. Through Jesus Christ, as Gentiles, they were no longer far from God and were to be viewed as outsiders by the Jewish people. Instead, they were now brought into relationship with God and were to be viewed as insiders by the Jewish people.

And it is here that we see Paul reveal for us a timeless truth when it comes to our identity as a follower of Jesus as we live in community with one another in that our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers.

The timeless reality is that there is no room for racism in the church, period. There is no room for a sense of ethnic and cultural superiority, period. And while there have been times in the history of the church that the church has done a horrific job when it comes to this issue, as followers of Jesus we are called to live our lives in community with one another without racial barriers. 

And in Ephesians 2:14-22, we see Paul reveal for us four reasons why our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers. We see the first reason revealed for us in Ephesians 2:14. Let’s look at it together:

 For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, so that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity.

Now when Paul uses the phrase, He Himself is our peace, he is revealing for us the reality that Jesus Christ is the one who establishes a state of well being between us as followers of Jesus and God through His life, death, and resurrection. But not only did Jesus establish a state of well being between followers of Jesus and God. Paul also states that Jesus Christ made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall. But, this morning, what does that mean?

To fully understand what Paul is communicating here however, we first need to understand how the Temple of Jerusalem had been constructed. When Paul states that Jesus broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, he is revealing for us that reality that Jesus Christ destroyed the barrier of the dividing wall within the Temple that separated the court of the Gentiles from the court of the Jews.

Paul here is revealing for us the reality that our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers because Jesus removed the barrier of the Law. You see, Jesus removed the barrier of the Law that divided the races in their relationship toward one another and their worship of God. That is what Paul is referring to when he states that Jesus made both groups into one.

Now a natural question that arises here is, “well how did Jesus destroy that dividing wall?” Paul provides the answer to that question when he states in verse 15 that Jesus abolished in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances. Now if Paul was making this statement in the language we use in our culture today, this statement would sound something like this: “Jesus, through His life, death, and resurrection, made invalid the Old Covenant that was based on the Law and sacrificial system as a means of determining who became insiders as a part of the family of God, but created hostility amongst the races”.

Paul’s point here is that Jesus removed the barrier of the Law that divided how the races related to one another and worshipped God through His death. You see, Jesus death removed the need for the Jewish sacrificial system. Jesus was the one and only sacrifice that was necessary for our selfishness and rebellion.  Jesus changed how the races would relate to one another and worship with one another.

Paul unpacks this reality by explaining that Jesus removed the barrier of the Law that divided the races so that they could experience harmony with one another. Through God’s activity through Christ that results in our relationship with Christ, as followers of Jesus, we become a part of one body, the body of Christ. Not a body that is segregated by race, but a body that is marked by harmony and unity amongst all races.

Far too often as followers of Jesus we tend to confuse uniformity for unity. Jesus desires that His church be marked by unity in the midst of diversity ethnically, socially, culturally and economically. Then, in verse 16, we see Paul reveal for us the reality the Jesus removed the barrier of that Law that divided the races so as to reunite all races to Him. As followers of Jesus, we have been united with God through Jesus life, death, and resurrection.

In addition, we see that we have been reunited with God because Jesus eliminated the hostility that the Law created. Jesus created a new covenant relationship that reunites us as His followers not because of our ethnic heritage or our performance, which can often create hostility.  Instead we are reunited with God because of our confident trust in what Jesus has done, in spite of our performance and regardless of our ethnicity.

Paul then reveals for us two additional reasons why our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers, beginning in verse 17:

 AND HE CAME AND PREACHED PEACE TO YOU WHO WERE FAR AWAY, AND PEACE TO THOSE WHO WERE NEAR; for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father.

In verse 17, the Apostle Paul quotes from a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the Old Testament of our Bibles called the book of Isaiah. In Isaiah 57:19, the prophet Isaiah predicted and proclaimed that there would be a time in the future where God would pursue those who were considered both near and far from Him by proclaiming a message of how one could experience a state of harmony in relationship with Him. Paul quotes from this section to reveal the reality that Jesus was the fulfillment of that prediction and promise.

And it is here that we see that our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers because of Jesus message. Jesus proclaimed God’s message of rescue to self righteous religious Jewish people who considered themselves insiders when it came to God. And Jesus proclaimed God’s message of rescue to irreligious Gentile people who considered themselves outsiders when it came to God.

And followers of Jesus were proclaiming God’s message of rescue throughout the world to all races. You see, the message of the gospel does not take into account ethnicity or culture. The message of the gospel calls all cultures and ethnicities to experience the peace with God that comes as a result of experiencing the forgiveness of our sins and the relationship with God that we were created for by placing our confident trust in what God has done for us through Jesus by believing, trusting, and following Jesus as Lord and Leader.

Then, in verse 18, we see Paul reveal for us the reality that our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers because we all have access to God the same way. Paul explains that, regardless of ethnicity or culture, we have access to God the exact same way. You see, regardless of ethnicity and culture, it is our relationship with Jesus that enables us to have access to God the Father. And regardless of ethnicity or culture, we have access to God the Father in One Spirit.

Paul’s point here is that Jewish people did not access God the Father one way, while the Gentiles accessed God the Father a separate way. Instead, there was one way by which all people had access to the Father. And that way is through the Holy Spirit. And in the same way today, regardless of ethnicity of culture, we all have access to God that Father as a result of our relationship with Jesus through the Holy Spirit.

Friday, we will see Paul reveal for us a fourth reason why our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers...

Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers...


At the church where I serve we are spending our time together in a sermon series entitled identity. During this series, we are looking at a letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament of our Bibles called the book of Ephesians. As we go through this series, our hope and our prayer is that God would enable us to see our true identity, the identity that He designed us to live in, so that we would live our day to day lives in light of our true identity.

This week I would like for us to pick up where we left off last week. And as we jump into the next section of this letter that the Apostle Paul wrote to early followers of Jesus at the church at Ephesus, we are going to discover another timeless truth regarding our identity as a follower of Jesus that has the potential to change how we see our true identity, the identity that God designed us to live in, so that we would live our day to day lives in light of our true identity. So let’s discover this timeless truth together, beginning in Ephesians 2:11:

Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called  "Uncircumcision " by the so-called "Circumcision," which is performed in the flesh by human hands-- remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.

Paul begins this section of his letter to the members of the church at Ephesus by calling the Gentile members of the church to remember something about their past experience before they became followers of Jesus. Paul calls the Gentile members of the church at Ephesus to keep in mind that there was a time, when they were dead men and women walking as a result of their selfishness and rebellion, that they were called "Uncircumcision” by the so-called "Circumcision,".

Now to fully understand what Paul is communicating here we first need to ask and answer several questions. The first question we need to ask is “who is Paul referring to when he talks about the Gentiles?” When Paul refers to Gentiles, he is referring to people who were not Jewish ethnically or culturally. So basically anyone that is not Jewish would be considered a Gentile.

Now that leads to the second question that we need to answer, which is “what does Paul mean when he uses the phrase who are called "Uncircumcision” by the so-called "Circumcision,"? What is circumcision anyways? Circumcision is a surgical procedure that involves removing the foreskin from the male genitals with a surgical knife, or in this case, a knife made of stone.

The reason that circumcision was so significant was that circumcision was a covenant sign that identified the Jewish people as being God’s people. Circumcision was an outward sign was done in order to demonstrate an inward commitment and relationship to God. Circumcision was a religious act that was required to be performed under the Law so that you would be able to be identified as being right with God as part of the Jewish religious system.

By contrast, in the Jewish culture of the 1st century, an uncircumcised person was viewed as being in a state which was not right with God and not identified as being part of God’s people. So what was happening in cities like Ephesus, where you had great ethnic and cultural diversity, was that Jewish people began to refer to Gentiles as “the uncircumcision”.

The phrase “the uncircumcision” was a derogatory term that was by Jewish people against Gentiles. The phrase “the uncircumcision” was used as a racial slur that was used by Jews to demean and disrespect Gentiles. This phrase was used in a similar way that terms like wap, kike, nigger, spic, and the like have been used.

When Paul uses the phrase, which is performed in the flesh by human hands, he is pointing out that these Jewish people were measuring the value and worth of themselves over Gentiles by purely external standards. Paul’s point is that these Jewish people felt a sense of ethnic superiority as a result a purely physical and external action that had nothing to do with one’s heart and character.

Paul then reveals to the Gentile members of the church at Ephesus exactly what he wanted them to remember and keep in mind. And what Paul wanted the members of the church at Ephesus to remember was that, as Gentiles, there was a time when they were far from God and were viewed as outsiders by the Jewish people.

And in verse 12, we see Paul reveal for us five different ways that the Gentile members of the church at Ephesus were once far from God and were viewed as outsiders by the Jewish people. First, we see Paul remind the Gentile members of the church at Ephesus that there was a time when they were separate from Christ. Paul’s point here is that there was a time when they were far from God as a result of lacking a relationship with Christ.

Second, Paul reminds the Gentile members of the church at Ephesus that there was a time when they were excluded from the commonwealth of Israel. In other words, there was a time when the Gentile members of the church at Ephesus were excluded by the Jewish people as being outsiders because they were Gentiles.

Third, Paul reminds the Gentile members of the church at Ephesus that there was a time when they were strangers to the covenants of promise. Paul’s point here is that there was a time when they were unfamiliar with God’s promises that He had made to the Jewish people and humanity. 

Fourth, Paul reminds the Gentile members of the church at Ephesus that there was a time when they were without hope. In other words, there was a time when the Gentile members of the church at Ephesus were without a confident expectation of what the future held when it came to their relationship with God.

And fifth, Paul reminds the Gentile members of the church at Ephesus that there was a time when they were without God in this world. Paul’s point here is that there was a time when they were without God as they lived their day to day lives here on earth.

And as a result of these five realities in their life prior to becoming a follower of Jesus, the Gentile members of the church at Ephesus were far from God and were viewed as outsiders by the Jewish people. 

You see, Paul wanted to make sure that the Gentile members of the church did not forget that there was a time when they were excluded from a relationship with God as a result of their selfishness and rebellion and were excluded by the Jewish people as a result of the racism of the Jewish people.

After reminding the Gentile members of the church to remember something about their past, Paul calls them to remember something about their present and future as a result of their relationship with Jesus in verse 13:

 But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

Here we see Paul call the Gentile members of the church at Ephesus to remember that, as a result of God’s transformational intervention and activity in their lives through Jesus Christ, they had been brought near. While there was a time when they were far from God, they had been reunited with God through Jesus Christ. Paul explains that what enabled them to be reunited with God was the blood of Christ.

Paul’s point here is that it was Jesus willingness to enter into humanity in order to live the life that they were created to live but refused to live and then allow Himself to be treated as though He lived their selfish and sinful lives by dying on the cross for their selfishness and rebellion, that enabled them to be reunited with God in relationship with God. Through Jesus Christ, as Gentiles, they were no longer far from God and were to be viewed as outsiders by the Jewish people. Instead, they were now brought into relationship with God and were to be viewed as insiders by the Jewish people.

And it is here that we see Paul reveal for us a timeless truth when it comes to our identity as a follower of Jesus as we live in community with one another. And that timeless truth is that our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers. Just as it was in the church at Ephesus, just as it has been since the birth of the church, our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers.

The timeless reality is that there is no room for racism in the church, period. There is no room for a sense of ethnic and cultural superiority, period. Now, if this is like any other room on the planet, there are some of you who are pushing back right now because you struggle with racism. I don’t know who you are but I am not naive either. You may struggle with racism as a result of growing up in a racist home. You may struggle with racism because you had a bad experience with a different culture or race.

And while there have been times in the history of the church that the church has done a horrific job when it comes to this issue, as followers of Jesus we are called to live our lives in community with one another without racial barriers.  And in Ephesians 2:14-22, we see Paul reveal for us four reasons why our identity as a follower of Jesus should remove racial barriers.

We will look at the first two reasons tomorrow…

Friday, May 16, 2014

How we are made alive and what we are rescued for...


This week, we have been looking at a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible called the book of Ephesians. Wednesday, we saw a man named Paul reveal for us the reality that our identity as a follower of Jesus is based on the reality that while we were once dead, we have been made alive through Jesus.

Paul explained that followers of Jesus who were once dead were made alive and seated with Jesus in Heaven so that God would be able to demonstrate, for all eternity, the extraordinary abundance of His grace in our lives. For all eternity, God would be able to demonstrate to all of the creation the abundance of His kindness and generosity toward followers of Jesus that had been made alive as a result of His transformational activity through Christ.

Now you might be thinking to yourself “how Does God demonstrate the extraordinary abundance of His kindness and generosity toward followers of Jesus”? Today, we will see Paul provide the answer to that question in Ephesians 2:8-9:

 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.

Now if you grew up in church or have spent any time in church, you are probably at least somewhat familiar with these verses. But what if we were to communicate these verses without the church mumbo jumbo talk words? What would these verses sound like?

If Paul was writing these verses in the language we use in our culture today, these verses would sound something like this: “You see, God demonstrates the abundance of His kindness and generosity toward you as a follower of Jesus in that you have been rescued and made alive as a result of His transformational activity through Jesus. Your rescue is the result of God’s transformational intervention and activity and not your performance. Your rescue is a gift from God and was not earned as a result of what you have done for God. So there is no reason for you to brag about why you have done. Instead your rescue should result in you bragging about God”.

Notice that Paul does not say that you have been saved by your faith. Instead Paul states that you have been saved through faith. In other words, faith is not a work that we do for God. Instead faith is placing our confident trust in what God has done for us through Jesus life, death, and resurrection.

As followers of Jesus, we are rescued from our selfishness and rebellion not because we brought anything to the table, because we were dead. Instead, we are rescued from our selfishness and rebellion because of God’s transformational intervention and activity in the world through His Son Jesus.

So there is no basis for a follower of Jesus to brag about what they have done for God, because you were dead. The only basis for bragging is in what God has done to make us alive. And because of that reality, when God wants to provide evidence of the abundance of His kindness and generosity to all of creation, He simply points to followers of Jesus that are seated with Christ and are in Christ, in Heaven.

Now so often, we as followers of Jesus tend to stop at verse 9. However, Paul is not done. And it is in what Paul says next to conclude this section of his letter to the members of the church at Ephesus that we see a second way that God demonstrates the abundance of His kindness and generosity to all of the creation. Let’s look at it together in Ephesians 2:10:

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

Now verse 10, if communicated in the language we use in our culture today, would sound something like this: “We are God’s creation that was created by God and rescued by God through Christ for a lifetime of activity for Christ which God prepared before we created so that we would live our lives for Christ”. 

You see, the reason why we do not go immediately to Heaven upon becoming a follower of Jesus is because God has stuff for us to do. We were rescued by God so that we would live our lives in a way that is engaging in God’s kingdom mission. And as we live our lives by embracing the opportunities that God gives us to be the vehicle that He uses to reveal His Son Jesus to others that God prepared before we were created, we demonstrate the abundance of His kindness and generosity to all of creation.

We demonstrate the evidence of God’s kindness and generosity because apart from God’s transformational intervention and activity in our lives through Jesus, we were dead men and women walking. But now, the reality is that while we were once dead, we have been made alive through Jesus. And as a result, our identity as a follower of Jesus is based on the reality that while we were once dead, we have been made alive through Jesus.

So here is a question to consider: Are you a dead man or woman walking? Are you still at a place in your life where you are a dead man or woman walking as a result of your selfishness and rebellion against God? Are you still aligning yourself and living out your day to day lives in a way that was influenced by the world around us that is opposed to God and God’s kingdom, the devil who is the archenemy of God, and your own selfish desires instead of following God’s desires. Are you still doing things out of your selfishness and rebellion that hurt God and others as you rebel and reject the message and teachings of Jesus?

Or have you come to the place in your life where you have now been made alive through Jesus? Have you come to the place where you have placed your confident trust in what God has done for you through Jesus life, death, and resurrection by believing, trusting, and following Jesus as Lord and Leader? 

Because, we are rescued from our selfishness and rebellion not by our performance for God, because we were dead. And dead people cannot do anything. Instead, we are rescued from our selfishness and rebellion because of God’s transformational intervention and activity in the world through His Son Jesus.

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Our identity as a follower of Jesus is based on the reality that while we were once dead, we have been made alive through Jesus...


This week, we are looking at a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the Bible called the book of Ephesians. Yesterday, we saw a man named Paul reveal for us the reality that every human being throughout history either is, or has been in a position where they are dead men and women walking. Every human being throughout history were dead men and women walking as a result of their selfishness and rebellion against God.

There was a time when every human being on the planet chose to align themselves and live out their day to day lives in a way that was influenced by the world around us that is opposed to God and God’s kingdom, the devil who is the archenemy of God, and their own selfish desires instead of following God’s desires. And out of that selfishness and rebellion, all humanity throughout history has done things that hurt God and others. That would be me, and that would be you. All of us have been dead men and women walking.

Today, however, we will see that Paul did not stop there. Instead, we Paul uses two powerful words that begin to lead us into a timeless truth about our identity as a follower of Jesus in Ephesians 2:4. Let’s look at those two words together:

But God

In other words, you were dead, but God. You were dead men and women walking but God. We see Paul reveal the significance of this little phrase but God in the rest of verse 4:

But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),

And it is here that we see Paul reveal for us a timeless truth when it comes to our identity. And that timeless truth is that our identity as a follower of Jesus is based on the reality that while we were once dead, we have been made alive through Jesus. As followers of Jesus, while there was a time when we were dead men and women walking as a result of our selfishness and rebellion against God, God made us alive.

You see, you did not make yourself alive, because you were dead. I mean if you are dead you can’t do anything to fix yourself, to rescue yourself, or to save yourself, because after all, you are dead. Instead, God made us alive. Now you might be thinking to yourself “Well Dave if what you just said is true; if all of us either are, or were at one time dead men and women walking as a result of us selfishly rebelling and rejecting God, then what motivated God to want to make us alive. What would drive God to want to make people who were dead after rebelling against Him alive”?

In verse 4, we see Paul provide for us two reasons that drove God to make dead people alive.  First, Paul reveals for us the reality that we were made alive because of the abundance of God’s mercy. When Paul uses the word mercy, this word refers to kindness and concern that is expressed to someone who is in need. You see, we were in desperate need to be made alive because we were dead. And as God saw our desperate need for rescue, He responded with an abundance of mercy in light of our need to be rescued so that we could experience the forgiveness and relationship with God that we were created for and be made alive.

Second, Paul reveals for us the reality that we were made alive because of God’s great love for us. The phrase “because of His great love with which He loved us” literally means “God’s love for us motivated Him to demonstrate His love”. And what is so amazing is that God’s love for us motivated Him to demonstrate His love in spite of the fact that we were dead and separated from Him as a result of our selfishness and rebellion against Him. Even though we were dead men and women walking, God’s love and mercy drove Him to act in a way that made us alive.

Now another natural question that arises here is “Well, Dave, how exactly did God make us alive. How did God take dead men and women and make them alive?’ We see Paul provide the answer to that question in the second half of verse 5. When Paul uses the phrase “made us alive together with Christ”, he is revealing for us the reality that God brought us back to life just as He brought Jesus back to life.

Paul then reveals exactly how God rescued us from our selfishness and rebellion and reunited us with God when he uses the phrase “by grace you have been saved”. Now the word grace refers to God’s transformational intervention and activity in the world. And it is here that we see that we were made alive as a result of God’s transformational intervention and activity through Jesus Christ.

You see, God responded to the fact that we were dead as a result of our selfishness and rebellion, by sending His unique one of a kind son Jesus Christ as God in a bod, who entered into humanity and lived that life that we were created to live yet refused to live. Jesus lived the life we refused to live and then allowed Himself to be treated as though He lived our selfish and sinful lives so that God the Father could treat us as though we lived Jesus perfect life.

And as a result of God’s transformational intervention and activity through Jesus Christ, Paul explains that, as followers of Jesus, we were saved, or rescued, from the transcendent danger and destruction that comes as a result of being a dead man or woman walking. As followers of Jesus we are no longer separated from God as a result of our rebellion. As followers of Jesus we are no longer under the sentence of death with no chance of escape.  Instead, we are reunited with God in relationship with Him.

But not only have we as followers of Jesus been made alive as a result of God’s transformational activity through Jesus. Paul reveals for us what else God has done for us as He made us alive in Ephesians 2:6:

and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

Here we see Paul explain that, as followers of Jesus, the fact that we have been made alive with Christ results in us being seated in Heaven with Christ. When Paul uses the phrase “raised us up with Him’, he is revealing for us the reality that, as followers of Jesus, we participate in the resurrection in a mystical and spiritual way.

Just as Jesus was raised for the dead, as a result of our relationship with Jesus, we have been raised from death and brought to life. But not only have we been brought to life with Christ. Paul also explains that God has seated us with Christ in Heaven. In other words, God has caused us to be seated with Christ in Heaven. Right now, in a mystical and spiritual way, God the Father sees you, with Christ, in Heaven.

And, if that is not enough, right now, in a mystical and spiritual way, God the Father sees you, in Christ, in Heaven. As we talked about earlier in this series, just as we see this action figure in this Mason jar, God sees us, in Christ, in Heaven. Now doesn’t that make your head hurt?

Now another question that arises, here is “why would God do all this for us as His followers? Why would God make dead people walking alive? Why would God raise us up with Jesus so that He can see us in Jesus in Heaven?” If that question is running through your mind, I want to let you know that you are asking a great question. We see Paul provide the answer to these questions in verse 7.

Paul explains that followers of Jesus who were once dead were made alive and seated with Jesus in Heaven so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. But what does that mean? What does it mean to be in Christ? With this phrase, Paul is referring to God’s activity through Christ that results in our relationship with Christ.

Paul’s point here is that followers of Jesus who were once dead were made alive and seated with Jesus in Heaven so that God would be able to demonstrate, for all eternity, the extraordinary abundance of His grace in our lives. For all eternity, God would be able to demonstrate to all of the creation the abundance of His kindness and generosity toward followers of Jesus that had been made alive as a result of His transformational activity through Christ.

Now you might be thinking to yourself “how Does God demonstrate the extraordinary abundance of His kindness and generosity toward followers of Jesus”?

Friday, we will see Paul provide the answer to that question...