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Ephesians 2:14a
“For He (Christ) is our peace,…”
Tonight, the world is desperate for peace, mankind in general, and between nations. That’s the goal of all politicians, the United Nations, and Middle East efforts, peace. The truth of the matter is, there will be no peace until the Prince of Peace Himself returns.
In terms of the individual’s pursuit of peace, though, the same holds true. There can be no peace until we have peace with God, and the only way to obtain it is by faith alone in the gospel alone described in I Corinthians 15:1-4. Mankind’s sin has alienated him from God, and the purpose of the entire Bible is to reconcile us with God. When discussing spiritual peace, we must look back to the Romans. The book of Romans is the foundation of our Christian doctrine. And clearly delineates mankind’s only path to true peace.
Romans 5:1
“Therefore (because what Paul wrote in chapter 4) being justified by faith (Alone like Abraham in Romans 4:4), (Go back to Romans 3:19 ) we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:”
That’s what the world is looking for. “Peace with God.” When you have peace with God then you have peace with everyone else. Now verse 2.
Romans 5:2
“By whom (the Lord Jesus and His finished work of the cross) also we have access by faith (taking God at His word) into this grace (unmerited favor) wherein we stand and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”
There is only one path to Peace and that is through Christ Jesus our Lord
Ephesians 2:14
“For He is our peace, who hath made both one, (Jew and Gentile, this wasn’t the case until Paul comes on the scene) and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;”
During this Church Age, the age of grace, Jews and Gentiles are now united. It is crucial to know that this has not been the case until God calls Paul to be the apostle to the Gentiles (around 37 AD). In fact, let us examine 1 Corinthians 12 for a moment. The book of Ephesians builds on the foundations laid by the Romans, Corinthians, and Galatians. Now let’s look at 1 Corinthians 12:12.
I Corinthians 12:12
“For as the body (the human body) is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body (both Jew and Gentile come into the body of Christ the same way, by believing by faith alone in the gospel of grace alone): so also is Christ. (or the Body of Christ, the One True Church.)
Now verse 13, the emphasis here is that this is not a water baptism. This is the only Holy Spirit baptism that we as believers enjoy today. In fact, Paul says in Ephesians 4:4-5 that there is only one baptism. This is the only baptism for grace-age believers and here it is.
I Corinthians 12:13
“For by one Spirit are we all (not just some of the Pastors or the theologians, but all are) baptized into one body, (the Body of Christ) whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all (our status in life makes no difference, if we believe the gospel by faith alone, we’ve all been) made to drink into one Spirit.”
The Holy Spirit has therefore baptized each of us who make up the Body of Christ into that Body. There is no water used in this process; the Holy Spirit is the only agent. We now occupy a place that God has set aside for us from the beginning of time. He made this place ready for us because He knew we would believe the gospel.
The Middle Wall Has Been Broken Down
Ephesians 2:14b
“…and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;” (between Jews and Gentiles)
We now know that before the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 AD, there was a dividing wall that prevented Gentile proselytes from worshiping in the same area as Jews. The best description of a proselyte comes from the Lord Jesus Himself when He told the Jews this in Matthew 23 and verse 15.
Matthew 23:15
“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.”
The proselyte embraced the religion of Judaism, but they were separated from having any contact with the Jews by that dividing wall. Take note of what Paul says happened to that wall. “That dividing wall has been totally dismantled. It’s destroyed, it’s broken down.
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