Christ our Peace

Take your Bibles, if you would, please, and turn to the book of Ephesians, Ephesians 2, verses 11 through 22.

That is where we're at today, and I'd like to speak to you on the subject of Christ, our peace. Christ our peace. It's very explicit in the text today that Christ Himself is our peace, and I want you to see that. And as we lean into this subject today in Ephesians 2, verses 11 to 22, I want you to know that the peace of Christ can reside in your body as an individual. But at the same time, the peace of Christ can reside in the body corporately. So in the church, in the local church, when the body gathers together, there can be a sense of peace, a sense of Christ ruling and reigning and residing. Christ Himself, He is our peace personally. You'll see that in verse 14, and then you'll also see that Christ made peace possible corporately in verses 15 and 16. And then within the Ephesian congregation, there were two different groups who were made into one, and Christ was their peace. Two different groups, the Jews and the Gentiles, two different kinds of people, two different styles of worship, two different folks who were — they ate different foods, and they came from different backgrounds, but Christ made these two different groups into one in one church house. And not only did those individuals, whether they be Jew or Gentile, have Christ as their peace, but they also had the ability to dwell within the same church house, and Christ dwelt within them. And this was a sign that Christ had saved them. They put their differences aside, and they loved one another. They loved God, and they loved one another.

Read with me if you would in Ephesians chapter 2, verses 11 all the way to the end of the chapter, and I want you to think with me not only on the subject of peace, but the Apostle Paul is building up to this climactic idea of the body of Christ, and he gives these rich symbols, this rich imagery for us to be able to see that the body of Christ, when we come together, it's kind of like a temple. It's kind of like a dwelling place. It's kind of like a sanctuary, a holy sanctuary. It's kind of like a building, a household. And so these subjects are building up to the idea of the church. Think with me on those subjects as we start in verse 11.

Ephesians chapter 2, verse 11 says, "Therefore, remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who were called uncircumcision by the so-called circumcision, which is performed in the flesh by human hands." "Remember that you were at that time without Christ, alienated from the citizenship 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 formerly were far off, having been brought near by the blood of Christ, for He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the dividing wall of the partition. By abolishing in His flesh the enmity, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so that in Himself He might create the two into one new man, making peace. And might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, having in Himself put to death the enmity. That He came and preached the good news of 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, and so then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, 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 cornerstone in whom the whole building being joined together is growing into a holy sanctuary in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit."

Let's pray together. Father, thank you for this wonderful passage. I pray that You would help us to understand it accordingly, how You have given it to us. Help us to understand Your truth. May Your truth win out and apply it to our lives. We give You the glory in Christ's name, amen.

And so within the Ephesian church you had these Gentile believers and the Jewish believers. Chapter 1 in Ephesians helps us to understand the vertical reconciliation that has happened both for Jews and Gentiles. Now as we go into chapter 2, you're going to see the horizontal implications and applications of salvation. It changes people. They truly set their differences aside and they worship Jesus. They remember who they once were and now they know who they are in Christ and they're grateful across the board. And so the ground is level at the foot of the cross, so to speak. And so since both groups can have peace in Christ, this theology directly affects the local church and its life. Thus it affects us by way of application in the text.

So in Ephesians chapter 2, verse 8, I'd like you to see with me briefly how it seems to be that both groups have been in a way addressed. In Ephesians 2:8 it says, "For by grace you have been saved through faith and this is not of yourselves, it's a gift of God." And so it's not of yourselves. As if Paul kind of leans over and points out maybe the Jewish side of the congregation. And hey, it's not of yourselves, guys. I know you may believe that perhaps you being of Abraham or of the tribe of Benjamin or being Jewish or an Israelite of heritage. It's not of yourselves. It's actually the gift of God. And then in verse 9, it's not of works. You could probably lean over to the Gentile side. You can't work your way up into becoming deity. It's none of yourselves and you can't do the work. And so now he kind of addresses these two sides and he brings them into Christ.

Now since peace is in Christ indiscriminately, both Jews and Gentiles can worship Christ together in the same church on Sundays. Isn't that a beautiful truth? No matter where you're from, no matter what your skin color is, no matter how bad your history or how good your history may be, no matter what family name you have or don't have, it doesn't matter. When you come to Christ, you are in Christ and that's all that matters. It is literally Christ alone as your hope.

Now there's a fascinating word in here. It is hope. Look with me in verse 12. "Remember that you were at the time without Christ, alienated from the citizenship of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope." Circle that word hope because it is different in English than it is in the Greek. In English you may hope that your sports team wins, but there's no guarantee, no certainty in the English word hope. But in the Greek, let me tell you that hope is certainty. You have an absolute know-so faith in Christ. Christ is our hope. He is our certainty. We don't have a hope-so faith as perhaps the English definition of the word hope. We have a know-so faith. The certainty that we have in Christ is as if it is already done. It's already done. And so we have a certainty in Christ. In times past, in chapter 1, verse 18, it says they had no hope. They were trapped in their sins. And then in verse 12 of chapter 2, it reminds them of the same thing. They used to have no hope. But now that they have been brought into Christ, the work of Christ is in them. That is their certainty. That is their hope. That is their stability. That is what brings peace in the midst of a storm. That's what brings you to a stable perspective when everything seems to be out of perspective. And this is available indiscriminately for both groups.

Now in verses 11 and 12, the word remember is mentioned twice. And I always like to look for repeated words because it helps us to understand where the emphasis is being laid. In chapter 2, verse 11, it says, "Therefore, remember." Now that word therefore helps us to know why the content is there. If you read with me in Ephesians chapter 2, verses 1 to 10, we'll get the reason why the word therefore is therefore.

"And you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience." This is what you are to be remembering. You once were this, okay? A son of disobedience. You used to be, according to the power of the air, the spirit that is now working in the world, you used to be in this realm. Verse 3, "Among whom we all also formerly," past tense, "conducting ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, doing the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. 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 raised 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 towards us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, so that no one can boast, for we are His workmanship created in Christ for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them."

Therefore, see, the case has been made — who you once were in the B.C. days, before Christ. Which, by the way, Paul uses the word "we," and that joins the Gentiles and the Jews because he used to be that Jewish man of Judaism, and he says, "We used to be," okay, according to the lusts of the flesh. And so that says that he used to be outside of Christ, but now he's been brought into Christ, and the same thing with Judaism. Judaism is outside of Christ, it denies Christ, and so when you are brought into Christ you're a Christian — not a Jewish Christian or a Gentile Christian, you're a Christian.

"Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, were called uncircumcision." You see, the Jews would call the Gentiles the uncircumcised. They didn't have that outward sign. It means nothing. And by the so-called circumcision, you see how Paul says the word "so-called" here — yeah, the so-called circumcision — and he's being transparent. I used to be like that. I used to call them uncircumcised Gentiles, a bunch of heathens, as if he was a somebody. Now he's recognizing that we're all nobodies, and the only thing that really matters is the fact that we're in Christ. And so therefore helps us to understand that verse 11 makes remembering in the context of verse 10 and prior, which is emphasizing the work of Christ and that we are Christ's workmanship. And as we work and serve, we must — by way of warning here in the text — remember that it is Christ. Remember that while you work, you were formerly outside of Christ. And so being the fact that you are Christ's workmanship in verse 10, and being that you were created in Christ Jesus for good works in verse 10, it says, "Therefore, remember all of that stuff before you were saved, and as you are working," okay, you're created in Christ for good works, verse 10, "you are Christ's workmanship," verse 10, verse 11, "now you remember as you are working." Here's the context. As you are serving Christ, you'd better remember where He brought you from, lest somehow you start to gain some type of prideful position in the church and you think that you are a somebody. Lest you start working perhaps not for the means of Christ or the ends of Christ, but for your own ends. Lest somehow you get this whole thing called church messed up, and as you are working, you'd better remember the church belongs to Christ. And as we work, this is not about us. It's about Jesus.

And it's very easy. Paul is setting forth two warnings. Remember verse 11, verse 12: "Remember as you were working" — you once were Gentiles, you once were Jews, but now you're Christians — "remember as you were working, that this is all about Christ, and remember where you came from." Remember who you once were. This is going to help you be humble. So remembering is humbling. You take notes, write that down. Remembering is humbling. If you would regularly remember where you came from and what Christ has done — to dust off the dust and to chip away at the old block and to conform and transform your heart — you will be humble before God and before people. You will not be adamant at people. You will not strike them with your words. You will not direct them as if you're the boss. You will not try and orchestrate all of what this is for what you think is best. You will be submissive. You will be humble. You will be kind. You will be gentle with people because you remember what Christ has done for you. And this is a seasoned Christian. This is one who is always remembering with gratitude what Christ has done for them. This is a Christian who is being used by the Lord because their lips and their words have been seasoned and they're kind and they're gentle and they love God and they love others. They're not rigid and rough.

And so humility is a necessity for ministry. Your humility before God is a necessity to be able to be a servant, an approved deaconess in the church. To be able to serve, you must be one who is approved according to the list of being a deacon. If you're going to wear the Beulah Baptist t-shirt or a church t-shirt, if you're going to serve, the character qualifications are not up for negotiation because of what Christ is doing. We must fall in line with Christ. We must fall in line with the ministries of the church. And Paul is warning the Ephesian church: lest you try and stir up your old, your old Judaistic ways, unless you revert back to your Gentile ways and as you are serving, you start to try and achieve your own means and your own ends — remember where you came from and submit to Christ. It's all about Christ.

Remember this: these blessings of being a Christian can actually fool you. The blessings and the comforts can come to us in a way that we start to serve them. Okay, follow my train of thought here. In the text, Paul is warning them to remember who they once were as they're working, lest they start to really enjoy the benefits of being a Christian. Like, man, this is great. This produces joy. This produces fellowship. This produces a family of God. That is great, right?

But if your sin creeps back in from your former life and you are now in a position of working in the church or serving Christ, you may start to work towards those comforts and achieving those comforts and protecting those comforts and make it your own way and not Christ's way in the local church. You know what that is? That's a social club.

That's a social club. When the budget starts reflecting what people want by way of their own desires, when they're serving to achieve something in the local church that makes it reflective like, "Who I am as a Gentile, where I come from," or "Who I am as a Jew, where I come from," if there is self-service that is focused around their personal preferences and comforts, then they have, in a large respect, forsaken Christ, and now they are working and utilizing their position in Christ to achieve their own means. They have flipped it. So Paul reminded the Ephesian Christians to remember and don't let old sins creep back in. Don't let the benefits of being a Christian become what you are working for, what you pay for, and what you protect.

So Christians don't live a carnal life but a sacrificial life, and they live this in Christ. And so forgetting and not remembering will actually rob you of your peace, as he brings up this next theological concept. He's warning the church, "Remember, remember, and that will protect your peace." So as we go through the text now, he brings up the subject of peace. Look with me in the text. Let's read verses 11 and 12 and 13 and 14.

"Therefore, remember what you formally" — this word "formerly" is a word that he has already used in verse 3, and it is a direct reference to their conduct before Christ. "Remember that formerly you, the Gentiles, in the flesh, were all called uncircumcision by the so-called circumcision, which is performed in the flesh by human hands. Remember that you were at that time without Christ, alienated from the citizenship of Israel, strangers to the covenant of promise, having no hope without God in the world, but now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ, for He Himself is our peace." See, these both groups now in Christ have peace. "Who made both groups one and broke down the dividing wall of the partition by abolishing in the flesh the enmity, the law of the commands contained in ordinances, so that in Himself He might create the two into one new man, making peace."

And so the peace that resides within the new believer — this word "new" in verse 15 in the Greek means a recently completed work, something that is different from the past. And so this new work, not just salvation, but the two groups being made into one, this new group being in the covenants, being grafted in now, is an amazing thing — that Jews and Gentiles can worship together in the same house with Christ as the head of the church. This new thing has been completed. This new model of church is unlike anything that has been before. You're no longer strangers to the covenants. In fact, the Gentiles have been made so much so a partaker of these covenants that he goes on to explain this in chapter 3, verse 6. Look with me if you would. Chapter 3, verse 6: that the Gentiles — go figure — the Gentiles are fellow members of the body. He's convincing his Jewish believing friends here. He says, "The Gentiles are fellow heirs, fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. All of the covenants that lead up to Christ are fulfilled in Christ. And now the Gentiles are heirs of all of these promises." It's not just the Jews, it's to the Gentiles. Aren't you glad?

One of those benefits is peace. And if you go back through this entire text, I want you by inference to see what not having peace means according to the text. Not having peace indicates — back in verse 12 — having no hope. And that is one of the worst things that a person can suffer from, is having no hope. I mean, that leads to suicide. That leads to feelings of desperation, of having no hope. In verse 12, having no peace indicates that they have no hope. Having no peace indicates being far off from Christ. In verse 13, having no peace indicates not having Christ Himself. In verse 14, not having peace indicates not being made new — he's not a new man — in verse 15. And then it also indicates that there is an enmity with God in verse 16. It also means that they do not have the good news of peace. Verse 17: not having peace indicates that they do not have the good news of peace. And then as well it indicates that they are still a stranger to God.

Notice that the word stranger is brought up twice again as well. In verse 12, strangers to the covenants of promise. But then further in the chapter, in verse 19, "So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints." And so in verse 12, they were strangers. They were outside of the covenants. They were outside of the promises. They were outside of the citizenship of God. They were not children of God. They were outside of the body of Christ. They were strangers. And then in verse 19, you're no longer strangers. You're no longer an outcast. You were far away from Christ, but you've been brought near by the blood of Christ. You're no longer a heathen. You're no longer in a derogatory way called a Gentile or an uncircumcised one. You're no longer a dog. You are now brought into Christ.

And so believe it or not, if anybody should get this concept, if Paul was ringing anybody's bell, it would have been the Jews, because in the Old Testament, it was a matter of whether or not they were of God as if they showed hospitality to strangers. And so since Gentiles were labeled in a derogatory way as strangers, here you see Paul is ringing their bell and he is speaking language that would strike at the very heart of who they are as a person of God. He says, "These Gentiles are no longer strangers." And strangers in the Old Testament meant that they were to show hospitality to no small extent to a stranger. Feed them, give them a bed to stay in, heal and bandage up their wounds if they were worn out and hurt. If they were tired, then you had to provide rest for them and to nurture them. You stopped your life as an Old Testament person of God, a Jewish person. You put a halt to everything that was going on and you took care of a stranger.

This was so explicitly clear that, look with me in Matthew chapter 25, Jesus makes it a point to drive this home in such a way that how you treat a stranger is actually how you treat Me. How you treat someone who is strange to you, outside of the household of God, is how you treat Me. And if you don't think that this applies to you today, you're missing it, because how we treat strangers is how we treat Jesus. And so look with me in Matthew chapter 25, verse 31 and following. Verse 31, Matthew 25:31, "But when the Son of Man comes in His glory and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne and all the nations will be gathered before Him. And He will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats."

Verse 33, "And He will put the sheep on His right and the goats on His left. Then the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom which has been prepared for you from the foundation of the world.'" You know, Jesus has brought their attention into a very sober moment — looking forward to being face to face with the Lord Almighty at judgment. Now He says to them, "You're going to hear these words," in verse 35, "For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat and I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink. I was a stranger and you invited Me in. Naked and you clothed Me and I was sick and you visited Me. I was in prison and you came to Me." Then the righteous will answer saying, "Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink?" Verse 38, "And when did we see You a stranger and invite You in, or naked and clothe You? And when did we see You sick or in prison and come to You?" And the King will answer and say to them, "Truly, truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of the least of these brothers of Mine, even to the least of them, you did it to Me. And then He will also say to those on His left, 'Depart from Me, accursed ones, into eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave Me nothing to eat and I was thirsty and you gave Me nothing to drink. I was a stranger,'" — verse 43, Jesus likening Himself as a stranger — "'I was a stranger and you did not invite Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.'" And then they themselves also will answer saying, "Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and did not care for You?" And then He will say to them, "Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me." And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.

Guys, this is important to realize — that when you are brought into Christ, you know that you used to be a stranger and now you've been saved, gloriously saved — and how we view strangers and how we treat strangers is how we treat Christ Himself. They are no longer to be alienated. So when you see people outside of Christ, no matter what condition they're in, you're not to alienate them and view them as if they don't have citizenship in heaven. You want to bring them into the citizenship.

Look at verses 12 and 13 again at these phrases in Ephesians chapter 2, verses 12 and 13. "Remember that you were at that time without Christ." And so now you're in the position of a stranger, alienated from the citizenship of Israel. And this term, alienated from the citizenship of Israel, is being made as a social outcast. And I think we're probably all guilty of making people feel like they're socially an outcast. I think we're all guilty of giving a sideways look or making people feel like they're not welcome. I think we're all kind of guilty to that extent. I think that we've all felt the conviction of the Holy Spirit when we have done that. And it's important to realize that we must not do that. You can't offend the very people whom we're trying to win to Christ. And so we put all of these differences aside. We put all of these things aside because Christ has removed the dividing wall. He's ripped the veil from top to bottom and He's removed the sacrificial system. All of these differences have been removed. And so now we really indiscriminately love God and love Gentiles or Jews. Do we love people like us? No, indiscriminately we love God and we love others. And it is a gospel issue.

And so social rejection and spiritual alienation is what the Gentiles had to endure from the Jews. They were the outcasts of society — dogs so to speak — cut off from God in the eyes of the Jews. They were excluded from God. They were not God's chosen people. They were not protected by God. They were not blessed by God. They had no peace with God. That's the way that they were viewed. So Gentiles were not partakers in God's kingdom. They had no hope. So they thought — "But God," verse 4, "But God being rich in His mercy saved them," right? But now in verse 13 you see that, "But now in Christ Jesus you who are formerly far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ." And being brought near by the blood of Christ simply means that the pure work of Christ on the cross, sacrificing willingly His pure blood, brought peace. So you've been brought near by the blood of Christ and have been given peace. You have been reconciled with Christ.

"But now in Christ" — this shift signals a shift in argumentation in the text. "But now you are in Christ, you formerly were strangers. But now you are fellow saints. But now you are fellow saints." And so you are no longer strangers. You've been brought into all of this Christianity. And the Gentiles now are no longer strangers to the covenants, to the promises. They are Gentiles who are fellow partakers in the promises of God. And we see now the Old Testament covenants — you've got the Edenic covenant, you've got the Abrahamic and Noahic covenant, you've got the Davidic covenant, you've got all of these things that are now, to my best estimation, fulfilled in Christ.

Look with me in chapter 3, verse 6, Ephesians 3:6, that the Gentiles who are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body and fellow partakers in the promise — the dogs, the outcasts, the rejects, the sinners, the heathens, the Scythians if you read Colossians, the barbarians if you read Colossians — the lost have been brought into Christ. And now they are fellow partakers in all of these promises that lead up and are, to the best I can read this text, fulfilled in Christ — this new covenant, this new way of life. All of the Old Testament covenants are fulfilled in Christ and they culminate in Christ. Is not Christ the whole purpose of the Word of God? Is it not Christ in His work, in His redeeming work? It's all about Christ and His glory. And so we can see in light of Christ how the Old Testament points to Christ and the progressive revelation throughout all of the centuries that are represented in the Old Testament, leading up to Christ. Scripture builds up to Christ. And we, as by the way Gentiles, non-Jews, are in.

We're in. Praise God for that. We've been brought in. We were strangers. We were far away. But by the work of Christ, by the blood of Christ, we've been brought in. And so believing Gentiles are equally part of God's people. We are God's household. Chapter 2, verse 19 in Ephesians here: "So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and are of God's household." This is an amazing benefit — to be called not only a child of God, but to be of God's household. And then in chapter 2, verse 21: "In whom the whole building being joined together growing into a holy sanctuary in the Lord." We are God's household. He dwells within us. We are His holy sanctuary. The temple has been leveled. It's gone. It no longer represents the holy of holies and access to the presence of God. The dwelling place is now us, believers. Verse 22, "In whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit." The dwelling of God in the Spirit. This is amazing.

So the Old Testament covenants have been fulfilled in Christ, and those saved, whether they're Jews or Gentiles, are brought into the New Testament New Covenant in Christ. Now we're all in Christ. And so Christianity means that strangers are made into saints. Amen. And Christianity makes enemies into family. And Christ displaces the enmity that is inside of us, the hostility inside of us, with His Holy Spirit. And it's all by the blood.

Now let me just mention to you that this "by the blood" has become a euphemism and it's not really accurate as to how we have perhaps sung it or understood it in the past. The power of saving grace is not in the fluid. It's not in the actual blood. It's in the death of Christ. And so the blood, the death — the blood is symbolic for the death of Christ. And so the power is in the death and resurrection of Christ, not in the blood. And so you can't drink some of Christ's blood and be saved. You can't somehow go and ascertain some of the blood. You don't need to perhaps mystically plead the blood to get your prayers accomplished. And so it's not by the blood of the Lamb in isolation — it is by the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ that we have been saved. And so when you see this in the text, that is "by the blood" right here in verse 13, chapter 2, verse 13: "But now in Christ Jesus, you who are formerly far off have been brought near by the work of Christ," by the pure work of Christ, by the blood of Christ. His death and burial and resurrection is what saved you. And the shedding of the blood and Christ's work — that is not the fullest extent of the significance in reconciliation. Beyond the blood, it is Christ Himself who is our peace. It's not the blood. It is by the blood. It is Christ who is our saving grace. And so Christ brings us peace. Verse 14, "For He," being Christ Himself, "is our peace." Christ our peace. Christ is our peace. He brings salvation. He removes the enmity and the hostility and replaces it with His righteousness. He does that, not the blood. The blood is symbolic for the work. Okay? And so Christ brings shalom.

Christ brings well-being inwardly. And Christ brings this to both groups, Jews and Gentiles, all peoples. And so any hostility due to nationality is a denial of the work of Christ. Christ on the cross died so that mankind could repent — those who would repent and believe the gospel. And so when we therefore bring up divisions among the brethren, God hates that, Proverbs chapter 6. When we bring up divisions among the brethren based upon nationality, where you're from, or how you do whatever, then that is in a sense working against the work of Christ on the cross. It's a denial of the uniting work of Christ and that all peoples, whether you're Jew or Gentile, can come into the house of God and have peace inwardly and peace corporately. Christ is our peace. Isaiah chapter 9 and verse 6 says that Jesus is the Prince of Peace. And so Christ united what was divided. Look in verse 14. He united what was divided. "For He is our peace, who made both groups one and broke down the dividing wall of the partition." He broke down that dividing wall.

Now if someone tries today to put that dividing wall back up through racial claims — perhaps critical race theory — you can correct them with Matthew chapter 3, because that's the same attempt that the Jews would make, saying, "We are of the father Abraham." And so if there are any type of nationality claims or any racial claims, you're out of bounds, because the gospel through the work of Christ has been made available to both the Jews and the Gentiles indiscriminately, which just means everywhere, everyone is able to repent and believe the gospel. And it is not through your family name, which only arose around the 800s. Did you realize that people didn't have family names before then? They were John the Baptist or so-and-so of your father's name. The family name was not a last name.

Take a look at how in Matthew chapter 3, verses 7 and following, John the Baptist corrects with no little sternness those who think they are of God by their nationality. Matthew chapter 3, verse 7, "But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for his baptism, he said to them, 'You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance and do not suppose that you can say to yourselves, we have Abraham for our father'" — how religiously pious is that — "'for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children of Abraham. And the axe is already laid at the root of the trees and therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who comes after me is mightier than I and I am not fit to remove His sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.'"

And so the Israelites are not saved because they are Israelites, and today you even have certain groups — perhaps they call themselves the Hebrew Israelites — and they would think that they are saved and the only people of God because of who they are and their heritage, and that is simply not true. And so no theory of race can be added to the gospel because it only divides the people of God. And critical race theory is on the move today in our public school systems, it's on the move in our culture, it's on the move in our Fortune 500 companies, it is becoming part of the culture of the world, not just our nation. We're seeing this type of stuff, this woke agenda, coming to us and it's going to divide the people of God if you do not hold firmly that Christ removed these dividing walls between Gentiles and Jews. Christ removed this.

In fact, how passionate is God about removing divisions among the brethren? I think by way of application, He allowed the Romans to destroy the temple because the temple was a place where the Jews thought, "Oh, we sacrifice to God and we're allowed in here." And there's a court of the Gentiles where a four-foot wall kept Gentiles from going any further than this point, and we Jews, we can go into the holy of holies and we can sacrifice as we know God. I think that all of that in God's providence was destroyed as an illustration to show that we all come to Christ indiscriminately by faith in His atoning work. And so it's not circumcision of the flesh — that is simply a distinction between Jews and Gentiles, it's merely fleshly as a distinction — that makes you anything. Salvation is not ethnicity, it is spiritual, in Christ. So both groups have been made into one. Josephus, a famous Jewish historian, says there was a four-foot wall that marked the outer court where Gentiles were allowed and the inner court was off limits — was, past tense, it's gone. There's no limit now to us as Gentiles being able to come to Christ.

So Christ's unifying work is also seen in the fact that the curtain in the temple was torn from top to bottom. In verse 14 in Ephesians we see, "For He Himself is our peace." Christ is our peace. This is emphatic language in the Greek. Nothing else is our peace. Nothing else is our peace. If you seek something else for peace, it doesn't work. Christ is our peace. If you seek the comforts of this world for peace and for comfort, they only last for so long and then they're gone. But Christ is alive and He's alive inside of you and He is your peace. He's broken down these dividing walls and partitions, and now Christ is our peace.

The unsaved nature seeks the things of this world for peace. But Christ is our peace. He — get this — Christ is our state of tranquility. Christ is our well-being, our shalom. Christ helps us to get out from underneath rage and anger. Christ brings within us harmony. If you have a lack of security, Christ is your peace. He is your security. He is. If you fear, Christ is your peace. If you have a lack of contentment, Christ is your peace. He can make you these things, and so these are the result of salvation in Christ. He is our peace, and the progressive sanctification in your life means that you will gain more and more knowledge of who Christ is, which washes away these old life habits. And as you progressively are sanctified by the Word of God — John 17:17 says, "Thy Word is truth. Sanctify them by the Word" — as you are gaining more understanding and washing yourself in the Word of God, then you're gaining more of Christ, more peace, more understanding, more contentment, more humility, more kindness, more harmony, more security, more tranquility. It's almost like you are of a different world. You're walking around here but you seem like you're not of this world. When people talk to you, they're like, "What gives? Where does this peace, this tranquility, this shalom come from? You've got something that I don't have."

So today, if you need a deeper peace, then deeper Bible study is a great solution. Deeper study is going to give you more of Christ and you can have peace in your inner dwelling place. You can have peace in Christ. Don't look for peace on earth because Christ doesn't promise that. In fact, "Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth, but a sword," Christ said in Matthew chapter 10, verse 34. So there's no peace to be gained in this world. There's no peace there. Peace is not even, unfortunately, guaranteed in our direct family.

That's sad, but in John chapter 16, verse 33, "In Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation." Peace is not in the world. Peace is in Christ, and peace is not guaranteed in your family. Like I just mentioned, if you want to see that, turn to Matthew chapter 10. I'll read it to you. This is sad but I'm telling you, if you want to get through this world without having been rocked because your security is within your family or relationships, Matthew chapter 10 and verse 34 will bring us back into a biblical worldview.

Matthew chapter 10, verses 34 all the way to 39, "Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword, for I came to set a man against his father and a daughter against her mother and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law, and a man's enemies will be the members of his household. He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me, and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me, and he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it."

So peace is not in this world, it's not in our family. Peace is in Christ. Peace is in Christ. So seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you. Seek Christ.

And so yes, peace here back in Ephesians, verses 14 and 15, helps us to understand that it is possible because Christ has removed the dividing wall. And I want to give you just a couple of take-home truths as we wind down. I want you to take home from this text that not only is Christ our peace — that is the main idea — but I want you to understand that we also need to remember and be humble. Remember and be humble. Remember where Christ has brought you from and be humble before your fellow brethren, be humble before your family.

I think one of the highest callings to be humble is for the wife who is married to an unbelieving husband. And her clear instruction in Scripture is to serve and love her husband. And so that Christian, that lovely saint, that woman who is a believer, is called by God to sacrificially love and serve that unbelieving mocker of God. That man who is ugly to her, that man who is a Gentile dog, a heathen who does bad things — isn't that humbling? And why is she able to do that? Because she knows that she would be no better than him had not Christ saved her. And so we indiscriminately love out of humility because we remember where Christ has brought us from. And by inference you would say, I'd be there too, had it not been by the grace of God who reached down and saved me. And so remain humble. Don't forget that you once were lost and you acted lost, and don't look at lost people with disdain in your eyes like the Jews treated the Gentiles, like outcasts. Christ invites anyone who is willing to bow their knee, to repent and believe the gospel, to come. And so Christ invites all who were lost and outside of Him to come, coming to Me. And so we must truly remain humble in every sphere of life.

And number two, I think that we should remember that we are in covenant with Christ. The text brings up the covenants. That's a serious thing — to sign up and make a promise, to enter into a covenant with the Lord. And if you would take seriously that Christ has made a covenant with you, in return you take seriously your commitment, your promise with Him. You're in covenant with Him. And so it's important — we are in covenant with Christ. And so take that seriously. Now we've been brought into Christ.

I think that we also need to remember that Christ wants to bring others into Christ. He is our peace. And in order for us to do that, point number three is that we've got to remove racial hostility to the best that we possibly can. We've got to remove any dividing walls. We've got to remove any type of discrimination when it comes to where people have been born or are from, because of the work of Christ. This is a gospel issue. And I think that as you look at children and how they play in the neighborhoods, they don't look at things like that. They don't feel or even sense any divisions. They just simply are innocent. And we need to also be indiscriminately innocent before people — love them and share the gospel indiscriminately — and not add any type of works onto the gospel and not add any divisions among the brethren and not add any type of reparations or special treatment. We all need to be saved by the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and place our faith and trust in Him. And so have a ministry of reconciliation.

This is going to continue to build in the text up to this glorious idea of the local church. You have peace inwardly and you can have peace corporately. And what that looks like is a dwelling place of God, a household, and also the fact that we are a holy sanctuary.

Let's pray together. Lord, thank You for the text today. And I pray, Lord, that You would help us to recognize continually that our peace is in You and You are our peace. Nothing else is. Help us not to subvert that and to start working towards achieving the comforts and the benefits that we have as a Christian and forget You. Help us in this area, dear God. Help us, dear Jesus, to recognize where there are divisions among people in our culture and to work in making solutions in that area, and to be an example as ones who love indiscriminately, who share indiscriminately, and are very scripturally objective. God, I pray that You would help us in these areas. Help us to see that Your glorious plan, the local church, is to equip the saints to reach the lost in the world. Help us to see that the local church is to be a holy dwelling place and we are to be holy. Help us to see, as we have now recognized, that Your work brought the Gentiles and the Jews together as one in one body to worship You, that we too would worship You in truth and in spirit. And may this local congregation continue to grow to reflect those truths. Oh Lord, we pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen.