Author: Nick Booth

In the early church a great debate persistently raged with the potential to divide the church, invalidate the gospel and divert believers from the essential centrality of the person of Jesus and his vicarious death. Ever since then similar debates have taken place within the church having the impact of creating division through adding additional criteria for salvation or introducing some form of hierarchy of the people of God. In Paul’s day the issue was whether those of Jewish heritage, defined as members of the circumcision, had a prior and superior claim to being the people of God therefore without conforming to the practice of circumcision other races will remain excluded from the “household of God”. ^v20 This was despite God’s revelation to Peter regarding the conversion and baptism in the Spirit of Cornelius’ household in Acts 10 and the outcome of the council of Jerusalem. (Acts 15:2-35) This illustrates how persistent division within the church can be, even when there had been very clear revelation from God and unanimity between the apostles. Whilst the circumcision debate may now have died away to a minute section of the Christian church other divisions over hierarchy and whether an individual can be considered a Christian remain rampant and harmful within the church. Examples in the contemporary church are how across denominations racism has been identified as a systemic sin and has repeatedly been failed to be repented of and eradicated from the practice, governance and heart attitudes within the church. Similarly, we see Christians establishing hierarchies over forms of worship style and allegiances to human leaders. This raises the question then in the wider world, ‘In what way does the Christian church differ from what they hold to be the world “without God”? ^v12 Paul’s response is this happens when the focus of thought and faith does not entirely focus on the person of Jesus Christ and what he has accomplished.

Ephesians 2:1-10

Reading the passage again as a whole, how does it cause us to pray?

We can confess to the Lord our natural character and it’s continuing impact on our life.

We can recognize that if we are to be followers of Jesus the values and behaviours of much of the wider world are incompatible with our faith and pray to live distinctive lives for Christ.

We ought to consistently give to God our thanks and praise that he loved us before we could love him.

We can recognize that God’s grace in Christ Jesus is not limited to a one off act at Calvary but is expressed in his continuing handiwork in our lives enabling us to undertake the good works he has prepared for us.

We can pray that we will faithfully follow him in this life until we join him in the heavenly realms.

Ephesians 2:4-8

God however is rich in mercy and great in love. It is not his desire that people should stay spiritually dead and helpless in their sin. We may not be capable of saving ourselves but he is capable of doing so without denying his own holiness. Grace is often defined as not giving to us what we deserve and giving to us what we do not deserve. For this to happen God needed to provide a way for justice to be fulfilled whilst at the same time mercy was extended. This was done through Christ and is only done through Christ. Paul expresses God’s mercy through Christ as, ‘the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.’ ^v7 By placing us in Christ those who trust in him share in his resurrection life. This brings both Christ and God the Father glory. ^v7b The key to access God’s gift of salvation in Christ is faith. Even this is not something we can manufacture within ourselves because we are naturally spiritually dead. Saving faith is the gift of God. ^v8

Ephesians 2:3

Paul points to the culture change that occurs when one becomes a Christian by making clear that all prior to conversion lived already under God’s wrath. He does not fudge the lines of difference. Paul does not recognize grey areas. We are either in or out, disobedient or obedient. In his eyes one can’t be 60% a Christian. Before we were a Christian, Paul says, ‘All of us … lived to gratify the cravings of the flesh and follow its desires and thoughts.’ That is 100% disobedient to God, not necessarily in the “worst” ways imaginable but fully signed up to the ways of the world. He makes an interesting shift in his use of language when he says, ‘we were’. Here he is including not only the Roman/Greek culture but also Jewish believers prior to their conversion. Both were in the same predicament. Being a part of the covenant people of Israel does not automatically mean acceptance by God. By nature, all share a natural propensity to oppose God’s will and the Spirit. (Galatians 5:16-21 gives a fuller explanation.) Therefore, all deserved God’s anger and judgement. (Romans 2:5, 1 Thessalonians 1:10) God’s wrath is not a vindictive act as commonly believed of Roman/Greek gods. It is both a necessary and appropriate response by God towards those who reject their creator and his mercy.

Paul, writing to a largely Gentile church reminds them of the state of their relationship with God prior to coming to faith in Jesus. ‘As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins.’ ^v1 Dead here refers to spiritual death and by this he means alienated from God who is life and gives life. The dominant Jewish belief had been, throughout the Old Testament, that non-Jews were not in relationship with God because they did not share in the Abrahamic covenant or the Mosaic law. This was never truly accurate as there are many examples in the Old Testament of non-Jews being crucial players in God’s salvation plan including being part of the Messiah’s family tree. This in itself is an excellent example of why it is important that scripture includes large sections of narrative so we can see how God’s salvation plan is applied and works out over time. Salvation as Hebrews sets out in detail was always through faith. Jesus, as the chapter goes on to explain, overcomes the divisions between Jew and non-Jew as well as between humankind and God.