Nathan, I remember now.
Fourteen children, sixteen altogether.
!
Ephesians 2, verse 11.
Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh called uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands.
Remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
For he himself is our peace, who has made both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility.
By abolishing the law of commandments and ordinances that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two.
So making peace.
And might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.
And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near.
For through him we both have access in one spirit to the Father.
So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.
Built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone.
In whom the whole structure being built or joined together grows in a holy temple or into a holy temple in the Lord.
In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.
Father, we thank you for your word.
That it is the revelation of you.
That it is our souls meet.
That it is light for our lives.
We ask God that by your Spirit you would illumine us today.
And enable us to gain from your word that we might live more faithfully to you.
In Jesus' name.
Amen.
Today's Advent focus is on peace.
Peace is a significant part of the gospel.
And it is not surprising then that it is a major part of the Christmas story.
In fact, it was the only benefit mentioned by that great angelic host when they announced to the shepherds,
Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased.
That being so, it is surprising that we do not hear more about peace.
I try to think back of all the sermons I heard about peace.
I can't remember that many.
Maybe once or twice during Christmas.
For the most part, our understanding of words, specifically peace, comes from our culture.
When I was young, I heard a lot about peace.
It was during the Vietnam War and the peace movement that surrounded that, that I was a young teenager.
And to my mind at that time, peace was cool.
We had our own peace sign, you know, and then the circle with the upside down cross.
We had our own peace songs, peace train, imagine.
And for me, peace was simply an end to the war.
Later on, when my family and I lived in Israel, peace took on a different concept.
It was primarily associated with a process to bring some kind of coexistence,
compromised coexistence between the Arabs and Israel.
And today, when I hear the word peace, it's usually in reference to a state of mind, tranquility, a calmness.
I asked my children this week what they think when they hear the word peace.
And most of them had the same answer.
One of them even reminded me of an illustration I used in a sermon once,
called Depicting a Dove Sound Asleep in the Midst of a Storm.
Peace is one of those words that has a wide range of meaning.
It can refer to the absence of war, treaty between countries, civil order, and tranquility.
And if you look through the scriptures, you'll see that the Bible uses the term in all those various ways as well.
But I'd like us to focus this morning on one aspect, the one that's mentioned here in Ephesians chapter 2.
And I think this passage is significant because it's perhaps the only place in scripture where peace is developed
in this gospel sense the way it is.
When this passage of scripture regarding peace is understood,
I think it sets a foundation for the rest of those aspects of peace.
And so this really is a foundational passage when wanting to understand Christmas peace.
And I think it's God's will for us to experience this peace in a greater way.
I'd like to suggest this morning that these verses in Ephesians reveal the true peace of Christmas.
It's not a typical Christmas passage, but it is a gospel passage.
It's the shalom of the Old Testament.
It's the wholesome unity between people and with God that's provided by the sacrifice of Christ.
I believe one of the main reasons we have this passage here in Ephesians is because
God wants us to more fully appreciate peace.
And to make every effort to maintain that peace, to keep that peace in the church,
in our relationships with one another.
Now, the concept of peace is the focus specifically of verses 13 through 18.
But to better understand what the apostle says about it,
we need to consider the context before and after those verses.
And that's why I've read from verses 11 to 22 this morning.
Each of those sections has something to contribute to this idea of the peace of Christmas.
And so first, we'll look at verses 11 and 12 again.
And from these verses, I'd like to suggest that in order to appreciate
and maintain the peace of Christmas,
you must remind yourself of why you needed it.
Look at verses 11 again.
Begin with verse 11.
It begins,
Therefore remember that at one time,
you Gentiles in the flesh,
called the uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision,
which is made in the flesh by hands.
Remember that you were at that time separated from Christ,
alienated from the commonwealth of Israel,
and strangers to the covenants of promise,
having no hope and without God in the world.
Now, this verse 11 contains really
what is the first directive in this amazing letter.
It's the first directive.
And all it's asking us to do here is remember something.
It's a challenge to remind yourself of your life
before you believed in Christ.
Now, that challenge follows an important theme
that begins in chapter 1,
and I'd like to just give a brief survey
or summary of what we find there.
Paul introduces the letter in chapter 1
by giving praise to God
for everything that's involved
in His including us in His great plan,
His plan to bring unity
to all of His creation.
That's verses 3 through 14 in chapter 1.
The apostle calls it in verse 10,
God's plan for the fullness of time
to unite all things in Him,
in heaven and on earth.
Then in verse 15,
he begins to pray for his readers
that God would enable them
to gain a better understanding of God
and His plan
and God's ability to carry out that plan.
Specifically, he wants believers in Jesus
to understand their hope,
verses 17 and 18,
to understand the importance God places
on their or our part in His plan,
verse 18,
and then to understand the significance
of the power that He provides
on our behalf,
in verse 19.
And beginning with verse 20,
all the way through verse 10
of the next chapter,
we have an elaboration
of that prayer
and of that power.
It's the same power
that raised Christ from the dead
and lifted Him
to the supreme position
over all authority
in heaven and on earth.
And it's the same power
that raised you and I
from the dead,
spiritual death.
In chapter 2,
verses 1 through 3,
freeing us
from the servitude
of the devil
and the world
and our own fleshly passions.
And He did all of that
by grace.
By grace alone
bringing about
this powerful deliverance.
Now that's the brief introduction
to the next section then,
verses 11 through 22.
And here then,
He begins by inviting
His Gentile readers
to remember something significant
about their relationship
to God's plan.
And that is,
at one time,
they were excluded from it.
Now He describes
this exclusion
in very careful,
systematic,
evocative language.
He says
that
they were
derogatorily
called
the uncircumcision
by those who were
the circumcision.
That was
not a friendly term
that
was used
about the Gentiles.
He says
they were separated.
He calls them
alienated
and strangers
in these terms
specifically
in reference
to the Messiah
and the community
of Israel
and the covenants
that God had promised
to them.
And then
more generally
they were
therefore
because they were
excluded from
God's people
they were hopeless.
and godless
in the world.
Now that was
a big deal
for the Apostle Paul.
There was no
greater distinction
between the Jew
and the Gentile.
The Gentiles
might have tolerated
been tolerated
by the Jewish people
but the distinction
was clearly
maintained.
To the religious Jew
the Gentile
was a dog.
And there was
a wall of partition
in the temple
courtyard
that kept
the Gentiles
out of
the more
holy areas
with a dire
warning
that if they
would cross
they would cross
at the expense
of their life.
Hostility
was always
under the surface
and there was
such a strong
division
that
when the
Gentiles
first received
the gospel
it became
a major
controversy
in the church.
How can
they
be a part
of the church?
They must
be circumcised
or
can they even
be a part
of the church?
But to the Gentile
there was a huge
gap as well
because they
experienced
a growing
hatred
because of
what they
considered
this Jewish
arrogance
that they
were the
people of
God.
And that
hostility
has continued
to this day
with many
still alive
who witnessed
the most
greatest
act of
genocide
in all
of human
history.
but the
scriptures
instruction
to remember
doesn't
seem that
relevant
to us
today.
It's
been almost
2,000 years
since Paul
wrote this
passage
and gave
this directive
to remember
and a lot
has changed.
We
haven't
really
experienced
this animosity
between
Jews
and Gentiles.
We
don't
really
know
it
that
well.
In
fact,
we even
live in
a culture
where
tolerance
is
heralded
as a
good
thing.
But we
should
still
try to
see
ourselves
in that
situation
because I
think it's
important
for
appreciating
the
change
that
took
place.
From
the time
of Abraham
to the
time of
Christ,
almost
exclusively
God's
plan
focused
on the
Jewish
people,
on the
people of
Israel.
And those
during that
entire period
who died
outside the
Jewish
community
and faith
died
lost.
Their
exclusion
was our
exclusion.
Outside
of Christ,
outside of
God.
Christ,
now the
peace of
Christmas
was needed
because we
were all
outsiders.
We were
hopeless.
We were
objects of
God's
wrath.
And I
think knowing
this is
essential
to
anticipating
or appreciating
and holding
on to the
peace
of Christmas.
Christmas.
Now the
second part
of the
passage,
the heart
of this
passage this
morning is
verses 13
through 18.
That section
is really the
core of
Paul's
message here.
And as
such, I
believe it
encourages us
that in
order to
appreciate and
maintain the
peace of
Christmas,
you must
embrace the
central role of
Christ in
that peace.
In order to
maintain, to
appreciate the
peace of
Christmas, you
must embrace
the central
role of
Christ in
that peace.
Verse 13
begins with a
wonderful contrast.
But now, in
Christ Jesus,
you who once
were far off
have been
brought near
by the
blood of
Christ.
See, Christ
changes
everything,
doesn't he?
but it's
not just
his birth,
his life,
that makes
the change.
It's by the
blood of
Christ, we're
told, that
we are brought
near.
Once we were
separated,
alienated,
outside,
hopeless,
godless, but
now in
Christ, and
specifically
because of
his death,
we are
included.
you like to
belong, to
feel that you
belong.
Wouldn't it
be a lonely
life, just
being outside?
Well, this
is belonging
to the
ultimate
degree.
This is what
God has
provided in
Christ.
Each one of
us can be
included.
God has
wanted to
included.
Now, there
are many
ways that
we benefit
from Christ's
life, from
his death
and resurrection,
but the
benefit that's
emphasized in
this passage
here is
peace.
And it
makes it
clear that
there's a
connection
between our
being included
and peace.
first ten
verses of
chapter two
focus on
an individual
aspect of
salvation.
And perhaps
this is why
it's one of
the most
popular
passages of
Ephesians,
most well-known
anyway.
But here in
verses 11
through 22,
there's a
shift,
specifically
verses 13
through 18.
There's a
shift.
And the
shift is one
of relationship.
See, in the
past, Gentiles
were separated,
not only from
God, but from
the people of
God.
And what
then does
salvation do
for that
relationship?
It changes
the relationship.
It brings a
change, not
only in our
relationship to
God, but in
our relationship
to others.
And that's
why I believe
we find this
focus here on
peace.
And it's such a
significant
distinction that
the apostle
develops this
idea through
the next five
verses.
The idea of
being brought
near is
equated with
peace.
And that
peace is
inseparably
linked to
Jesus.
And so what
I'd like to
do is take a
couple moments
and highlight
three ways
in those
verses that
peace is
linked to
Jesus.
First of
all, he's
introduced with
the sentence,
he himself
is our
peace.
That's
verse 14.
For he
himself is
our
peace.
Now that's
a significant
designation.
And what I
believe it does
is it
describes for
us the
way in
which peace
is
accomplished.
The only
way in
which peace
is accomplished.
It's the
prince of
peace himself
that made
peace
possible.
Now there's
two phrases
that I'd just
like to draw to
your attention
in verses
14 and
15.
In verse
14 it
says,
in his
flesh.
Now that's
an obvious
reference to
the death
of Christ.
It was the
death of
Christ that
made real
peace
possible.
The other
phrase is in
verse 15.
It says,
in himself.
The unity
that is being
described here
in this
verse occurs
where?
In a
location that
is in
Christ.
That's where
it takes
place.
It's not
some general
external
peace.
It's one
that's only
possible to
those who
have been
by faith
united with
him.
And this
way,
by Christ's
work and
in union
with him,
peace is
possible.
I think
it's
interesting
that
typically
the
Christian
message
about
peace
is
some
general
peace.
peace
to all
of you.
It's a
peaceful
season.
God
wants the
world to
experience
and enjoy
peace.
As a
boy,
we used
to watch,
we're a
good
Catholic
family,
we watched
the Ten
Commandments
every year
and
went to
church on
Christmas
and
Easter.
But
before we
went to
church on
Easter,
we watched
the Ten
Commandments
because it
came out
every year.
And I
remember
after
coming to
faith in
Christ that
we watched
the Ten
Commandments
again and
I was
shocked because
at the end,
you know,
Charlton
Heston,
I mean,
Moses stands
up there and
he says,
go into
the land and
proclaim
liberty to
all its
inhabitants.
I thought,
wait a
minute,
that's not
what happened.
he didn't
tell them
to go
in and
proclaim
liberty.
He said,
you're going
to go
slaughter
everybody.
That was
a big
change for
me.
I think
the same
thing is
true about
peace in
this season.
You know,
we typically
herald peace
as this
general
experience
that God
wants the
world to
experience.
It's not
like that
peace.
Because
peace can
only happen
in Christ.
The message
is peace
is only
to those
who are
in Christ.
And that's
why he
himself
is
our peace.
The second
way peace
is linked
to Jesus
is found
at the
end of
verse 15
where it
says
that
it says
so
making
peace.
Now,
what's
being
described
here is
the result
of
Jesus'
peacemaking.
By
dying on
the cross,
Jesus
destroyed
the very
thing that
kept Jews
and Gentiles
separated.
He calls
it a
wall of
hostility,
the law
of commandments.
It's
most likely
he had
in mind
those
specific
ceremonial
and
religious
aspects
of
the
law.
At
the
very
least,
the
sacrifices,
circumcision
itself,
but even
the code
itself
that
sentenced
one to
death
for
breaking
the
law.
Jesus'
death
brought
an end
to those
ordinances
that kept
the Jew
and the
Gentile
separated.
And as
a result,
he made
a new
entity.
We call
it
the
church.
that
consists
of
every
tribe
and
every
language
and
every
people
and
every
nation.
But that
peace
extends
beyond
human
unity.
Ultimately,
according to
this verse,
it relates
to our
relationship
with God.
And the
picture we
get here
then is
a peace
that is
collective.
it's
not just
my
peace
and
your
peace,
although
that's
one of
those
aspects
that is
true.
Let the
peace
of Christ
guard
your
hearts
and
minds
in
Christ
Jesus.
There is
a sense
in which
peace
is
individual,
but that's
not the
point of
this
passage.
This
passage
is talking
about
something
greater,
a
greater
plan
in which
God
relates
to
his
people
in
terms
of
a
unity.
Jews
and
Gentiles
together,
one
entity,
one
man
approaching
him
as
one
and
united
with
him
in
that
approach.
This
is the
collective
reconciliation
that I
believe the
passage
is
encouraging
us
to
understand.
The
third
way
that
peace
is
connected
to
Jesus
is
found
in
verse
17.
And
he
came
and
preached
peace
to
you
who
were
far
off
and
peace
to
those
who
were
near.
And
so
here
we're
told
that
Jesus
also
preaches
peace.
He
not
only
is
peace,
he
not
only
makes
peace,
but
he
preaches
peace
to
the
far
and
to
the
near.
The
added
element
is
this
proclamation
that
Christ
himself
makes.
Now
this
is
an
allusion
to
a
passage
in
Isaiah,
Isaiah
57,
19,
where
God
himself
says
peace,
to the
far
and to
the
near.
Paul
uses it
in
reference
to
Christ
himself
and
the
Jew
and
Gentile.
And
what that
proclamation
is,
is
simply
the
gospel.
This
is the
invitation,
the
message and
invitation that
every one of
us have
received.
It invites
us to
reconciliation,
reconciliation
with God.
It invites
us to
peace,
peace
with
others.
And it
invites us
to free
unhindered
access to
God
and
therefore
to
benefit
from
all
that
he
is
on
our
behalf.
There
is a
way in
which
Jew
and
Gentile
together,
in
which
every
tongue
and
tribe
and
nation
together,
in
which
you
and
I
together
have
access
to
God.
This
is the
peace
of
Christmas.
There's
no
true
lasting
peace
apart
from
the
peace
of
Christmas.
No
peace
process,
no
peace
movement,
no
imagining,
no
drugs,
no
genetic
engineering,
no
meditation
can
accomplish
what
Christ
has
accomplished
to
make
peace.
He
himself
has
dealt
once
and
for
all
with
all
the
problems
that
hinder
peace.
And
he
has
called
us
to
experience
that
peace.
And
finally,
the
last
section
of
our
passage
provides
one
further
aspect
that
I'd
like
to
look
at
with
regard
to
this
peace
of
Christmas.
In
verses
19
through
22,
we
are
reminded
of
God's
ultimate
plan
for
peace.
from
this
section
we
can
glean
that
in
order
to
appreciate
and
maintain
the
peace
of
Christmas,
we
must
anticipate
God's
ultimate
plan
for
the
church.
In
order
to
appreciate
and
maintain
the
peace
of
Christmas,
you
must
anticipate
God's
ultimate
plan
for
the
church.
in
verse
19
of
the
section
the
previous
contrast
is
summarized
again.
He
says,
so
then
you
are
no
longer
strangers
and
aliens
but
you
are
fellow
citizens
with
the
saints
and
members
of
the
household
of
God.
In
this
passage,
in
this
verse
and
following
verses,
the
apostle
Paul
uses a
variety
of
metaphors
to
describe
something
about
God's
plan
for
the
church.
It
involves
a
kingdom
or a
country
and
we
are
the
citizens.
It
involves
a
household
and
we
are
the
members.
It
involves
a
building.
There's
a
foundation,
there's
a
cornerstone
and
then
there's
the
structure
itself.
The
apostles
and
prophets
are
the
foundation,
Christ
himself
is
the
cornerstone
and
we
the
united
believers
are
the
structure.
It's
a
holy
temple.
It's
a
dwelling
place
of
God.
Now
how
this
amazing
entity
which
is
called
New
Jerusalem
and
Revelation
how
this
will
actually
look
I
think
is
beyond
our
ability
to
grasp.
We
just
have
these
metaphors
that
we're
familiar
with
so
we
can
get
a
peek
into
what
God's
doing.
Why
he's
called
us
together
as
a
people.
But
there
are
some
aspects
that
we
can
be
sure
about.
It
will
be
one
that
includes
eternal
peace.
It
will
be
free
from
prejudice,
from
hostility,
personal
or
interpersonal
conflict
or war.
There
will
be
no
isolation,
there
will
be
no
loneliness,
there
will
be
security
and
belonging,
there
will
be
perfect
harmony
and
the
joy
of
God's
loving
and
everlasting
presence.
And
we
will
experience
the
full
tranquility
of a
good,
and I
mean
good
life.
that's
what
he's
depicting
here.
That's
what
he
wants
us
to
look
forward
to.
And
I
think
God
gives
us
these
peeks
into
his
plan
so
that
we'll
have
hope,
so
that
we'll
appreciate
what
he's
done
for
us,
and
so
that
we'll
have
renewed
strength
to be
able
to
maintain
that
hope
in
the
midst
of
all
the
distractions.
Because
I
think
it
takes
effort
to
maintain
this
hope
in the
world
today.
We
face
competing
attractions
every
single
day.
But
you have
to just
take a
moment
and ask
yourself,
what does
the world
really have
to offer?
What
do we
really have
to look
forward to
if we
believe
what's
being told
to us?
peace.
One
of the
gurus
of my
youth
preached
a
peace
that
envisioned
a
unified
world
of
brotherhood.
He
invited
us
to
imagine
a
world
without
hell
or
heaven,
without
countries
or religion
or possessions.
He
suggested
that if
we remove
these
externals,
we can
have
peace
and the
world
will be
as one.
But his
popular
message,
in fact
it's so
popular,
it was
one of
the most
played
songs of
the last
century.
That's what
they say
anyway.
But his
message was
doomed to
fail because
it really
doesn't
address
the problem
inside us
that makes
peace
impossible.
It
doesn't.
Just
getting
rid of
the
exteriors
doesn't
change
who you
and I
are on
the
inside.
It
doesn't
change
the
selfishness
and the
self-centeredness
and the
individual
focus that
we have.
It
doesn't
change
any of
that.
I know
there's a
few of you
here that
are kind
of into
Star Wars.
what's
this I
hear about
a
marathon?
I was
a brand
new
Christian
when the
first
Star Wars
came out
and I
was fascinated
by the
film and
I even
saw
some
parallels
that
really
seemed to
be encouraging.
the force
was the
Holy Spirit
and
Obi-Wan
Kenobi's
sacrifice
was like
Christ.
He gave
himself
so Luke
could live.
It was
even called
A New
Hope.
And
even though
I'm not
sure there
are some
real
die-hard
followers
of the
philosophy
as well
as the
graphics
of the
movies,
it does
present
a
perspective
of peace.
But it's
inadequate.
It's
perhaps more
realistic
than
Lenin's
world of
peace.
But it's
still
inadequate.
Gradually
I began to
see that
there really
was no
hope.
The best
that it
could offer
was a
perpetual
coexistence
of good
and evil.
The good
and bad
side of
the force.
It's just
a part
of what
is.
There's
no changing
that.
The best
it could
provide for
us perhaps
was good
keeping
evil in
check.
hope.
Come on.
What kind
of hope
is that?
It has
no solution
to the
evil that
exists in
the heart
of humanity.
That's not
real hope.
And it can
never produce
real peace.
Well,
God wants us
to appreciate
more fully
the peace
that only
he can
supply.
he's not
only
given us
a solution
to the
problem of
sin and
evil,
he has
the power
to take
care of
these
problems.
The
resurrection
of Christ,
the new
birth,
demonstrate
that.
And God
will bring
his plan
into being,
a united,
eternal
universe
inhabited by
those who
are eternally
and joyfully
grateful.
for God's
grace and
continually
awed by
his greatness.
This is
the peace
of Christmas.
And Jesus
invites you
to this
peace and
to experience
it more
fully.
And so,
in conclusion,
let me remind
you of what
we've covered
and make
one,
I believe,
appropriate
application.
peace and
peace.
I suggested
at the
beginning that
this passage
teaches that
you can
appreciate and
maintain the
peace of
Christmas by,
one,
reminding
yourself of
why you
needed it.
Two,
by embracing
the central
role of
Christ in
providing it.
And three,
by anticipating
the fulfillment
of God's
ultimate plan
for peace.
peace.
That's the
church.
And I also
mentioned that
verse 11 of
chapter 2
contains the
first directive
in the letter.
And it was
simply a
challenge to
remember your
life apart from
Christ and to
remember it in
context of what
God has done for
you in Christ.
That reminder,
I believe,
is encouraged in
order to increase
our appreciation
of the peace
that the gospel
provides.
And it's
interesting that
there's only one
other directive
in the first
three chapters.
Now I'm trying
to find a
biblical application
and I looked
everywhere in
the first three
chapters and
there's only that
directive and
there's only
another one and
that was only
in the middle
of chapter 3
where Paul
tells his
readers not to
be discouraged
because he was
in prison for
their sake.
that's all we
find in three
chapters of
telling us what
to do.
But what is
amazing is that
chapter 4 which
begins a very
practical part of
this book starts
in verse 1 with
a reference back
to peace.
there we read
I therefore
the prisoner
of the Lord
a prisoner for
the Lord
urge you to
walk in a
manner worthy
of the calling
to which you
have been
called
with all
humility and
gentleness
with patience
bearing with
one another
eager to
maintain
the unity
of the
spirit
in the
bond
of peace.
Not only
does God
want us to
delight
in and
praise him
for the
peace that
he's provided
he wants us
to do
everything we
can he
wants us
to utilize
every gift
we have
to keep
that unity
a part
of our
daily lives
of our
life together
as a
people.
Do you
have
relationships
where you
experience
conflict?
Any of you?
We all
do.
I challenge
our peace
and God
is saying
I believe
to us
this morning
to value
this peace
that he
gave his
life
to
make
maintain
it.
Value it
so much
that you'll
do
anything
to
maintain
it.
That
requires
humility.
It requires
gentleness.
It requires
patience.
It requires
bearing with
one another
in all of
our weaknesses.
Of all
that the
peace of
Christmas
provides
at the
heart of
it is
the unity
of souls
and the
blissful
reconciliation
that we
have with
God
and one
another.
Let's
pray.
Let's
pray.
Let's
pray.