Will you go with me in your bulletins as we read Ephesians chapter two verses 11 through 22. 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 a stranger to the covenant's 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 us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances that he might create in himself one new man in the 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 on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone in whom the whole structure being joined together grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him, you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. Let us pray. Our Heavenly Father, we thank you that you call us to be your people and you foreknew us before even the foundation of the world to know you and to love you and to be your sons and daughters in all this in Christ. And we thank you for that great privilege that we have that we can be here today, here, and hear your voice and hear your word and trust in your word just because you have given us the Holy Spirit. Help us, Lord, as we consider these verses, not to see them as ordinary words, but to see what a wonderful God you are, and how privileged we are of your people, of your children. We thank you all these things in Jesus' name, amen. I think if there is something that we have learned in this past year is that some of the things that we at some point in our life consider ordinary are not ordinary anymore, but there were things that we used to enjoy that we thought they were just normal. I hear all the time, when were we gonna go back to normal? And then we realized that those things were really a privilege or special or they were really extraordinary. Things as just getting together with 40, 50, 100 people and having a meal together like the Lunar New Year celebration that we used to enjoyed for many years and now we are limited and we have to get together through Zoom and see each other and be happy and encourage one another, but see at the same time that what we used to have was very extraordinary, was something really special. And I think that what we have here in these verses today is Paul helping the Ephesians, Gentiles, and helping us Christians, all believers in general, to see that there is something really extraordinary happening on Sundays when we gather together and throughout the week in the body of Christ. And the two extraordinary things that happened every week on Sundays and throughout the week, one is that today we are not dead in our trespasses and sins, but we are alive in Christ. Today we are reconciled to God. Today we call God our father. And that wall of hostility between him and us that called us in the past children of wrath, is not there anymore. And the other thing that is extraordinary is that today we can call each other brothers and sisters. And this is something that probably become just another word that we say Christians to one another, but there is something really special about the fact that God has brought us together to be one family. Regardless where are you coming from, regardless what is your background, regardless whatever is going on in your life, you have been brought together to be one family, and that is really extraordinary. And because we are forgetful people, we tend to forget things. As I said, we used to think that those things were normal, now we realize these things that we used to enjoy before are special. What Paul does, I think the main purpose of Paul writing these words here is to remind Ephesians of how special is what they have as a result of being in Christ. And how do I know that? I know that because Paul used the word remember. He says remember. And he repeated twice, and that's probably the frame of the whole test, is reminding them something that they knew. but they needed to remember every single day. And now, as I look at this test, it was hard for me not to see the outline that Jonas thought useful to frame the test, because it's the same one that also Dr. Boyce used, and it's just basically so clear that the tests have this structure that I couldn't stay away from it. And it's basically dividing the test in three parts. And these three parts have three markers or three sentences or words that shows us when one start, and then the second part start, and then the third part start. And you understand what I'm saying as we look at these three parts. And the three markers are, you read in verse 11, at one time, and then you go to verse 13 and says, but now, and then you go to verse 19 and says, so then. At that, at one time, but now, and so then. And these three parts is at one time you were, but now, this is what Christ has done to address what you were, So then, this is what you are right now. What you were, what Christ has done, and what you are right now because of what Christ has done. And this is what I want us to look at on these verses as we see them. So first of all, what we were. Remember, Paul is saying remember. He wants to remind the Ephesians and he wants to remind all of us what we were. And then he says, therefore remember. Therefore remember, which is right away connecting us with what he have said before in previous verses, verses one through 10, and we saw that last week. And basically that was, therefore is connected with the fact that you were dead in your trespasses and sins, and that in Christ you have been made alive. And that when he said that he said it to say you Gentiles and we Jews were dead in our sins and God had made us alive in Christ together. There is no difference between you Gentiles and we Jewish people because we all were dead and Christ or in Christ we have been made alive. Therefore, because of that, remember, remember that at one time, and he's referring to that moment before you were in Christ, he says, you Gentiles in the flesh called in circumcision by what is called the uncircumcision which is made in the flesh by hands. So basically he's addressing whom? He's addressing Gentiles, and when he says, you who were called in circumcision, you could assume that Paul is saying you were called in circumcision by whom? By the Jews. The Jews use that nickname for the Gentiles, the in circumcision, or the uncircumcised, those who were no part of God's family. And what does he want them to remember? He wants them to remember And I say to you, remember that we are also included there, that at that time, we were separated, they were separated from Christ. They were separated from Christ, and we were separated from Christ. Today, as believers, As you know, because we have put our faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, we are in Christ. And to be in Christ is to be in union with Christ. We were resurrected, our souls was made alive, we were made alive at the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, but also our old man died on the cross with our Lord Jesus Christ. And we are alive because we are in union with Christ. But at that time, before that moment, remember you were dead in your trespasses and sins, and you were separated from Christ. And Christ, as you know, was the one who created everything that exists. We were created for his glory, for his honor, but we were separated from him. And he says to them, You were alienated from the commonwealth of Israel. They were alienated from the commonwealth of Israel because they were not part of the kingdom of Israel. They were outsiders. They were far off, as you will see in the following verses. They didn't belong to the people of Israel. And the Israelites made sure to remind them that all the time. They called them, the uncircumcision, they called them those who are not part of the people of God. He's saying, remember, that was your status. Remember, that was your situation as well before you were a believer. Whether you remember or not, the time when you became a Christian, That was all of us situation. Because as I mentioned last week, for some of us, we might not remember the day when we did not believe in Jesus as our savior. But even if that's the case, or that's your case, there was a moment when you were dead in your trespasses and sins. And there was a transition from being dead to being alive. And then he says, you were strangers to the covenant of promise. The covenant promise was given to Israel, was given to Abraham, that in him all the nations of the earth will be blessed, that he will be a blessing for many, and that God will be his blessing, his portion. And they, the people of Israel, will be God's portion, God's blessing. But they were strangers from this covenant. They were far off, they were alienated, and they didn't belong to the people of God's covenant. Therefore, as believers today, we were in that situation as well. And it says, having no hope. And at some point, we all were people without hope. And I think if you became a Christian later in your life, you probably will remember that even more than those who became Christians in the early stage in their lives, when you were living in your life without no expectation for the future. Probably with the assumption that maybe there is something after life, but maybe there is not. And you can see that very clear when you go to a funeral. of people who are non-believers, people without hope. We all cry when our relatives and our loved ones depart and they go to be with the Lord. They are asleep because they go to be with the Lord. But I have seen the crying And those, the suffering of those who see a loved one departing, first of all, not knowing if he is or not a Christian, or maybe in the context of all of them not being Christians, you can see no hope. And also, without God in the world. And that was the condition of the Gentiles in the time of Israel and in the Old Testament. God was only in communion with the people of Israel. In fact, the temple demonstrated that the seeing of Israel or the seeing of the world was separating God from people. But there was a way to enter in communion with God through the sacrifices, through the sacrificial system that God himself has established. But those who were not part of the people of Israel were simply without God. They may have created gods for themselves, but they didn't have the real God. And again, that was all our situation. That was all our condition. All of us were there. Remember, this is where you were. But now, what did Christ do to address that? He says, but now, But now in Christ, you who once were far off has been brought near. And remember, the immediate context of what Paul is writing here is to speak to the Gentiles. They would remember that very clear, that they were far off, but they were brought near into the community of believers, into the covenant community. They were far off. The people of Israel were considered, in the Old Testament, the people that were close to God. And those Gentiles were considered far off. But in Christ, it is not that it is just that because they came close to God. It's in Christ, it's through our union with Christ, that they, Gentiles, and including ourselves, were brought near to God. And this is, by the blood of Jesus Christ and through the cross. In himself, you see it through the text, in his flesh. What brings people near to God, or the only way to get near to God, or be reconciled to God, is through the work of Jesus on the cross, through his flesh, and through his blood. By his blood, them, Gentiles, Ephesians, and us Christians have been brought near to God. And through his blood and through his sacrifice, our Lord Jesus Christ, he says, has made us both one. And he's referring to whom? Jews and Gentiles were made both one. By what? By breaking the dividing wall that existed between them. Something that was very visible for the people of Israel and for the Gentiles at that time was that divided wall that kept Gentiles outside of the courtyard at the temple. And a Gentile was not supposed to cross that wall because if you ever get to cross that wall, there were inscriptions on that wall that say that that person could be executed, could be killed. It was a physical demonstration of how far they were from God and how divided they were from God, that wall of hostility. But what is interesting is that when this happened, which is in the year, around the year 30, when Christ did this work, the wall of hostility remained there at least until the year 70, when finally it was destroyed. But Christ has already removed that wall, making that physical wall that existed there for maybe 30, 40 more years, obsolete. Because he was the one who was removing the hostility that was between them, Gentiles, us, Christians, and God. Through Christ, we are not seen anymore as children of wrath, but also as his real children. But not just that, is that as he broke down that wall, he also brought these two groups, Jews and Gentiles, who hated each other, to make them one man, to make them one family. And he reconciled them both, to make them one body. He brought near those who were far off and those who were in and make them one man. And both of them have access to God, you see, through one spirit because it's the Holy Spirit that is given to both Jews and Gentiles who at the end reconcile us to God. Now how we see that playing in us as believers today is that at some point we were far off, and some point we were dead, and at some point we were no members of this family. But today, what is extraordinary is that God has brought us here together. As I said, there is an extraordinary thing happening here, which is that we are in communion with God, but we are members of the same family, the body of Christ. This is what Christ has done. Now, so then, so then, what is the result of what Christ has done? There are three things that Christ grant us through his work on the cross, through our union with Christ. One is citizenship, the second one is a family, and the third one is that he made us a temple. First of all, he says, so then, you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints. And I think that some of us understand what a long process is to get to that point when you become a citizen, and for how long you can be here called an alien. an alien because you are a person who, to some extent, you don't belong here until you finalize that process in your life. Well, we all become citizens of Christ's kingdom who is the king right now and right here through the work on the cross. We are no longer strangers and aliens but citizens with rights, with privilege, but also with responsibilities as members of God's kingdom. But it's not only that he made us Christians citizens, but he also made us his family. He says, members of the household of God. That we can not only call God our king, but we can call God our father. But when we are united to Christ and when he made us his children, he also made us members of the family of God, the body of Christ, which involves that we are members and brothers and sisters of one another. If you are united to Christ, you are united to his body. You become a member of the family of God. So being a member of the household of God is to understand and to know that as Jews and Gentiles who hated each other became brothers and sisters, we who are coming from different backgrounds and different circumstances in life have become real brothers and sisters in Christ. I don't know if that has happened to you, but you can see how much love happens within the body of Christ that sometimes you have more affection for those who are your brothers and sisters in Christ than those who are your blood family, who are not Christians. And I'm not saying that you won't have the affection for those who are no believers, who are your blood family, but our relation as the body of Christ is an eternal relation. We will be together forever. This is our family forever. Therefore we better work out our problems, because there is no way around that. There is no way to say, well, eventually, eventually no. Eventually you are going to continue to be member of the same family, which is the family of God. And that is extraordinary. If you look around this room, And you see that we have come from different backgrounds in life and how God has brought us together, that is extraordinary. But also, we have been made the temple of God. He says, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone. One thing important to understand here is what Paul is actually saying is that we are built in the Word of God and Christ. This is the cornerstone or the foundation of the church. When he says the foundation is the apostles and the prophets, the apostles and the prophets refers to the Word of God. There is no other foundation for the body of Christ, the temple. But Christ himself is the cornerstone, is what hold the whole building together. He says, whom the whole structure being joined together grows into a holy temple in the Lord. It is because now we are the dwelling place of God. Our hearts are the temple of God. Our bodies are the temple of God. We are, each one of us, the temple of God. Living stones where Christ dwells through the power of the Holy Spirit. But as Christ dwells in us through the Holy Spirit, that means that we are all joined together. That there are no pieces of temples here and there, but this has brought the body of Christ together. Now what do you remember, brothers and sisters? Or what are we called to remember? We are called to remember what we were. We were alienated, separated, far from God and his people. And you know you have to remember that every day. Because the very moment you forget that, you start to take things for granted. It is a privilege that you are in communion with God. It cost Christ his blood, his sacrifice on the cross, so you could be reconciled to him. But it is a wonderful privilege that you have a family in Christ, that you can call each other brothers and sister. You are to remember what Christ did on the cross, that he abolished the dividing wall that separated us from God and his people. And I think that's very important because the world have a lot of dividing walls. And we Christians tend to bring these dividing walls into the church. And as we bring these dividing walls, we are breaking the body of Christ apart. But Christ has already abolished the dividing wall. He broke down the dividing wall between Jews and Gentiles. He has broken down the dividing wall that divided us before when we were not Christians. There is no Jew, no Gentile. There is no dividing wall of race, caste, social status. We are all brothers and sisters in Christ. This is what Christ has done on the cross. And then remember that you are a citizen of the kingdom of God with great privileges. and responsibilities as a member of the citizen, as a citizen of the kingdom of God, that you are a child of God, that you can call God your father, not because of who you are or what you've done, but because of what Christ has done on the cross. Remember that. Remember that, especially in moments when you feel isolated, when you feel that you have no hope, remember that God is your father. But if you remember that God is your father, you remember that the person that is next to you right now is your brother and sister in Christ as well. And remember that you are the temple of the Holy Spirit. All of this, Christ did on the cross. To be here together, remember, is extraordinary. to be able to call God our Father, to be able to pray in the name of Jesus, to be able to, I was about to say, to hug each other after the worship service, but to want to hug each other and to, at some point, eventually be able to hug each other. is extraordinary. It was achieved by Christ on the cross. It doesn't matter where you're coming from. Christ did all this. Remember that. Let's pray. Dear God, we thank you for being so gracious and for your love. that did not come to us because we deserve it or because we moved your heart, because we are not lovable people, but just because in your grace you decided to love us before the foundation of the world. And we thank you, Lord, that you brought us near, that we are no aliens anymore, that we are no strangers, that we Don't live in this world without hope, without God, but you have brought us close that we have a king, that we understand that you are our God, and that we have a beautiful family, the body of Christ in all this because of what you did on the cross. Help us, Lord, to remember this. Help us this week. To remember this every day, help us to keep it in front of us. To remember from where we have come from, what you have done, and what we are in Christ. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.