Ephesians 2:11-22
One in Christ in Both Jew and Gentile
11Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called "uncircumcised" by those who call themselves "the circumcision" (that done in the body by the hands of men)— 12remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.
14For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, 16and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. 17He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
19Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, 20built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.
When Jesus met Paul on the road to Damascus, the Israeli people were at that time the only ones covered by God's covenant to Abraham...But on the road to Damascus God changed that and made Paul the apostle to the Gentiles and therefore, all the people of the world...Jesus told Ananias, “Go!...This man is My chosen instrument to proclaim My Name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel...I will show him how much he must suffer for My Name.”...And so Ananias went to the house and entered it to see Paul...Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the LORD—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”...Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again...He got up and was baptized, and after taking some food, he regained his strength...So now Paul (formerly Saul) would be Jesus' instrument to preach His Gospel to the Gentiles...So Paul immediately started preaching to the Gentiles and travelled around to many different countries, areas and regions to covert the Gentiles to the belief in Jesus, His Teachings and Christianity, as a new religion would be started...
In the the epistles of the apostle Paul, for example...He invites his Gentile converts to recall their pre-Christian days...So we must remember that there was a time that the God of Israel was dedicated to only the people of Israel and at that time the Gentiles were separate from Christ, and excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise of Abraham...The Gentiles were without hope and without God in the world...But now in Christ Jesus, the Gentiles who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ...For He Himself is our peace and the peace of the entire world, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier of Jew and Gentile, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in His flesh the law with its commands and regulations...Jesus' purpose was to create in Himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which He put to death any hostility the two groups might have...
Jesus came and preached peace and taught the gospel of kindness and peace...For through Jesus we now both have access to the Father by the Holy Spirit...Consequently, no one is a foreigner or a stranger, but is a fellow citizen with God’s people and also members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone...In Him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a Holy Temple in the LORD...And in Jesus everyone is being built and brought together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Holy Spirit...
The New Testament clearly teaches in the four gospels and the epistles and Revelations that God has intended for all men and women to be in love and in harmony...In Matthew's Gospel, the Disciples were clearly given the Great Commission to teach all nations the gospel, and they were to go out and baptize them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit...The Disciples were to teach the Gentile to obey everything what Jesus had commanded them...And surely Jesus would be with them always, to the very end of the age...St. Luke says the same thing in the Acts, after Jesus was raised from His death and had taught the Disciples for another forty days...On the fortieth day, the Disciples had gathered around the risen Jesus and asked Him, “LORD, are you at this time going to restore the Kingdom to Israel?”...He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by His own authority...But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”...The Disciples were to go to the ends of the earth and be His witnesses and teach all people of the world His Gospel...
It was in Paul's letter to the Romans that he wrote about the desolate time of the whole world and the sad condition of mankind...The world was in disbelief of God...Paul told the Romans that God's Power and Being Sovereign were shown each and everyday to all of the world through His creation and design and finely tuned world for all of mankind to live...And God had written the moral law upon all the hearts of men everywhere in the world, so all men are without excuse and are morally responsible before God...Yet, knowing we are to be moral is not enough...We are wicked and fall short of His Glory...The sad fact that the world remained in a dire situation and needed help...We ignored God's moral laws and do our own will and make our own choices and often forget about God's Will...It seems that the power of sin is so tempting to us that we cannot get out from under our sinful nature without His help...
So out of LOVE for us, God would send Jesus...He sent Jesus to earth not to condemn us, but to save us...Jesus teaches us to have faith and trust in both God and in Him...Jesus would tell us that this is eternal life: to believe in God and to believe in the One He had sent to earth...We needed and need a Savior...We need to get out of this burden of sin, that we cannot escape...Our faith in the Father and Son give us eternal life in heaven...Our remedy to sin is Jesus, the Anointed One, the One Who was to come from the Old Testament Prophecies, a Savior who is Christ the LORD...
So the New Testament Books make it clear...We have failed, and continue to fail to get out of sin in our lives on a regular basis...We can look at the world even today two thousand years after Paul wrote to the Romans about their despairs of the world...We cannot quit sinning, we are still very much on need of a Savior...Salvation is found in no other Name but Christ the LORD...And Jesus' Salvation is a universal one that embraces all people and all nations and is a message, a gospel message that travels to the ends of the earth...