Only In Christ Are Walls of Hostility Torn Down and Peoples Made One

So then, remember that at one time,
You were Gentiles in the flesh
—called “the uncircumcised” by those called “the circumcised,”
 Which is done in the flesh by human hands. 

At that time,
You were without the Messiah, excluded from the citizenship of Israel, and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 

But now in Christ Jesus,
You who were far away have been brought near by the blood of the Messiah. 

For He is our peace, who made both groups one and tore down the dividing wall of hostility. 

In His flesh, He made of no effect the law consisting of commands and expressed in regulations,
So that He might create in Himself one new man from the two, resulting in peace. 

He did this so that He might reconcile both to God in one body through the cross and put the hostility to death by it. 

When the Messiah came,
He proclaimed the good news of peace,
To you who were far away,
And peace to those who were near. 

For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father. 

So then,
You are no longer foreigners and strangers,
But fellow citizens with the saints, and members of God’s household,
Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets,
With Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone. 

The whole building,
Being put together by Him,
Grows into a holy sanctuary in the Lord. 

You also are being built together for God’s dwelling in the Spirit.

-Ephesians 2:11-22

The issue of walls is in the news.  One side says, "build the wall", while the other side says, "no walls".  And Christians are on both sides of this debate.

The side that wants the wall says, "security", while the side that does not want the wall cries, "compassion".  This wall issue goes with the idea of a physical wall towards Mexico as well as 'the wall' of laws and orders, to keep people out, from particular countries.  

The compassion side sees the security side as not only uncompassionate, but also racist.  And the security side sees the compassion side as blind and lawless.  But both sides are right, because security and compassion are both good.

Both having boundaries and mercy is righteous.  And these only come together and stay as one, in Christ.

We can not be blinded to danger by our compassion nor can we become blinded to the need of mercy by hurting people, through our fears.  

As Christians, we have to ask, what is the right way and even God's will?  

Various sides of the body of Christ are having a hard time recognizing one another and coming to the table to talk to each other.  It is tempting to name people who we think are wrong.  But the truth is that we are all wrong, but Jesus is right.  Jesus is the person who is the only answer the the problems in the world today.

And the wisest thing any Christian leaders have said in regards to Trump, it to pray for the man.  Many Christians refused to pray for the two recent democrat presidents and that was wrong, because the Bible tells us to pray for our leaders.

Jesus was the only solution to our troubles, micro and macro; when Obama was president, and likewise now, during the season of Trump as president.  If Hillary had been elected, you guessed it: Jesus would still be our only real answer.

And the point is not to water down Jesus, to make him fit our political predilections, but to die to ourselves and surrender to Jesus as Lord.

My point is that in a world that does not recognize Jesus and what he has done, things are hopeless.  But for whoever recognizes Jesus, as Lord; there is hope.  And we who are in Christ, carry his works into this world, for him and to the glory of God.

Jesus has already removed the wall that separated us, as Jew and Gentile.  He has already destroyed all the 'isms'.  If we take up any of the 'ism's' either as a solution to the world's problems or as controlling principle, we are in trouble.

The gospel is unconditional love through grace alone.  But the only way to have the broken down walls life is through and in Christ.  Gentiles were always welcome and there were always Jewish people who were not true Jews.  Both real Jews and fake Jews put up a wall to keep Gentiles out of God's house of people.

But Jesus came to destroy that wall that would keep anyone out of the house of God's people.  Does that mean that the house or the land (metaphorically speaking) of God's people, now has no wall, no fence or no boundaries?  No it does not.

Jesus is now the door in the wall or fence that separates his people from not his people.  Are you in or out?  The answer to that is all about Jesus in your life.  Jesus is Lord.


This song below, "No Matter What", resonated with me, about this topic.  Oftentimes, love songs are a reflection of God's dealings with mankind.

We live in the paradox, of, "He has done it", and, It is finished"; and/but/while, we must do something.  We must break down the walls and break out of something, because of what Jesus has done and because Jesus is Lord.