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Through the Bible with Les Feldick
LESSON 3 * PART 4 * BOOK 36
EPHESIANS 2:10-19 - PART 2
Now back to Ephesians chapter 2, and we've just left off with verse 16. The Lord has made this new Body of Christ the Church comprised of Jew and Gentile.
Ephesians 2:16a
"And that he might reconcile both unto God,..."
Now I suppose the average Church or Bible people probably wonder, "well what's the enmity that Paul is talking about when he says "that He might reconcile both unto God?" Well you have to realize that from day one, as soon as God separated the Jew from the Gentile there was enmity between the races. Exodus 11:7
You see a lot of people don't understand this difference. Let's begin with verse 3.
Exodus 19:3-4
"And Moses went up (that is up into Mount Sinai) unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel; 4. What happened to Israel? What did God do? Exodus 19:5
Now, where does that put Israel? "above all people." Exodus 19:6a
"And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation,..."
In the future every Jew was someday to be a go between for Gentiles and Israel's God. Now that was the whole idea, but Israel lost sight of that, and so Israel almost begin to look within themselves, and had no time for the Gentile world. All right but now come back to verse 6.
The Messiah would be a God King who would not only just bring goodness and prosperity and peace to Israel, but to the whole world. Yes, first and foremost over the nation of Israel, but to the whole world, not just Israel. Isaiah 42:1
Well who's the servant? The Messiah, the Christ! But you see Israel lost sight of that. But nevertheless in the divine purposes, God was going to use Israel as a nation of priests to bring all these Gentile nations to a knowledge of Himself, so that He wouldn't be just the King of Israel, but that He could rule and reign over the whole world. Isaiah 59:20-21a
Then the Lord repeats the new covenant that Jeremiah 31:31 expresses, but now to complete the thought about Israel being a light to the Gentiles let's drop on down to Isaiah 60:1
Isaiah 60:1-2
Well the nation of Israel. And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you, Israel, the nation.) 2. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, (a spiritual darkness) and gross darkness the people: (Israel. Isaiah 60:3
"And the Gentiles shall come to thy light,..."
And who was Israel's light? The Messiah, The Christ! Now coming back to the Book of Ephesians, verse 16 again.
Ephesians 2:16-17a
"And that he might reconcile both (Jew & Gentile) unto God in one body (the Church) by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: 17. Gentiles. Always remember when God sent the Gospel, as we find in I Corinthians 15:1-4, to the Gentiles predominantly through the apostle Paul, where did that put every Gentiles with relationship to God? He had access to God just like Israel did in the past.
Remember from Abraham all the way up to Paul's conversion, a period of 2000 years, it was only Israel who had access to God with just a few Gentile exceptions. Then Israel dropped the ball, and God turned to the Gentiles through the apostle Paul. And now for the past 2000 years on this side of the cross it's been Gentiles that have access with God with a few Jewish exceptions.
Do you see how God always evens things out? When I was teaching that I told you that for 2000 years the nation of Israel was literally living in that place of privileges, on the promises God made to Abraham. I mean every Jew had access to God. But did that make every Jew a believer? The Gentile world. I mean if you're in the Body of Christ then we'll all go together whether you're Jew or Gentile." Ephesians 2:17a
The Gentiles. Oh they were so far off they couldn't even comprehend God. So let's read the verse again.
Ephesians 2:17
The only thing the Jew now must come to salvation the same as the Gentile, and that's by believing Paul's Gospel. Now verse 18.
Ephesians 2:18
Remember Paul had been up there in Northern Greece in Troas, Samothracia & Neapolis, and he's establishing little Gentile congregations. "...whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul."
Now we want to remember that the Holy Spirit is a member of the Godhead just as well as God the Son, and God the Father. Now back to Ephesians chapter 2. Let's look at verse 18 again.
Ephesians 2:18-19
"For through him (what Christ has done on our behalf) we both (Jew and Gentiles) have access by one Spirit unto the Father. Read verse 12 again if you will.
Ephesians 2:12
"That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:"
Ephesians 2:19
My we just step in by faith, and God does it all!

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