… who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility,
Summary: Jesus can do amazing things … if we let him.
Paul began this sentence with the words, “For he himself is our peace.” The “he” referred to is Jesus. Jesus himself is our peace. And not just peace of mind or the kind of peace we experience after death. Jesus is supposed to bring peace to people who disagree.
How does that work?
Paul says that Jesus “destroyed the barrier.” And what was the “barrier” he destroyed? It was a “dividing wall of hostility.”
Now this might sound like a load of platitudes that Paul scraped from the bottom of his sandals, but it is much more than that.
Jesus is love.
He is not a romantic love, not a sentimental love, not even a brotherly love. The kind of love he represents is agapé, a godly, selfless love.
The barrier Paul mentions, this “dividing wall of hostility,” is rooted in pride. There is no reason to be hostile towards people who love and agree with us. People who love us and disagree with us are a different matter.
I have seen this play out many times in my life but none was so dramatic as the walls of hostility that blossomed in a church I attended many years ago. There was a strain of political thinking that infected our congregation at that time. This thinking became more important than what Jesus was teaching. The pastor himself argued that the Bible was not reliable and that we couldn’t “really understand” what Jesus meant all those years ago.
Even though it was done in a loving way, when questioned about their views, the walls of hostility went up. Eventually, the church divided. Those who were seeking the Lord left, and those who favored the political “truths” that were popular at the time stayed. It was a sad time and left a painful memory.
So how was Jesus at work in that situation?
Maybe the problem was that he wasn’t. The thing about Jesus is that we have to let him into our lives before he can do his work. He can stand at the door all day and night knocking, but if we don’t let Him in, there is no way we can receive the peace that He wants to give us.
Application: Let Jesus in!
Food for Thought: Where do we see examples of Jesus making two groups become one in our modern world?
Well, I think He is still working on making the Jew and Gentile one. He did the work by destroying the barrier of the dividing wall of hostility at the cross, when the curtain of the temple at the holy of holies was torn from top to bottom. God was now accessible to all due to the work of Christ. That meant that the Jew and Gentile groups in the church could be one. Yet, there are still many Jews who do not know that Jesus is Messiah and Lord. But there will be a mass turning to Christ of the Jewish nation at the end of the tribulation (Zechariah 12: 10 – 13: 1; Hosea 5: 15 – 6: 3; Romans 11: 25 – 27).
Where are other ways Jesus is making two one in our modern world? We seem to be seeing more denominations form, not less. I currently think we are too divided. Just my opinion. But anytime people unite over Christ and do not let secondary issues divide, then we see Jesus’ work. I have a pastor’s prayer group every Thursday. We meet for one hour to encourage each other and pray. This group is critically important to me. Sometimes I hear people who go to these churches these men pastor talk about why their church is superior. But we do not. If the pastors of these churches can meet and pray and encourage one another, certainly the people who attend these churches should be able to do so. Thankfully, many can do just that. And in that I see the Lord at work to destroy unnecessary barriers.
Sorry. I rambled a little today😊
Brother Rich,
You can ramble here anytime you want to! 🙂 I am so glad that you have a group of local pastors who can see past their personal “turf” and see the big picture of the Body of Christ as a whole. What a blessing to us all!
Always marriage, but hopefully that’s not preceeded by walls of hostility.
Angela,
What a beautiful example! So true!!
Where do we see examples of Jesus making two groups become one in our modern world?
The thought that comes to my mind is that of Christian missionaries. Some missionaries completely uproot, move to a foreign country, establish schools and hospitals, dig wells, and care for the needy. They live in the very conditions as their neighbor, and offer to God everything they have. That kind of selflessness affects those around them. Others can “see” Christ working in someone’s life. It is possible then to have two groups of people united under Christ’s love. Language, culture, your standing in the world, some of the things that divide us, no longer divide us.
Thank you, Chris!
I am awed by the picture you paint of the work missionaries do. What an inspiration!
04-20-2023, Where do we see examples of Jesus making two groups become one in our modern world?
GROUP 1:
We live in a world where all are born as self-centered individuals.
Romans 2:8, 7:5, 8:8, James 3:16, 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, 10:24
The majority will remain in this group. Galatians 5:19-21, The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
Throughout His ministry on earth, Jesus taught reconciliation ( through His words and deeds) as He emphasized that unless WE are FIRST reborn spiritually and brought together with God, WE will never experience the kind of love that God has for us, which is the only real way that we can be brought close to others with the power to love others.
GROUP 2:
All believers have been called by God, by the conviction of the Holy Spirit ( John 16:8 ) to become Christ centered.
Today our two groups of people are the self-centered and the Christ centered, and the question for the Christ centered is, are we allowing Christ in each of us to minister to the self-centered around us???
Are we keeping talk to a minimum and speaking in actions as we allow Jesus Christ in our hearts to minister to others through our actions?
Jesus Christ say’s “ DO UNTO OTHERS AS YOU WOULD HAVE THEM DO UNTO YOU.” Matthew 7:12.
Let our families, friends, neighbors, all those God brings into our individual sphere of influence, see the righteousness of Jesus Christ doing to others as we would have others do unto us.
Brother Ron,
Thank you for your excellent overview!
I only wish that my personal experience was as clear cut. Sadly, even in the supposed Christ-centered group we struggle with being “self-centered.” (I am speaking from personal experience here!)
God help us!
As I was experiencing these thoughts, I kept thinking, I don’t measure up to this. And I kept recalling NO, but keep trying. Christ in me places me in the Christ centered group, our transformation is a lifelong process which will only be completed when we are with our Lord. I stumble every day, sometimes multiple times, but I get back up, take His hand and try to walk with Him again.
God Bless you Brother, Keep doing what you are doing!!!
Thanks Ron!
It has helped me to understand the different kinds of sin:
1. the condition we are born in, separated from God.
2. Willful rebellion against God’s will.
3. Trying to do God’s will but falling short.
In this life, on this side of heaven, I think the best we can hope for is No. 3. Yet, at the same time, being in Christ we are seated with him in the heavenly places (Eph 2:6). It is a wonderful conundrum!
Spot on!