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You can turn with your Bibles 
to Ephesians chapter 2 as we continue to work our way through 
Paul's epistle to the Ephesian believers. This tonight will be on verses 
11 to 13, but I want to read the chapter to remind us of what's 
going on, what the apostle is doing in terms of his argument 
here. So beginning in chapter 2 at verse 1, And you he made 
alive who are dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked 
according to the course of this world, according to the prince 
of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons 
of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves 
in the lusts of our flesh. fulfilling the desires of the 
flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, 
just as the others. But God, who is rich in mercy, 
because of his great love with which he loved us, even when 
we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. 
By grace, you have been saved and raised us up together and 
made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that 
in the ages to come, he might show the exceeding riches of 
his grace in his kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace 
you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it 
is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For 
we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, 
which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. 
Therefore, remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh, who 
are called uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision 
made in the flesh by hands, that at that time you 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. 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 both one, 
and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished 
in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments, 
contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new 
man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile 
them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting 
to death the enmity. And He came and preached peace 
to you who were far off and to those who were near. For through 
Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father. Now therefore, 
you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens 
with the saints and members of the household of God. having 
been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, 
Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the 
whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple 
in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for 
a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our Father, we thank you for 
your written word. We thank you for this letter 
to the Ephesians and the great things that it teaches us concerning 
your great grace. And even now, Lord God, as we 
ponder these things, may we stand in awe at what you've done in 
terms of the gospel of our salvation. how You took a group that were 
far off and brought them near, and that through the blood of 
the Lord Jesus Christ. What a glorious and wonderful 
God, what a blessed plan of redemption, and we give praise to You and 
thankfulness that You've included us in it. And even now, forgive 
us for all of our sin and unrighteousness, and guide us by Your Holy Spirit, 
and we pray through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, remember, 
there is a connection between chapters 1 and 2. In chapter 
1, the apostle prays that the Ephesians would know something 
of the power of God. And that power of God is demonstrated, 
according to Paul, in Ephesians chapter 1, at the resurrection 
of the Lord Jesus Christ. But it doesn't stop there. That 
power of God is demonstrated in the salvation of individual 
sinners. That's what he focuses on in 
verses 1 to 10. But that power of God is also 
revealed in the plan and purpose of God in making, out of Jew 
and Gentile, one new man in our Lord Jesus Christ. So that's 
the apostles' emphasis in verses 11 to 22. It is, as it were, 
that the Gentiles had two strikes against them. They were dead 
in their trespasses and sins, and they were not covenantally 
connected to the God of Israel. And so Paul shows the power of 
God, the love and grace of God, in the way that he rectified 
that particular situation. And certainly, this will not 
only be the theme here in verses 11 to 22, but into chapter 3. Into chapter 3, the apostle discusses 
his ministry as a preacher of the mystery. And notice the content 
of that mystery according to verse 6. He says that the Gentiles 
should be fellow heirs of the same body and partakers of His 
promise in Christ through the gospel. So remember, the religion 
in the Old Testament was pretty exclusively committed only to 
the Jews. Now, under the new covenant, 
under the banner of our blessed Lord Jesus, we have Gentile inclusion 
in the covenant of grace. So this evening, I wanna look 
first at the former state of Gentile believers in verses 11 
and 12, and then secondly, the present blessing of Gentile believers. And the pattern follows the same 
as he does in verses one to 10. He first gives the former picture, 
what you were, and he gives the aftershot, what you have become. 
In verses one to three, you were dead in your trespasses and sins. 
This looked like lifelessness, helplessness, hopelessness. But 
God, who is rich in mercy, and because of his great love with 
which he loved us, made us alive together in Christ. Well, the 
same thing is true in terms of a covenantal approach. They were 
afar off. They were outside the commonwealth 
of Israel. They were aliens to that particular 
body. And yet, in Christ, they have 
been brought nigh through his precious blood. So looking at 
the former state of Gentile believers, notice in verse 11, he first 
issues a command. He says, therefore, remember. 
This isn't simply a suggestion. It's not just an idea. It's not 
something that they may ponder. But he tells them, I want you 
to remember. Why? because He wants them to 
understand the power of God. He wants them to understand the 
grace of God. And so a good way to do this 
is to ponder what we were and what by God's power and grace 
we have become. And with reference to this, it 
is, as I said, an imperative. And in terms of the context, 
He wants us to exalt in and He wants us to magnify the riches 
of His grace according to verse 7. Remember, God's salvation 
is such that in age to age to age, that is on full display 
in the salvation of sinners. When we look at saved sinners, 
we're supposed to think how good God is, how glorious God is, 
how merciful God is, and how much God loves. And this remember, 
therefore remember that you, what you once were. It does humble 
believers, what they were individually, verses one to three, what they 
are covenantally or were covenantally, verses 11 and 12, and what by 
grace they have become. It is a humbling activity to 
remember our former state and then to ponder what God has done 
in terms of the exercise of the riches of His grace, which we 
magnify when we remember what He has done on our behalf. As 
well, this evokes or draws from the heart of the people of God 
gratitude. You remember that motif in the 
Heidelberg Catechism, Grace, gratitude. We are dead in our 
trespasses and sins. We receive the grace of God and 
we respond with gratitude toward our God. We praise him, we worship 
him, we glorify him for his having called us out of darkness into 
marvelous light. John Eady says the exercise of 
memory would deepen their humility, elevate their ideas of divine 
grace, and incite them to ardent and continued thankfulness. And 
this is very, very much important in the Christian life. Remember 
where you came from. Remember that it wasn't your 
performance. Remember that it wasn't your 
good works. It wasn't your law-keeping. It wasn't your ability. Rather, 
it was the riches of God's grace that brought you to this place 
where you are now fit for heaven. It is through the life, death, 
and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ applied to individual 
believers by the grace of God that makes us fit for glory. 
So that is a good exercise for the people of God to draw from 
our hearts that thankfulness to our God. So it gives them 
this reminder. Notice their former plight. verses 
11 and 12. He says, Therefore remember that 
you, once Gentiles in the flesh, who are called uncircumcision 
by what is called the circumcision made in the flesh by hands, that 
at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the 
commonwealth of Israel, strangers from the covenants of promise, 
having no hope and without God in the world. That again is comparative 
to verses 1 to 3. At the individual level, dead 
in your trespasses and sins. walking a worldly course, subject 
to Satan, a child of wrath, liable to the just judgment of God. 
Well, in terms of people group, the same sort of thing was true. 
With reference to the Gentiles prior to the New Covenant, certainly 
they could proselyte in. Certainly, Ruth the Moabitess 
found safe haven in Israel, but it was not an evangelistic religion 
in the sense that the Jews went out and sought to win the Gentiles 
unto relationship with God Most High. That is something that 
the New Covenant embraces with great earnestness. Now, it was 
promised in the Old Testament. We'll see that as we move along 
through the section. But in terms of covenantal reality, 
the Old Covenant was pretty much exclusive for the Jews. The New 
Covenant encompasses Jew, Gentile, men from every tribe, tongue, 
people, and nation. So notice their status. He speaks 
first concerning their ethnic distinction. Therefore, remember 
that you once Gentiles in the flesh. The word Gentiles and 
the reference in the flesh highlights this ethnicity. They were not 
Jews. They were not born from the seed 
of Abraham. We see in the Old Testament that 
sort of a reality. Psalm 147, verse 20. He has not dealt thus with any 
nation, and as for his judgments, they have not known them. So 
by their ethnicity, they were apart from the true and the living 
God. But the apostle doesn't stop 
there. He underscores the ethical designation. Not only is there an ethnic distinction, 
Gentiles in the flesh, but there is this ethical designation that 
he goes on to highlight. Notice, who are called uncircumcision 
by what is called the circumcision made in the flesh by hands. So 
the Gentiles, rather, were referred to as uncircumcised by the Jews. Circumcision had become something 
of a badge of national identity. It had become something of boasting 
within the heart of the Jews. And when they looked down at 
the Gentiles, they didn't look down at them favorably. They 
were dogs, they were outsiders. The Jew would rise up in the 
morning and pray to God and thank God that he hadn't been born 
a slave, that he wasn't a woman, and that he wasn't a Gentile. 
That was commonplace for the Jew in the history of redemption. And so the right of circumcision 
was held on to by that. And so for the Gentile being 
uncircumcised, they were certainly disdained. They were looked down 
upon. As Charles Hodge explains, this 
implied that they did not belong to the covenant people of God. 
And in the life of the Jews, it was expressive of a self-righteous 
abhorrence of the Gentiles as unclean and profane. So if you 
were an uncircumcised Gentile around a bunch of circumcised 
Jews, you were the odd man out. They did not appreciate you. 
They did not like you. They would have mocked you. They 
would have referred to you as dogs. Turn to Philippians chapter 
3 for just a moment. It's intriguing how the Apostle 
turns this on its head. In Philippians 3.1, finally my 
brethren rejoice in the Lord for me to write the same things 
to you is not tedious but for you it is safe. And then he says 
beware of dogs. He's not talking about canines. 
He's not talking about your neighbor's pet that has a taste for blood. 
He's not talking about the four-footed beast. He is talking in this 
context about Judaizers. Those who would affirm faith 
in Christ plus the laws of Moses unto salvation. So you need to 
believe the gospel and you need to get circumcised in order to 
be saved. Well, Paul turns this and he 
says, those are the dogs. He says, those are evil workers. 
He says, they are the mutilation. For we are the circumcision to 
worship God in the spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus and have no confidence 
in the flesh. But going back to Ephesians chapter 
two, they were looked down upon. They were outsiders. So in terms 
of their own personal sin, dead in their trespasses and sins. 
In terms of their covenantal status, they were outsiders. 
They were those who did not have truck with the true and living 
God. So that's their status. But then 
notice their state. The Apostle describes it in verse 
12. He says that at that time you 
were without Christ. And then I take these next statements 
as explanatory. What does it mean that they were 
without Christ? Well, they were aliens from the 
Commonwealth of Israel. They were strangers from the 
Covenants of Promise. They had no hope in the world. 
They had no God in the world. Again, it answers very much consistently 
with what you find in verses 1 to 3 in terms of individual. Now we see the emphasis is upon 
people groups and covenantal status. So what does it mean 
to be without Christ? They were, or at that time, you 
were without Christ. They were without Christ ethically. Go back to 1 Corinthians chapter 
12 for just a moment to see something ethical about the Gentiles. They were pagans, and as a result, 
they were without Christ. 1 Corinthians chapter 12 at verse 
one. Now concerning spiritual gifts, 
brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant. You know that you 
were Gentiles, carried away to these dumb idols, however you 
were led. Your former state as pagans, 
you were Gentiles. You were those who engaged in 
idolatry. In our own book, in Ephesians chapter four, notice 
what he says when he starts to get practical in terms of application. 
417, this I say therefore and testify in the Lord that you 
should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk in 
the futility of their mind. So this idea of being without 
Christ obviously implies that they were not saved. But I think 
the apostle's emphasis is a bit different here. He's talking 
about covenantal status. Turn back to Romans chapter nine. 
Romans chapter 9. I hope all of this will make 
good, clear sense as we move through this passage, because 
when we get to how Christ does what He does in verses 14 to 
18, we will see that the emphasis in the New Covenant documents 
is not upon two people of God. It's not as if the Jews and the 
Gentiles are a distinct people that abides today. Rather, Paul 
takes pains to show us that Jew and Gentile are one new man under 
Christ Jesus in accordance with the prophets, in accordance with 
the promises to the patriarchs, in accordance with God's redemptive 
plan as it was revealed throughout history. So dispensationalism, 
for instance, likes to keep the people of God separate. You've 
got Jews distinct from Gentiles. Right now, God is working on 
the Gentile church. At the end of this age, or at 
the end of this era, the Gentile church will be raptured out, 
and then God's dealings with the Jews will come back into 
play. That's absolutely positively 
contrary to what the apostle Paul is saying. He's telling 
us there aren't two people of God. There aren't two separate 
groups. There aren't Jews over here and Gentiles over here. 
Verses 14 to 18 in our passage tell us they're one new man. 
And what God has joined together in the new covenant through the 
blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, let not man rent asunder. Let 
us not separate the peoples of God, but rather let us rejoice 
in the movement of God in terms of salvation history. So notice 
in Romans nine at verse one, I tell the truth in Christ, I 
am not lying. My conscience also bearing me 
witness in the Holy Spirit. that I have great sorrow and 
continual grief in my heart. Why? Because he'd go to synagogues, 
he'd preach Jesus as the Messiah, and those people in the synagogues 
would resist it. They would reject it. They would 
refuse it. They would get outraged when 
he said, you know, I'm gonna go preach these things to the 
Gentiles. So he's got this grief in his heart for his countrymen. 
Notice in verse three, for I could wish that I myself were accursed 
from Christ. It's an intriguing word choice 
that he uses there. It's only come up, or this word 
accursed is the Greek word anathema. He uses it here, he uses it in 
1 Corinthians chapter 12, and he uses it in 1 Corinthians 16, 
22, and then again in Galatians 1, 6 to 9. It's the New Testament 
equivalent to being devoted to destruction. In the Old Testament, 
when the children of Israel were told to go in and decimate a 
people group, a city or a country or something, they would be forbidden 
from taking the spoil. Not in every case, but in some 
cases. Jericho, for instance, they were not supposed to take 
the spoil. It was devoted to destruction. They were under a ban. They were 
under a curse. And so Paul uses this language 
in 1 Corinthians 12, basically saying, nobody can say Jesus 
is cursed by the spirit. 1 Corinthians 16, if anyone does 
not love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be anathema or a curse. Literally it means damned to 
hell. Galatians 1, six to nine, same thing. If anybody preaches 
another gospel, which is not another, let him be a curse, 
let him be anathema, let him be damned to hell. So look at 
Paul in that particular light. I think we get this idea that 
Paul was just a theology machine. He sat in his prison cell and 
all he did was write, all he did was read, all he did was 
meditate, all he did was contemplate the glory of Christ. He certainly 
did all that, but with a view not only to the glory of God, 
but to the salvation of sinners. Look at what he says, if it were 
possible, if it would avail, I would gladly take a place in 
hell for the sake of my own countrymen. He reflects the mindset of Moses. Moses makes a similar statement 
in the Old Testament. This is love, this is compassion, 
this is a genuine desire to see your fellow men saved. He says, 
I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, 
and then notice, my countrymen according to the flesh, who are 
Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, 
the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises, of 
whom are the fathers, and from whom, according to the flesh, 
Christ came, who is overall the eternally blessed God, amen. But as he muses in this chapter 
and in chapters 10 and 11, he understands not all Israel is 
Israel. Just because you descend ethnically 
from Abraham, that does not mean you're a Shuin for heaven. That's 
what he is uncovering, or that is what he is revealing here. 
But the point, in comparison with Ephesians 2.12, are the 
privileges that the Jews had. Verse 4, who are Israelites? To whom pertain the adoption, 
the glory, notice, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service 
of God, and the promises. Turn back to Romans chapter 3. 
Again, you see the privilege that Jews had in that old covenant 
situation. Romans 3.1, what advantage then 
has the Jew or what is the profit of circumcision? Much in every 
way, chiefly because to them were committed the oracles of 
God. So going back to Ephesians 2.12, when he says that at that 
time you were without Christ, he emphasizes that you were dead 
in your trespasses and sins. But as well, he's emphasizing 
that you had no covenant interest. You had no participation. The 
true and living God was basically off limits as far as you were 
concerned. Stephen Baugh says to say a person 
in his or her pre-Christian life was apart from Christ seems rather 
obvious and unnecessary. But Paul's point is covenantal 
and therefore objective. Gentiles, by virtue of being 
separated from Israel, did not have the hope of messianic promise 
and the privileged status with God that Israel's covenant relationship 
with him brought. Do you appreciate his argument? 
This is what you were individually. This is what you were corporately. 
And this is why you should stand in awe at the great power of 
God and the riches of His grace that advanced the kingdom. It 
is riches of grace, as I mentioned this morning. that advances the 
kingdom of Christ on earth. It's not the performance of men. 
It's not our law-keeping. It's not our wisdom. It's not 
our decision-making for Jesus. It's God's riches of grace that 
is at the center point of Paul's argument here. So notice, they 
are without Christ, and as I said, the next four statements tell 
us or flesh that out in more detail. that at that time you 
were without Christ. Notice, they were aliens from 
the Commonwealth of Israel. The Gentiles had no citizenship 
with the people of God. That would have been problematic 
because the people of God in the Old Testament was the visible 
expression of the kingdom of God on earth. Turn to 1 Chronicles 
29. We looked at this passage this 
morning in our confession study, and it's a very awesome passage 
in terms of what God had done with the nation of Israel in 
the Old Covenant. 1 Chronicles chapter 29. We see that Solomon takes the 
throne, he's anointed king, and they offer up sacrifice. According 
to verse 21, they made sacrifices to the Lord and offered burnt 
offerings to the Lord on the next day, a thousand bowls, a 
thousand rams, a thousand lambs, and with their drink offerings 
and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel. So they ate and drank 
before the Lord with great gladness on that day. And they made Solomon 
the son of David king the second time and anointed him before 
the Lord to be the leader and Zadok to be priest. Then Solomon, 
notice the next clause, sat on the throne of the Lord. When 
Solomon ascended that throne, it's identified as the throne 
of Yahweh. It's the throne of the Lord. 
You have the visible kingdom of God represented on earth through 
this covenant people of Israel. So that the Gentiles who were 
without Christ, therefore having been aliens from the Commonwealth 
of Israel, they were not participants. They did not have those benefits 
and privileges. They did not have access to the 
true and living God. That's why after explaining the 
how that Jesus does this by his blood in verses 14 to 18, notice 
how the chapter ends, verses 19 to 22. Now, therefore, You 
are no longer strangers and foreigners like you were at one time. You 
were excluded covenantally from a relationship with God. Wasn't 
just the deadness of your own heart and your sin and trespass, 
but it was the status that you had in terms of a Gentile. So now therefore you are no longer 
strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints 
and members of the household of God. He is not trying to keep 
distinct the Jews and the Gentiles. He's doing everything in his 
power to disavow us of the notion that there's a distinction between 
the Jews and the Gentiles. Brethren, dispensational theology 
falters terribly at this particular point. It is bad theology when 
it comes to separating the peoples of God that are blessed Christ 
brought together through his own blood shedding. Now, if you 
don't know what dispensationalism is, ask Isaac after the service. 
Secondly, after having said they were without Christ, which means 
they were aliens from the Commonwealth of Israel, notice they were strangers 
from the covenants of promise. Notice, the promise made by God, 
Genesis 3.15, was advanced and moved along by farther steps. The historical covenants, the 
covenant with Abraham, the covenant with Israel, the covenant with 
David, those things that shone forth the glory of Christ to 
come. And yet the Gentiles as a people 
group were excluded from those covenants of promise. You see 
what he's saying? Without Christ is not a good 
thing. Without Christ on an individual 
level is bad. It means you're dead in your 
trespasses and sins. But without Christ in terms of 
covenantal status, you're cut off from the living and the true 
God. And then notice thirdly, as a 
result, they had no hope in the world. That follows, doesn't 
it? Without Christ, there is no hope. Subjectively, without Christ, 
we live a hopeless existence. I mean, men seek some sort of 
hope. They seek some sort of things 
to help them along the way, but genuine hope is connected to 
our blessed Lord and Savior. So subjectively, without Christ, 
we have no hope. But objectively, without Christ, 
there's no hope. Without Christ, there's no heaven. 
Without Christ, there's no glory. Without Christ, there's no blessedness. Without Christ, there's no salvation. And so these Gentiles who were 
without Christ, they were aliens from the Commonwealth of Israel, 
they were strangers to the covenants of promise, and they were without 
hope in this world. It's a bleak picture just like 
verses 1 to 3. And then notice, fourthly, they 
had no God in the world. The word that Paul uses here 
is literally atheist, but I don't think we're supposed to interpret 
it under the normal meaning of atheist, but rather what we have 
written here, this idea of without God. Gentiles had their gods, 
Gentiles as pagans had their idols. Gentiles had their competitors. Gentiles had those things that 
really were not God, but they gave their hearts and their time 
and their energy to it. So when he says that they were 
without God, the idea is, is that they had no connection to 
the living and the true God. They had no participation with 
the people of God. They were without hope and they 
were without God in this world. So again, it's a pretty bleak 
picture, and what we find is that the deadness in trespasses 
and sins in verse 1 leads to manifestation of lifelessness, 
helplessness, and hopelessness. To be without Christ, verse 12, 
is manifested by being homeless, by being churchless, by being 
hopeless, and by being godless. So they were in this condition 
at one time, their former state, lifeless, helpless, hopeless, 
as pertains to themselves as individuals before God. But with 
reference to their people group, with reference to the Gentiles, 
or with reference to their being Gentiles relative to Jews, they 
were homeless, churchless, hopeless, and godless. So again, it's a 
bleak picture. And now he wants us to appreciate 
that power and grace of God. So let's go to the present blessing 
of Gentile believers in verse 13. Notice how he starts, just 
like he started verse four. So after the before picture, 
verses one to three, there's this marked contrast in verse 
four, but God, here's what you were, but God. Now here in verse 
13, here's what you were covenantally, but now, here's the contrast, 
here's the difference. Here's the change in terms of 
your status and in terms of your blessing. And I believe that 
he here is extolling the power of God. Relative to what he prays 
in chapter one, verse 19, that the Ephesians would know the 
exceeding power of God. We see that power in the resurrection 
of Jesus. We see that power in the resurrection 
of individual sinners. We see that power in, as it were, 
the resurrection of Gentiles from the dead and giving them 
participation in the covenant promises of God that initially 
came to Israel as a people grew. And then the grace of God. Look 
back at chapter 1. There he's celebrating what we 
call the covenant of redemption. the pre-temporal intra-Trinitarian 
covenant wherein God purposes to save His people from their 
sins. In that covenant of redemption is the manifestation of the riches 
of His grace. 1. 7. In Him we have redemption 
through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches 
of His grace. He is now trafficking in the 
covenant of grace, the application in terms of God's redemption. 
So in verse seven, he says, that in the ages to come, he might 
show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward 
us in Christ Jesus. For by grace, you have been saved 
through faith and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of 
God, not of works lest anyone should boast. You see, the apostle 
Paul wants the people of God to remember what they were. and 
now to reflect upon what they have become. And when they do 
that, it will never rise up in them, if they're thinking biblically, 
they're thinking honestly, to sort of pat themselves on the 
back. Well, I made a good decision on December 12th in 2007, best 
move I ever made. I was at that tent meeting and 
when every eye was closed and every head was bowed, I shot 
up my hand and I received Jesus Christ as my personal savior. That's not what Paul wants you 
to reflect upon. Paul wants you to reflect upon 
his power, the fact that he made us alive together with Christ. He wants us to reflect upon the 
riches of his grace, for by grace you have been saved through faith 
and that not of yourselves. So Paul says, I want you to remember 
what you were, I want you to ponder what you've become, and 
as a result, you should give all praise, all glory, all honor, 
all worship, all adoration to God most high, Father, Son, and 
Holy Spirit. So, but now, this is the change 
in terms of status with reference to these Gentiles. Notice what 
he says, you were this, verses 11 and 12, but now you have become 
this. So verse 13, but now in Christ 
Jesus, you who once were far off have been brought near by 
the blood of Christ. Drop down to chapter 3 at verse 
1. For this reason I, Paul, the 
prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles, if indeed you have 
heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given 
to me for you, how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery, 
as I have already written already, by which when you read you may 
understand my knowledge and the mystery of Christ, which in other 
ages was not made known to the sons of men. Now, mystery, as 
Paul uses, it doesn't mean secret. It's not just something accessed 
by, you know, some esoteric means. It's something that was there, 
but not as fully manifested as it has become in the new covenant. In a moment, we're going to look 
at a few promises in the Old Testament concerning Gentile inclusion 
in the covenant promises of God. Paul is not saying, wow, this 
is a brand new innovation in redemptive history. Can't believe 
it. It's an amazing thing. Never would have thought this 
would happen. Never would have thought that these Gentiles would come 
to Israel's Messiah in the same means and manner by which the 
Jews have come. That's just a curve ball. No, 
he says this was always God's plan. It was always according 
to his purpose, which in other ages, verse five, was not made 
known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the 
Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets, that the Gentiles should 
be fellow heirs." Again, look at the language. Does he want 
you to keep the Jews and the Gentiles apart? Does he want 
you to think that this is a parenthetical moment in the movement of redemptive 
history? The Jews rejected the kingdom 
as offered by Jesus. So, Jesus turns to the Gentiles, 
there's this sort of parenthetical phase of Gentile church, and 
once they're raptured, now God's real plan to deal with the Jews 
comes back into fruition. That is, again, contrary to the 
flow and trajectory of redemptive history. He tells us that the 
Gentiles should be what? Fellow heirs. That's on the same 
sort of footing as we find in Romans chapter 8. We are joint 
or co-heirs with our Lord Jesus Christ. Everything secured by 
Him is given to us by grace. This is why Paul says, blessed 
be the God and Father who has blessed us with every spiritual 
blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. So they are fellow 
heirs of the same body, not two separate peoples, partakers of 
his promise in Christ through the gospel, of which I became 
a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to 
me by the effective working of his power. Turn back to Genesis 
chapter three. Genesis chapter three. We'll 
keep this somewhat brief. I just want to highlight a few 
places where we see the promise of God to include Gentiles in 
the covenant promises of God. The proto-evangel, the first 
giving of the gospel, the first promise of God to save his people 
from their sins is Genesis 3, verse 15. God says, I will put 
enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her 
seed. He shall bruise your head and you shall bruise his heel. 
We learned that the deliverer would be a man born of a woman. 
We learn that the deliverer would accomplish redemption through 
suffering and death. And we learn that the deliverer 
would accomplish glorious conquest and victory. That's the first 
statement concerning salvation by grace through faith in our 
Lord Jesus Christ. Man transgresses. Man violates 
his probation. man basically trashes the covenant 
of words. And on the heels of that, God 
promises the covenant of grace. Now turn over to Genesis chapter 
nine. We have the Oracle of Noah, and Noah speaks of the inclusion 
of Gentiles in the covenant promises of God. In Genesis 9, verse 24, 
Sanoa awoke from his wine and knew what his younger son had 
done to him. Then he said, Cursed be Canaan, 
a servant of servants, he shall be to his brethren. And he said, 
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem. Now, Shem represents 
Israel. And may Canaan be his servant. 
May God enlarge Japheth. Japheth is associated with Gentiles. Drop down for just a moment to 
chapter 10. At verse 2, the sons of Japheth goes on to highlight 
a few names there that we'll not try to highlight ourselves. 
And then in verse 5, from these the coastland peoples of the 
Gentiles were separated into their lands, everyone according 
to his language, according to their families, into their nations. 
So going back to verse 27, may God enlarge Japheth and may he 
dwell in the tents of Shem and may Canaan be his servant. So 
whatever blessing is going to obtain for Shem, this is Israel, 
may it spill over and may Japheth find inclusion in that tent. So this is a promise concerning 
Gentile inclusion in the covenant of grace as it was made to the 
nation of Israel that would hinge upon their Messiah. Genesis chapter 
12, Genesis chapter 12, verse two. I will make you a great 
nation, God's promise to the patriarch Abraham. I will bless 
you and make your name great and you shall be a blessing. 
Turn to 13, 14 to 17. And the Lord said to Abram, after 
Lot had separated from him, lift your eyes now and look from the 
place where you are, northward, southward, eastward and westward. 
Paul tells us in Romans 4, 11, he saw the world. It wasn't just 
Israel, it wasn't just the confines that were located geographically 
in that piece of dirt. But in 411, in the book of Romans, 
Abraham was going to inherit the world. Again, it's not hinged 
upon Abraham, but the seed of Abraham. Now notice. It says, 
for all the land which you see, I give to you and your descendants 
forever. And I will make your descendants 
as the dust of the earth, so that if a man could number the 
dust of the earth, then your descendants also could be numbered. 
Arise, walk in the land through its length and its width, for 
I give it to you. 15-5. 15-5. Then he brought him 
outside and said, look now toward heaven and count the stars if 
you are able to number them. And he said to him, so shall 
your descendants be. So God is telling Abraham he's 
going to have a numerous seed. He's going to have a ton of descendants. And Abraham, according to verse 
6, believed in the Lord and he accounted it to him for righteousness. 
God then says, I am the Lord who brought you out of the Ur 
of the Chaldeans to give you this land to inherit it. And 
he said, Lord God, how shall I know that I will inherit it? 
So Abraham asked the question, how do I know that you're good 
for this, God? Well, there's this covenantal ceremony. God 
gets animals and cuts the animals in two pieces and puts them on 
either side on an aisle way. That was ancient Near Eastern 
covenant making. Oftentimes we think of cutting 
a covenant, and it most likely refers to this particular ceremony. 
You cut the animals in half, put them on either side, the 
parties in the covenant walk between the animals. It is a 
maledictory oath. It is essentially to say, if 
I renege on my covenant responsibilities, then may what happened to these 
animals happen to me. But what is unique and intriguing 
about this particular ceremony? Abraham doesn't walk between 
the animals. It's God alone that walks between 
the animals. It's God alone that is the executor 
of this particular covenant. It is God alone who carries out 
His promise to save His people from their sins. And then 2217, 
I know Gentiles aren't mentioned here, but there is the mention 
of a great seed. A whole host of people, 2217, 
blessing, I will bless you, and multiplying, I will multiply 
your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand 
which is on the seashore, and your descendants shall possess 
the gate of his enemies. In your seed, this is Jesus Christ, 
all the nations of the earth shall be blessed because you 
have obeyed my voice. Paul identifies the seed of Abraham 
in Galatians 3.16 as Christ. So it's not because Abraham's 
a great guy, but it's because Abraham is looking forward to 
a great savior, the Messiah, the Lord Jesus. But notice, in 
your seed, in Jesus, all the nations of the earth shall be 
blessed. That seed announced in Genesis 3.15. See brethren, 
the Bible holds together. The Bible is consistent. The 
consent of all the parts, the scope of the whole. It is a blessed 
document. It's messianic to the core. And 
it promises the coming of the savior Jesus to get his people, 
to save his people from their sins. Whether they're Jews or 
Gentiles. Turn to the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah 
42, a servant song of Yahweh, verse six. I, the Lord, have 
called you in righteousness and will hold your hand. I will keep 
you and give you as a covenant to the people, as a light to 
the Gentiles. That's repeated in another servant 
song in 49 sects. 49.6, you have the same emphasis. Indeed, 
he says, it's too small a thing that you should be my servant 
to raise up the tribes of Jacob. Think about the logic here for 
just a moment. You wanna impress your wife. 
Honey, I'm gonna lift some weights and I'm gonna show you my bulging 
pectoral muscles. You don't just lift the bar. 
You don't just put 10 pounds on there, you load it up. You 
put a few big wheels on there and you show what you've got, 
right? That's what God's saying here 
in 49.6. I don't want to say chump change because that sounds 
a bit derogatory, but it's too small of a thing for Israel's 
Messiah to simply come and fetch out for help the tribe of Jacob. I'm going to give you as a light 
unto the Gentiles. The entirety of creation is going 
to marvel at Israel's Messiah, at the Christ of God, at the 
one who would live and die and be raised again in order to save 
his people from their sins. That's the emphasis. It is too 
small a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the 
tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved ones of Israel. 
I will also give you as a light to the Gentiles that you should 
be my salvation to the ends of the earth. Brethren, we could 
multiply these statements in the prophets. We could multiply 
these statements in the Psalter. We see that God's redemptive 
plan was never simply confined to the nation of Israel, but 
Jesus would be a light under the Gentiles. So that when we 
get to the book of Revelation, chapters five and seven, we see 
assembled before the throne of God, men from every tribe, every 
tongue, every people, every nation. This was always the purpose and 
plan, a mystery in the old covenant. It was revealed, it was there, 
but obviously not the way it is now, not the way the apostle 
celebrates it here in Ephesians chapter two and three. So then 
turning to the New Testament, we see the fulfillment. There's 
an Old Testament promise concerning the new covenant, Jeremiah 31, 
31 to 34. This is obviously in the background 
when Jesus inaugurates the new covenant in his blood. He does 
that at the Last Supper. What is Christ saying? Just like 
that first covenant was ratified by blood and it was, Exodus chapter 
24, they swore fidelity to Yahweh and they were sprinkled with 
blood. Jesus ratifies the new covenant in his blood. And Jesus 
then, on the heels of that, when he gives the commission to the 
church, what does he say in Matthew 28, 18 to 20? Go therefore and 
make disciples of who? of all the nations, baptizing 
them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, 
teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you, and 
lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Look 
at Acts chapter 2. Acts chapter 2, same sort of 
an emphasis. We've got the outpouring of the 
Holy Spirit. We've got the manifestation of 
the grace of God, the power of the Christian gospel. And Peter 
summarizes or comes to the conclusion of his sermon in verse 36. He 
says, therefore, let all the house of Israel know assuredly 
that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord 
and Christ. Now, when they heard this, they 
were caught to the heart and said to Peter and the rest of 
the apostles, men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter 
said to them, repent and let every one of you be baptized 
in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. And you 
shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. And notice for the 
promises to you and to your children and notice to all who are afar 
off, as many as the Lord our God will call. That's the same 
language that Paul is using in terms of the Gentiles. They were 
far off, but now they've been brought near. Now they have been 
brought nigh. What has happened? It is the 
blood shedding of our Lord Jesus Christ, the crowning act in terms 
of His redemptive plan with reference to the people of God. One more 
passage, you can turn to Colossians 1. Colossians 1. Again, there's no shortage of 
passages, both Old Testament and New Testament, that shows 
us the contours of God's plan. It is men, it is women, it is 
boys, it is girls from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation. 
Colossians 1. specifically at verse 26, well, 
verse 24. I now rejoice in my sufferings 
for you and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions 
of Christ for the sake of his body, which is the church of 
which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God, 
which was given to me for you to fulfill the word of God. The 
mystery, which has been hidden from ages and from generations, 
but now has been revealed to his saints. To them God willed 
to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery 
among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. So the Gentiles, they were without 
Christ, and that meant all those things that were true of them 
have now been brought near. Going back to Ephesians 2.13, 
we see the means of accomplishment. So, but now in Christ Jesus, 
you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood 
of Christ. The emphasis is on union with 
Christ. We have no redemptive blessing, 
no benefit, no gift apart from Christ. That's why he says, but 
now in Christ Jesus. You who once were far off have 
been brought near by the blood of Christ. Intriguingly, back 
in the previous section in 2, 5, and 6, he emphasizes the resurrection 
of Christ and the exaltation of Christ. Now, obviously, the 
death of Christ preceded resurrection and exaltation. And it's death, 
it's blood, it's sacrifice that Paul emphasizes here in verse 
13. Why is that? Because how does 
anybody draw near unto God? They draw near unto God through 
blood atonement. Without the shedding of blood, 
there is no remission. God is a holy God. Man is a sinful 
being. And the only way that sinful 
man will enter into the presence of a holy God is through blood 
atonement. The Bible is very clear about 
that. It's not just about be a better you, or behavior modification, 
or moralism. Remember Paul in 1 Corinthians 
1, he says, the Jews, they seek after signs, and the Greeks, 
they want wisdom, but we preach Christ and Him crucified. To 
the Jews, what? A stumbling block, a scandal, 
and to the Greeks, foolishness. But to us who are being saved, 
Christ, the wisdom, and the power of God. He emphasizes the sacrificial 
death of our Lord Jesus Christ as a vital means, as the vital 
means by which God and sinners are reconciled. Without a saving 
interest in the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, without a 
saving interest in the righteousness of our Lord Jesus Christ, we 
will never be brought nigh to God through him. And so the apostle 
emphasizes that blood. Jesus does the same thing in 
Matthew 26 when he inaugurates the new covenant. It is in his 
blood. We see the emphasis in Romans 
5. We saw it in Ephesians chapter one, redemption through his blood. You see it in this book going 
forward. Notice in 2.16, 2.16, and that 
he might reconcile them both to God in one body, notice, through 
the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. And then in 
5.2, as a motivator for us to walk in love, as Christ also 
has loved us and given himself for us and offering in a sacrifice 
to God for a sweet smelling aroma. And then husbands, you're supposed 
to love your wives in a particular way. What's the reference point? It is Christ and His sacrificial 
love, which is fully demonstrated in His shedding of blood for 
us. So verse 25, husbands, love your wives just as Christ also 
loved the church and gave Himself for her. And then in Colossians 
chapter 1, Colossians 1 verse 19, notice, it pleased the Father 
that in Him, it pleased the Father that in Christ all the fullness 
should dwell. And by Him, Christ, to reconcile 
all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things 
in heaven. Now notice this last clause, 
having made peace through the blood of His cross. Now brethren, 
we don't have execution, capital punishment in Canada. If we were 
in the Roman Empire, there would have been capital punishment, 
execution, and they would have used the particularly nasty device 
of crucifixion. I think I've shared with you 
before that if you were a Roman citizen and you were guilty of 
a capital crime, they wouldn't put you on a cross unless you 
were especially notorious. It had to be a grant by the emperor, 
by the Caesar, that some citizen, a Roman citizen, would actually 
go to the cross in terms of death. So they had to be really bad. 
So it was confined to the worst of society. So if you happen 
to be at an execution on one of those days, well, let's take 
the execution of our Lord Jesus. Probably the last thing in your 
mind would have been the concept of peace. It was a particularly 
nasty way to die. Prior to the picking up of the 
cross and taking it to the execution site, the victim, the criminal, 
was whipped. Christ was whipped twice. He 
was whipped once to try to satiate the bloodthirsty Jews, but that 
didn't work. So when the command was given 
that he would die, that he would be executed, there was a whipping 
that accompanied that. So as he's being whipped, he's 
broken, beaten, battered, bruised, all those sorts of things. His 
body's cut open. You see it in Isaiah 53, by his 
what? By his stripes, we are healed. What does that mean? It means 
the stripes he bore on his body in bearing up the wrath of God 
most high. So when you witness this on that 
day and you saw the Son of God on that cross, you wouldn't think 
peace. That would probably be, you know, 
let's play a word association game. What are you thinking at 
right now? Blood, gore, pain, suffering, criminal. You'd have 
all those word associations. Peace probably wouldn't make 
the top 10. Peace probably wouldn't be a 
concept that you'd be pondering at that particular moment. But 
notice how Paul links reconciliation with reference to the cross having 
made peace through the blood of his cross. And you who once 
were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet 
now he is reconciled in the body of his flesh through death to 
present you holy and blameless and above reproach in his sight. 
If indeed you continue in the faith grounded and steadfast 
and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which you 
heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, 
of which I Paul became a minister. So in conclusion, going back 
to Ephesians chapter two, we stand in awe at the grace and 
the power of God. It is the grace and the power 
of God that has overcome the two strikes that were against 
us, our deadness in our sins and trespasses, our connection 
covenantally to Adam. In Adam, all die. That's why 
Paul says in 2.1, you being dead in your trespasses and sins. 
As a result of you being dead in your trespasses and sins, 
you walk like a worldly. You're subject to the devil. 
You are liable to God's wrath, both in this life and that which 
is to come. And then covenantally, you're 
a Gentile. You were mocked by the circumcision 
as being the uncircumcised. You are outside the body of Israel. You are outsider excluded covenantally 
from the kingdom of God on earth. And yet now in Christ, through 
his blood, he has dealt with your sin problem and he has dealt 
with your alienation. It's no longer the case that 
you're an outsider. Again, the emphasis in verse 
19, now therefore, you're no longer strangers. You're no longer 
foreigners, but you're fellow citizens with the saints and 
members of the household of God. We're gonna get to this passage, 
but just look at what he says here. Having been built on the 
foundation of the apostles and the prophets, Jesus Christ himself 
being the chief cornerstone. May I make a suggestion sometime, 
maybe next Sunday, perhaps, read this brief section before you 
come to church. because this is what's happening 
when you come to church. Look at verse 21. In whom the 
whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple 
in the Lord. What's temple mean? Dwelling. What is the grand promise, the 
grand blessing of God's covenant? I will be your God and you will 
be my people. So in whom the whole building 
being fitted together grows into a holy temple in the Lord, notice, 
in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place 
of God in the Spirit. Don't miss the Trinity. God in 
the Spirit through the mediation of our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, 
this is true of the people of God as the people of God. But 
when we come to corporate worship, it is an expression of this blessed 
reality. We are a dwelling place of God 
in the Spirit. When the church gathers together, 
it's not first and foremost so we can encourage one another. 
That happens, and that's good. But it's first and foremost that 
the church may worship the Lord God Most High in spirit and truth, 
and that the church may function as the dwelling place of God 
in the spirit. That's why when you turn to the 
book of Revelation in chapter 1, where is Jesus? He's in the 
midst of the lampstands. He's present with his bride. 
He's present with his people. The Gentiles were far off. Now 
they've been brought nigh. And being brought nigh means 
that you yourselves are a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. The Bible, one of the grand themes 
of the Bible is temple. Garden of Eden was a temple. Noah's Ark was a temple. Sinai 
was a temple. This is where God dwelt with 
sinners. What is the church? It is the 
culmination of God's plan. The people of God, whether Jew 
or Gentile, are the dwelling place of God in the Spirit. Let 
that fire up what it is for you to come to the church of the 
living God. There's times where the people 
of God don't know that I want to go to church. It's boring. 
It's long. It's hot. Brethren, this is the 
manifestation of God's dwelling in the midst of his people. You 
were brought nigh. You were dead in your trespasses 
and sins. He made you alive together with 
Christ. He has seated you in the heavenly places in Christ. 
by virtue of union with Him. You've died with Him, you've 
been raised with Him, you now reign with Him covenantally and 
in union with Him. And so when we gather together 
for corporate worship, the Lord God Most High is in the midst 
of His people, whether Jew, Gentile, it's affected by that precious 
blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. And that's the emphasis in verse 
13, but now in Christ Jesus, you who once were far off have 
been brought near by the blood of Christ. So for the people 
of God, rejoice in your present status, your present blessing, 
your present possession of what God most high has conveyed. And 
if you're not a believer here this evening, look at the power 
of God. Sometimes people say, well, you 
know, I'm a wretch, and I'm this, and I'm that, and I don't ever 
see me getting saved. Well, God the Lord has great 
power. God the Lord is equipped with 
exceeding riches of grace. God loves, God is merciful, and 
God has purposed and planned to build a massive church that 
no man can number, made up from every tribe, tongue, people, 
and nation. So come to the Father through the Son in the Spirit, 
and you will have everlasting life and the blessedness of being 
brought near. Well, let us pray. Our Father 
in heaven, we thank you for your word. We thank you for what the 
apostle says here concerning the power of God, the grace of 
God, the exceeding riches of His grace. And Lord, we can yea 
and amen everything that we read in this passage, because we are 
those who were dead in our trespasses and sins. We are those who were 
aliens from the the Commonwealth of Israel, strangers to the covenants 
of promise. But now we've been brought near 
through that precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. May this 
indeed humble us, may this indeed magnify your grace, and may it 
indeed evoke from us gratitude and praise and worship. And God 
be glorified in the salvation of sinners by and through our 
Lord Jesus Christ. And it's in his name that we 
pray, amen. We'll close with a brief time 
of meditation.