Ephesians 2:19-22

Here’s another section of Ephesians for you all. And I know there is a “you all!” Hope you find this encouraging.

INTO
Paul is writing to the Ephesian church in the first half of his letter about theology.

THROUGH
Paul continues in verse 19 by reiterating that no believer can be a stranger to God or the rest of the saints; Christ has closed that gap. We are all now resting on the same foundation, that is the Word of God (the things communicated to us by the apostles and prophets) and the Word made flesh (i.e. Jesus Christ) (v.20). He then goes to explain how, because of Christ, we can grow into a holy union of believers, creating a pure dwelling place for God (vv.21-22).

BEYOND
I’ve recently felt this really strange desire to treat all believers like family. Actually, while I was on a missions trip to Orange County just this last summer a man asked me at the park if I was a Christian. There was some small talk before that, of course, to introduce the conversation, but naturally I said yes. He then introduced himself as my brother, and pointed to his friend who was with him and introduced him as my brother too. It was a little weird, but kind of cool at the same time to be able to have that bond in Christ. We proceeded to play football, which I’m not exactly proficient at (it was 2 on 1 no sneak), so basically I made an excuse to get out of that as soon as possible. The point is this: all believers are in the fight against evil together, so we don’t have to be strangers to each other, just like verse 19 says.

Verses 20 through 22 talk about the construction of a dwelling place for God out of the body of believers, which is based on the foundation of the Word and Jesus, with Christ as the cornerstone. Often times we think of the church as a building, but if it is a building, that building isn’t physical (v.22 says it is “in the Spirit”). We as a church are growing, it says, into a holy temple, so that we can be proper dwelling places for God Almighty, who lives in our hearts. This can be not only encouraging, but especially convicting if I have sin in my life. How can I be righteous and ungodly at the same time, or holy and impure? I can’t, these terms are mutually exclusive. Knowing this, I am encouraged to continually repent of sin that pops up in my life, so I can participate in this growth that God is working in the church.