Transformer - 03/08/2015

Status of Gentiles Who Are in Christ

In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, he wants the Gentiles to understand their status with God. He wants them to understand that if they are “in Christ Jesus” they have a different status than when they were not “in Christ Jesus.”

The “Gentiles in the flesh” (Ephesians 2:11) were those whom the “Circumcision” called the “Uncircumcision.” Gentile was the name the Jews gave to those who were not Jews by nationality. This included a very large part of the world’s population, as well as some of the church members who were in Ephesus.

Paul points out that these people, the Gentiles, formerly were separated “from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise” (2:12). This was their status before they became a Christian. This was their status under the Law of Moses. They were considered to be those “far off” but now that they have become a Christian, they “have been [brought] near” (2:13). As Christians they “are no longer strangers and aliens, but [they] are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household” (2:19).

How did this happen? When did it happen? Paul does not leave us to speculate. He tells us that the “barrier of the dividing wall” that separated the Jews and the Gentiles was broken down by Jesus Himself. The enmity which was between the Jews and the Gentiles was abolished in the flesh of Jesus (2:15), namely by the shedding of His blood (2:13). The Gentiles are now reconciled with the Jews “in one body (the church; cf. Ephesians 1:22,23) to God through the cross” (2:16). By this activity on the cross, Jesus “put to death the enmity” (2:16) that was between the Jews and the Gentiles. Now these Gentiles have “access in one Spirit to the Father” (2:18).

This was only possible because with the death of Jesus and the coming of a new law. The Law of Moses, which was what excluded the Gentiles, was taken “out of the way” (Colossians 2:14). Jesus nailed that old law to the cross thus cancelling “out the certificate of debt [that consisted] of decrees against [them] and which was hostile to [them]” (ibid).

When the Gentiles were “buried with [Christ] in baptism” (Colossians 2:12), they were “circumcised with a circumcision made without hands … by the circumcision of Christ” (2:11). After their baptism they were no longer “dead in [their] transgressions” but Jesus had made them “alive together with Him, having forgiven [them] all of [their] transgressions” (2:13).

If the Gentiles became one of the “circumcised” by baptism, then there had to be a change from the Law of Moses, for the Law of Moses spoke nothing about becoming “circumcised” by being baptized. The Law of Moses said that a male child who was eight days old was to be circumcised, which was done “with hands.”

The writer to the Hebrews speaks of the “first covenant” and a “new covenant” (Hebrews chapter 8). He says that if there is to be a “new covenant” then God “has made the first obsolete” (8:13). The writer goes on to say, “whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear” (ibid).

If the Law of Moses is still in effect, then the status of the Gentiles is the same as it was in the days of Joshua, Samuel, David, Isaiah, Jeremiah and others. The Gentiles are still “far off.”

Unless we can definitely say that we are of the descendant of Abraham through Isaac, then we are Gentiles. All of the things which Paul said of the Gentiles of his day would apply to us today. However, if the Law of Moses, has been done away with, if it has been abolished, if it has been nailed to the cross and taken out of the way, then we can become one of God’s people. We can be of His household. We can have our sins forgiven. We can be made alive; we can have a new life.

Let us be thankful of the status we have “in Christ Jesus”! - cgm

Thinking on the Word...

The Church Should Be Free of Leaven - 1 Corinthians 5:6-8

One of the reasons why the local church cannot tolerate sin within its membership is because they cannot have the “old leaven” among them. Paul is using the Passover meal and feast as a metaphor to explain to the Corinthians why this brother who “has his father’s wife” should be removed from their midst.

When the Israelites were about to observe the Passover, they would clear their house of all leaven. For the day of the Passover meal, as well as the next seven days, there was to be no leaven in the house.

Using this Old Testament commandment to draw a parallel to how a group of Christians are to behave, Paul says they are not to have anyone within their midst that will cause the “the whole lump of dough” (v. 6) to become leavened. They are a “new lump.” They are “unleavened” because Christ has become their “Passover.”

Jesus, who sacrificed Himself for the benefit of every person in the world, became the “lamb” that was slain. When Christians come together to “celebrate the feast” there is not to be any “leaven” of sinful behavior within their membership. They are not to be celebrating this feast with “malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth” (v. 8).

By removing this brother from their midst, the group now will be in a position to worship God. They will be in a position to observe the feast together as God would have them do. God can be in their midst, because the “leaven” has been cast out.

Keeping the local church clean from any type of wickedness is very important. Every member of the congregation comes from a background of sin. Every member has been forgiven of their past sins. As a group, each member should be helping other members to be clean of any sins in their life. They should be helping their fellow-members to purge the “leaven” that is in their life so that they can be pure and “celebrate the feast.”

Our attitude should not be boastful but helpful. We need to consider ourselves first, but we also need to be looking out for the group as a whole. The group needs to be free of “leaven.” - cgm

Words of Wisdom

“Good understanding produces favor, but the way of the treacherous is hard.” - Proverbs 13:15

How do you react to a person who has “good understanding” versus a person who is cheating you or betraying your trust? We often react with favor to those who have good sense about them and know how to handle different situations. We tend to make things hard for those who are deceptive or untrustworthy.

The person who has good judgment about him often wins the favor of those who are around him. This type of person makes people feel comfortable when they are around him. People want to do good things for this type of person. They are willing to follow his leadership.

The person who is always betraying ones’ confidence usually has a hard way to go in life. Those who are unfaithful to their friends often find themselves headed for destruction. Those who live a dangerous life are on the pathway for their own ruin.

What is interesting is this type of person usually does not understand why life is so hard. They cannot understand why everything they do turns out wrong. Why they are always getting into trouble. A lot of the time they have concluded that their life was just not meant to be easy. They are destined to live the hard life.

If they would only do the right thing, then their life would be much easier. If they could learn to use “good judgment” in how they deal with life’s situations and with people, then their life would be different. Maybe one of the underlying reasons why they are the way they are is because they want to be different. This may be for a lot of reasons, but sometimes it is simply because they want to be unique, therefore they do things which are odd and hit people the wrong way.

We do not have to be “yes” people in order to gain favor. We do not have to be people who are “doormats” so people will like us. We do have to be people with good sense and good understanding if we are to gain the favor of those around us. - cgm