High-Stepping in Heavenly Places

Extreme Makeover-Home Edition Lesson Five

In the opening verses of chapter two in the Book of Ephesians, Paul reminded us of the lost
condition of all humanity and God’s grace gift of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God
(Eph. 2:8). Having established the universality of the sinfulness of mankind and God’s plan of
redemption in Christ, Paul turned his attention to God’s dwelling place with Jesus as the Chief
Cornerstone.

I. Redemption-Ephesians 2:11-13
Most of God’s program in the Old Testament centered on the Jews. Beginning with Abram (later
called Abraham), God called the Jews unto Himself. God intended for Israel to be a light unto
the Gentile nations, revealing the one true God to the whole world.

Gentiles were natural-born aliens and had no part in the great covenantal promises God had
made to Abram and his descendants Gentiles were cut off from these covenantal blessings,
separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants
of promise, having no hope and without God in the world (Eph. 2:12). The only way a Gentile
could partake of the spiritual blessings and covenant benefits of Israel was to become a Jewish
proselyte.

Unfortunately, God’s favored relationship with Israel caused the Jews to develop prejudice
against the Gentiles. Rather than seeking to reconcile Gentiles with the God of Abraham, Isaac,
and Jacob, the Jews cultivated spiritual prejudice. The Jews (called the Circumcision) held the
Gentiles (called the Uncircumcision) in contempt, regarding them as unclean scavenger dogs.
The Gentiles despised the Jews and viewed them as pretentious religious hypocrites.

Calvary and Pentecost brought a great dispensational change, abolishing the fundamental
difference between Gentiles and Jews. Gentiles are brought into a covenant relationship with the
God of Israel, not by becoming proselytes to Judaism, but by putting their faith in Christ. The
same is now true for all, Jew or Gentile-whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved
(Rom. 10:13). In the church age there is no difference between Jew and Gentile. The only
distinction now lies in LOST or SAVED. Now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off
have been brought near by the blood of Christ (Eph. 2:13). Christ redeemed us.

Ephesians Fall 2009

 High-Stepping in Heavenly Places
II. Reconciliation-Ephesians 2:14-18
In Christ, all barriers had been removed. Christ had made both groups into one, and (broken)
down the barrier of the dividing wall (Eph. 2:14). In the Jewish temple, there literally was a wall,
a stone palisade about 4.5 feet high, separating the Court of the Gentiles with the rest of the
temple areas. Death awaited any Gentile who would dare to cross that wall. Prejudice and a stone
partisan separated Jews and Gentiles under the old covenant.

Through His shed blood and finished work on the Cross, Christ destroyed the division between
Jews and Gentiles. This was radical thinking to the new converts. For centuries, the Jews had
been totally different from the Gentiles in religion, dress, diet, and the keeping of the law. In the
early church, many Jewish believers felt the church was merely an extension of Israel. They
insisted the Gentile Christians be required to be circumcised. Since the days of Abraham,
circumcision had served as a covenant sign of the unique relationship that exited between God
and the Israelites. This misunderstanding of the finished work of Christ on the cross led to much
debate in the early church. The church is not an extension of Israel. The church age was ushered
in on the day of Pentecost. Christ is the head over all things to the church, which is His body, the
fullness of Him who fills all in all (Eph. 1:23). The church is the redeemed body of Christ.

Paul wrote, And He came and preached peace to you who were far away (that it the Gentiles)
and peace to those who were near (the Jews); for through Him we both have our access in one
Spirit to the Father (Eph. 2:17-18-parenthesis mine).Christ reconciled all believers and placed us
in one body to God through the cross (Eph. 2:16). In Christ there is no distinction between Greek
and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is
all, and in all (Col. 3:11). Christ redeemed us. Chris reconciled us.

III. Restoration-Ephesians 2:19-22

In Christ we are been restored. We are a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17) in Christ, having been built
upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone
(Eph. 2:20). Prior to our conversion we were dead, but now in Christ we have been made alive.
In 1 Peter 2:5 the Bibles says, You also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house
for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
God is building Himself a holy habitation, an earthly dwelling place with Christ as the
cornerstone.

We were dead in trespasses and sins but we have been made alive by faith in the Lord Jesus
Christ. At the moment of conversion we were placed into the body of Christ, in whom there is no
distinction racially, socially, ethnically or culturally. With Christ as our Chief Cornerstone, we
are being built into a temple of praise and worship to our great God and Savior.

Man’s sin gave God the opportunity to display a side of His character that creation alone could
never do. Creation displays His wisdom and His power, but redemption demonstrates His
holiness, His mercy, and His exceedingly abundant grace. All of creation will glorify God as He
displays the Church, His trophy of grace for all eternity!

In Christ we are redeemed, reconciled and restored. Indeed, in Christ we are High Stepping in
Heavenly Places. Hallelujah! What a Savior!

Ephesians Fall 2009