In this week’s study of Ephesians, we look at Ephesians 2:11-22. In this text, we’re looking at walls of hostility. As you know, I share my notes from the teaching here on the blog. In the first few lines of this text, Paul is focusing on the Gentiles who were:
- Alienated from God and thus without hope
- Alienated from the Jews, God’s chosen people
- The Greek word is apallotrioo meaning estrange or alienate
- In the NT this word only occurs twice in Ephesians and once in Colossians
But Paul’s purpose is to focus on a solution to this alienation – to offer peace – and Christ is our peace. He gives us and is:
Power
Extravagant grace
Affirmed as Christ’s own
Cross
Eternal
Now I want to look at the difference between a peacekeeper and a peacemaker (there is a difference)… Jesus is not a peacekeeper but a peacemaker.
Peacekeeper
- Act as though it never happened (underneath you are angry)
- Seek to resolve with half-truths or untruths to resolve conflict
- Peace keeper’s goal is peace at all costs (which is a lie because there is a cost)
Peacemaker
- Bring truth into the light for the purpose of resolution
- Desire to love the person as Christ loves us
- Own your part in the conflict and forgive the other person
Jesus came to bring us peace – it is not the peace of the world. Now isn’t that great news?
