We live in a deeply divided world. From global politics to family life, from neighbourhoods to nations, something in the human condition makes us group together with people who are like us - and push others away as different or dangerous.
Martin Luther King Jr famously dreamed of a day when “the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down at the table of brotherhood”. Extraordinary words. And progress has been made. But 63 years on, that dream has still not become reality.
Why is it so difficult for us to enjoy unity instead of division? What hope is there for bringing unity to a divided world?
After all, God’s plan is “to unite all things in Christ” (Eph. 1:10).
In Ephesians 2:11–22, Paul turns from our vertical relationship with God (2:1-10) to our horizontal relationships with one another. What does the gospel do about division?
Paul’s answer is clear: real unity will only come through Christ
1. A People at War
Paul begins by reminding the Gentile Christians what they were before Christ. They were “separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world” (Eph. 2:12).
One great division in the ancient world was between Jews and Gentiles. The Jews had God’s Word and promises; the Gentiles did not. There was a huge cultural divide between them — even hostility. And yet these two groups found themselves together in the same church.
How could that possibly work?
2. A People at Peace
“How can peace come?” Paul’s answer is wonderfully simple: it begins with Jesus.
“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ” (Eph. 2:13).
Jesus “is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility” (Eph. 2:14).
The point is that both Jew and Gentile come into God’s family by exactly the same route: the blood of Christ. If entrance into God’s kingdom depended on our performance, nobody would get in. We were all spiritually dead (Eph. 2:1).
If God asked, “Why should you have a place in my family?”, there is only one answer: “I have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”
Religion says DO this, obey that, keep the other, and you’ll be “in”. But Jesus says DONE. He has done everything necessary to reconcile us to God through the cross.
And the cross is the great leveller. Once we realise that we are all saved by sheer grace, we begin to see other Christians differently. Jesus has created “one new man in place of the two, so making peace” (Eph. 2:15).
There is no hierarchy of value in Jesus’ church. We don’t need to compete with one another, defend our patch or compare ourselves with others. And we should expect the church to be wonderfully diverse — people with whom we may have little in common, except the central thing: belonging to Christ.
3. A People with a new Identity
Paul concludes: “You are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God” (Eph. 2:19).
a) A people defined by God
Our nationality, culture and political views may matter, but they must never become our primary identity. If we are Christians, our deepest identity is that we are citizens of God’s kingdom and members of God’s family.
b) A People built by God
Paul says we are “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone” (Eph. 2:20). The church is God’s building project, founded on his Word and centred on Jesus.
c) A People indwelt by God
Then there is perhaps the most extraordinary thing of all: “In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit” (Eph. 2:22).
We are a people who were once at war, but have now been brought into peace. A family of very different people, united in Christ. We are defined, built and indwelt by God.
How precious, therefore, is Jesus’ church.
So rather than simply criticising the church or finding fault with it, let’s love the church despite its faults. Let’s strive for unity, pursue peace and work for holiness in church life.
We are the family of God - church should be a place where ages, cultures, languages and backgrounds mix lovingly and naturally. That’s what family do.
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