Ephesians 2

So I've been reading in Ephesians and kinda breaking down each verse into truths for my life. This is good for me, but also a bit time consuming because it means that I have to think about each verse pretty in depth and try to pull out any nuggets of wisdom that I should treasure. Again... this is good. But its not exactly congruent with my fleshly nature which would rather rush through and check Ephesians off my list of to-do's. That much being said, when I've taken the time to sit down and think about these things, its been really lovely the insights and encouragement that God has revealed.
Anyway, just wanted to share some things from Chapter 2.

1. Verse 14-18 "For He Himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in His flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which He put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit." -- Okay, this is going to be long. A). Let me start by saying, since I am sure that the included picture makes absolutely no sense to you right now, that I really, really want a tattoo on my wrist. I have one picked out and know exactly what and why I want it. However... I am trying this new thing where I honor my parents (I know, weird right?) and my dad had encouraged me a while back to not get tattoos, so until his ban is lifted I feel a bit constrained by my personal promise to try and honor him. That much being said... the tattoo that I want is the word "emirembe" on my wrist. "Emirembe" means "my peace" in Luganda. This has multiple different meanings for me (which I could do another post on at some point in time), but one of the main one's is that Christ is my peace. For this reason I love this verse. B). I love the part that it brings out about Christ uniting those of us who wouldn't normally get along, but under the covenant of His blood we are drawn together and united as one body. I feel like this really speaks to me too. As I am sure I have said a million times now, I am getting ready to try and go to Uganda for an extended time. One of the big issues that I run into there is of course the issue of my skin color being different. Of course its strange being a minority group, but there's also a natural prejudice against Americans because of their tendency to come in and take advantage of local people groups or to consider them less educated than themselves. One of the most beautiful experiences has been the conversations that I've been able to have with people when they said they realized that I was just like them. It was freeing for both of us to realize that we are brothers and sisters regardless of whatever external differences or alternate upbringings we bring with us to the table. But of course this is also true for people in the good 'ol U.S. too. I don't know how many times I have realized that some of the dearest friends of mine, or roommates, or people in my housechurch I wouldn't know at all if it weren't for Christ. And if I had known them apart from Christ... we definitely wouldn't have been friends! This is the beauty of what Christ does in our lives. He is continually drawing us together as His church and in reconciling both of us to Himself, He ends up putting to death our natural hostility towards one another. I believe this is also true of painful relationships from the past. In my own life, and in the lives of several godly women that I know, He's been working for restoration and complete peace between them and their former significant other in ways that are completely glorifying to Himself and enable them to release their emotional baggage at the foot of the cross and to walk together in pursuit of the Christ and the gospel. Its a beautiful display of His lavish grace and its effects when we allow it into our lives.

2. Verse 19-22 "Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In Him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit."  -- A). Of course, everything goes back to Africa, right? Glad you figured that out about me! Guess you'll just have to deal with it though, as I don't see this changing anytime soon! That much being said... Of course foreigners and aliens struck a chord in my soul. Like I said, I've felt what it was like to be completely out of my element, surrounded by people who look and dress differently than me, who speak a different language, and who have completely different social norms which I may be violating at any given moment completely unbeknownst to me! But what a powerful illustration, that we are now not only fellow citizens and given all rights belonging to the citizens of God's people, but more than that, we are ushered into and adopted into the family, and given all rights of being part of the HOUSEHOLD of God. I know I know this concept, but somehow today it just struck me as being especially powerful. That God would freely incorporate us not just with legality, but also with warmth of affection as part of the family somehow just made so much sense today. Maybe it was just one of those days that I felt wrapped in His fathering embrace. B). Also, the moment that I thought about construction I thought of construction in Africa. I don't know if you can see the extreme sketchiness of this building situation clearly in this picture, but its crazy. There are literally a bunch of sticks supporting the concrete molds as they build up from the ground. Where you ask are the external, load bearing walls? That's what I want to know as well. Add to that the fact that the basement in the foreground was filled with easily a foot of standing water in a country that has a rainy season... Please note the fun little ramp made of brittle sticks for hauling construction supplies up to the next level. That much being said... this is exactly what I thought of when I read this passage. I guess something about the extreme improbability of it ever holding together reminded me of the work that Christ does in our lives and in our community of believers.

It shouldn't work; it should crumble in the first rain or strong wind. But Christ is our cornerstone and the giants of the faith that have gone before us are our foundation. And tens times better than that is the fact that not only is Christ that one stone that the whole thing is supported from, but He's also the mortar in between each and every chink of our lives holding us up and sticking us to each other. Through Him the whole building is joined together and rises... layer by sketchy layer... to become a dwelling place of God, and a holy temple dedicated to the Lord. And folks, that's pretty darn beautiful too...