17 He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. 19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit. (Ephesians 2:17-22)
Peace is the prominent theme in our text today. Peace is not the absence of conflict. And, it is one of the fruits of the Spirit. Jesus Christ, the prince of peace, delivered the message of peace to mankind that brings us into a personal relationship with the Father that can not be undone. He was/is the message of peace. His work on the cross secured the age old desire of God as seen throughout the whole Old Testament scriptures: to make it possible for man to be in harmony with his Maker and with others.
The Greek word used here for "peace" is "eirene," meaning to join or bind together that which had been separated. "Eirene" gives us our English word "serenity." There are two types of peace in the Bible. The first is peace with God, and the second is the peace of God. Of course, we can't have the second without having experienced the first.
The genius of God is that He used the culture of the Greeks to communicate to mankind. Eirene was the goddess of peace. She was one of the three Horai deities of the seasons and keepers of the gates of heaven. In ancient Greece late spring was the traditional campaign season, the time when peace was most at risk.
We "who were far away" were brought near." We were done, separated from life, positioned for damnation. And, God sent His Son to bring us back into the fold. We had wandered from the perfect family, to be introduced to the greatest contrast to have ever been known by mankind: the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan.
Perhaps the greatest statement in the book of Ephesians is found in v.18. It reads, "For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit." The Triune God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, all working together to bring us into the closest possible relationship with God. And, as a result, we are in the position to understand that all of the circumstances of our lives, the good and the bad, comes to us through the hands of our heavenly Father.
This is what God intended our lives to be before sin entered into the world. And, as a result, Paul reminds us in v.19, we "are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household." The contrast is obvious. Foreigners and strangers are the unwelcomed, unwanted, and unloved. This is the cause of most suicides in our world. Yet, through believing in the life and work of the Lord Jesus, we are "fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household."
In v.20, the Apostle reminds us that we are "built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone." This means that the word of God has not only defined God's culture but His culture must define us if we are to be known as the household of God.
In v.21, we are reminded that the whole of the scripture has one theme: the Lord Jesus Christ sustains all things. He is the glue to all things, holding all things together. He lives in us and we live and move by His presence within us.
