From Castaways to Citizens: Reconciled by Christ's Blood

The church is not a building that we go to. It's not an event that we attend. The church is a family living life on mission together. Paul's third metaphor would have been vivid for his audience. For nearly one thousand years, the temple had been a focal point of Israel from Solomon to Zerubbabel to Herod. And now, there is a new temple made up of living stones. Us built on the foundation, verse 20 says, of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the chief cornerstone. [01:11:19] (31 seconds)  #LivingStones

Because human beings were never meant to live in isolation. Were made for community. We were made for community first with god and then with others. That's why solitary confinement in prisons is one of the harshest penalties that they can give to those prisoners. We are not meant to be alone, but Chuck Nolan's experience on that island is a picture of the deeper reality of the human condition because the bible teaches us that mankind was created to live in fellowship with God. In the beginning, Adam and Eve had that perfect relationship. They had that perfect connection, that perfect communion. [00:41:24] (39 seconds)  #MadeForCommunity

See, god doesn't just move the fence. He abolishes it. He demolishes it. He knocks it down. I'm a tell what, there may be somebody here this morning, and the lord is speaking to you. You've been living far from god. You're a castaway. You may be in the church. You may know the language. You may know the songs, but deep down in your heart, you know that you have never truly been saved. [01:19:35] (23 seconds)  #FencesAbolished

There is no room for racism in the Christian life. Absolutely not. Absolutely not. We we are one in Christ Jesus. I'm not more important than you. You're not more important than me. But we're all nobody's needing somebody to save us. That's it. And so if you're a believer today and you have a little hint of racism in your heart, ask Jesus to eradicate it because there is no room for it in in in in the kingdom of God at all. We look at the book of revelation. We see that every every tribe, every nation, every tongue is gonna be there. [00:49:18] (33 seconds)  #NoRoomForRacism

Through him, we have access in one spirit to the father. So if somebody says to you, the trinity is not even mentioned in scripture. Yes, it is. I just read it to you. It is. The the this salvation is teamwork. And this is what prayer is all about. Prayer is conversation with the father, through the son, and by the spirit. The ongoing benefit of Christ reconciliation is that we have access to God. [01:07:40] (24 seconds)  #AccessToGodThroughChrist

So before Paul tells us to live as God's people, he calls us to remember who we were apart from Christ because we cannot fully appreciate the beauty of our reconciliation until we first face the reality of our separation. Paul begins by taking us back to the dark ages so that grace will shine even brighter. He tells us first to remember your alienation. [00:46:22] (25 seconds)  #RememberYourAlienation

the structure of Ephesians, and I don't think I mentioned this when we first started this, but chapters one through three talk about doctrine, and then chapters four through six talk about duty. Okay? Doctrine in that what God has done for us, and duty in how we should live. So so Paul tells us our position, and then he tells us our practice. Okay? He tells us who we are. He he sets our identity for us, and then he tells us what we're to do with what he's just told us. [00:45:48] (35 seconds)  #DoctrineAndDuty

God tells Jonah, go to Nineveh, and he goes to the opposite. He goes as far as he can in the opposite direction. He said, uh-uh. No, God. Now you can't be a follower of god and put those two words together. No lord. That's what Peter said. And the lord rebuked him. If he's your lord, you say, yes, lord. You don't have to like it, but you need to do it. [00:50:39] (21 seconds)  #ObeyEvenWhenHard