And the Wall Came Down

A Verse, A Comment, A Prayer, A Blessing

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And the Wall Came Down

A Verse, A Comment, A Prayer, A Blessing (8/4/2022)

Casey B. Hough

Aug 04, 2022

A Verse

Ephesians 2:13-18

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.

A Comment

The dividing wall was brought down through Jesus’ fulfillment of the law of Moses. Jesus is now the once and for all sacrifice that pleases God and grants people access to the Father. There is no longer a need for the sacrificial system of the Mosaic Law. Christ has abolished it by His own blood. Furthermore, there is no longer a need for ritual circumcision that only pertains to the flesh because Jesus has come to circumcise the heart. Circumcision of the flesh only dealt with outward realities, but Jesus’ work deals with our heart.

As for the need for commandments, Paul is not saying that Christians are no longer in need of law. The last half of the book of Ephesians is full of commandments. No, Paul is not teaching that Jesus came to bring lawlessness, but rather, that Jesus came to rescue us from the curse of the law, reconcile us to God and to others, and teach us the true intention of God’s law. The law was not intended to give life, but rather, to expose our need for God’s grace and mercy. And when the law functions properly in this manner, we see that our only hope is in Jesus, the One who reconciled us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.

And according to verse 17, all people, Jew and Gentile alike, needed to hear of God’s reconciling work in Christ. Both groups heard the message of Jesus as our peace! And this peace, according to verse 18, means that we have access through the Spirit to God the Father. What a blessing!