Remember: You Were Without God Pt 1

Jonah is one of my favorite accounts in Scripture. It isn’t my favorite because of Jonah’s adventure being swallowed and then vomited out by a big fish (1:17-2:10). It isn’t my favorite because of the great mercy God shows towards Nineveh or His patience with Jonah (although those are reasons enough). I like it because of Jonah’s bad attitude. No, I’m not advocating such behavior. I like it because it is looking in a mirror.

We can read Jonah’s words, “But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. And he prayed to the Lord and said, ‘O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live” (Jonah 4:1-3), and think how ridiculous Jonah is. But that isn’t the end. God appoints a plant to grow as shade for Jonah, and then appoints a worm to attack it. Again, Jonah asks to die. When God asks Jonah if he does well to be angry for the plant, Jonah replies: “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die” (4:9). Jonah sounds like a pouting two-year old, throwing a temper tantrum. Yet, this is often our attitude when we don’t get what we want. Those words may not come out, but they are in our heart.

You may be wondering what Jonah has to do with today’s passage in Ephesians. The reason Jonah was angry is because he was an Israelite sent by God to the Ninevites. The Ninevites whom God relented in His wrath and spared were Gentiles. That was bad enough to an Israelite, but Nineveh was Israel’s enemy, renowned for their cruelty. Jonah’s attitude towards the Ninevites epitomized how Jews felt towards Gentiles.

Now, let’s read today’s text.

11 Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— 12 remember that you were at that time 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. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 15 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, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. 17 And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.[1]

Ephesians 2:11-22 (emphasis added)

Therefore – Paul wants his readers to receive his next words in light of all the indicatives that have come before – blessed with every spiritual blessing, holy and blameless, adopted as sons, redeemed, forgiven, lavished with God’s grace, obtained an inheritance, sealed with the Holy Spirit (vs 1:3-14), knowledge of God, hearts enlightened, knowing our hope, Christ was raised from the dead and seated at the Father’s right hand, far above all rule, authority, power and dominion, all things are under Christ’s feet, the church is Christ’s body (vs 1:15-23), we are made alive, saved, raised up, seated with Christ in the heavenly places, and God’s workmanship created in Christ for good works (vs 2:1-10).

Remember – this is the only imperative in the first half of Paul’s letter, and it follows the long list of who God is, what He has done, and who we are in Christ. Remembering was a repeated command to Israel. “In the Old Testament, the root concept of apostasy was the idea of forgetting.”[2] Paul wants to remind his Gentile readers how blessed they are. They shouldn’t take these blessings for granted but instead, should be grateful. Remembering is a safeguard against arrogance, disobedience, and turning away from God.

Remembering + Gratitude = (results in) obedience or the fruit of righteousness

Paul commands his readers to remember their condition before they came to saving faith and were adopted into God’s family with all the related privileges and blessings. Paul will challenge his readers to remember three things:

1)    They were separated from Christ (vs 11-12)

2)    What God has done for them (vs 13-18)

3)    Who they are in Christ (vs 19-22)

This week and next, we will look at how Gentiles were separated from Christ. In past weeks, we’ve considered the vertical separation our sin caused between us and God. Now, Paul shows us how that vertical separation caused separation in horizontal relationships.

In Chapter 1, we learned God made known to us “the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things to him, things in heaven and things on earth” (vs 1:9-10, emphasis added). Jesus prayed for those that belonged to Him to be one as He and the Father were one (John 17:11, 21-23). Positionally, this is true of believers. We are one in Christ, but functionally, we do not always live as if we are one in Christ.

The primary division in the Ephesian church was between Jews and Gentiles. We touched on the example of Jonah, but throughout Israel’s history, there had been this division. God is the one who set Israel apart to be His chosen people starting with His call to Abram. God not only wanted to bless Israel, but His plan was through Abraham’s descendants (through Isaac and then Jacob) that “all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:3). We know that blessing ultimately came through Jesus’ atonement.

In setting the Jewish people apart for Himself, God had purpose. He wanted Israel to be distinct from those around them, not living and acting like other nations. They weren’t to ever blend in with the other nations. These distinctions were meant to be a witness to other nations of Israel’s Holy God.

In Israel’s history, distinction often resulted in animosity toward Gentiles. From a human standpoint, Israel’s animosity toward Gentiles wasn’t always unfounded. After Joseph died, Egypt enslaved the Israelites. The Assyrians and Babylonians took them captive. In the account of Esther, Haman plotted to annihilate all the Jews. At the time of Jesus and the early church, Rome had conquered Israel. This persecution and oppression hasn’t ceased. During WWII, the Nazis sought to rid the earth of all Jews and succeeded in killing six million and torturing many others. Recently, we have witnessed a resurgence of antisemitism as well as terrorist groups who blatantly state they, like the Nazis, want to rid the world of Jews. October 7, 2023, is a vivid reminder that hatred, persecution, and oppression of the Jews is present and active.

In the early church, the divisions between Jews and Gentiles were still present. Putting oneness or unity into practice was a complete shift in thinking and lifestyle. God showed Peter through a vision that he should not exclude Gentiles from the church (Acts 10). Paul wrote against Judaizers who tried to force Gentile believers to follow Jewish laws to be saved.

It is in this setting Paul addresses the Gentiles in the flesh, called the uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands. Paul was not speaking derogatorily towards the Gentiles although uncircumcised was a derogatory term (David referred to Goliath as an “uncircumcised Philistine,” 1 Samuel 17:20). In fact, Paul is reminding his readers that circumcision is a physical act when he writes that those called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands. Physical circumcision was never what saved Israel. Circumcision of the heart is what God required (Deuteronomy 30:6; Romans 2:29). Physical circumcision represented Israel’s covenant with God, but circumcision of the heart was a sign that one loved God fully having faith in God (Genesis 15:6; Galatians 3:29).

With the use of  the words Gentiles, uncircumcision,  and circumcision, Paul has reminded the Gentiles of their plight before they came to saving faith. He has reminded them of their separation not only from God but also from God’s chosen people, the Jews. He will add to this in verse 12 before he again bathes them in the good news of the Gospel that brings unity in Christ.

Reflection

1)    Remembering + Gratitude = (results in) obedience or the fruit of righteousness – What do you need to remember about your condition before God’s gift of saving grace? How will that gratitude lead you to obedience?

2)    In evangelism, we may witness to others different from us, but we don’t necessarily welcome them into our church. We form cliques at church, only fellowshipping with those that are like us. Or we cause division among Christians both in our own local church and without with our words and actions. In what ways have you contributed to division among other believers? What is at least one specific way you can pursue unity?

3)    How can reflecting God’s character that Jonah acknowledged – gracious, merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love – help bring unity in the church where there is division?

4)    Believers are also set apart for God, to be distinct from the world around them. Are there areas where you have blended in instead of being distinct as a testimony to God?

[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Eph 2:11–22.

[2] Sproul, R.C. Ephesians: An Expositional Commentary. Sanford, Ligonier Ministries, 2023.