Have you ever been excluded from some event you wanted to attend or from some place you wished to go? You were told that you were not welcome there, you didn’t have the right background, you weren’t the right race or nationality, or maybe the people were just being mean and didn’t want you there. Such incidents can be very hurtful and emotionally painful to go through. It is especially devastating if you are seeking after God and someone tells you that you are not welcome, and to leave the building because God does not want “your kind”. Before you think that such a thing would never happen, for centuries it did, as the Gentile people were turned away from coming to the Temple or synagogues to hear about the one true God and His Word. At best they were sometimes allowed to sit outside the synagogue buildings and listen through the windows. Our Scripture today, though, speaks of what God’s plans for the Gentiles are, and how they are no longer outsiders. Let’s read what His Word has to say.
Today’s Scripture is from St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, about half way through the epistle. Paul wrote this letter while he was imprisoned in Rome. He was reflecting on the mission that God had given him, and that was to reveal the “mystery” that the Gentiles are fully included in the Body of Christ (vs. 1-7). All throughout his ministry, Paul was constantly under attack because of his bringing the Word of God to the Gentiles. He was often physically assaulted, frequently run out of town, and even thrown in jail. This particular time Paul was under house arrest in Rome because the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem accused him of defiling the Temple and for teaching that the Gospel was for Gentiles as well as for Jews.
We read three times in this brief passage the word “mystery”. What was this mystery that Paul spoke of here, and which he spoke of many times in his other epistles? It is not some puzzle that a detective needs to figure out, but rather a divine secret once hidden, but now revealed through Christ. The primary one being God’s plan to unite Jews and Gentiles as one people in His Kingdom, the Church, making the Gentiles fellow heirs through faith.
Though hinted at in the past, such as a few mentions in the Book of Isaiah, this mystery was not known in previous ages, but was now revealed to the apostles and prophets by the Holy Spirit. The Gentiles are fellow heirs and are part of the same Body of Christ, and partakers of His promises in the Gospel. They are not second-class citizens, but are fully equal members of Christ’s Body.
God has revealed that the blessings of Abraham should come upon the Gentiles. Along with the Jews, the Gentiles would also be joint heirs and partakers of the promises. Salvation is open for all, and that is through the Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. It isn’t one way for the Jews and another for the Gentiles. Both receive salvation through accepting Jesus as Savior. Believers, whether Jew or Gentile, have access to God through faith in Jesus (vs. 10-12).
The Lord revealed His amazing wisdom to the rulers and powers, both in this world and in the heavenlies (the spiritual realm), through the Church, which is built on the foundation set by the Messiah, Jesus Christ (vs. 10-11). As Paul states at the close of this segment of Scripture, as believers we now have access to God (vs. 12). God is not far away in a remote, inaccessible land. He is omnipresent and approachable, and desires all to come into a relationship with Him.
In closing, we see that God has shown us that both Jews and Gentiles are united in Christ, forming the Church, the Body of Christ. This was God’s eternal plan, not an afterthought. And now we have direct access to God through faith in Jesus Christ. No longer does anyone need to feel left out, to feel like they aren’t wanted, or have to sit on the outside. Whether you are a Gentile or Jewish, no one should ever make you feel like you are an outsider. If we come to God through Jesus Christ we are all fellow heirs and are of the same body. We are all partakers of God’s promises.
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