Ephesians 2:11-13 - Without Christ and Without God

Paul talks about some definite things that have brought these twogroups together who usually were at odds with one another. In the first versesof this chapter Paul is addressing both the Jews and the Gentiles. Paul tells bothJews and Gentiles that God has made alive those who were dead in trespasses andsins. Remember that a Gentile is anyone who is not born of Jewish descent. Paulreminds them and us how before salvation in Christ we are all dead in ourtrespasses and sins because sin works against us. We're disobedient. We'redepraved, and we're doomed, and we are children of wrath. But God, but God whois rich in His mercy with a great love that He's loved us. And with that loveHe has now brought us salvation and reconciliation and redemption by His graceand through our faith in Christ (vv. 4-9). God has a plan for our life and weare His workmanship, land He has before ordained before the foundation of theworld that we should walk in these wonderful works of God, the good works thatonly He can do through us and let the light of Christ shine out of us andthrough us to a dark world. Nowwe come to verse 11. Here Paul is particularly addressing theGentiles, those who are not of Jewish descent. First, He reminds them, you'recalled uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision (the Jews) made in theflesh by the hand. The Jews look down upon the Gentiles, calling them the uncircumcision.The Gentiles were like dogs in many cases for most of the Jewish people.  Inverse 12 Paul points out that the Gentiles were without Christ being aliensfrom the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenant of promisehaving no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you whowere once a far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. The one wordthat best describes the Gentiles is without. They were “outside” in severalrespects. They were without Christ. They're without citizenship in the nationof Israel without the covenants. The covenants were given to Abraham and to hisseed.  BothJews and Gentiles were without hope. Historians tell us that a great cloud ofhopelessness covered the ancient world. Philosophies were empty; traditionswere disappearing; religions were powerless to help men face either life ordeath. People longed to pierce the veil and get some message of hope from theother side, but there was none (1 Thes. 4:13-18). Theywere without God. The heathen had gods aplenty, as Paul discovered in Athens(Acts 17:16-23). But the pagan, no matter how religious or moral he might have been,did not know the true God. The writer of Psalm 115 contrasted the true God withthe idols of the heathen. Itis worth noting that the spiritual plight of the Gentiles was caused not by Godbut by their own willful sin. Paul said the Gentiles knew the true God butdeliberately refused to honor Him (Rom. 1:18-23). Religious history is not arecord of man starting with many gods (idolatry) and gradually discovering theone true God. Rather, it is the sad story of man knowing the truth about Godand deliberately turning away from it! It is a story of devolution, notevolution! The first eleven chapters of Genesis give the story of the declineof the Gentiles; and from Genesis 12 on (the call of Abraham), it is the storyof the Jews. God separated the Jews from the Gentiles that He might be able tosave the Gentiles also. "Salvation is of the Jews" (John 4:22). Godcalled the Jews, beginning with Abraham, that through them He might revealHimself as the one true God. With the Jews He deposited His Word, and throughthe Jews He gave the world the Savior (Rom. 9:1-5). Israel was to be a light tothe Gentiles that they too might be saved. But sad to say, Israel became likethe Gentiles, and the light burned but dimly. This fact is a warning to thechurch today. When the church is least like the world, it does the most for theworld.