Ephesians 2:17-22
He brought this Good News of peace to you Gentiles who were far away from him, and peace to the Jews who were near. Now all of us can come to the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done for us. So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit. Ephesians 2:17-22 (NLT)
My husband and I recently completed a landscape project in our yard. While a landscaper was transforming our front yard, we decided to use the old stone blocks that surrounded our two trees in the front yard around our pine tree that was difficult to mow around. As we began the work, I couldn’t help but compare this yard project with Paul’s project of unification of Jews and Gentiles as one in Christ. We (mostly David the visual/numbers guy) began our yard project by placing our beginning stone (cornerstone) at the lowest point to begin building the rest of the circular ring. We gathered the stones from around the maple tree (Gentiles) and the oak tree (Jews) and stacked them around the tree, building a firm foundation. This process continued (over several days) until the circular ring was complete. When we stepped back to look at the completed project, we noted the stones were joined together, as one, and we couldn’t tell the blocks apart from their original location.
Wow, a hands-on lesson about Christ! He is the firm foundation, the cornerstone of peace and love in the world, wanting all people to be joined together as citizens in God’s kingdom. To live as one in His name!
Questions for Reflection:
- Where do you see Christ’s lesson of “unity as one” in your daily life?
- How can you support others as a citizen in God’s kingdom?
Prayer:
Heavenly Father,
Thank you for sending Christ, our cornerstone, to earth to teach us lessons of love and peace. Help us to continue to strive to be more like you, sharing your message with all citizens in your kingdom here on earth. Amen
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