Ephesians 2:11
Therefore
remember, that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called
"Uncircumcision" by the so-called "Circumcision," which is performed in
the flesh by human hands--
2:12
remember that you
were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of
Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and
without God in the world.
Ephesians 2:11
How does Paul begin this section?
Therefore - a
term of conclusion
which causes the careful observer of the Scriptures to asks "What leads up
to this conclusion?" Although commentators debate the specifics, the
immediate context would be Ephesians 2:1-10, describing the former dead
spiritual state of the Gentiles and then God in mercy making them alive in
Christ, all a work of grace.
Ephesians 2:11
Who is Paul addressing? What does
Paul want his readers to do? Why?
Paul is speaking to
Gentiles and charges them to
remember (keep on
continually remembering =
present imperative)
their former spiritually dead condition (in Adam and outside of Christ),
God's salvation by grace through faith and God's giving them purpose in
this life as His workmanship in Christ Jesus.
Remembering these
things should create in believers an attitude of gratitude and of humility
regarding what God has done for us.
As those who have
been redeemed, we are prone to forget what God has accomplished for us
(See Ephesians 1:3-14).
Ephesians 2:11
How were the Gentiles described?
Gentiles were
described by Jews ("Circumcision", which is performed in the flesh
by human hands" - to indicate that he is not referring to a "spiritual
circumcision" of their heart by the Spirit) with the derogatory term "Uncircumcision".
Ephesians 2:11
What was the past
relationship of the Gentiles to God?
1) Separate from Christ -
Christ is the Greek word for Messiah
Comment: "Separated from
Christ" does not refer to the fact that Gentiles were not saved (which
they of course were not) but that they had no exposure to Christ as did
the Jews throughout their history. Remember that the term Christ is
synonymous with Messiah (John recording "He found first his own
brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" which
translated means Christ." John 1:41).
Paul's point is that the Jews had this
Messianic hope and expectation, even though most did not receive Him. The
Gentiles by contrast had no exposure to the Messianic prophecies and
promises and thus had no expectation or hope of a Messiah to redeem them
from their state of death and enslavement to
Sin
and Satan.
2) Excluded from
the commonwealth of Israel -
3) Strangers to the covenants of
promise -
4) Having no hope -
5) Without God in the world -
Have ever felt separate, excluded,
without hope, without God?
Excursus on
Covenants of Promise
(1) Abrahamic Covenant
Genesis 12:1-3
1 Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go forth
from your country, And from your relatives And from your father's house,
To the land which I will show you;
2 And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your
name great; And so you shall be a blessing;
3 And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will
curse. And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed."
Genesis 12:1-3: What did God
promise Abraham?
God promised to
· bless Abram
· make his name great
· bless those who blessed Abram
· curse those who cursed him
· in Abram all families of the earth would be blessed
Age 75 (Ge 12:4) (Sarai =
65).God told him He would make Abe a father of many nations.
Ge 15
Age 86 (Ge 16:16) Abe went into Hagar producing Ishmael,
Age 99 (Ge 17:1, 17:17) In Ge12:3 God preached the gospel to
Abraham (Gal 3:8), and not only would the Jews find salvation but so would
the Gentiles. The seed that God promised was in fact Jesus Christ,
[Ga3:16]
Genesis 15:1-18
After these things the word of the LORD
came to Abram in a vision, saying, "Do not fear, Abram, I am a shield to
you; Your reward shall be very great." 2 And Abram said, "O Lord GOD, what
wilt Thou give me, since I am childless, and the heir of my house is
Eliezer of Damascus?" 3 And Abram said, "Since Thou hast given no
offspring to me, one born in my house is my heir." 4 Then behold, the word
of the LORD came to him, saying, "This man will not be your heir; but one
who shall come forth from your own body, he shall be your heir." 5 And He
took him outside and said, "Now look toward the heavens, and count the
stars, if you are able to count them." And He said to him, "So shall your
descendants be." 6 Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him
as righteousness. 7 And He said to him, "I am the LORD who brought you out
of Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to possess it." 8 And
he said, "O Lord GOD, how may I know that I shall possess it?" 9 So He
said to him, "Bring Me a three year old heifer, and a three year old
female goat, and a three year old ram, and a turtledove, and a young
pigeon." 10 Then he brought all these to Him and cut them in two, and laid
each half opposite the other; but he did not cut the birds. 11 And the
birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, and Abram drove them away. 12
Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold,
terror and great darkness fell upon him. 13 And God said to Abram, "Know
for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not
theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years. 14
"But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve; and afterward they
will come out with many possessions. 15 "And as for you, you shall go to
your fathers in peace; you shall be buried at a good old age. 16 "Then in
the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the
Amorite is not yet complete." 17 And it came about when the sun had set,
that it was very dark, and behold, there appeared a smoking oven and a
flaming torch which passed between these pieces. 18 On that day the LORD
made a covenant with Abram, saying, "To your descendants I have given this
land, From the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river
Euphrates:
Genesis 15:1-18: What was
"problem", God's promise and Abraham's response? What was God's response?
Abram was childless, but God
promised a son from his own body.
He believed the Lord and was counted
righteous.
Abraham was declared righteous or
saved by faith not works.
On that day, the Lord made a
covenant with him and his descendants to give them the land after they
came from Egypt.
Galatians 3:5-9,
16
Does He then, who provides you with the
Spirit and works miracles among you, do it by the works of the Law, or by
hearing with faith? 6 Even so Abraham BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO
HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS. 7 Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of
faith who are sons of Abraham. 8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God
would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to
Abraham, saying, "ALL THE NATIONS SHALL BE BLESSED IN YOU." 9 So then
those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer....16 Now
the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, "And
to seeds," as referring to many, but rather to one, "And to your seed,"
that is, Christ.
Galatians 3:5-9, 16: What did
Abraham believe according to Paul?
Abraham believed the Gospel (Gal
3:8)
He believed the promise regarding
his seed, Christ (Gal 3:16)
Comment: And although we do not
fully comprehend the specific facts Abraham was aware of concerning
Messiah, we see that in Genesis 15:6 Abraham believed the good news and
ultimately believed in the
Seed that would could from
his line. He was looking forward to the Cross in faith. Believers today
look back to the Cross in faith. Salvation in both the Old and New
Testaments has always been by faith alone, in Christ alone. Abram was
childless, but God promised a son of faith from his own body. He believed
the Lord and was counted righteous. Abraham was declared righteous or
saved by faith not works
Genesis 17:1-14
1 Now when Abram was ninety-nine
years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, "I am God Almighty;
Walk before Me, and be blameless.
2 "And I will establish My covenant between Me and you, And I will
multiply you exceedingly."
3 And Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying,
4 "As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, And you shall be the father
of a multitude of nations.
5 "No longer shall your name be called Abram, But your name shall be
Abraham; For I will make you the father of a multitude of nations.
6 "And I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of
you, and kings shall come forth from you.
7 "And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your
descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting
covenant, to be God to you and to your descendants after you.
8 "And I will give to you and to your descendants after you, the land of
your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession;
and I will be their God."
9 God said further to Abraham, "Now as
for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you
throughout their generations. 10 "This is My covenant, which you shall
keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: every male among
you shall be circumcised. 11 And you shall be circumcised in the flesh of
your foreskin; and it shall be the sign of the covenant between Me and
you. 12 And every male among you who is eight days old shall be
circumcised throughout your generations, a servant who is born in the
house or who is bought with money from any foreigner, who is not of your
descendants. 13 A servant who is born in your house or who is bought with
your money shall surely be circumcised; thus shall My covenant be in your
flesh for an everlasting covenant. 14 But an uncircumcised male who is not
circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off
from his people; he has broken My covenant."
Genesis 17:1-14: What fact did God
add about His covenant with Abraham? What did He instruct Abraham to do?
The Abrahamic Covenant is
everlasting.
Instructed him to
circumcise all male offspring = sign of the covenant
Genesis 17:7-8: What did God
promise?
God promised that He would be their
God, and they would be His people.
Circumcision
was the sign of this “Abrahamic” Covenant. Circumcision was to serve
as an outward sign of inward dedication to God. In itself, it was neither
efficacious, nor unique to Israel. Circumcision thereby became the
physical demonstration (sign) of the obedient faith of Abram and his
descendants. The Jews perverted the meaning, making the sign in essence
the "end". In other words they bypassed the need for internal circumcision
of the heart by the Spirit and placed their faith in the externals. Not
only that, but they became proud of their "covenant sign" and looked down
on Gentiles using the derogatory term "Uncircumcision" to refer to them.
Constable has
an interesting note
The references to the “covenant” in
this chapter have caused some confusion. The Abrahamic Covenant (ch. 15)
is in view (vv. 4, 7, 11, 19, 21) but also the outward sign of that
covenant that was the covenant of circumcision (vv. 2, 9, 10, 13,
14). Thus Moses used the word “covenant” with two different references
here. Whereas the Abrahamic Covenant was unconditional, the covenant
of circumcision depended on Abram’s obedience (vv. 1–2).
Paul explained that
Abraham...
"received the sign of circumcision, a
seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while
uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all who believe without
being circumcised, that righteousness might be reckoned to them" (Ro 4:11)
(Comment: Believers have a "seal", the Holy Spirit.)
(2) The
New
Covenant
Jeremiah 31:31-34
"Behold, days are coming," declares the
LORD, "when I will make a new covenant
with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32 not like the
covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the
hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke,
although I was a husband to them," declares the LORD. 33 "But this is the covenant
which I will make with the house of Israel
after those days," declares the
LORD, "I will put My law within them, and on their heart I will write it;
and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 And they shall
not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying,
'Know the LORD,' for they shall all know Me, from the least of them to the
greatest of them," declares the LORD, "for I will forgive their iniquity,
and their sin I will remember no more."
Jeremiah 31:31-34: What did God
promise and to whom did He give the promise?
God offered the covenant to Israel and
Judah
Promises included...
Putting His Law within
Be their God
Be His people
They shall all know Him
Forgive their iniquity
Remember their sin no more
Note: The New Covenant not given
to the "Church" as is commonly misunderstood
Ezekiel 36:26-27
"Moreover, I will give you a new heart
and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from
your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 "And I will put My Spirit
within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful
to observe My ordinances.
Ezekiel 36:26-27: What promises
does Ezekiel add regarding the New Covenant?
New heart and spirit
Remove heart of stone and give heart
of flesh
Put the Spirit within - cause
you to walk in My statutes (God's part) and you will be careful to observe
My ordinances (Man's part)
NOTE: Although the name
"New Covenant" is not found in Ezekiel's prophecy, but
comparing Scripture with Scripture indicates this
prophecy describes the new covenant.
Luke 22:14, 19-20
And when the hour had come He reclined
at the table, and the apostles with Him...19 And when He had taken some
bread and given thanks, He broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is
My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me." 20 And in
the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup which
is poured out for you is the
new covenant in My blood.
Luke 22:14, 19-20 How was the New
Covenant fulfilled?
At the last supper, the Passover,
the night before He was crucified, He symbolically inaugurated the New
Covenant.
Jesus’ body was the offering which
is the fulfillment of this New Covenant. His blood was the blood of this
covenant.
NOTE: At the "Last Supper"
(the Passover) Jesus shared with His disciples, He explained to
them that what they were about to partake of was symbolic of His coming
sacrifice on the Cross. When Jesus offered His body as the perfect sin
offering, the New Covenant was inaugurated, His blood
representing the blood of the New Covenant. Remembering that this
covenant was initially offered to Jews in the OT and was inaugurated in
the presence of Jesus' Jewish disciples, we begin to understand the
import of the declaration that they Gentiles were "strangers to the
covenants of promise."
(3) The
Davidic
Covenant
2 Samuel 7:12-13,16
"When your days are complete and you
lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you,
who will come forth from you, and
I will establish his kingdom (fulfilled first in Solomon but ultimately
fulfilled in the Messiah as explained below). 13 He shall build a house
for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom
forever...
16 And your house and your
kingdom shall endure before Me
forever; your throne shall be
established
forever."
2 Samuel 7:12-13,16: What did
God promise King David?
God promised to
establish David's throne and kingdom forever.
2
Chronicles 21:7
Yet the LORD was not willing to
destroy the house of David because of the
covenant
which He had made with David, and since He had promised to give a lamp
to him and his sons forever.
2
Chronicles 21:7: How do we know this was a covenant promise?
Scripture calls it
a covenant.
Romans 1:1-5
Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus,
called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which He
promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3
concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according
to the flesh, 4 who was declared the Son of God with power by the
resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus
Christ our Lord, 5 through Whom we have received grace and apostleship
to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles, for His
name's sake (See notes
Romans 1:1;
1:2;
1:3;
1:4;
1:5)
Romans 1:1;
1:2;
1:3;
1:4;
1:5
How does this passage help us understand the covenant promise to David?
The fulfillment of
the Davidic Covenant which was promised "forever"
would of necessity have to pass through the line of David, a lineage
which Paul summarizes in the opening verses of Romans
Revelation 19:16
on His robe and on His thigh He has a
name written, "KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."
Revelation 19:16
What does this passage teach
regarding the fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant?
Jesus Christ was
in the line of David and it would be through Him that the covenant
promises of an everlasting kingdom would be fulfilled. The apostle
John elaborates on this fulfillment in the Revelation, explaining that
when Jesus returns at the end of this age He returns as King of kings.
Revelation 20:4
And I saw thrones, and they
sat upon them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of
those who had been beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus and
because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or
his image, and had not received the mark upon their forehead and upon
their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a
thousand years
Revelation 20:4
What does this
passage teach about the fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant?
The King of kings
begins His reign on earth for 1000 years (Millennium,
Part 2,
Part 3)
after His defeat of the Antichrist.
