But now in Christ Jesus you who once far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. (14) For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, (15) having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, (16) and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. (17) And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. (18) For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.

The letter to the Ephesians was written by the apostle Paul. The church in Ephesus had the invaluable characteristic of peace and our verses today tell us that Christ Himself is this peace – with God and with one another and with themselves. The dividing wall between Jew and Gentile has been destroyed forever. In faith, in Christ all men are now one. The barrier between Jew and Gentile was really the Jewish commandments and regulations. Our Lord did not end the demands of God’s moral law, but all the ceremonies of the Old Testament were to be fulfilled in Christ – now the Jewish law is no longer needed. Peace with God is the foundation for peace with others.

Peace is Paul’s theme in our verses. The radical nature of Paul’s proclamation, that apart from the cross there is deep alienation between those from different backgrounds. At the root of hostilities was religion and ethnic pride on the part of the Jews – cultural and social differences between people. Christ Himself is the only source of peace between those who have been hostile toward each other. Christ reconciled us all to one another and to God by abolishing the Old Covenant law. The law condemned Jew and Gentile because it clearly proves we have all sinned against God.but God has intervened and abolished the law and reconciled both to God by the cross. We Gentiles, alienated from God by wicked works, enemies in our minds, have now, by putting our trust in Christ, been brought to a place of nearness the law never gave even to the Jews. And the Jew who believes in Christ has been brought to the same blessed place. The sin question has been fully settled

Christ was the end of the law and therefore it ceased to bind the people of God. We are no longer under the law but under grace. Christ abolished the law as a covenant of works by fulfilling its conditions. Christianity is not a religion of rituals but personal relationship with the Father through Jesus Christ. As I write this I think of Martin Luther King – “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”