Servings Per Verse: Unknown
ESV
. . . and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. And he came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near.
*ETS:
Jesus wanted to bring sin and its hostility to an end. He wanted to bring humanity, (Jew and Gentile), back into relationship with God. The only way this could be done was for sin to be removed. Therefore, on the cross, Jesus took sin upon himself and put away the hostility. Jesus, having come, now preaches peace to the world through His Spirit in the Church (the reconcilied, the redeemed).
*DTFTD:
In the heart of every person there is an inborn hostility. Sin is the root cause of the hostility and the power of its working. The enmity works against peace and promotes everything that is contrary to the will of God. Jesus knew his mission on earth was to deal with sin, remove the hostility, and make a way for mankind to be reconciled to God. The angels of heaven preached his mission: "He shall save his people from their sins" (Matt. 1:21); "Peace on earth" (Luke 2:14); "He shall be called Immanuel, God with us" (Matt. 1:23). Do you know the power of the mission of Christ personally? Has he delivered you from the power of sin? Does His peace reign in your heart? Do you have a relationship with God through Christ? The evidence of peace with God is an outworking peace with others. You can not be forgiven by God without becoming a forgiving person. You can not know God's love for you without becoming one who loves those about you. The end to the hostility vertically works out horizontally. Knowing God's grace through Christ means knowing God's peace. Knowing Christ leads to sharing God's grace and peace with others.
*EDS:
"We are one in the Spirit, We are one in the Lord, and we pray that all unity may one day be restored and they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love, they will know we are Christians by our love." (Song, "We Are One in the Spirit," by Peter Schote, 1966).
INGREDIENTS: Reconciliation through Christ.Word Study: Reconcile means to "bring together again." In the text, the root Greek word and its prefix implies reinstatement - the bringing together of two in one body - unity in Christ. (Companion Bible).
*ESV- English Standard Version; ETS- Essence of the Text in a Sentence; DTFTD- Devotional Thought For The Day; EDS- Essence of the Devotional in a Sentence.
