GRACE NOTES // EPHESIANS WEEK 6

Written By: Keli Miller

The Dwelling Place of God

Christ Jesus is our cornerstone. When building, the cornerstone is the first stone set in the construction process - all other stones will be placed in reference to this one stone. Basically, if you’re building a home, you’re going to want that home to have a cornerstone because it unifies the entire structure and sets a level foundation.  Christ Jesus is the cornerstone of his dwelling place. You yourself are God’s dwelling place and also, we together are his dwelling place. 

Within Ephesians 2, verses 11-22, we find a call to unity. A people group who were once excluded from God’s covenant are now invited into an inheritance and told they belong. The Jews and the Gentiles could not have been more divided. For us today this would compare to Democrats and Republicans. With each year it seems the two parties get more and more distant from each other. There is even an “us vs them” mentality which often leads to further belief that “if you are not with me, then you are against me.”

It is hard to stand in the grey, in the middle of these two polarized groups. There is opposition and disagreements on almost every event. Ephesians tells us that it is here, amongst the tension of these two groups, that God’s dwelling place will be found. When we limit ourselves to just being in a relationship with those we agree with, we miss out on the fullness of what God has for us. To have unity with those who oppose us is to pursue a loving connection. Make note that this is a sacrifice and has to be an intentional decision, but this is also where we see God.

On Sunday we saw this in Genesis, when Jacob wrestles with God and is then reconciled with Esau, his brother whom he betrayed. It is here, when Esau chooses unity and forgiveness that Jacob says, “to see your face is to see the face of God.” Gestures of unity and connection amidst opposition and hostility is the dwelling place of God.

I have given them the glory  you have given me, so that they may be one as we are one. John 17:22

IN THE WORD

Ephesians 2:11-22

John 13:34-35

Genesis 33:1-11

PROCESSING

Who is God asking you to pursue unity with? 

Where has bitterness and hostility taken root in your heart? 

Where have you seen God’s face through moments of reconciliation?