Sermon notes “Reconciled Through Christ”

Text: Ephesians 2:11-22

​ Sermon: Last week we spoke about how Jesus brought unity to the world. This week are going to dive further into that concept. We are going to focus on our reconciliation in Christ.
Let’s start by discussing some of the barriers that we create to divide us. Some of these barriers could be age, appearance, intelligence, political persuasion, economic status, race, theological perspectives. {not added sexual orientation}. We stifle God’s love when we only befriend those who look, act, and think like us. We do not grow in Christ.
When we divide the Body of God, we are doing a disservice to ourselves, our friends and family and our children. We are not learning from each other; instead, we are teaching hatred and intolerance, and this intolerance is used to alienate those that need love.
But the good new is there is true reconciliation in Jesus.
Let start by looking at the word “Reconcile.” The original word “pictures the total, complete, and full restoration of the relationship of disturbed peace.” The idea inherent in reconciliation is to take enemies and change them into friends. The original term pictures the bringing together of friends who have been estranged.
This is so vital to the Christian message. Christ breaks down the walls of prejudice, reconciles to God, and unifies us with Christ. Christ’s love overcomes all feelings of alienation and brings outsiders into the body of believers.
When we are truly reconciled, we can build long-lasting, impactful relationships that benefit everyone in the relationship. Relationships are not a one-way road. In fact, a strong relationship that is built on respect strengthens all parties involved. Everyone can learn from each other, helping to build better relationships across the board.
We are called into this new (or renewed) way of seeing ourselves and our connections with God and with the wider community as we worship. We are invited into a relationship of support and acceptance, and worship is the arena where we experience this first.
What good is a church if the people in the church refuse to live lives of acceptance, love and understanding? It seems we see that too often. Churches state that they are loving, yet they spew harmful rhetoric and shove people out of the church through hateful actions. That does not display reconciliation or love, it destroys lives and hurts the church.
The truth is when we gather for worship, we gather with our multitude of stories and experiences and differences. We gather with our certainties and our doubts, with our faith and our questions, with our hopes and our fears.
We all have things that bring into church; we all have a past that haunts us, yet in the church we are coming together to express our praise and love for a God that loves us and guides us. It is time that we as a church bring healing and reconciliation into the church.
We need to dissolve the divisive decisions that we have made historically and bring love and understanding into the church as Jesus demonstrated throughout his life and ministry.


Conclusion: Let us be people of love, acceptance and reconciliation.