“For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father. Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone,” (Ephesians 2:18-20)
Access to the Father Through the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit performs many important functions for the Christian; among them is the access He grants us to the Father. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit makes us the children of God. As God’s child, I can speak directly to God the Father. When I pray to God the Father in the name of Jesus, the Spirit helps communicate my prayers. By giving me His Spirit, God adopts me into His family. When I pray in the name of Jesus, God hears me, and the Holy Spirit helps communicate my prayers—I have access to the Father.
Built on the Chief Cornerstone
As Ephesians 2 says, we Gentile Christians are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God. For the better part of 1500 years, the Old Law separated Jews from Gentiles; now, in Christ, we can be citizens of the same kingdom. To be a saint means one has been sanctified by the Lord; it means holy ones. Everyone cleansed by the blood of Jesus is a saint. In Jesus, God makes us citizens, saints, and members of His household, with Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone.
Growing Into a Holy Temple
The church builds on the foundation laid by the apostles and prophets through their inspired writings. When the church follows these teachings, we build upon the foundation God established for His temple. Jesus Christ is the primary chief cornerstone of God’s temple. In stone construction, the cornerstone unifies the corners of two walls, making them level and plumb. Jesus binds us together by the blood He shed on our behalf. Without Him, there is no foundation for the church. Individual Christians are living stones God uses to build up His house, His temple, the church.
Be First to Comment