No Longer Strangers

No Longer Strangers

Although God had dropped hints along the way that He desired to include the nations into His covenant people, He did not bring it into the clear light of day.

He kept it a veiled plan or mystery that the nations should be, fellow-citizens with the saints, and of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ.

Paul reveals the mystery that God kept to Himself until the time of the New Covenant in Christ.

3 how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly.
4. When you read this, you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ,
5. which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit.
6. This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. [Eph. 3:3-6]

This mystery was not openly made known to the sons of men, “As it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit.” The ancient sons of men had hints of God’s plan for the inclusion of the Gentiles, but the complete picture was hidden from them. But now, the full width, breadth and height of His plan for the nations have been revealed to the New Covenant apostles and prophets by the Spirit of God.

What had been hidden in the ages past was that, “The Gentiles should be fellow heirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel.”

What exactly does this inclusion mean? In his first letter, Peter says those,

[1 Pet. 2:10] Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.

This is taken from Hosea 2:23

2:23 And I will sow her unto me in the earth; and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to them which were not my people, Thou art my people; and they shall say, Thou art my God.

This prophecy of Hosea was originally applied to the northern kingdom of Israel because of her rebellion and idolatry. The Lord had put away the Northern Kingdom of Israel, giving her a bill of divorcement [Jer. 3:8]. Here, Peter sees the inclusion of the Gentiles into the people of God through Christ. Peter now includes the believing Gentiles into the description of covenant Israel, in being, “A chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people.”

He seems to have learned the lesson which the Lord taught him on that rooftop in Joppa, “What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common(unclean).” If God had made the believing Gentiles clean and fit for His use by the blood of His Son, then they are clean indeed and counted as part of His People. In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul does the same thing, though in different terms. In Ephesians 2:12, Paul says that before they knew Christ, the Gentiles were,

• Without Christ,
• Aliens from the Commonwealth of Israel,
• Strangers from the covenants of promise,
• Having no hope, and
• Without God in the world.

This is a very bleak picture of the state of the nations before Christ was revealed to them through the Gospel. A few points of interest should be mentioned.

The term, commonwealth, means citizenship, community, or state. The idea here is that before Christ came, the Gentiles were alienated from the community or citizenship rights of covenant Israel. There was a five-foot-high wall in the temple called the soreg, to remind them of this exclusion.

They were also strangers to the covenants of promise, referring to those made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Indeed, there is no sadder picture found than painted here of the hopeless state of the nations before the coming of Christ. However, Paul shines a glorious light upon the new state of the nations when Christ is found in them.

“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” [Eph 2:13, ESV]

Christ “hath made both one.” The two, Jew and Gentile, are made One Body. This is the grave error that so-called Messianic Judaism propagates. They seek to rebuild the wall that God has torn down in the temple and in Christ.

Christ has made “in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace.” He has made Jew and Gentile into one new humanity. [Eph. 2:15, NIV]

The believing Gentiles were “no more strangers and foreigners.” But, they became “fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God.”

In Christ, “Ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.” This new humanity is built together as a permanent dwelling of God through His Spirit. We are growing into the living temple of God, the true third temple [Eph. 2:21]. This New Humanity is the Israel of God.

Now in Christ, the Gentiles were to be fellow citizens in the Israel of God. Just as the Ger mentioned before, who after circumcision would be considered as one homeborn, so now the Gentiles in Christ, would be seen as members “of the household of God.”[Eph. 2:19] To be of the household of God is to be a member of God’s family. You cannot get closer or be more accepted than this.

We spoke earlier concerning the mystery of Gentile inclusion into the body of God’s covenant people, through faith in Christ. The prophets had an understanding of the nations being included into God’s covenant people. However, this understanding was limited, or viewed in shadows.

The full width and breadth of God’s plan was not revealed until the Messiah came, and the New Covenant was established. Then it could be fully “revealed to His holy apostles and prophets by His Spirit.” It was always God’s plan to include those of the nations into His covenant people of faith.

This mystery, which is only fully revealed in the New Covenant, was that those coming to faith in Christ through the gospel, would be of the same covenant body with believing Jews, and be partakers of His promise in Christ. To put it plainly,

4 There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;
5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism,
6 One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

In the New Covenant, the Israel of God, there is One Lord, One Faith, One Body. There is not a Jewish body known as Israel and a Gentile body known as the Church. After AD 30, there is only the Israel of God, i.e., those who are partakers of Israel’s New Covenant in Christ Jesus. This is the only covenant body of faith available to mankind, regardless of genetics.

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