How does a person orient himself in the world? That depends on his worldview - the story and purpose that he sees himself playing.

In Ephesians chapters 1 and 2, Paul lays out God’s plan and purpose for His people, whom He has chosen from before the foundation of the world. In the life that you are leading now, how much do you owe your actions and decisions to God’s purpose? How closely is our worldview aligned with God’s purpose for our lives?

In this chapter, Paul tells us about two aspects of the purpose that God has for us.

Walking, Sitting, Walking

Paul first tells us about how we ought to Walk. For once we walked according to the course of the world (v2), fulfilling the desires of the flesh, but now Christ has made us alive, and has made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. As God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus, we have been prepared for good works, that we should walk in them.

This is a good reminder that whilst we give thanks to God for making us sit together with Christ in the heavenly places, God’s purpose is not for us to remain motionless and inactive. We ought to walk with all diligence in the path of good works that God has set for us.

What are the good works God has prepared for you to walk in? If we only say that we are a Christian, and do not manifest the corresponding actions by walking in these good works, then we are like the tree that does not bear fruit, deserving only to be cast away in the end.

Breaking, Building

Paul also tells us that that God plans to build us together for a dwelling place for God in the Spirit. For that to happen Jesus had to first become our peace by (1) breaking down the middle wall of separation between the Jews (the circumcised) and the Gentiles (the uncircumcised), and (2) reconciling man with God. So when Paul says Jesus is our peace, he does not mean “peace” in the sense of “no anxiety” or “calm in one’s heart”, but rather peace in the sense of no enmity with God.

Now that we have peace with God, we ought to see ourselves as building blocks, to be used for the building of a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. As building blocks, we are meant to be fitted together with other members of the body, such that we can grow into a holy temple in the Lord. How connected are we to the rest of the body of Christ? Sometimes we forget this and shun getting to know each other better, or worse turn against each other.

The next time we think of averting our gaze to avoid talking to someone in church, how about we instead try to get to know the person we always see in church, but hardly know? Now, wouldn’t that be pleasing to God, to see His children getting closer to each other?

May God help us.