An Ex-outsider's Testimony

Ephesians 2 was part of our lesson this week for Morning Glories Bible Study.When I read it, I was struck by the fact that I am a Gentile, one of the people to whom Paul wrote. I went back through and personalized verses 11-22 letting their message speak into my own heart about what Christ has done for me. This is my testimony according to scripture:

   I used to be an outsider because I am a Gentile. I was considered an uncircumcised heathen by the Jews who were proud of their circumcision even though it only affected their bodies and not their hearts. In those days I lived apart from Christ. I was excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and I did not know the covenant promises God had made with them. I lived without God and without hope. BUT NOW, I have been united with Christ Jesus. Once I lived far away from God, but now I have been brought near to him through the blood of Christ. 
   For Christ himself has brought peace to me. He united the Jews and the Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us. He did this by ending the system of law with its commandments and regulations. He made peace between the Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups. Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups of us to God by means of his death on the cross, and our hostility toward each other was put to death.
   He brought this Good News of peace to us Gentiles who were far from him, and peace to the Jews who were near. Now all of us can come to the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done for us. 
   So now I am no longer a stranger or a foreigner. I am a citizen along with all of God's holy people. I am a member of God's family. Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. Through him I am being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit. 

Now all of us can come to the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done for us. Verse 18 is very powerful! I love that all 3 persons of the Trinity are recognized in it. I believe all of us Jews and Gentiles alike fall on one side or the other of the same coin. We either have or we have not "come" to the Father. Have you come? If not, will you come today? If you have come, will you worship Him for breaking down the wall that kept us separated and making a way for us? And may all of us in God's family be careful not to form opinions about who is worthy and who is not worthy of coming into the family...the key word is ALL!