Two groups became one in Christ

Just before, Paul wrote the following about two groups within the church:

“He (God) makes us alive together in Christ
(in grace you are saved),
He awakens us together and
sets us down together in the midst of the heavenly ones in Christ Jesus,
for the coming eons
to display the all-surpassing riches of His grace in kindness towards us in Christ Jesus.”
Eph 2:5-7

Believers from the Jews and those from the nations, as far as called by God’s grace in the church today, were brought together in Christ on an equal footing. Paul emphasizes the “together” several times here and also makes it clear that both groups were saved “in grace”.

But that is not all. Paul also mentions the same thing further on in the letter. The mystery of Christ, as Paul writes about it in Ephesians 3:4, is about this synchronization:

“In the spirit are those from the nations
joint lot holder and a
joint body and
joint partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus
through the gospel, whose servant I have become,
according to the gift of God’s grace.”
Eph 3:6-7

The apostle presents this here as natural and according to grace. But never before has he said this so clearly. The letter to the Ephesians is considered one of the apostle’s last letters. Therefore, this is something like the ultimate revelation about the nature of the church for these different groups.

In the grace

This joining of two groups was not a matter of course. Outside the community, these groups were very different. Within the community, there were questions about religious superiority, with some insisting that circumcision or keeping the Torah’s instructions were also beneficial for believers from the nations. Paul dealt with this on a regular basis. He always emphasizes that this attitude is not right. Those who are saved by grace should have understood this.

This is where the groups are brought together. This happens explicitly in grace.

“For in grace you are saved,
through faith,
and this is not from you,
but God’s gift,
not from works,
so that no one can boast.
Because we are His work,
created in Christ Jesus
for good works,
that God is preparing,
so that we may walk in them.”
Eph 2:8-10

What does this mean? Let’s take a closer look at this now. When Paul addresses the believers in the church here, he does so again as a unit. He has just brought two different groups together. It is therefore justified to address them together here by saying “For in grace you are saved”. This applies equally to both groups, because they are equal in the same church of Christ.

By faith, not by works

A typical evangelical interpretation of this biblical passage would emphasize the following connection:

“For in grace you are saved,
through faith.”
Eph 2:8

The idea that salvation takes place through my or your faith is widespread. Salvation is then linked to an effort of faith on the part of the believers. This is the sale of indulgences, to whose level one has stooped: Faith has been converted into a work, a performance, whereby God would undertake to save you or me “only if we believe”. This is a problematic interpretation and the antithesis of what is proclaimed as the gospel. It is also a pious seduction.

The text is about something else. Salvation is not by faith, but “by grace you are saved”. Salvation is linked to grace, not to faith. If I emphasize that in the quote, it would look something like this:

“For in grace you are saved ,
through faith.”
Eph 2:8

The expression “by faith” is used in a different context, as emphasized here:

“For in grace you are saved,
through faith,
and this is not from you,
but God’s gift,
not from works,
so that no one can boast.
Because we are His work,
created in Christ Jesus
for good works,
that God is preparing,
so that we may walk in them.”
Eph 2:8-10

It is “by faith”, namely “not by works”. Only this confirms grace. It is therefore impossible that faith has to be something like an achievement and a precondition for salvation to be possible in the first place. Basic evangelical patterns see salvation as a semi-finished product of God that must be assembled by human faith. The flip side is that it all depends on the person whether they can be saved. A belief in performance is not good news, not a gospel, but an unholy message of threat. This usually leads to a threat of hell if you don’t give in immediately and devoutly believe what is preached.

I outline here the sharp edges of the modern Christian indulgence trade so that they are easier to recognize. Of course, the question immediately arises as to whether there is another way? Of course there is another way. Paul is talking about this here. Salvation is a gift and not something you work for. It is:

“through faith,
and this is not from you,
but God’s near gift.”

Faith is the antithesis of performance. Those who believe trust the good news that it has already been done for you and me. It is expressly “not of yourselves, but a gift from God”. Salvation is the gift, the gift with which God draws near to us in Christ. It is a close gift. It is brought to us by God himself, without us having to do this or that before “it works”. Such good news brings about faith afterwards and does not demand it in advance.

Faith is the antithesis of performance.

The short version is: grace includes the good news, salvation from sin and death and its consequences, with which God approaches us without any further demands. Let us also remember here that the gospel reveals the righteousness of God (Rom 1:15-16). Disclosure is possible because it is already there. It is already there because it has been achieved and confirmed by God himself through the cross and resurrection (Rom 3:21-24; Rom 4:25; Rom 5:18).

Grace is the core of the good news, which makes you happy because you don’t have to give anything in return. In Romans 8, Paul describes it succinctly: “If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not with him also give us all things?” (Rom 8:31-32).

Paul also says quite clearly here:

“not from works,
so that no one can boast.
Because we are His work,
created in Christ Jesus.”

If it’s not from your own efforts, then it’s also so that no one can claim personal contribution. Nobody should boast about their own achievements. However, the assessments of many believers who have “converted” are famous. They speak of a tradition that is characterized by personal achievement and lives from pious effort. Paul was much more sober in his descriptions of his own beliefs (Gal 1:15; Phil 2:13).

God’s work

To summarize, Paul writes:

“For we are His work,
created in Christ Jesus
for good works,
that God is preparing,
so that we may walk in them.”

Paul clearly states that believers are the work of God. Think back to the two groups, believers from the Jews and from the nations, who came together in the church. They are now summarized in the grace of God and thus in God’s actions: “We are His work”.

The apostle adds something when he writes that we are “created in Christ Jesus”. That would also be impossible from our own performance. We cannot create ourselves or acquire the high position “in Christ” through our own efforts. This is God’s work. He has created us in this way to become a new humanity, he mentions a few verses further on (Eph 2:15). New because the differences have been removed and also because the basis is different.

The fact that the believers only became believers through God’s work is usually only recognized in retrospect. Paul also makes it clear that the calling was not an end, but a means to an end. It describes the purpose as follows:

“for good works,
that God is preparing,
so that we may walk in them.”

Those who are destined for good works do not focus on themselves. Instead, he was appointed to a task force. The missions are prepared by God Himself so that we can walk in them.

Relaxation

This passage from the second chapter of Ephesians has always been an encouragement to me. It allowed me to lean on God’s guidance because I knew He was preparing good works for me to walk in. The same applies to everyone in the community. Paul goes beyond the theoretical framework here, shatters religious bias and leaves us relaxed as we wait to see what we can do next. There will be good works to which we can respond with our commitment.

I can turn to my God and Father in trust and prayer that I may recognize these works. This relaxes me, makes me confident and sets my foot on a wide space (Ps 31:8).