No Longer Strangers

 Ephesians 2:13-22 

13) But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14) For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one, and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, 15) by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, 16) and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity. 17) And He came and preached peace to you who were far away, and peace to those who were near; 18) for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father. 19) So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, 20) having been built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, 21) in whom the whole building, being fitted together is growing into a holy temple in the Lord; 22) in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.

Sermon for the Second Sunday after Trinity                                      6/29/25

No Longer Strangers

My Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Our epistle lesson this morning is nestled in the context of the early Christian church's sharp division between Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians.  In the verses just before our text, Saint Paul is writing about the distinction between the "Circumcision" as he calls the Jews And the "Uncircumcision" as he refers to the Gentiles in the Church.  He describes the Gentiles as "Separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world." 

Paul then begins to describe the power of Christ's death and resurrection.  Now, He says, in Christ Jesus you who were formerly far off had been brought near by the blood of Christ for He Himself is our Peace. The Jews in the Gentiles had been traditionally enemies of a sort, religiously, even when not politically.  They were separated by the laws of the Jews what Paul called "the law of Commandments contained in Ordinances."  Jewish Law kept the Jews at a distance requiring their separation from Gentiles. The death of Jesus Christ ended that. Verse 19 of our text says quote "You are no longer strangers and aliens."   

Our theme this morning is, "No Longer Strangers."  

We are no longer strangers and aliens, but fellow citizens with the Saints and of the household of God.  For the Gentiles in the early Christian church that was a striking message of inclusion in something they had been kept out of throughout the history of Israel.  For us it is a description of the Christian church. It tells us what Christ has accomplished for us. We are no longer strangers and aliens from the grace and love of God, separated by the law of works and sin and guilt.  We are now fellow citizens with the Saints.  That means everybody in Heaven is our brother or sister.  And every single member of the Christian Church on earth is also our brother and sister.   

The big problem we face on Earth with that declaration is that we cannot see who is and who is not a Christian and therefore a true member of the Christian church. We can look at the doctrines taught by the various churches and cults in our world and identify by Scripture what is and what is not faithful, what is and what is not true, what is and what is not Christian.  So we cannot go about saying that this individual or that individual is or is not Christian.  We hope all our fellow Lutherans are Christians, at least our faithful MO Synod Lutherans.  But we know that's not even true.  Some who call themselves Christians do not trust in God.  Some who call themselves Christians and faithful Lutherans have no hope in the grace of God, but rather in their own works. So we treat those who call themselves Christian as Christian, until they definitively prove that they are not. And when we wrestle with the idea of proving themselves definitively not Christians, we have to consider our own sins, our own shortcomings, our own bad opinions and bad actions. If we are still Christians in the light of our sins, and I believe we are, then they might be also.  

We need to work together to maintain our fellowship. And that fellowship is primarily around Word and Sacrament.  If we make the mistake of judging good times good feelings and that bonhomie of social fellowship to be Fellowship of the Christian Church, we err. True fellowship happens at the altar.  Receiving the Lord's Supper here is a confession.  When you receive the Lord's Supper you receive the forgiveness of sins. You received that with Christ's true Body and blood.   

But receiving the Lord's Supper standing shoulder to shoulder is also a confession, a confession of our faith as to what we receive, and a confession about the people we receive it with. We confess by our reception that this church is the Christian church that here we receive the truth of Christ body and blood, and that we stand together united in faith – which is to say united in our doctrine. 

 When you go to another church of a different faith and concession – that is to say, of a different doctrine – if you should, mindlessly, step forward and receive the Lord's Supper at that church you actually join that church. You become a member there by your communion. You tell the world that here, wherever here is, the truth is taught and all Christians should be gathered about that altar.  If it is another Missouri Synod Lutheran Church you may justify yourself by saying they confess the same confession that we confess. And that's true. But even then you should be careful to listen to how and what the pastor preaches. If he begins to speak strange ideas if he talks about faith and feelings being important elements to your salvation, then he is leading you astray.  A false confession pouring out of the pulpit of even a Missouri Synod Church should warn you against reception of the Lord's Supper, lest you connect yourself to a false confession.  

Even more significant would be receiving at a non-Lutheran Church. When you stand before that altar with those who confess that confession, you join that church and confess the faith they confess whether you know what it is or not. That's how powerful the confession of the Lord's Supper is.  It is the powerful nature of that confession upon which I base my comments about those who have departed from our number and now attend another church regularly.  When they receive the Lord's Supper at another altar regularly – not on a vacation, not out of town to visit mom or Grandchild, but when they regularly receive Holy Communion from another church, even another congregation of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, their participation in the Lord's Supper makes them a member of that congregation, for good or for ill. Withholding themselves over time from our communion also marks them as having withdrawn from our fellowship.  

Our text tells us that we are no longer strangers, but fellow citizens with the Saints founded upon the Apostles doctrine with Jesus Christ as our Cornerstone, being built up into a household of faith, a holy temple in the Lord, a dwelling of God in the spirit.  We should never allow ourselves to be strangers to the altar, strangers to the fellowship of our brothers and sisters in Christ.  It is the blood of Jesus Christ which makes us family And brings us forgiveness and salvation. Every Sunday should be a time of fellowship together with our family in Christ around the Word and Sacrament.  After all, in Jesus Christ we are No Longer Strangers. 

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

(Let the people say Amen)