Scripture: Ephesians 2:14 – “For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us.” (NRSV)
You hear a lot about division in our world, so much so that it is like the weather. As they say, “it is a matter about which a great deal is said, but very little done.” In other words, division seems to be a reality that is beyond our control, almost a force of nature. Some say it is an inevitability of human nature, which naturally distrusts people from outside its immediate social group. But if there is one thing we know about God, it is that God is above weather and human nature, and ultimately brings us good.
There are so many things that divide us like race and politics, but today I want to think about faith in God. There are believers and non-believers, and rarely do they enter a “live and let live relationship.” This is because faith in God is a matter of ultimate importance, ideally touching upon every moment of our lives and our afterlives. To deny the existence of God is to at best lose the best parts of life and at worst condemn oneself to rejection and misery.
We are getting to a point where belief and non-belief are less personal choices than marks of social belonging. You are non-religious because you grow up in a non-religious household, just as you are religious because you grew up in a religious household. In this scenario, the age-old pattern of division and mistrust rears its ugly head again.
When we look at Jesus, we find someone who was willing to bridge the gap between believers and non-believers, between Jews and Gentiles. Jesus came to speak words of reconciliation to all, regardless of one’s history. As interpreted by the letters of Paul, Jesus corrects some of the excesses of Jewish faith, through its often-ignored laws, and invites non-Jews to embrace the best of Judaism beyond their unsatisfying secular lives. The Letter to the Ephesians speaks to Gentiles about how they are not rejected from the promises of God known in the Old Testament but have been reconciled to God and to the Jewish people through Christ’s love and grace. “For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us.”
In our time, some believers have become arrogant, and some non-believers have become dismissive and defensive. Jesus calls us beyond the shouting and judgment into peace. One might argue that non-believer cannot know peace unless they know Jesus, but I would argue that Jesus through the Holy Spirit is working through them even if they reject the outward forms of religion. Most people have a sense that there is some force of good in the world, even if they reject giving it a personal name. Few are so nihilistic or selfish that they only look out for their own benefit. God can be found in these moments of love and compassion.
I assume that most people reading this are believers and are saddened or outraged at the growing number of non-believers. We all have loved ones that we wish believed or we wish came to church with us. But as I like to say, such people may not believe in God, but God believes in them. God is always trying to break down the dividing wall and hostility between us. In a perfect world, all would find peace through faith in God and Christ. But even if this is not the case, agreeing on how to love each other, to comfort the sick and afflicted and to celebrate the joys of life brings us ever closer to the Kingdom of God. So, think about how we can all love without agreeing, and we will discover that God has there in that that love all along.
Prayer: God, help me to love those who are different from me, for I believe you can bridge any divide. Amen.
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