God Has Given Us New Life Through Christ
1You were living in your sins and lawless ways. But in fact you were dead. 2You used to live as sinners when you followed the ways of this world. You served the one who rules over the spiritual forces of evil. He is the spirit who is now at work in those who don’t obey God. 3At one time we all lived among them. Our desires were controlled by sin. We tried to satisfy what they wanted us to do. We followed our desires and thoughts. God was angry with us like he was with everyone else. That’s because of the kind of people we all were. 4But God loves us deeply. He is full of mercy. 5So he gave us new life because of what Christ has done. He gave us life even when we were dead in sin. God’s grace has saved you. 6God raised us up with Christ. He has seated us with him in his heavenly kingdom. That’s because we belong to Christ Jesus. 7He has done it to show the riches of his grace for all time to come. His grace can’t be compared with anything else. He has shown it by being kind to us. He was kind to us because of what Christ Jesus has done. 8God’s grace has saved you because of your faith in Christ. Your salvation doesn’t come from anything you do. It is God’s gift. 9It is not based on anything you have done. No one can brag about earning it. 10We are God’s creation. He created us to belong to Christ Jesus. Now we can do good works. Long ago God prepared these works for us to do.
God’s New Family of Jews and Gentiles
11You who are not Jews by birth, here is what I want you to remember. You are called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “circumcised.” But they have only been circumcised in their bodies by human hands. 12Before you believed in Christ, you were separated from him. You were not considered to be citizens of Israel. You were not included in what the covenants promised. You were without hope and without God in the world. 13At one time you were far away from God. But now you belong to Christ Jesus. He spilled his blood for you. This has brought you near to God.
14Christ himself is our peace. He has made Jews and Gentiles into one group of people. He has destroyed the hatred that was like a wall between us. 15Through his body on the cross, Christ set aside the law with all its commands and rules. He planned to create one new people out of Jews and Gentiles. He wanted to make peace between them. 16He planned to bring both Jews and Gentiles back to God as one body. He planned to do this through the cross. On that cross, Christ put to death their hatred toward one another. 17He came and preached peace to you who were far away. He also preached peace to those who were near. 18Through Christ we both come to the Father by the power of one Holy Spirit.
19So you are no longer outsiders and strangers. You are citizens together with God’s people. You are also members of God’s family. 20You are a building that is built on the apostles and prophets. They are the foundation. Christ Jesus himself is the most important stone in the building. 21The whole building is held together by him. It rises to become a holy temple because it belongs to the Lord. 22And because you belong to him, you too are being built together. You are being made into a house where God lives through his Spirit.
Oživljeni s Kristom
1I vi ste nekoć bili mrtvi zbog svojih prijestupa i grijeha. 2Živjeli ste poput ostaloga svijeta, u grijehu, poslušni Sotoni, vladaru zračnih prostora. Taj je duh na djelu u srcima onih koji odbijaju poslušati Božju riječ. 3Svi smo mi tako živjeli, udovoljavajući požudama tijela i prohtjevima svoje zle naravi. Po svojoj smo naravi bili predodređeni za Božji gnjev2:3 U grčkome: Po svojoj smo naravi bili djeca gnjeva… kao i ostali.
4Ali Bog je tako bogat milosrđem da nas je, zaradi velike ljubavi prema nama, 5iako smo bili mrtvi zbog svojih prijestupa, oživio s Kristom. Božjom ste milošću spašeni! 6Podignuo nas je od mrtvih i posjeo nas s Kristom u nebu zato što smo njegovi, 7da bi u predstojećim vjekovima pokazao neizmjerno bogatstvo svoje milosti svojom dobrotom prema nama u Kristu Isusu.
8Spašeni ste milošću, po vjeri. A i to je Božji dar. Nije vaša zasluga. 9Spasenje nije nagrada za dobra djela koja smo učinili, da se nitko ne može time hvaliti. 10Jer mi smo Božja stvorenja, stvoreni u Kristu Isusu da živimo čineći dobra djela koja je on za nas unaprijed pripremio.
Jedinstvo i mir u Kristu
11Ne zaboravite da ste vi pogani rođenjem bili izopćenici. Židovi, ponosni na svoje obrezanje—iako im je ono mijenjalo samo tijela, ali ne i srca—nazivali su vas “neobrezanima”. 12Tada ste živjeli daleko od Krista. Bili ste isključeni iz Božjega naroda, Izraela; bili ste tuđinci za koje nije vrijedio Savez obećanja; bili ste u svijetu bez Boga i bez nade. 13Ali sada pripadate Kristu Isusu. Iako ste nekada bili daleko od Boga, sada ste mu prišli blizu—po Kristovoj krvi.
14Jer sam je Krist sklopio mir između Židova i pogana učinivši nas sve jednim narodom. Srušio je zid neprijateljstva koji nas je dijelio. 15Učinio je nevaljanim cijeli sustav židovskih zakona da uspostavi mir, stvarajući u sebi od Židova i pogana jednoga, novog čovjeka. 16U jednom je Tijelu izmirio obje skupine s Bogom svojom smrću na križu, usmrtivši neprijateljstvo. 17Došao je “navijestiti mir” vama poganima koji ste bili daleko od njega i nama Židovima koji smo mu bili blizu. 18Sada svi mi, i Židovi i pogani, možemo pristupiti Ocu u jednomu, Svetom Duhu, zbog onoga što je Krist učinio za nas.
Gospodnji Hram
19Vi pogani sada više niste tuđinci ni pridošlice, nego sugrađani svetih i Božji ukućani. 20Božja ste građevina nazidana na temelju apostola i proroka, a zaglavni je kamen sam Isus Krist. 21U njemu je cijela građevina čvrsto povezana i raste u sveti Hram u Gospodinu. 22U njemu ste i vi pogani uzidani, dio ste građevine u kojoj Bog prebiva svojim Duhom.
