6 “I, the LORD, have called you for a righteous purpose, and I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and appoint you to be a covenant for the people and a light to the nations,

7 to open the eyes of the blind, to bring prisoners out of the dungeon and those sitting in darkness out from the prison house.

— Isaiah 42: 6-7

13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.

14 For He Himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has torn down the dividing wall of hostility

15 by abolishing in His flesh the law of commandments and decrees. He did this to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace

19 Therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household,

20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone.

21 In Him the whole building is fitted together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord.

— 1 Ephesians 2:13-15; 19-21

Thoughts on Today’s Reading

Grace, mercy and love from Christ to you.

God chose Abraham and his descendants to be a light to the nations, a privilege most Israelites failed to honor. Yet God’s dealings with Israel demonstrate His intention to bless the world through them and bring salvation to the Gentiles. Though chosen by God to represent Him to the world, the Israelites disregarded their spiritual privileges and ended up in exile. Israel’s failings did not stop Gods glorious plan. He faithfully and lovingly led them from Babylonian exile back to the promised land.

The returnees to Jerusalem rebuilt the temple, representing God’s presence among His people and their spiritual restoration. Yet the physical rebuilding of the temple points to an even greater reality in Christ and His Church. In the New Testament, the Church is a diverse company of God’s redeemed people – Jew and Gentile – across the ages and nations, unified by salvation in Christ and faith in Him. Believers inherit the identity of God’s covenant people and are together described as the living temple, the spiritual house of God, where He dwells by His Spirit.