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One New Man | Christ Breaks the Wall Between Jews and Gentiles (Sept 23) · 1 Year Audio Bible Podcast

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  For Christ himself has made peace between us
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  Jews and you Gentiles by making us all one
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  people. He has broken down the wall of hostility
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  that used to separate us. By his death he ended the
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  whole system of Jewish law that excluded the Gentiles.
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  His purpose was to make peace between Jews and Gentiles
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  by creating in himself One new person from
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  the 2 groups. What is this one new man?
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  What is the wall of hostility between Jews and Gentiles?
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  How does Christ take that wall down?
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  Listen in as we unpack the whole concept of the one
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  new man. Welcome to the Daily Audio
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  Torah. Today is September 23rd. Now let's continue
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  our journey reading through the entire Bible in one year.
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  This week we are reading from the New Living Translation for the Old
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  Testament and for the New Testament.
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  Deuteronomy 30:11-20.
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  This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you
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  to understand, and it is not beyond your reach. It is not
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  kept in heaven, so distant that you must ask, who will go up to heaven
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  and bring it down so we can hear it and obey? It is not kept
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  beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, who will cross
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  the sea to bring it to us so we can hear it and obey?
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  No, the message is very close at hand. It is
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  on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it.
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  Now listen! Today I am giving you a choice
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  between life and death.
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  Between Prosperity and Disaster.
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  For I command you this day to love the Lord your God and to keep
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  His commands, decrees, and regulations by walking in
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  His ways. If you do this, you will live and multiply,
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  and the Lord your God will bless you and the land you are about to
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  enter and occupy. But if your heart turns away and
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  you refuse to listen, And if you are drawn away
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  to serve and worship other gods, then I warn you now that
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  you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live a long,
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  good life in the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy.
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  Today I have given you the choice between life and death,
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  between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven
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  and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would
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  choose life so that you and your descendants
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  might live! You can make this choice by loving
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  the Lord your God, obeying Him, and committing
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  yourself firmly to Him. This is the key to your
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  life. And if you love and obey the Lord,
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  you will live long in the land the Lord swore to give
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  your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
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  Isaiah 41:17-43,
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  13. When the poor and needy search for water and there is none,
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  and their tongues are parched from their thirst, then I, the Lord,
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  will answer them. I, the God of Israel, will never forsake
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  them. I will open up rivers for them on high plateaus.
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  I will give them fountains of water in the valleys. In the
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  deserts they will find pools of water. Rivers fed by springs
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  will flow across the dry, parched ground. I will
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  plant trees— cedar, acacia,
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  myrtle, olive, cypress, fir, and pine— on
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  barren land. Everyone will see this miracle and understand
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  that it is I, the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, who did it.
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  Can your idols make such claims
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  as these? Let them come and show what they can do,
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  says the Lord, the King of Israel. Let them try to tell
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  us what happened long ago or what the future holds. Yes,
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  that's it! If you are gods, tell what will
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  occur in the days ahead. Or perform a mighty miracle
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  that will fill us with amazement and fear. Do something!
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  Whether good or bad. But no, you are less
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  than nothing and can do nothing at all. Anyone who chooses you
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  becomes filthy, just like you. But I
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  have stirred up a Leader from the north and east. He will come against the
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  nations and call on My name, and I will give Him victory over kings and
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  princes. He will trample them as a potter treads
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  on clay. Who but I have told you this would happen?
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  Who else predicted this, making you admit that he was right?
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  No one else said a word. I was the first to tell Jerusalem,
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  look, help is on the way! Not one of your idols
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  told you this. Not one gave any answer when I asked.
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  See, they are all foolish, worthless things.
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  Your idols are all as empty as the wind.
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  Look at my servant whom I strengthened. He is my chosen
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  one, and I am pleased with him. I have put my Spirit
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  upon him. He will reveal justice to the nations. He will
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  be gentle. He will not shout or raise his voice in public.
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  He will not crush those who are weak or quench the smallest hope.
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  He will bring full justice to all who have been wronged.
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  He will not stop until truth and righteousness
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  prevail throughout the earth.
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  Even distant lands beyond the sea will wait for His instructions.
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  God the Lord created the heavens and stretched them out. He created
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  the earth and everything in it. He gives breath and life to everyone
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  in all the world, and it is He who says, I the Lord
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  have called you to demonstrate My righteousness. I will guard
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  and support you, for I have given you to My people as the personal
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  confirmation of My covenant with them.
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  And you will be a light to guide all nations to Me. You will
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  open the eyes of the blind and free the captives from prison.
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  You will release those who sit in dark dungeons.
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  I am the Lord. That is My name. I will not
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  give My glory to anyone else. I will not share My praise with carved
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  idols. Everything I prophesied has come true.
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  And now I will prophesy again. I will tell you the
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  future before it happens. Sing a new song to
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  the Lord. Sing his praises from the ends of the earth.
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  Sing, all you who sail the seas, all who
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  live in distant coastlands.
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  Join in the chorus, you desert towns. Let the villages of
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  Kedar rejoice. Let the people of Selah sing
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  for joy; shout praises from the mountaintops!
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  Let the coastlands glorify the Lord; let them sing His
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  praise! The Lord will march forth like a mighty
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  man; He will come out like a warrior full of fury.
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  He will shout His thundering battle cry, and He will crush
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  all His enemies. He will say, I have long been
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  silent; yes, I have restrained myself.
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  But now I will give full vent to my fury. I will
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  gasp and pant like a woman giving birth. I will level the mountains
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  and hills and bring a blight on all their greenery.
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  I will turn the rivers into dry land and will dry up all the
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  pools. I will lead blind Israel down a new path,
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  guiding them along on an unfamiliar way. I will make
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  the darkness bright before them and smooth out the road ahead of them.
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  Yes, I will indeed do these things. I will not forsake
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  them. But those who trust in idols, calling them their gods,
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  they will be turned away in shame.
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  Oh, how deaf and blind you are toward me! Why won't you
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  listen? Why do you refuse to see? Who in
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  all the world is as blind as my own people, my servant?
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  Who is as deaf as My messengers?
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  Who is as blind as My chosen people, the servants of
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  the Lord? You see and understand what is right, but refuse
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  to act on it. You hear, but you don't really
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  listen. The Lord has magnified His Law and
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  made it truly glorious.
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  Through it He had planned to show the world that He is righteous.
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  But what a sight His people are, for they have been robbed,
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  enslaved, imprisoned, and trapped.
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  They are fair game for all and have no one to protect them.
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  Will not even one of you apply these lessons from the
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  past and see the ruin that awaits you? Who allowed Israel to
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  be robbed and hurt? Was it not the LORD? It was the
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  LORD whom we sinned against, for the people would not go where
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  He sent them. Nor would they obey his law.
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  That is why he poured out such fury on them and
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  destroyed them in battle. They were set on fire and burned,
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  but they refused to understand.
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  But now, O Israel, the Lord who created you says,
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  do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called
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  you by name. You are mine. When you go through deep waters and great trouble,
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  I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty,
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  you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of
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  oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will
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  not consume you. For I am the Lord your God,
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  the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I gave
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  Egypt, Ethiopia, and Seba as a ransom for your
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  freedom. Others died, that you might live. I traded their
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  lives for yours because you are precious to Me. You are
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  honored, and I love you. Do not be
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  afraid, for I am with you. I will gather you and your children
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  from east and west and from north and south.
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  I will bring My sons and daughters back to the Land of Israel
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  from the distant corners of the earth. All who claim
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  Me as their God will come. For I have made them for my glory;
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  it was I who created them.
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  Bring out the people who have eyes but are blind, who have ears
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  but are deaf! Gather the nations together.
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  Which of their idols has ever foretold such things?
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  Can any of them predict something even a single day in
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  advance? Where are the witnesses of such predictions? Who can
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  verify that they spoke the truth? But you are My witnesses,
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  O Israel, says the Lord, and you are My servant.
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  You have been chosen to know Me, believe in Me, and understand that
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  I alone am God. There is no other God.
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  There never has been and never will be. I am the Lord,
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  and there is no other Savior. First, I predicted
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  your deliverance. I declared what I would do. And then I
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  did it. I saved you. No foreign god has ever done this
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  before. You are witnesses that I am the only God,
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  says the Lord. From eternity to eternity,
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  I am God. No one can oppose what I do.
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  No one can reverse my actions.
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  Ephesians 2: 1-22.
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  Once you believers were dead, doomed forever because of your many
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  sins. You used to live just like the rest of the world, full of sin,
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  obeying Satan, the mighty prince of the power of the air.
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  He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to
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  obey God. All of us used to live that way,
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  following the passions and desires of our evil nature.
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  We were born with evil nature, and we were
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  under God's anger just like everyone else. But God is
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  so rich in mercy, and beloved, He loved us so
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  very much that even while we were dead because
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  of our sins, He gave us life when He raised
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  Christ from the dead. It is only by God's special favor
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  that you have been saved, for He raised us from
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  the dead along with Christ and we are seated with Him in the
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  heavenly realms, all because we are one with
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  Christ Jesus.
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  And so God can always point to us as
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  examples of the incredible wealth of His favor and
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  kindness toward us, as shown in all He has
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  done for us through Christ Jesus.
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  God saved you by His special favor when you
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  believed. And you can't take credit for this. It is a
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  gift from God. Salvation is not a
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  reward for the good things we have done, so none of us
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  can boast about it. For we are God's masterpiece.
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  He has created us anew in
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  Christ Jesus so that we can do the good things
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  He planned for us long Don't
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  forget that you Gentiles used to be outsiders by birth.
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  You were called the uncircumcised ones by the Jews who were proud
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  of their circumcision, even though it affected
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  only their bodies and not their hearts. In those days,
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  you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from God's
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  people Israel, and you did not know the promises God
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  had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without
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  hope, but now you belong to Christ.
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  Though you were once far away from God, now you have been brought near
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  to Him because of the blood of Christ.
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  For Christ Himself has made peace between us Jews and
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  you Gentiles by making us all one in
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  people. He has broken down the wall of hostility
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  that used to separate us. By his death, he ended the
• 14:53
  whole system of Jewish law that excluded
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  Gentiles. His purpose was to make peace
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  between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one
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  new person from the two groups.
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  Together as one body, Christ reconciled both
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  groups to God by means of his death, and our
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  hostility toward each other was put to death.
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  He has brought this good news of peace to you Gentiles
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  who were far away from him and to us Jews who were near.
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  Now all of us, both Jews and Gentiles, may come to
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  the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ
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  has done for us. So now you Gentiles
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  are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens
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  along with all of God's holy people.
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  You are members of God's family. We are His
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  house, built on the foundation of the apostles and
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  the prophets, and the cornerstone is Christ Jesus Himself.
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  We who believe are carefully joined together,
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  becoming a holy temple for the Lord. Through him you
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  Gentiles are also joined together as part of this dwelling
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  where God lives by his Spirit.
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  Psalm 67:1-7.
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  May God be merciful and bless us; may his face shine
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  with favor upon us. May your ways be known
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  throughout the earth, your saving power among people everywhere.
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  May the nations praise you, O God; yes, may all
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  the nations praise you. How glad the nations will be,
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  singing for joy, because you govern them with justice
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  and direct the actions of the whole world. May the
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  nations praise You, O God! Yes, may all the
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  nations praise You! Then the earth will yield its
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  harvest, and our God will richly bless
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  us. Yes, God will bless us, and people all
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  over the world will fear Him.
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  Proverbs 23:29-35. Who has
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  anguish? Who has sorrow? Who is always
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  fighting? Who is always complaining?
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  Who has unnecessary bruises? Who has bloodshot
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  eyes? It is the one who spends long hours in the taverns
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  trying out new drinks. Don't let the sparkle and smooth taste
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  of wine deceive you, for in the end it bites like a poisonous serpent;
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  it stings like a viper. You will see hallucinations and
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  you will say crazy things. You will stagger like a sailor tossed at
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  sea clinging to a swaying mast, and you will say,
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  they hit me, but I didn't feel it. I didn't even know it when they
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  beat me up. When will I wake up so I can have another drink?
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  I want to speak to you today from our reading from Ephesians chapter 2,
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  and we're going to zoom in on Ephesians 2:14-15,
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  and we have a thought, a very important concept
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  about the one new man.
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  So verse 14 reads, for Christ Himself has made peace between
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  us Jews and you Gentiles by
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  making us all one people. He has
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  broken down the wall of hostility that used
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  to separate us. By His death, He ended the whole system
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  of Jewish law that excluded
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  the Gentiles. His purpose was to make peace between
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  Jews and Gentiles by creating in Himself one
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  new person from the 2 groups.
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  Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups
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  to God by means of His death, and our hostility toward each other
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  was put to death.
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  So I found a YouTube explanation
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  of the one new man from Ephesians chapter 2,
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  verses 14 and 15 that I thought was really excellent,
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  and I'm going to share that with you here in just a moment. It's from
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  Zetzi Torah Ministries, so I'll go ahead and
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  let you give it a listen, and hopefully this will bring
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  some clarity for you.
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  Welcome to A Minute or Two with the Word. I am your host,
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  Torah Teacher Ariel, where every few days we take a look at a relevant passage
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  of Scripture that I find very fascinating and important for us to consider
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  us Jews and Gentiles in Messiah. Let's talk about Ephesians 2:14-15.
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  Let's read the ESV English and then the SBL GNT Greek.
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  For he himself is our peace, who has made us both
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  one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall
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  of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances,
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  that he might create in himself one new man in place
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  of to so making peace. I will start with Ephesians
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  2:14 to build context and then work towards Ephesians 2:15.
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  It is commonly taught that the dividing wall of hostility being broken down was
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  the Law of Moses, the Torah. In my study and teaching
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  of the Bible, I firmly maintain that the barrier being destroyed
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  cannot possibly be the Torah because the Torah never commanded a
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  dividing wall of hostility between Jews and Gentiles.
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  The dividing wall of hostility in Ephesians 2:14 was the vile
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  man-made social class caste system set in place by oral
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  Torah and Jewish leaders seeking to keep a social and
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  religious difference between Jews and Gentiles. Religious Jewish pride and Gentile
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  resentment of that pride fostered the shared social hostility.
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  Jesus came to establish once and for all that
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  Jews and Gentiles in him constituted a spiritual Israel
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  within national Israel. Israel. Read Romans 9:6-8,
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  9:23-24, and Romans 11:1-7.
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  The remnant of Israel is this spiritual Israel within national
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  Israel. In the remnant, Jews and Gentile believers were
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  equal, something Paul states later in Ephesians 2:18-22.
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  Using the whole context of Ephesians 2 to bolster my argument,
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  I would paraphrase Ephesians 2:14-15 thusly:
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  For he himself is our peace, who has made
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  both Jews and Gentiles in Messiah into fellow
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  citizens with one another, and both into members of Israel,
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  and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility
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  created by the class-caste system, by abolishing the laws of
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  oral commandments found in man-made dogma, that he might create in
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  himself one new redeemed humanity in
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  place of the fractured and separated too, so making
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  peace.
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  Yeah, yeah.
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  The Aaronic Blessing from Numbers chapter 6,
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  24 to 26.
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  Adonai bless you and keep you. Adonai make his
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  face to shine upon you and be gracious
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  to you. Adonai lift up his countenance upon you
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  and give you peace.