It occured to me this morning that these verses were written for all of us in the U.S. after midterm elections today. We are all part of one country. We can work as a united people.
Here’s the idea of Doodling the Bible: Read a verse or two, think about what it is telling you, imagine trying to tell it to a six-year-old using some kind of doodled picture. Draw it. Explain it outloud to yourself. Tomorrow, before you read the next few verses, look at the doodle you drew and see if you remember what the verses said. Soon you can look at the pictures and remember the whole chapter. Try it. You’ll like it.
11 Don’t forget that you Gentiles used to be outsiders. You were called “uncircumcised heathens” by the Jews, who were proud of their circumcision, even though it affected only their bodies and not their hearts. 12 In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and you did not know the covenant promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope. 13 But now you have been united with Christ Jesus. Once you were far away from God, but now you have been brought near to him through the blood of Christ.
14 For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us. 15 He did this by ending the system of law with its commandments and regulations. He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups. 16 Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups to God by means of his death on the cross, and our hostility toward each other was put to death.
17 He brought this Good News of peace to you Gentiles who were far away from him, and peace to the Jews who were near.
Ephesians 2:11-17, New Living Translation
