So I was reading Ephesians 2 and came to the part about Christ putting to death "the law of commandments contained in ordinances" and so making peace between the Jew and the Gentile. Immediately, my Evangelical upbringing piped up and said, "See? Jesus put rtual to death! How can you say that baptism effects spiritual rebirth in the face of this? Faith, not works, remember?"
I answer myself that,
1. This is speaking precisely about the Mosaic law and its ordinances. It says nothing at all about the New Covenant.
2. The Bible does indeed say faith is the sine qua non of salvation. This does not mean that it is not worked out through anything, or that God cannot use tangible means to effect his purposes.
3. Faith is most certainly active in baptism. The convert is moved by faith to be baptized for the forgiveness of his sins, being buried with Christ and simultaneously putting him on in the washing of rebirth. Faith is also active when parents bring their babies for baptism to give them the same benefits, like the men lowering their friend through the roof.
Is this right? What do you all think?
I think you're spot-on. And I had exactly this same issue, with exactly this same passage. It was the realization that this passage is, in fact, including baptism in its scope of faith, over against works
of the law, that shook me loose from the Evangelical understanding. This came through a comparison with the nearly parallel passage in Colossians. Years ago I wrote the following elsewhere...let me know if this thinking makes sense to you. I suspect it will, given what you've already posted. I'm genuinely curious what a Lutheran would make of this...wherever will I find one?
(Ps. at the time I wrote this, I was on my exodus out of Calvinism)
-----------------------------------------------------------
Eph. 1 is kind of a locus classicus of Reformed teaching on election, right? "In love He predestined us..." and so forth. Eph. 2 is said to lay out total depravity, from which we are then rescued by grace through faith alone, "by grace you have been saved, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God..." Of course this is generally presented as an individualistic affair--each is elected and saved--and the church becomes the collection of saved individuals. But the more I read Paul's letters, the more I think he's coming from exactly the other direction, speaking coprorately first. And I don't think his use of "us" and "you" in Eph. is intended toward individuals, either, but rather Jews and Gentiles. Maybe I'm goofed up but let's try this out...
3Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will 6to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace 8that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillmentto bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.
So here Paul is beginning to speak of "us" and "we" being blessed by God from before the creation of the world, etc. He made known to "us" the mystery of his will, which mystery is to bring all things (i.e. all creation) together under the lordship of Christ, and of course, preeminent in Paul's thinking about this mystery typically is the inclusion of Gentiles in the covenant. Then comes the great predestination passage...
11In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.
Here he's saying that "we" were chosen. "We" who? Apparently, "we who were the first to hope in Christ." I'm thinking, seriously, that he's talking about the Jews and more specifically the Jewish Christians. Israel was first to hope in Christ, as "to them belong the promises" of the Messiah (cf. Romans). and it was from Israel that the Messiah came, and he was believed on first by Jews who had ears to hear and eyes to see (in the Gospels of course Gentiles had faith too, but even Jesus said he came first to the lost sheep of Israel.) So Paul could here be speaking of the Jews as being those predestined--as a group foreordained to receive the Messiah. Paul and the rest of the "we" seem a natural fit for the description "who were the first to hope in Christ." OK, and at this point Paul quite suddenly switches to the 2nd person:
13And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possessionto the praise of his glory.
"You also," I'm thinking, means "you gentiles also." So the common bond is Christ, the head of all things. All who believe in Him are marked and sealed with the Spirit (think of Peter in Acts saying "Now I see that God has given the Holy Spirit to the Gentiles also."). In v. 14 he says "our inheritance..." who's inheritance? That of the believing Jews, which has now also become the inheritance of the believing Gentiles. The promise is now open to EVERYONE. This jives perfectly with his thinking in Romans that it is faith that makes one a child of Abraham (and therefore an heir to the promise) and that the Gentiles were grafted into Israel--they didn't replace it or start anything new. Moving on now to the end of Ch. 1 and the beginning of Ch. 2...
22And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way. 1 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),
He begins by describing the church, which has Christ for its head, and then moves on to say "YOU...were dead in sins." I think he means "you GENTILES were dead in sins" based on a slightly later paragraph--though he also says that "we all" were once that way, meaning both Jews and Gentiles--they were "saved" at different times, but in the same way. Abraham walked according to the course of this world, and even is described as an idolater in Hebrews, but he was chosen by God and believed in God's promise, and was set apart to receive the inheritance. That promise culminated in the coming of Christ (cf. Galatians and the part about "one seed" being Christ) and the Gentiles now, at this time in history, also have access to that promise by faith. And when Paul says "made us alive together with Christ," I've always read that as meaning "we and Christ together were made alive" but I wonder if it doesn't mean "we Jews and Gentiles, together, were made alive....with Christ." Seems to fit v. 6 also...
6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
That faith is not of the Gentiles (not of yourselves), but rather it is the faith of Abraham, the faith of Israel, which has been given to the Gentiles as a gift of God. And of course we are not saved by works, whether of the Law (Jews) or otherwise (Gentiles) but by grace, so that together we can do good works pleasing to God. And now the rest of Ch. 2 which further confirms this line of thinking, to me...
11 Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the fleshwho are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands 12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, 16 and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. 17 And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. 18 For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.
Ah, the heart of the matter, no? Why were the Gentiles dead in sin? As you said earlier they were dead in so far as they served themselves and did evil works, seeking to please themselves and not the true and living God. But they also were "as good as dead" in their sin, so to speak, because death was all there was remaining for them. They were cut off from Israel, not bearing the mark of the covenant in the flesh, and were at enmity with Israel. So they were dead both figuratively and literally. But now "you who were once far off" have been brought near...to what? To the promise, and now to the resurrection, the end of death. No longer dead in sin, and no longer at enmity. This whole passage says that God, through Christ, has made peace between Jew and Gentile--no longer is circumcision the mark of inclusion with God's covenant, but it is faith that unites. And then Ch. 3 begins to describe how the mystery now revealed, first to the Jews and now to all, is that God is to include Gentiles in this covenant. So from start to finish, Eph. 1-3 seems to be primarily about Jews and Gentiles, not individuals. Individuals surely are included but Paul's thinking is first and foremost corporate.
Now let's look at Colossians, (where Ch. 1 began by establishing Christ as creator, sustainer and Lord over all creation):
19 For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, 20 and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross. 21 And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled 22 in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.
Same theme, right? Gentiles were at enmity with Jews in the flesh, but have now been reconciled so that together all will belong to and glorify Christ. And if the individual idea of predestination isn't presupposed as with Calvinism, the warning to continue in the faith in v. 23 makes more sense. Now, keeping in mind Eph. 2:11-12, let's look at Colossians 2:
11 In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. 13 And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.
An exact parallel to Ephesians! Gentiles, lacking the circumcision made with hands in the flesh, now have received that made without hands, the true circumcision that unites ALL to Christ, which circumcision is BAPTISM. This is the key verse in the Presbyterian defense of infant baptism, right? They get the connection, but miss v. 13!!! Which says, like Ephesians, that they (Gentiles) were DEAD IN TRESPASSES and the UNCIRCUMCISION of their flesh. Their deadness consisted in sinful behavior AND exclusion from the covenant. God has now made them alive and forgiven their sins through baptism. He wiped out the handwriting against "us" (the Jews, the Law) and now all have the same access to the Father, through faith (Eph) and Baptism (Col.). Looking at this incredible parallel, i hve to conclude than in Eph. 2, when Paul says "you" were dead in sins, he absolutely primarily means "you Gentiles" and that when he speaks of them having been made alive and saved by grace, he is referring to their baptism. Which is inseparable from faith of course (Col. 1:23), but I cannot see how he's treating baptism as a "sign and seal of what is received by faith" and not as that which has actually effected union with Christ. Paul then moves on in Col. to instruct them to no longer be subject to either ritual Law (sabbaths, unclean foods, etc.) or to lusts of the flesh, but rather to serve Christ in faith.
Taken together, this view of Ephesians 2 seems consistent with Paul's other letters, with the Gospels, and with early Christian thought. It does not, then, establish total depravity. And baptism is synonymous with "being saved by grace through faith."
