Access to Our Father
Broken down the middle wall of separation…Ephesians 2:14
During the days of Paul there was a wall in the temple. This wall was as far as a Gentile to go. The wall remained until the Temple was destroyed in 70AD. Jesus did not tear down the wall. Neither did any of His disciples. The wall was the boundary of the Court of the Gentiles. The wall was not plain. It was made of beautiful marble. There was a sign at the wall: No man of another nation to enter within the fence and enclosure round the temple, and whoever is caught will have himself to blame that his death ensues. This is the wall of separation of which Paul writes.
This is the wall that may have caused Paul’s arrest recorded in Acts 21. Devout Jews assumed Paul had brought an Ephesian Gentile past the wall into the Temple reserved for Jews only. According to them, Paul ignored the writing on the wall and deserved what he got: No man of another nation to enter within the fence and enclosure round the temple, and whoever is caught will have himself to blame that his death ensues. According to Luke, Roman soldiers rushed in to rescue Paul by placing him under arrest: they bound him with two chains, Acts 21:33.
When Paul wrote his letter to the Ephesians, the wall stood as a middle wall of separation. It would be another ten years before Romans would destroy the wall along with the Temple. No stone would be left upon another. Even so, Paul credits Jesus for removing the wall of separation. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, Ephesians 2:13-14.
But there is more, verse 15 & 16: having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandment contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. Now the real reason the wall had to come down: For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father, Verse 18.
Which points to the ultimate removal of the veil. The veil that separated man from the sanctuary, the Holies of All, Hebrews 9:2-3. This granted us permission to enter into His Presence behind the veil to fellowship with our High Priest, Jesus, Hebrews 6:19-20. We are now able to come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need, Hebrews 4:16. All because of Jesus who tore down the wall of separation.
