“For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility” (Ephesians 2:14).

When I was a kid, my favorite thing to do was go to my grandparent’s house. It was a land of delicious food and endless amounts of Disney movies. My grandfather’s den was known as “the grandkids room,” and my sister, cousins and I spent hours there making forts, eating sweets and watching movies.

There was also the room known as “the white room.” It was laid with plush white carpet and filled with expensive antiques and costly china. Grandkids were not allowed to enter the white room under any circumstances.

When God made a covenant with Israel, he commanded them to build a place where His presence would symbolically dwell. It started as a tent in the wilderness, and years later, became an elaborate temple in Jerusalem. 

Like grandpa’s house, the temple was a place that was loved and celebrated, but also a place with restricted areas – areas certain folks were not allowed to enter. 

Only the high priest was allowed in the inner-most part of the temple, the holy of holies. Only Jewish men were allowed in the central part of the temple building. Gentiles (non-Jews) weren’t allowed in the temple at all. The furthest they could go was the outer court, the Court of the Gentiles. There they were met by the soreg, the dividing wall.

When Paul (the author of this passage) speaks of a “dividing wall of hostility,” he’s speaking at once literally and metaphorically. The dividing wall of the temple mount, the soreg, was meant to keep Gentiles out. They were unclean, and therefore unfit to enter God’s holy presence.

While the soreg still existed at the time of this letter, Paul boldly declares that in Christ, the dividing wall has been destroyed. The work done by Jesus on the cross has obliterated the barrier that once kept certain folks out of God’s presence. 

Now all people – Jew and Gentile, man and woman, clergy and layman – are invited to enter the most sacred place on earth, the holy presence of God, through faith in Jesus Christ.

Only one not need visit a temple or the place where the soreg used to be. Because of Jesus’ work on the cross, God’s presence can be accessed by His people from anywhere on earth. 

The dividing wall of hostility, along with every other obstacle meant to keep us from God, has been obliterated. And the people of God are invited to enter and enter boldly.

In Christ, anything that separates us from God has been nullified. Have you allowed a “dividing wall of hostility” to exist between you and God? Make time today to purposefully enter the presence of God and enjoy your restored relationship to Him.