The Cross: Bridge Over Every Divide
A Study of Ephesians 2:1-17 and an Announcement About The Bridge Trilogy
The cross of Jesus Christ stands as the most profound bridge in human history—spanning not one but two seemingly impossible divides. In Ephesians 2:1-17, the apostle Paul reveals how the death of Christ accomplishes what no human effort could ever achieve: bridging the vertical chasm between a holy God and sinful humanity, and bridging the horizontal divide between people groups who had been enemies for centuries.
The Vertical Bridge: From Death to Life (Ephesians 2:1-10)
Paul begins with a devastating diagnosis: "And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked" (Ephesians 2:1). This isn't merely spiritual sickness or moral weakness—this is death. Complete separation from the source of life itself. We had spiritually flatlined. But notice, we were more like spiritual zombies, “dead in…sins in which you once walked”. We were alive physically but dead spiritually, completely separated from the Father.
We were, as Paul continues, "children of wrath" (v. 3), cut off from God by our rebellion, enslaved to the prince of the power of the air, following the course of this world and the passions of our flesh. In short, Ephesians 2 tells us we were depraved, disobedient and devilish, dead in our sins.
Picture the scene: humanity on one side of an unbridgeable chasm, God on the other. The distance isn't measured in miles but in moral perfection. Every sin, every act of selfishness, every lust and greed, every unforgiveness, every moment of pride widens the gap. We were utterly helpless, spiritually dead, unable to take even a single step toward God.
But then comes the most beautiful phrase in all of Scripture: "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ" (Ephesians 2:4-5).
Notice the initiative belongs entirely to God. While we were dead—not merely dying, but dead—God acted. His love didn't wait for us to get our act together, to become worthy, or to somehow earn His favor. His mercy reached across the divide while we were still His enemies.
The cross becomes the bridge. Jesus, the perfect God-man, steps into the river of God’s wrath, the river of death. He takes our death upon Himself, absorbing the wrath we deserved. His perfect life becomes the solid foundation; His sacrificial death becomes the spanning beam. "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).
The result? We who were dead are now "seated with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (v. 6). From death to life, from separation to intimate fellowship, from enemies to beloved children—all because of what Jesus accomplished on the cross.
The Horizontal Bridge: From Hostility to Unity (Ephesians 2:11-17)
But the cross doesn't stop with vertical reconciliation. Paul immediately turns to an equally miraculous work: the bridging of horizontal divides between people groups. He addresses the Gentiles directly: "Remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called 'the uncircumcision' by what is called the circumcision... were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world" (Ephesians 2:11-12).
The divide between Jew and Gentile in the first century was as deep as any racial, cultural, or religious divide we see today. It was more than prejudice—it was a chasm built on centuries of hostility, different laws, different cultures, different worship, different everything. The Jews had the law, the covenants, the promises. The Gentiles were outsiders, far off, without hope.
But notice what Paul says next: "But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ" (v. 13). The same blood that bridged the vertical divide between God and humanity now bridges the horizontal divide between human groups.
How does this work? "For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace" (vv. 14-15).
The cross doesn't just reconcile individuals to God—it creates something entirely new: a united people. Jews and Gentiles aren't just tolerating each other; they're becoming one new humanity in Christ. The barriers that seemed permanent, the hostilities that seemed eternal, the differences that seemed insurmountable—all are demolished at the cross.
The Complete Work of the Cross
Paul culminates this magnificent passage by showing how both reconciliations happen simultaneously: "And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father" (vv. 17-18).
The cross is the ultimate bridge—spanning every divide. Vertically, it connects sinful humanity to holy God. Horizontally, it connects hostile peoples to one another. The blood of Christ doesn't just purchase individual salvation; it creates a new community where former enemies become family.
This is the result of the gospel: not just that your sins are forgiven, but that you're brought into a new humanity where the old divisions no longer define us. In Christ, there is no Jew or Gentile, no slave or free, no male or female—we are all one in Christ Jesus.
The Foundation for Human Unity
When we truly understand what happened at the cross, it changes everything about how we relate to others. If Jesus died to break down the wall of hostility between Jews and Gentiles—two groups with deep historical animosity—then no human divide is too great for the gospel to bridge.
The cross calls us to examine our own hearts. Where do we harbor division? Where do we perpetuate hostility? Where do we allow cultural, racial, political, or economic differences to create barriers that Christ has already torn down?
The gospel doesn't erase our differences—it transforms them. We don't all become the same, but we all become one. Unity doesn't mean uniformity; it means that our differences no longer divide us because all believers are equally loved, equally saved, equally part of God's family through the cross.
The Bridge Trilogy: Exploring These Eternal Themes
These profound truths about the cross as bridge—spanning both the vertical divide between God and humanity and the horizontal divides between people groups—form the foundation for the first two books in The Bridge Trilogy. Through allegory and story, these books explore how Jesus Christ becomes the bridge that reconnects what sin has separated, both in our relationship with God and with one another.
The first book, "The Broken Bridge," tells the story of division and healing through sacrificial love. It draws from the Christian narrative that has transformed countless lives: that sin separated humanity from God, breaking our relationships, and that Jesus Christ became the bridge to restore what was lost through His self-giving love.
Important Announcement: The Broken Bridge Available Soon
I'm thrilled to announce that "The Broken Bridge," the first book in The Bridge Trilogy, will be available on Amazon within the next two weeks. This allegorical story brings to life the truths we've explored in Ephesians 2—showing how sacrificial love becomes the bridge that spans every divide.
For our paid subscribers: Our staff will be contacting you over the next week to request your mailing address so we can send you a signed copy of the book. Please watch for an email from "Bridge Trilogy Support Staff" coming from bridge.trilogy@gmail.com. If you don't receive this email, please check your spam or junk folders. If you still don't find it, please contact us directly at bridge.trilogy@gmail.com with your mailing address.
It's not too late to become a paid supporter! You can still become a paid subscriber and receive a signed copy of "The Broken Bridge," as well as each new book in the trilogy as they're released every quarter. The next book, "The Living Bridge," will follow in just a few months, continuing the story of how love builds bridges where human effort fails.
A Call to the Cross
As we conclude, let me call you to look again at the cross. See it not just as a symbol, but as the place where Jesus Christ gave Himself to bring you to God and to reconcile you with others. Examine the death of Jesus—really look at it. See how He bore your sin, took your death, and became your bridge to the Father.
And then see how that same cross breaks down every wall of hostility between you and others. The gospel doesn't just change your eternal destiny; it changes how you live today, how you love others, how you build bridges instead of walls.
The cross is God's answer to every divide—vertical and horizontal, spiritual and social, eternal and temporal. In a world that seems increasingly divided, the church must be the community that demonstrates what unity looks like when it's built on the foundation of the cross.
May we be people who live in the reality of both reconciliations—walking in the freedom of our relationship with God and extending that reconciling love to bridge every human divide we encounter.
The cross has done the work. The bridge is complete. Now we get to walk across it and invite others to join us.