Echoes from Ephesians: One New Humanity

Summary
In this sermon, Pastor Rachel Taylor invites us to consider what it means to be truly human in light of the Imago Dei—the image of God we bear both individually and collectively. Drawing from Genesis and Ephesians 2, she unpacks how injustice distorts our shared humanity and how Jesus came to restore what was broken. The message weaves biblical anthropology, theology, gender and racial justice, and a hopeful vision of reconciliation into a profound call toward “one new humanity.”

Key Takeaways

• We reflect the image of God most fully not as individuals but as a collective humanity—one new humanity.
  
  
• Injustice robs people of their God-given blessings, rights, privileges, resources, and responsibility—and in doing so, diminishes the full image of God in all of us.
  
  
• Jesus is the only one who can restore what injustice and sin have broken; He is our zipper fixer, creating in Himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace.

Breath Prayer
Inhale: Make us one, O Christ.
Exhale: Restore our shared humanity.
Full Manuscript
Estimated Reading Time: 12–14 minutes

 Today, we are continuing our series in the book of Ephesians, picking up in chapter 2 of the book. The title of our sermon this morning is "One New Humanity," which comes from verse 15 of chapter 2 in Ephesians, which says, "His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace."

 One new humanity. Ephesians chapter 2 says that Jesus' purpose was to create in himself one new humanity.
 
The question is then, what happened to the old humanity? What went wrong? What was that Jesus came to redeem, to restore, to set right?
 
Well, to answer this question, let's go all the way back to Genesis, where God created the first humanity. Remember that the first human was made in the image of God. Theologians call this the Imago Dei, which is Latin for the image of God.

Our imago Dei is a foundational theological concept. The point of the Bible is to help us understand who God is, who we are, and how God designed all of us to live together; with Him, with others, with His creation.

We cannot fully understand the concept of imago Dei until we locate ourselves in space and time. We live in America in 2025. That means, as we have mentioned before, that the society in which we live, has a very individualistic understanding of the world. This individualism is the lens through which we view everything that happens in the world. However, there are theological errors in this individualistic worldview.

Anthropology is the field of study that deals with who humans are. What does it mean to be human? The field of Biblical Anthropology deals with what it means to be human through the lens of the Bible. What does the Bible have to say about what it means to be human?

The Bible says that to be human is to be made in the image of God. It is true that we each individually reflect the image of God. It is also true that we more fully reflect the image of God as a community. In the creation story, Adam, is a metaphor for the creation of all of humanity.

There are two creation accounts in the book of Genesis, one in chapter one and one in chapter two, and they are very different in literary style from one another. Chapter one unfolds with a lot of order and structure. This kind of writing is attributed to a Priestly source.

The Hebrew word for humanity is "A-dam", which is confusing, since it is also the name of the first male created, "Adam". It's the same exact word, but how it is used changes its meaning from "humanity" to the individual we know as "Adam".

In Genesis one, the word "A-dam" refers to humanity. And so, God made humanity in his image. Let's read Genesis 1:26–2 together.

We know to translate "A-dam" as "humanity" here because of the plural pronoun "them". This is where we start in our Biblical Anthropology. We reflect the image of God as the entire community of humanity. Although we bear his image as individuals, we most fully bear his image as the collection of all humans.

As we go forward in the passage it's important to note that the blessing and responsibility that God gives is to all of humanity, not to an individual. There is no distinction noted as the blessing and responsibility is being given.

A quick aside about translation issues, if you were to translate Hebrew words literally, it can feel very "wooden" in English. It feels stiff, artificial. It doesn't flow. And so when you are translating from any language, you have to make translation decisions about how to best capture the concept into English (or whatever language you are translating into).

That's why we don't see the English word "humanity" in our English Bibles, because it sounds weird. It's also important to acknowledge that almost all Biblical translators have been male. When you have only one kind of human making those translation decisions, that representation comes through in the final product. So when the translators are sitting around, making the decision about how to translate "Adam" in Genesis 1:26-28, it makes sense that they would say, You know, I think using the English word man for humanity sounds better here. That's how we normally use it anyway.

Now, if half of those translators at the table in this discussion were female, there probably would have been a different outcome. And if all of the translators sitting at that table, making that translation decision, were female, I am certain that a different decision would be made.

A table of female translators would have had a long discussion about the implications of using the word man as completely interchangeable for the concept of humanity. They would have been very hesitant to cut themselves out of the definition of humanity. They would have had a vested interest in what kind of trickle-down effect that would have had on their lives in society.

There is the plural pronoun "them", affirming our translation of "A-dam" as "humanity".

The blessings, rights, privileges, resources, and responsibilities were given to "A-dam". They were given to "humanity". And so, when we deny individuals or groups of individuals equal access to God-given blessings, rights, privileges, resources, and responsibilities, we rob them of their God-given humanity. We rob them of their Imago Dei, and in the process, we rob ourselves of Imago Dei, because we cannot fully reflect the image of God without their full participation. Everyone loses.

This is the definition of injustice. When we allow injustice, we allow the image of God to be degraded. It is the loss of our collective, full humanity. The cost is high to everyone involved. The implications become intense, the situations dire.

The creation account in Genesis two has a different literary style. It is not set forth in a linear, categorized way. This kind of writing is attributed to a Jahwist source. The word Jahwist is derived from the personal name of God, Yahweh. And following suit, it has a more personal style.

I want to address the "A-dam" translation in Genesis 2 as well, because the story from whence we came, our origin story, is extremely important in understanding who we are at our core. Our understanding of ourselves, individually and collectively, drives our actions, behaviors, and choices. Our understanding of who we are, sets the stage for the play of our lives. It informs us of the roles we are supposed to play. Let's read Genesis 2:5–7 together.

Now, you can see why it can make sense to use man instead of humanity here for the word "A-dam". Genesis 2 is using a story to communicate theological truths about who God is and who we are as humans. Even though all of humanity is represented in this one creature "A-dam", it gets awkward to refer to that creature as humanity. Especially when we are talking about God breathing into nostrils. How can "humanity" have a pair of nostrils?

It's important that we remember the literary context of Genesis 2. It's from the Jahwist source. Stylistically it is not trying to communicate scientific, concrete, structure, categories. Stylistically it is more relational and imagery based. It's trying to communicate theological truth through story and imagery.

The Hebrew word that is translated into creature here, is "Nephesh". It means soul, living being, person. It's important to note that the Hebrew word "Nephesh" is a feminine word.

Our origin story becomes very different if we see this "Nephesh", this "living being" as being neither male or female at this point.

When God says later in chapter 2 that it is not good for "A-dam" or "humanity" to be alone, it is very different than for God to say that it is not good for a "male" to be alone.

For God to say that it is not good for "A-dam" or "humanity" to be alone, is to say that the full definition of humanity is "relationship".

You cannot be fully human without relationships. To be fully human, you must have other humans to relate to.

Now, at this point, we see gender being referred to.

"She shall be called woman 'ish' for she was taken out of 'isha'." Again, it is important to take note of what kind of literature we are in at the moment. These lines are Hebrew poetry. These are poetic lines. "Ish" "Isha". You don’t have to know Hebrew to recognize the word play. The point of this word play is a root of commonality, with a slight variation.

To be fully human is to be in relationships with other humans, who are very much like us, but who also retain some distinct, unique characteristics.

The "Nephesh," the "living being," went looking for a partner throughout all of creation, but no helper was suitable for the "living being". The other created creatures, the animals, were not on the same level as "Nephesh".

"Nephesh" needed a partner that was also "Nephesh". And so God separated "Nephesh" into two. From genderless humanity came male and female partnership. This is a mystery. Our limited human brains cannot fully comprehend what this means. We can get close with different types of metaphors. But we cannot fully wrap our heads around it.

Much like we cannot wrap our heads fully around the concept of the trinity, 3 in 1. Or the fact that Jesus was 2 in 1, fully human and fully divine at the same time. How does that even work? The early church had to try to figure this out to at least some degree and put it into language to define orthodox Christian thought. They had lots of debates and councils that resulted in our foundational creeds, like the Nicene Creed.

I love the 2 sides of 1 coin metaphor. I think it's so helpful for so many things. For example, the Psalms in the Bible are full of both lament and praise. From this, I think that praise and lament are best practiced together. I think they are the 2 sides of 1 coin. They are the 2 sides of how we relate to God. If you are a person who only gives praise to God and does not lament to Him your losses, you do not have a balanced relationship with God. If you are a person who only laments to God and never gives thanks and praise, then you do not have a balanced relationship with God.

I want to use the 2 sides of 1 coin metaphor for humanity as well. Male and female together equal humanity. They are 2 sides of the same coin. Just like you cannot separate Christ's full deity and His full humanity. Both sides are essential for the definition of Christ. He is 2 things in 1.

In the same way, humanity is 2 things in 1. Humanity is male and female in full partnership. Bearing all of the blessings, rights, privileges, resources, and responsibilities together. Where the partnership breaks down, and there is a lack of equity across the genders, our Imago Dei is degraded. We do not fully represent Christ unless we are bearing these God-given blessings, rights, privileges, resources, and responsibilities together.

The same is true for race, ethnicity, socioeconomic class, and education levels. We most fully reflect God's image when we bear these God-given blessings, rights, privileges, resources, and responsibilities together equally. When we don't—and we don't—this is the definition of injustice.

The definition of justice is the redistribution of those God-given blessings, rights, privileges, resources, and responsibilities. This redistribution is the work of justice that we are called to. It restores our full, collective humanity. It restores our Imago Dei, our reflection of God's image.

One more coin metaphor for justice. We all experience the 2 sides of injustice. We all have ways in which we experience privilege, advantage, more than our fair share of blessings, rights, privileges, resources, and responsibility (which we can also call power). The systems of the world are broken. And so if you are white, you possess unfair advantages; if you are male, you possess unfair advantages; if you are highly educated, you possess unfair advantages; if you are in the upper socio-economic classes, you possess unfair advantages. How can we redistribute some of those advantages in those areas of our lives?

On the flip side, the other side of the injustice coin, we all experience some way in which we experience unfair bias, disadvantage, oppression, suppression, and degradation. If you are a person of color, a woman, not highly educated, or not of the upper socioeconomic class, you possess unfair disadvantages. How can we advocate for ourselves in these areas and work towards a redistribution of the blessings, rights, privileges, resources, and responsibility that were given to us by our creator?

I am bringing up justice because whenever 2 things are separated, inequality quickly sets in. Things get uneven and messed up, and then it's hard to bring the 2 parts back together again in peace. It's like a zipper that gets messed up. Have you ever had that happen to you? Where is the zipper on your jacket that just won't zip anymore?

If you take a close look at it, you'll notice that one of the sides has somehow gotten damaged. Usually, it's one of those little zipper teeth that has gotten bent out of shape. And now, no matter how hard you try, you can't get the two sides of your zipper to unite back into one whole, functional zipper again.

A broken zipper is a great metaphor for what has happened to God's creation of humanity. God created different kinds of people, but He intended them all along to be able to come back together and fully unite into one functional zipper. But injustice and sin have damaged both sides of the zipper, and now, there seems to be no hope of the zipper that God created ever being able to function again.

Let’s read what Ephesians 2 has to say about the broken zipper that is our broken humanity.

The two sides of the zipper just can't get back into alignment, no matter how hard they try and figure out different types of systems that will make things right again.

Do you have a zipper fixer in your family? When you have a jacket with a messed-up zipper, is there someone in your family who can usually get it back together again? I usually get frustrated quickly and just give up. But my husband is often able to get a broken zipper to work again after a few minutes of work.

In God's family, Jesus is the zipper fixer. Let’s keep reading in Ephesians 2.

The only way the zipper of humanity is going to be able to function together again is through the restorative work of Jesus.

So what does this look like in our lives? What is God calling us to do in order to more fully reflect His image and live into the fullness of the humanity we were designed for?

It starts with this: Being fully human means imaging God in His unity. And we cannot be fully human without other humans. There is something essential about relationship that defines our humanity. Just as God is one and three at the same time, we were created to be one and many at the same time. We are distinct individuals, yes—but we were never meant to be separate. We were created for unity within diversity, and unity is imperative for being fully human.

God provides the way for both delineation and unity. He made us different on purpose. He didn’t erase differences; He designed them. He also made a way for unity. In fact, that’s exactly what Jesus came to do. As Ephesians 2 tells us, “His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace.” Jesus is our zipper fixer. He is the only one who can restore what has been separated by sin and injustice. Through His life, death, and resurrection, He made it possible for us to be brought together, not in uniformity, but in holy unity.

True unity doesn’t come naturally. It’s easier to seek peace by surrounding ourselves with people who are similar to us. That feels comfortable, even safe. But that is not true peace. That’s a false version of peace that keeps us from the fullness of being human. If we separate ourselves from those who are different from us—different in background, story, culture, or belief—we not only miss out on their image-bearing humanity, we also fail to fully reflect God’s image ourselves.

To image God is our primary vocation as human beings. Out of that vocation flows the call to be fruitful, to multiply, and to rule over creation. But before we can do any of that, we must properly reflect the God who exists as three-in-one, a unified, diverse community. There is mystery in this. We won’t fully understand it. But what is clear is this: we were made to be individuals and a unified, diverse collective at the same time. Anything less than that is a distortion of our humanity and our God-given identity.

So what can we do? How do we practice this kind of unity—the kind that reflects God’s image, reveals His glory, and restores our humanity?

• We intentionally place ourselves in diverse settings, spaces that stretch us, humble us, and force us to rely not on similarity, but on our shared unity in Christ.
  
  
• Jesus modeled this for us. He was a friend to the poor and to the rich, to the holy and the sinful, to men and women, Jews and Gentiles, religious and irreligious. He crossed every line we build to divide ourselves. And now, through Him, we are called to do the same.

This week, have a conversation with someone at church who is different from you. Let it be awkward. Let it be uncomfortable. And lean into the unity you already have in Christ.

This month, examine the patterns of your family. Is there room to expand the table, to include someone who doesn’t fit your mold of familiarity?

This year, consider what it would look like to form a genuine friendship across lines of class, ethnicity, or education. Not for charity. Not for optics. But for your own formation and for the sake of imaging God more fully.

When we practice unity in the midst of diversity, we reflect God’s image more clearly. We participate in the restoration of the Imago Dei. And in doing so, we not only increase God’s glory and praise, we also experience deeper joy, greater wholeness, and a more faithful witness to the world around us.

This is the invitation of the gospel. This is the vision of one new humanity. This is what it means to be fully human.

So may we go from here committed to being image-bearers of the God who is three in one.

May we live as individuals called into a unified community. And may we join Jesus in His work of restoring what was broken, until all people, together, reflect the full image of God.