The Ministry of Reconciliation
For Meditation
One of the most interesting habits of the apostle Paul is his tendency to launch into profound theological reflections when he is trying to address an everyday, ordinary concern. In the case of this passage, Paul continues his efforts to mend his relationship with the Corinthians, who hold Paul in suspicion and distrust. As Paul appeals to them to restore their relationship, he launches into one of the most moving reflections in the whole Bible on the doctrine of reconciliation. Paul writes of the amazing work of God who has “reconciled the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them.” He frames the gospel in deeply relational terms, demonstrating that sin is primarily a relational, not a legal, problem. And he celebrates the way God has done everything necessary to restore relationship with us, and now calls us to respond to God’s invitation to be reconciled to him.
But the whole point of Paul bringing this up was the implication for horizontal human to human relationships. Paul says that now that God has done this, we are called to be “representatives of Christ” in the way we proclaim the work of God and represent it in the way we live. We appeal to others to be reconciled to God, but we also do everything we can to model reconciliation in our relationships with one another.
In preparation for worship, read this passage in the Message version, and invite the Holy Spirit to use us as Christ’s ambassadors.
"Our firm decision is to work from this focused center: One man died for everyone. That puts everyone in the same boat. He included everyone in his death so that everyone could also be included in his life, a resurrection life, a far better life than people ever lived on their own.
Because of this decision we don’t evaluate people by what they have or how they look. We looked at the Messiah that way once and got it all wrong, as you know. We certainly don’t look at him that way anymore. Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life emerges! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins. God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We’re Christ’s representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them. We’re speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he’s already a friend with you."
2 Corinthians 5:11-21
11 Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade others. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience. 12 We are not trying to commend ourselves to you again, but are giving you an opportunity to take pride in us, so that you can answer those who take pride in what is seen rather than in what is in the heart. 13 If we are “out of our mind,” as some say, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14 For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.