Reconciliation in Christ

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2nd Corinthians 5.18-21
December 9th 2018
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Okay folks, last week we covered the biggie verse where Paul said:

17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Now he adds:

18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.
21 For he hath made him to be sinMissing the mark of faith and love—no punishment, just lost growth or peace. for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Paul's Audience

So, he has said that in Christ all things have become new. And now he explains for us the source of all things, saying:

18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;

I think it’s important, right off the bat, to recognize what Paul means by “us” in this passage. Because “us” typically means everyone who is participating in something, we might tend to think that the “us” in this verse is speaking of Paul and those believers who received his words then, and even all who read his words today.

Not so.

The “us” Paul is speaking about refers to Paul and the other apostles—or those who are traveling with them and assisting them in the labors of the ministry.

Reread some of these passages with me again to show you what I mean as Paul says:

18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be you reconciled to God.

New Perspective

Understanding that the “us” is speaking of Paul and the other apostles will help us parse the verses out in our attempt to understand what they mean. So after saying that If ANY person be in Christ, ALL things are new, he adds: “And all things (which I think he is speaking of all the new things in the Christian believer) are of God.” In other words, in the regenerated person, God provides all things that are new in him or her – and these things manifest to the regenerated that He is with them, making them a new creature.

There are new views of God and of Jesus Christ; new views of this world and of the world to come; new views of truth and of duty; and everything is seen in a new way with new resonation. Paul tells us that they are all of God, forming the bulwark of the new mind which will assist the believer in dying to flesh and also living with Christ.

Reading the Word Anew

Last week I mentioned a couple of things that seem universally new in a new believer but one thing – perhaps one of the most important things that is new that I failed to mention are new eyes with which we read the Word. For many who discover themselves in Christ the Bible seems to be a new book; and where it might have been read before with unregenerated eyes there is a beauty about it which many have never seen before!

It’s really fascinating because when I was LDS I read and enjoyed the Bible. It resonated to me in a number of appreciable ways and I did benefit from it – admittedly. In fact, I thought I understood it. But when I was born-from above it became the living word and I immediately began to see it in an entirely different way – a way that was actually and literally living. When I look back on how I related to the Bible when I was LDS compared to how I read and understand it today, the differences are night and day.

This is the new eyes, and spirit, and presence of God and His Spirit aiding those in Christ with their understanding of the written word.

Reconciliation in Christian Life

I suppose this is key in spiritual maturation – the renewing of the mind – which comes by the washing of the Word and without it, old ideas may consume the reader. I am amazed, sometimes, at the way many new Christians are immediately equipped with an ability to discern scripture at a very high level. That is the Spirit of God in them, making all things new.

The Ministry of Reconciliation

And so Paul says,

18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation.

As mentioned, verse 18 is Paul referring to himself as an apostle and those like him and/or those engaged in ministry with him. It really seems like a passage that ought to apply to all Christian readers but the context of the passage itself will not allow this if we are to be honest. Speaking of God, Paul says “who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation.”

So, speaking of the Apostles HERE, he admits that God has reconciled them to Himself by Jesus Christ and then adds that God then gave THEM the ministry of reconciliation (or he placed the ministry in their hands). But this by no means that only the Apostles were reconciled to God through Christ. Hardly!

God's Reconciliation Through Christ's Death

Let me take you to an amazing passage to launch us deeper into the idea of total reconciliation. In Romans 5:10 presents us with a really important point that echoes much of what I have been trying to communicate from these passages in 2nd Corinthians relative to the world being buried with Christ but only His children being raised up to new life, as it says:

For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the deathSeparation from God—now overcome. Physical death remains, but it no longer separates us from life with God. of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

Notice in that first line that Paul says that “when we were enemies” we WERE reconciled to God by the death of His Son. That is what Paul is saying in 2nd Corinthians when he says that because “He died all have died.” It is what I have been saying – that while we were yet enemies Jesus died for our sins – and therefore all died – and all were reconciled by and through His death!

Through His death we have all, as enemies of God, been reconciled! Remember what John said in 1st John 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. It is the most remarkable revelation, my friends, to see what God has done to bring about the sinful state of the human race.

I mentioned this morning that this idea takes the idea I used to have of one man dying on the cross for our sin to one man experiencing death as MANKIND itself. An enormous sacrifice, out of love, that took everyone of us, while we were yet sinners, into the grave, paying for all sin universally.

NOT MAKING ALL OF US CHILDREN OF GOD! NOT MAKING ALL OF US RIGHTEOUS AND HOLY BEFORE GOD – but removing the sin that once separated all from God. But Paul, speaking to believers in Rome who have risen to new life in Him, adds,

“much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.”

So where all have been reconciled, and made a blank slate by and through the death of His Son, Paul says, MUCH MORE (and that is the key – the much more) being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life (meaning his resurrection and the righteousness of Him is imputed to all who believe saving them to the Kingdom of GodGod’s spiritual reign—fulfilled and present, not political or future. and from the coming destruction.)

Salvation Through Christ's Life

In other words, if or since the WORLD, when it was an enemy to God, was reconciled to God through the death of His Son (remember, while we were yet sinners He paid the price of sin) SO MUCH MORE, as children of God, as Sons and daughters, Paul is saying, being reconciled, “we shall be saved by his life.”

Ephesians 2:14-17 touches on this, saying:

“For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; 15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; 16 And that he might reconcile both

Reconciliation Through Christ

unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:

Adding to the concept, Paul says:

Colossians 1:20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.

21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled

22 In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:

The Universal Gift

Bottom Line – Jesus Christ was sent to be a propitiation for the sins of the world. This was done through His flesh and blood on the cross, and it was done for all, everywhere – while we were yet sinners. Don’t mess around with this biblical fact. Don’t add qualifiers to it by suggesting that a person has to believe to receive the blood as a means to cover sin – remember, while we were yet sinners the debt was paid for all in full.

That is the first phase. That is the unmerited, unencumbered gift to all. And as a result, all will be resurrected – all. Why? Because all are without sin! The wages of sin is death, HE paid for the sin, we (as in everybody) no longer remain in the grave! We will all experience rising from the grave.

Reconciliation and New Life

But now we come to the division between the all who are reconciled and those who are His. This is the night and day difference. Where Evangelicals and Orthodoxy tend to make the difference between the sinners and the Saints, and make their eternal destinations a burning hell or glorious heaven, the universal propitiation for the sin of the world has closed the entrance to hell and thrown open the heavens, making it the final destination of all peoples – through Christ.

But to suggest that because all enter heaven due to the reconciliation of Christ is the same experience for all is like suggesting that the human experience is the same for all. Because the heavenly experience is meted out and determined by and through the resurrection, the parallels to earth life could be as vast and diverse as one person being born with looks, intelligence, wealth, and all the benefits of such and another being born in a hut in Siberia with extreme physical maladies.

Children of God

Herein lies the difference in Jesus reconciliation of the world – most are just reconciled, but some rise to new life, as Children – sons and daughters of God. It is interesting that the Greek word here translated reconciled (KAT-AL-ASSO) means simply, to change something. In this case, it specifically refers to Jesus life and righteousness exchanged for our death and sin.

In the New Testament usage it usually means, “to change one person towards another,” as a means to change the existing situation between parties. Romans 5:10 conveys the idea of producing a change so that one who is alienated should be brought to friendship. Of course, the change to take place is the payment of sin which would reconcile sinful humanity to righteous God.

The reconciliation does not change God – He does not change. He was not angry – He was lovingly calling to all. But sin could not be remitted which kept us dead and in the grave. Once Christ removed the wages of sin WE – being changed, were free to relate with our loving God. God did not change in the least – in other words, the shed blood did not change God, it changed sin, which kept us forever alienated and separate from Him. But God, still being the same, desires all to come to him in relationship – to be His children, His Son’s and daughters.

This too, is a change. But not in Him. It is with us. This occurs when we rise to new life, walking in His resurrection, and not just experiencing reconciliation through the death of His Son, but also experiencing life. The sin upon us was natural – the product for Adam and the fall. Because of the first Adam, all of us were doomed to an eternity of alienation in sheol. But God, through His Son, fixed that for all.

For as in Adam ALL die even so in Christ will ALL be made alive. But to be sons and daughters, and to choose to walk with Christ in His resurrection is an entirely different matter.

Paul

Ministry of Reconciliation

Paul has explained that he and the other apostles received the ministry of reconciliation—and explains what this means, this reconciliation, adding (at verse 19).

19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

To wit—meaning, namely or, which means. God has given us apostles the ministry of reconciliation, which means, namely:

“that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.”

Such a passage! The first line, “That God was in Christ.” It’s clear—that God was in the Messiah. Who was the Messiah? Jesus. So we can clearly say, “That God was in Jesus.” Paul does not say, “that Jesus as God,” he was led to write, “That God was in Christ.”

The Essence of Reconciliation

Some interpret this as meaning, “That God by Christ or God by means of Christ” and others suggest that it means that “God, united with Christ,” and or “God manifesting himself by Christ,” but in the end, the passage is clear in the character descriptions: God and then the Messiah. That is how Paul puts it. And God was IN the Messiah. The fullness of God was in the Messiah. And what was God doing in and through the Messiah? “Reconciling the world unto himself.”

Just to let you know, the world here means the human race, the Kosmos, and not the area or land or the Jews. “That God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself.” The whole world was alienated from him, and God, in Christ, reconciled it to himself through His shed blood on the cross. We see that it was God, the offended party, not the offending party, that sought to be reconciled—proving the purity and strength of his love. This was a love for enemies and for all of our alienated brothers and sisters and God in Christ, reconciled the world to himself.

Tindal translates this accurately, "For God was in Christ, and made agreement between the world and himself, and imputed not their sins unto them.”

“That phrase imputed not their trespasses unto them,” is unique. The idea here is, that God did not charge on them with his justifiable severity and stern justice their offences, but graciously provided a pardon and remitted all sin on their behalf through Christ whom He was in.

The Nature of God

Now, let's talk just a minute. There is this stance that says: I did not choose to come to this world. God created me and gave me life and I entered a world with a sin nature, that is present for nothing I did on my own. And if someone doesn’t say this, they will say, I entered this world and was bound to do things wrong that would cause me to be alienated from God—I can’t help this—and God knew it—but because of my sins, that God knew I would do, I am going to go to hell forever!

And the Christian will say, “Not if you accept God’s solution for sin!” But that leads to all sorts of other rabbit trails, including the people who never heard of Jesus, and or the fact that God still knew, when he created me, that I would NOT accept His solution, so in effect, he created me for an eternity in hell. By taking scripture for what it says, and not messing with it, we have a solution and God is glorified.

That is, God created the world, knew what Adam would do, knew what we would do in this world of flesh, and He unconditionally provided the solution for all, and because of this solution, he CHOSE to not impute our trespasses and sins to us—even though, being created in His image AND with the freedom to choose, we elected to rebel against what we knew internally we ought.

This plan of reconciliation demonstrates to us the nature of God—that he was not disposed to impute their sins to them, as he might have done but His nature is disposed to pardon, mercy and forgiveness.

Paul adds, referring to himself and the apostles, “who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation.”

20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, (He, Paul and the other Apostles) as though God did beseech you.

Reconciliation to God

by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. We remember what Paul said back in chapter 3, that: God had made them “able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” He also said in Ephesians 6:20 “I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.” And as an ambassador Paul says that it was “as though God did beseech you (the readers of his epistle) by us (the ambassadors for Christ). An ambassador is a minister of the highest rank who is employed by one prince or state at the court of another, to manage the concerns of his own prince or state, and representing the dignity and power of his sovereign. He is sent to do what the prince would do himself if he was present.

Paul and the others were sent to make the Good News known on His behalf, just as Christ was sent as an ambassador for His Father, God. So when Paul adds to the believers at Corinth, “as though God did beseech you by us,” he is saying that through the Apostles God spoke and delivered His message to them. And so he adds: We pray you in Christ's stead – in place of Christ, we earnestly invite you . . .” To what? Paul says, “as though God does invite you himself, Be ye reconciled to God.” We have manifest evidence that God has, of His own good and love, reconciled the world to himself – through His Son. Paul now tells the believers at Corinth “to be reconciled to God!”

Our Responsibility in Reconciliation

I would point out that if God forces us to receive him or overtly persuades us, then the command from Paul is futile – why would he even say such a thing. The fact that he does suggests to me that there is a response-ability, for all people, to reconcile themselves to God in the face of the Good News. These words imply that man has something to do in his life relative to God. He is to surrender the opposition to him, to submit to Him and His ways due to the mercy he understands that has been extended to him. Looking around, we have NOT approached sharing the Gospel in this fashion. We have not said, “Did you know that your sins have been paid for – while you were yet a sinner? That the goodness of God has been fully extended to you because of His love, in and through His only begotten son?” Instead, we have said, Jesus died for you and you had better receive this in faith or God is gonna rip the crap out of you in hell. See the difference?

Paul has made this all very clear – God in Christ has paid for the sin of the world and the whole she-bang has been reconciled to Him because of it. Now, reconcile yourselves to Him! Notice, that in fixing the problem of sin, God has done what He can do with the problem but God cannot change now that the work is done on our behalf. We have to do the changing! And that is what Paul is calling to them to do. To reconcile ourselves now, to God.

The Fulfillment of Reconciliation

And he adds the coup de gras: 21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. Boom shakalakalaka, boom! The sin is complete and done and over. God is reconciled as the wages of sin have been paid BY HIM through His Son. 21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. Holy cow – now we’re cooking with gas! Now we get to the point and purpose of it all. The whole deal is not for us to be forgiven of sin! That just paves the way for the end-game – and that was done for everyone. Let’s get a hold of that right now. FOR HE MADE HIM TO BE SIN FOR US, who knew no sin . . . “that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

How does that happen? Romans 5:19 For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. It says it all right there. Adam made us all disobedient. God in Christ took care of that,

The Path to Righteousness

And now, when we seek to be reconciled to God, when we allow Him and the life of His Son to operate in us, through His Son shall we all be made righteous. This is key, as Paul said about the Jews, his brethren in Romans 10:3:

“For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.”

The Apostle Peter, in 1st Peter 2:24, speaking of Jesus, said, “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.”

Submission to God's Will

This is the key – understanding what God has done for the world through Christ – have we, are we, willing to submit ourselves to Him and His will? Peter says we should. And herein lies the difference between the reconciled and those who are children of God – the Children of God submit, and seek to allow God through Christ to flow into and through them as a result.

For he hath made him to be sin for us. The better Greek here is, "For him who knew no sin, he hath made sin, or a sin-offering for us." The words, “to be” are not in the original. The design of this very important verse is to urge the strongest possible reason for being reconciled to God. This is implied in the Greek word “gar” or for.

Understanding the Sacrifice

And in this final passage of the chapter we have a FOR and we have a THAT

We have a FOR he (God) hath made him (Jesus) to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Paul could have tried other arguments but this is what he chose and in some ways it is one of the most comprehensive descriptions of the whole plan of God:

FOR God hath made Jesus to be sin for us,

There is the loving universal payment for all human trespasses, failures and sins

who knew no sin;

Proving that a just payment had to be made and not just the sacrifice of goats and sheep. For what reason did God make Jesus to be sin for us?

that we . . . might be made . . . the righteousness of God . . . in him.

That we (those who are seeking and willing to now reconcile themselves to Him) MIGHT BE MADE . . .the righteousness of God . . .

Notice that God did not make his Son sin just so we can experience the absent of sin through Him, but the He did this so that we can experience the actual righteousness of God . . . that is in His Son.

Living in Righteousness

Our vine . . . as branches.

At this point we enter into the fact that all who receive the fact that He died and paid for our sin SHOULD live unto righteousness,

Which I suggest is a way of saying that we should live in His resurrection, live in and through Him and His life by allowing or permitting Him to live through us.

Not of our own righteousness . . . but the righteousness of God that is available to all . . . in Him

We will stop here and pick up chapter 6 next week.

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