The Message of Reconciliation

2 Corinthians 5:18 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 men'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.

The other day I wrote that as a Christian my worldview has changed. I should not be looking at others in a judgmental way. Rather I should look at others as individuals created in the image of God. Since we know that God created us as a craftsman would create a work of art, all of creation is valuable, we have worth.

We live in a fallen world separated from God. Thankfully Jesus came to bridge that gap and He brought heaven to earth. Unfortunately many have not experienced this heaven on earth. Many are still looking for answers: “what is my purpose;” “is this all there is;” “why do bad things happen to good people.” There are people who are hurting physically, mentally and spiritually. No matter how hard they try to please God it doesn’t appear they have done enough.

To reconcile is to restore something or someone to its former condition. For a checkbook we reconcile it back to a balanced condition.

Jesus died on a cross as a sacrifice to restore our relationship with God; it has never been about what we did. God’s plan was for us to be in communion with Him from the beginning. We can not sacrifice enough of ourselves or our possessions to restore that relationship, no matter how hard we try.

As God’s ambassadors, or spokesmen, we have been given a ministry of reconciliation. Our job, as Christ followers, is to restore others’ relationship with God. The message of reconciliation is the Gospel of Jesus. To me, the message of the Gospel of Jesus is love. We need to allow that message to be heard by our actions. People will know we are Christ followers by the way we love one another. Without love, we cannot experience joy and peace.

Blessed are the peacemakers. I pray that we may show others the love of Christ and that they will be reconciled and restored and made right again. May we all enjoy our relationship with one another and with Christ who loves us.