"All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 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. 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."
Read all of 2 Corinthians 5
In these verses the Apostle Paul is emphasizing the centrality of God in providing salvation. How much more clearly could he state it? "All this is from God." He is the one that provided His Son as our Savior. And Jesus would be true to His name, "For He would save his people from their sin" (Matthew 1:21).
These truths become the basis for what the apostle says next. God does it all, but He administers His grace through the ministry of Gospel preaching... "the message of reconciliation." Ambassadors represent those who send them. They don't have authority beyond their charged responsibility. In the case of Christian ministers, they plead the Gospel message on behalf of God and Christ. They are exhorted to exhort you:
"BE RECONCILED TO GOD!"
(If you haven't already, know that your present and future happiness depend on it.)
No comments:
Post a Comment