Reconcile with the Reconciled
2 CORINTHIANS 5:17-20
What a friend we have in Jesus
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
Verse 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.
Christ is risen. He is risen, indeed. Hallelujah! Amen!
Rev. One may think; Christ is Risen is a greeting normally used during Easter, why now?
Mr. Kyei; Jesus died once and for all times… Jesus Rose once and for all; death has no power over Jesus; He will never die again… Jesus is the Risen Lord!…. Christ is Risen!
He is Risen in deed! Hallelujah!
Friends and my cherished listeners; one comes to Jesus Christ through the waters of Baptism” I believe we well understood that through the theme “Turning Point” as well as you welcome to the family..
Jesus is the turning point in our lives and when we do come to Him; He is faithful and ready to welcome us home to God’s family … in Jesus we spiritually and physically become a new creation… all the old things are gone and satan can no longer accuse us of anything… because whatever satan could accuse us off, have been paid for fully by the shedding of Jesus’ precious blood on the Cross on Mount Calvary. .. Thanks be to God for such a Wondrous gift!…..Amen!
You might be thinking, “Well, that’s the pastor. He’s supposed to forgive.” You might be thinking, “My life is a different story. It’s not as easy for me.”
In fact, some feelings of hurt may be lingering in your life right now. Perhaps you have suffered much in your relationships… be it family, business whatever, you might be struggling with truckload of trial that affects you every day.
Lewis Smedes, author of a book called Forgive and Forget, talked about the deep and abiding difficulty of relationship damage. He said, “It is always personal, unfair, and deep.”
There are many people today wandering around wounded; they are deeply hurt at heart!… perhaps you may be one of them… the question then is, is there hope for you and for me?
Rev. if I may ask; Is there hope for someone that have been hurt significantly by others, betrayed by a friend, disappointed by a parent, or harmed by a hurtful person? How can such a fellow live well when relationships in his or her life is in shambles?
Mr. Kyei You might say that today, relationship raggedness runs rampant because of real hurts.
Friends and my cherished listeners: I have been there and through it all before, thanks be to God for His mercies and faithfulness over my life: May His name be praised now and forevermore Amen!
To tell you the truth; the hurt can lodge in your life and not let you go. The pain, the bitterness, even the hatred, can take over your life. If God does not come in; It can define your character as a human being.
Friends: Maybe you’re currently at that point, knowing no other life but one of lingering sadness, constant thoughts of revenge, or empty hopelessness. The real question is How can you be freed from what seems and unavoidable and unbreakable prison?..
Smedes gave the answer in his book. It’s a hard to answer. It may not be fully understood. However I edge you to hear him and give his message a chance in your life. Smedes states (p.5 of forgive and forget) and I quote, “When you feel this kind of three-dimensional pain, you have a wound that can only be healed by forgiving the one who wounded you” unquote!
Rev. Wait a minute. Healed only by forgiving? That doesn’t seem fair. That seems like you’re letting a bad culprit off the hook!
Mr. Kyei: Before you reject this daring statement, let me explain. Forgiveness does not mean being unfair or letting someone “get away with it.” It means there is another way for you when you are wounded by someone.
God calls it “reconciliation.” Read what Apostle Paul states in 2 Corinthians 5:16-19:
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.
The Biblical word for “reconciliation” is rooted in a word that means “to transform.” It’s connected with a word that tells us there is something else. On the one hand there’s the old way that you and I naturally expect, but on the other hand God has a surprise of grace.
This other way was given as a gift by means of what God did through His Son, Jesus. You heard the Apostle Paul say it: God reconciled us to Himself through Christ. God was in Jesus Christ reconciling the whole world to Himself.
Rev. for the sake of our listeners let me ask, How did that work?
God didn’t count our sins against us, but instead, counted them against Jesus when Jesus was put to death on the cross… remember in the waters of Baptism , Every thought, word, action be it accident, bad attitude, disobedience, and sin which you and I have ever committed and can possibly commit against our God, was piled on Jesus Who was punished in our place on the cross.
Rev. was the price paid fully. Meaning there is nothing we can do in addition
Definitely! God made another way where there was no way. It was a way of justice; -sin was punished. Simultaneously it was a way of righteousness that made possible a new way of grace. God gave us love we didn’t deserve. God reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ. Instead of destroying us or leaving us to suffer in our anger or pain, God forgave us in Christ Jesus. God the father let it all go because Jesus took it all upon Himself…. Thanks be to God for such a gift!
Here’s a truth that you can hold on to. God is much better at taking care of hurt and injury, pain and sin, than we humans are.
Rev. what we know is payback, retribution, and the joy of seeing others suffer as much as we think we’re suffering.
All we know is self-destruction and slavery to woundedness. God came up with a plan that was totally different. God created the reality of reconciliation and forgiveness: handing all our personal, unfair, and deep pain to Jesus and letting Him carry it for us.
Friends; there is nothing painful than feeling hurt! Instead of letting hatred, bitterness, and disappointment grow over your life, remembered, ….. “If you can’t change it, don’t let it run your life. Take five minutes to grieve, to complain, and moan. Then let it go.”
Apostle Paul He says, “Then, give it all over to Christ, the crucified, risen One and leave it all in His hands!”.
That’s the power of forgiveness. This is the life-saving gift of reconciliation. There is an option to grudges, anger, resentment, and paralyzing pain. God gives you another way.
Thanks be to God for literally creating this other way!
And that’s why Paul says, “Therefore, we ….ambassadors for Christ….implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake God made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him (Jesus) we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:19-21).
So that is how it works. Jesus became sin so that we might become the righteousness of God.
On point, If you and I were on our own, we would have no place to put the pain and damage of our relationships. But we’re not on our own. God the Father sent His only Son to carry the pain and damage for you and for me.
Friends: Instead of having to live a life twisted and misshapen by emotional pain-a wronged life, God gives you a right life-one that is marked by His loving embrace, the forgiveness of your sins, and the capacity in Him to share His love with others.
Rev. How easily can we share God’s love with others?
Let’s get practical here.
Considering your own regrets, guilt, and shame.
What do you do with the genuine hurt and pain you’ve caused yourself and others?
What do you do with your mistakes in life?
How do you handle the things that you can’t undo anymore?
Rev. Obviously one can’t do anything,
But Jesus Christ can, and in Him you are a new creation. The old is gone because of Jesus; the new has come because of Him. Remember, you were crucified with Jesus Christ and raised to new life because of your baptism in Him. Definitely You can’t do anything, but God did everything in Jesus for you! The old is gone. .. Hallelujah!
So refreshing, Rev. you may proceed!
Child of God; the devil is going to try to whisper accusations from your past. The evil one will try to convince you that you can’t be a new person in Christ. But with a spirit of humility, repentance, and gratitude, you can respond, “Jesus gave me another way,” and by faith, I’m going to live that new life in Him.
Dear believer; Live as one forgiven and reconciled to God. Give Jesus the opportunity to keep taking away the poisonous grudges and regrets that try to clog your heart and mind.
Pray that Jesus, our Savior and friend, gives you the strength to apologize to people you have hurt.
Let God make His appeal for you in another way, given as a gift through Jesus Christ.
When people see the difference in you; they will praise your Father who is in heaven!.
Instead of beating yourself up and isolating yourself from others, you’ll humbly start brand new. You’ll have a sense of peace. Even if some relationships can’t be rebuilt, you, yourself, can be a powerful witness for the transformation God works through His gift of reconciliation.
You can show people in your life that there is hope.
Summary
Please know, dear listener, that as you live this other way, this way of reconciliation through Christ, you’re going to need God’s Word to sustain you every day. You’ll need your fellow forgiven followers of Jesus to encourage you…
Let’s get even more practical; let’s apply this power to how you actually can handle the hurt you’ve been handed by others. What do you do with all that pain? Once again, you can’t do anything, but Jesus can.
Instead of pondering payback all the time, God has made you now a reconciler. You can specialize in the other way. It doesn’t even matter whether the other person wants to make peace. Pile the load on the shoulders of Jesus who died and rose again. Then wish the person who has hurt you, wish them well. Be fools for Christ sake, and wish him or her well..
Pray that their life can be better too. Ask God to free them from being so hurtful. Lift the people in your life before God’s throne of justice and grace and ask Him to take them into His care. This doesn’t mean you take abuse or relinquish healthy boundaries. It simply means that you operate another way and you leave the ultimate issue to Jesus Himself.
Rev. You mean as a reconciler, one exemplify the new way opened in Jesus Christ.
That’s what Lew Smedes meant when he said, “When you feel this kind of three-dimensional pain, you have a wound that can be healed only by forgiving the one who wounded you.”
Friends; you can forgive, because God in Jesus has already forgiven you too. That forgiveness frees you. God gives you another way, a good and healthy way, a gracious way, to handle real hurts.
I pray and hope you think deeply today about this word “reconciliation.” It’s an incredible word in the Scripture for all of us because it has eternal promises and temporal power. Think about it. The Bible says that God reconciles. He then lets His reconciliation live in you and flow through you. He relieves you of what you can’t change and frees you from the slavery of sin and woundedness. Mind you; I have been there and through it! The old is gone. It’s really gone. The new has come. And I’m going to be bold here; reconciliation is the only thing that really, really works in this life.
Amen!
Benediction
The Lord bless you and keep you reconciled in His grace;
The Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious unto you and protect your household;
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and grant you His everlasting peace which surpasses all human understanding… in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit..
Amen!
credit: Rev. Dr. Gregory Seltz, Lutheran Hour Speaker