Ambassadors

Last week, we began a journey through a letter written by one of the early church leaders (Paul) to a community of Jesus followers living in Corinth. We learned that we have a choice of turning away from God or learning to rely on God when we experience suffering, that we sometime need to confront someone we love that has dishonored God and then reaffirm them, that our lives should reflect Jesus’ life and that we should have an eternal perspective on life. Today, Paul reminds us that, in light of what Jesus has done for us, we have a huge privilege that is also a huge responsibility.


2 Corinthians 5
11 Because we understand our fearful responsibility to the Lord, we work hard to persuade others. God knows we are sincere, and I hope you know this, too.
12 Are we commending ourselves to you again? No, we are giving you a reason to be proud of us, so you can answer those who brag about having a spectacular ministry rather than having a sincere heart.
13 If it seems we are crazy, it is to bring glory to God. And if we are in our right minds, it is for your benefit.
14 Either way, Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life.
15 He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. 16 So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now!
17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!
18 And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him.
19 For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation.
20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”
21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.
2 Corinthians 6
1 As God’s partners, we beg you not to accept this marvelous gift of God’s kindness and then ignore it.
2 For God says, “At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you.” Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation.


Ambassadors. When I accepted the forgiveness that God offers through Jesus and became a Jesus follower, my responsibilities (verse 15), attitudes (verse 16) and purpose changed (verse 20) ... at least they were supposed to change. I would like to tell you I have been a perfect representative of Jesus ... I haven’t; but that doesn’t me I shouldn’t keep trying. As Jesus followers, we all need to be mindful that we are called to be ambassadors of Jesus when we are with our family, when we are with our friends, when we are at work, when we are at school ... wherever, whenever.