Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the historic one-year lectionary.
2 Corinthians 5:14-21 is packed full of powerful ideas. Christ died for all, we don't live for ourselves, we are new creations, we are reconciled to God, Jesus became sin for us. We don't have time to explore any of those concepts very thoroughly, even given a whole lifetime. But we can take a moment to think about verse 20.
God has made us his ambassadors, carrying a message of reconciliation. Because he has done everything needed to reconcile us to God in Christ, we carry that message of reconciliation to others.
Central to this idea is that we need to be brought into a friendly relationship with God. We were enemies by nature. But God in Christ has broken down the wall our sin built. We are no longer forcibly shut out of the presence of God.
What does this say about all our attempts to purify ourselves, to justify ourselves, to shape up for God? It says that they are worthless, at least from a divine perspective. There's nothing we can do to earn God's favor. He reconciled us. That's what we needed.
In the end, salvation is of the Lord. It is defined by him, purchased by him, and delivered by him. We are merely his people who invite others to come, hear, believe, and live.
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