Therefore, if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things have passed away. Look, all things have become new. All this is from God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ and has given to us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their sins against them, and has entrusted to us the message of reconciliation. So we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us. We implore you in Christ’s stead: Be reconciled to God. God made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
2 CORINTHIANS 5:17-21 Modern English Version
In this passage we see that God makes all things new.
This new life that is in Him includes reconciliation - we are reconciled to Him through Jesus Christ. Furthermore, He gives us the ministry of reconciliation.
We are tasked with spreading the message of reconciliation; it is our job to do. Such a task doesn't mean that we be wimpy about it. It is not peace on any terms but peace on God's terms. And yet as we see here, He is pleading through us for people to come to Him and receive Him.
It is clear that God is initiating a relationship with humanity. Yet it must be on His terms. Sad to say, some people find this too much of God to ask! However, reconciling with God is a no-brainer - it is we who get all the benefits.
Now this passage speaks of us as individuals. The most important and vital thing anybody has to address is his/her relationship with the One who created us.
But there is a family, community, national and global aspect to all this. God was in Christ reconciling THE WORLD to Himself. Too often we just focus on our own individual self - we need to get back to seeing the world much more from a collective point of view. Too many concentrate on the vertical i.e. their own relationship with God but they neglect the horizontal which is their relationship with others. How remarkable that in the age of social media, we have become more anti-social - like little islands separate from one another who communicate only through a plastic screen. We tweet people we have never met on the other side of the world but neglect our real friends who we used to meet regularly.
In Britain today we need the ministry of reconciliation more than ever - not just between God and man but between ourselves. Husbands and wives, parents and children, Yes voters and No voters, Scots and English. The list goes on...
The problem with separatism is it separates people and creates boundaries and divisions. It is the very opposite of reconciliation. Same with individuality. A selfish, "me first" attitude might work against some weak-willed people. But in the long run, the seeds of selfishness sown will reap a bitter harvest.
This doesn't mean that we have to agree with everybody about everything. For example, Protestants and Catholics can be friends without agreeing on matters of doctrine. Christians and Muslims can reach agreement on certain things without an atmosphere of rancid hate. We should be seeking peace as much as possible with all men - even those we feel we must confront and oppose in certain circumstances.
The ministry of reconciliation is a reminder that our key task is to seek such peace and an ultimate reconciliation. It isn't always easy and can be a bit scary because it requires us to be humble and vulnerable.
In Northern Ireland a man who spent all his life in a confrontational mode switched in his latter years to a transformational one. Dr Ian Paisley was synonymous with "No Surrender!" but in the end realised that reconciliation was the only way forward. Ultimately, he called his arch enemy Martin McGuiness his friend.
I realise this is contentious stuff and many still feel that Dr Paisley went too far. Some would even say he capitulated. But the powerful argument is that no matter how much of a wretch anyone is, they can have the friendship of God through Jesus Christ in a millisecond. The Bible says we love Him because He first loved us i.e. He is the initiator of this friendship.
It is not a valid argument to say that some we seek to befriend will rebuff us so why bother? Or that they will see us as weak and naïve and take advantage of us. How the offer of friendship is received and reciprocated is not the important thing.
Offering the friendship as an ambassador for Christ is.
This is what is required of us - to be reconciled to God and then to be ministers of reconciliation to others.
Remember the words of The Master:
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God.
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