"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 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 men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation."
~ 2 Corinthians 5:17-19
The dictionary defines reconciliation as "the act of bringing into agreement or harmony, making compatible or consistent." We were once enemies of God (Romans 5:10), through Christ we are brought into agreement with God and His nature so that His Holy Spirit can dwell within us. While once we were at war with God, now we are at peace with Him (Romans 5:1).
Sin and God are incompatible. God hates sin. It disgusts Him and it grieves Him. Before we are saved through faith in Christ, our relationship with God is broken. Through the blood of Jesus, though, we are cleansed of our sins and our relationship with God is healed. God doesn't count our sins against us anymore. We can rely on Jesus sacrificial death on our behalf to wash away our sins if we ask the Lord for forgiveness.
And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation
This is the message we're supposed to be spreading: that God, who has every right to punish us for our sins, is offering the free gift of salvation, of reconciliation. That's the central message of Christianity. Most people know their own sins. They know right from wrong, yet they still choose wrong at least some of the time. For the most part, they also know that a perfect God wants nothing to do with sin. They are aware of their separation from God. Deep down, they know all the bad news.
Our job is to share the good news, that faith in Jesus brings the forgiveness of sins and a renewed unity with God, that the Christian life is better than the secular life, that a relationship with God is better than anything the world has to offer. So often, we don't do this because of fear of rejection, alienation, or even retribution. However, if we truly care about those around us, we have to overcome our fears and proclaim the message of the Cross with boldness.
If you heard about a federal program that would pay off anybody's debt for free, wouldn't you tell all your friends about it? Be honest. Wouldn't you? You'd email everybody you knew to make sure they got in on this before the government changed its mind. You'd call your family and friends and possibly your teachers from elementary school.
Well, we all owe a spiritual debt that can only be paid one of two ways: through spiritual death and hell (Ezekiel 18:20; Romans 6:23) or through the faith in the atoning power of the blood of Jesus Christ (Hebrews 9:33; Ephesians 2:8). Jesus stands with His offer to pay off anybody's spiritual debt for free, and He's not going to change His mind.
Financial debt goes away when you die, but spiritual debt is eternal. Clearly, Jesus' offer of salvation is far greater than anything the government could come up with, and it's more pressing. While death forgives financial debt, death is only the beginning point of us paying our spiritual debt. I don't know about you, but on Judgment Day I would prefer it if my debt was marked Paid In Full. I would also prefer it if all my friends had the same thing done for them.
As people who have been forgiven, we have an obligation to share with others how they too can be forgiven. We have a "ministry of reconciliation." So get to sharing! Spread the news!
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