Reconciliation

Reconciliation

Developing a Christian/Biblical World-view

“Understanding Reconciliation”

Text: II Corinthians 5:18-21

Introduction

-Why is understanding reconciliation so important to understand when discussing a CBWV?

-Because most of the world has no idea that we need to be reconciled to God, or has a wrong idea of reconciliation.

-In our last message from this series we saw humanities dilemma, sin!

-We are hopelessly lost sinners unable to come to God on our own.

-This sin separates us from Him, and we need to be reconciled.

-The Biblical definition of reconciliation is; a change of personal relations between God and man. -By this change a state of enmity and estrangement is replaced by one of peace and fellowship.

-Our passage that was just read states fundamental truths that must be known, understood, and taught. These truths are:Every person is fallen and sinful and needs to be reconciled to God.

  1. God Himself accomplishes this reconciliation, because sinners could never do so for themselves.
  2. He does this through Christ.
  3. He did this by imputation (imputing our sin to Christ, and Christ’s righteousness to us).
  4. He continues to make this appeal through the Christian message.

-Therefore to be a true Christian is to be reconciled to God.

-This is accomplished only through Christ, and this is the heart of the Gospel message.

-Today many have their own ideas about salvation, it seems that almost anything goes.

-We must understand that we are ambassadors to this world.

-We must also understand a few things about being an ambassador:

  1. A ambassador does not make up their own message.
  2. A ambassador is commissioned to carry someone else’s message and deliver it faithfully.
  3. A ambassador is not authorized to alter the message in any way.
  4. A ambassador serves in a foreign land.
  5. A ambassador spends their life as a stranger and an alien, speaking a different language, interacting with a different culture, lifestyle and tradition.
  6. Sinners are reconciled by the will of God: verse 18
  7. Reconciliation was conceived and initiated by God:
  8. Everything connected to the new nature and new life in Christ (verse 17), is entirely from God.
  9. Sinners cannot change themselves, much less change God’s attitude towards them.
  10. God is always the Initiator of reconciliation.
  11. God made reconciliation possible entirely through His Son.
  12. The entire NT makes it clear that it was God who called, God who sent His Son, and God who saved.
  13. All the glory must go to Him as the source of reconciliation.

Sinners are reconciled by a decree of justification: verse 19

  1. Reconciliation involves a legal decree of forgiveness for sins:
  2. God does not admit sinners into His family while leaving them guilty and stained by sin.
  3. The only way sinners could ever be reconciled to God was if the sin that separated them from God were no longer an issue.
  4. Justification is a legal decree, not a process:
  5. It happens the very instant the sinner put their faith and trust in the atoning death of Christ, their Substitute
  6. That person is immediately forgiven of all their sin and is counted fully righteous before God.
  • Sinners are reconciled through the obedience of faith: verse 20
  1. Faith is the instrument of justification:
  2. Faith does not merit justification
  3. Faith is not the ground of justification
  4. Faith is not the reason for our justification
  5. Faith is the instrument by which the sinner lays hold of justification:
  6. Righteousness is imputed to them by faith
  7. Faith is, therefore, what the Gospel demands from hearers.
  8. Faith is not a work it is a gift:
  9. Ephesians 2:8-9
  10. The ultimate object of true faith is not a doctrinal statement, church, or denomination. It is a Person, and that Person is Christ.
  11. The call to faith is a call to embrace Christ as He is proclaimed in the Gospel.
  12. Sinners are reconciled because of the work of substitution: verse 21
  13. The significance of the work of substitution:
  14. The beneficiaries:
  15. Believers
  16. The Benefactor:
  17. God:
  • Remember God is the One who designed and brought to pass our reconciliation. He was the One who demanded a Substitute; He was the One who ordained and executed the whole entire plan. Humans had nothing to do with it.
  1. John 3:16
  2. Romans 5:8
  3. The Substitute:
  4. The sinless Son of God, and Son of Man (the Messiah)
  5. Imputation:
  • God treated Him as if He were guilty of all the sins of all who would ever believe.
  • On the cross, God treated Christ as if He sinned all the sins.
  1. The benefit:
  2. Righteousness for the believer
  3. The righteousness God requires is the righteousness He provides for the Gospel believer.

Application

-This Biblical truth ought to shape our world view as Christians.

-Even though we who are saved have been redeemed out of this world of sinful humanity, we are nonetheless still living here as “strangers and pilgrims.”

-We serve as ambassadors of God!

-Commissioned by Him to proclaim as message of reconciliation to sinful creatures.

-This is our central duty.

-It should shape our entire perspective of the world.

-A world that says there is no such thing as absolute truth.

-A world that says there are many paths to God.

-A world that has it wrong when it comes to reconciliation.

-This text must drive our evangelism; this text must be central to our Christian/Biblical World-View.

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