When we talk about God’s work of salvation, we often emphasize the importance of forgiveness. Through Christ’s perfect life and sacrificial death, we are offered forgiveness and called to extend that same forgiveness to others. However, while forgiveness is a crucially important idea throughout Scripture, it does not tell the whole story. God offers more than just forgiveness, and He calls us to offer more than just forgiveness to others.
At the heart of humanity’s greatest problem lies a broken relationship. We were made to worship God and live in perfect dependence on Him. But sin brings brokenness, and when sin entered the world, the relationship between God and man was broken. We have all experienced this reality in our own lives—sin destroys relationships, and it is possible to extend forgiveness and find those relationships still remain broken. Forgiveness alone doesn’t lead to the restoration of broken connection, but what God offers extends beyond forgiveness—What God offers is reconciliation.
In 2 Corinthians 5:17–18, the apostle Paul writes, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.” In Christ we are not merely forgiven; we are reconciled. The relationship that was once broken is restored. In Christ, we are also called to be reconciled to others and to be ministers of God’s reconciliation to those around us, but what does it mean to be a minister of reconciliation?
First, to be a minister of reconciliation is to seek reconciliation in our own lives and in our own relationships. We are called to be peacemakers (Matthew 5:9) and to seek to live at peace with others within our own ability (Romans 12:18). Our calling is not to forgive the sins of others while remaining content with broken relationships. Rather, our calling is to push beyond forgiveness toward the full restoration of broken fellowship. And while this kind of reconciliation may not be possible (or even wise) in absolutely every circumstance, the overall thrust of our lives should be to seek this kind of restoration whenever we possibly can.
Second, to be a minister of reconciliation is to proclaim the message of God’s reconciliation to others. Later in 2 Corinthians, Paul writes, “in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” We who are in Christ have heard and received this message of reconciliation and have been entrusted to offer that same message to others. The gospel isn’t only good news because sins can be forgiven; it is good news because mankind can be reconciled to God! And we are ambassadors of that good news to a world that desperately need to hear it. So this year, may we as a church resolve to be ministers of reconciliation to all those around us in every opportunity we are given!
All the best,
Luke
