2 Corinthians 5:16-21

Most of us have a myopic view of what God is doing. We see Christ’s salvific work as it relates to our sin. It is personal. The death and resurrection of Christ has often been reduced to a remedy for sin, more specifically, our (my) sin. The apostle Paul wants the Corinthian church to understand the work of Christ in far broader terms than they ever imagined. The work of Christ has a purpose that includes personal salvation, but it must be viewed in the context of his broader work of transformation, restoration and reconciliation of all creation.

In this passage we have a glimpse of the scope and depth of the work of Christ. We begin to see clearly all that God is up to in Christ. We read vs. 17 in most translations as “…if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation…” (NIV). Carver[i] points out that a more apt translation may be “…if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation…” (NRSV). The personal transformation is true and essential. In Christ I am made new. But there seems to be a grander aim of the transforming work of Christ. A new world order has been established. The old order is destroyed and a new order (Christ’s Kingdom) has been established. This profound certainty changes everything, not just me. “…everything old is passed away, see, everything has become new.” (NRSV)

It changes the way I view others. (vs.16)

In Christ we no longer have the right to classify others in tidy terms like ‘enemy’. We now see them as woven into the tapestry of the new Kingdom. They may or may not be fulfilling the life to which Christ has called them, but we must acknowledge that Christ has called them, nonetheless. Our perspectives as Christians will be in sharp contrast to the ‘human’ view. The Christ follower no longer views people based on status, lifestyle or even accomplishments. All people are to be viewed as God’s creation which Christ came to redeem. They are neither targets for our conquest nor objects of our scorn. They are designated participants in the transformative work of Christ. Our great challenge is to become a gateway in their lives for reconciliation with God.

Reconciled reconcilers. (vs. 18-19)

Reconciliation is the work of Christ and must be the work of the Christian. It is the work of the Church. Rev. Samuel Hines would say that this is “God’s one item agenda”.[ii] The leaders of the Civil Rights Movement would use that phrase speaking in terms of racial reconciliation. Indeed, racial reconciliation is a part of the work of the church. To ignore racial reconciliation is to ignore the realities of this new Kingdom. But the reconciliation to which we are called is broader than ethnic or cultural. It is the call for all to be reconciled to God. To be sure, if we call people to be reconciled to God but are unwilling to be reconciled to every corner of the Kingdom, then we are declaring the work of Christ null and void. Christ came that we would be reconciled to God and that we would be reconciled to one another.

The starting point for such a work of reconciliation is for us to be reconciled to God ourselves. (vs. 20) Calling others to reconciliation which we ourselves are unwilling to undergo, invites accusations of hypocrisy (rightly called). We should all be humbled to think that Christ is making his appeal through us. But that should do more than humble us. It should cause us to fall on our knees and seek authentic reconciliation with the God who calls us. This is central to the Lenten message.

Who we are. (vs. 20-21)

There are two phrases I cannot ignore in this passage.

“…We are Ambassadors for Christ” (vs 20) represents a great challenge. I lived internationally for several years. From time to time I would need to go to the US embassy to complete paperwork for my residency or renew my passport. At one point I was frustrated with the service at the consul’s office and when my time came to speak to the Consul, I expressed my frustration. His response reminded me of an important fact. The embassy was not there primarily to serve the needs of Americans abroad. It was there to represent the U.S. to people of the nation where they were assigned. For too many years we have failed to see the Church as an embassy for Christ. We have often refused to embrace our role as ambassadors. The church is not here to primarily serve the needs of Christians. We are rather, a representative of the Kingdom to a world that desperately needs the hope offered in Christ. The Apostle Paul declared that to be his role. Likewise, it is the role of the church in our world today.

“…that we might become the righteousness of God” (vs.21). This is our great hope and our present reality. Through Christ we may become the righteousness of God. It is God’s desire that we become. It is God’s hope that we become. It is God’s purpose that we become. Paul indicates, “for this reason, Christ died”. The work of sanctification in the life of the believer is not without effect. We are become the righteousness of God. (Eph 4:24; 1 Pet 2:24)

Imagine what God could do with a Church full of righteous ambassadors, fully committed to being reconciled to God, and spreading the ministry of reconciliation! Paul calls the Corinthian Church, with all its shortcomings, to become such a Church. What if your church could become that kind of church? What about my church? We might then have to declare that “everything has become new”!

[i] Carver, Frank G., 2 Corinthians, New Beacon Bible Commentary, Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City, 2009

[ii] Perkins, John M., One Blood, Parting Words to the Church on Race, Moody Publishers, Chicago, 2018, p.138