Reconciled by the Riches of his Glory 4. 20th – 23rd November 2012 Kampala Uganda
4. The Glory of Reconciliation
Introduction
The language of reconciliation is not limited to the pages of the Bible. Only a few decades ago the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa under the leadership of Desmond Tutu received global attention in its efforts to broker unprecedented racial reconciliation. Here in Australia attempts to bridge the gap with Indigenous people seem endless. (Life expectancy 16-17 years lower than general population; median gross income $278 compared to $473 for all non-Indigenous Australians; juvenile detention rates in Western Australia are 40x the rest of the population.) We all know of the importance of reconciliation in marriages and in general talk of reconciliation conjures up positive ideas of peace and harmony. Why then, at all levels, does reconciliation seem such a difficult goal to achieve?
The Bible does use some language about reconciliation between people (1 Sam 29:4; Matthew 5:21-24; 1 Corinthians 7:10-11) but its greatest emphasis is on the reconciliation between humanity and God. I have developed the conviction over the years is that where we are generally the most confident, we are actually most ignorant; this is particularly true in relation to the gospel. As we observe the increasingly darkened and corrupted state of our traditional “Christian” societies, it must be concluded that we, the Body of Christ, have failed be that source of salt and light to culture which Christ commissioned us to be (Matt 5:13-14). Even more foundationally, if we struggle to exhibit the fruit of reconciliation amongst ourselves, as many congregations do, then it must be because we have not been fully grasped by the gospel which is “the power of God to salvation” in the fullest possible sense of the word. My experience as a mentor/spiritual director of all sorts of believers, including pastors, convinces me that if we do not understand the full compass of what reconciliation with God means, we will always be confused about other levels of reconciliation.
To understand reconciliation with God is not however an easy matter. It is easy to apologise to another human being when we have offended them, or can pay a fine or penalty if it is due but how can we square things up with God? I am reminded of an Old Testament scripture that highlights for us that God and humans are in no way equal. Eli the priest said to his sons, “If someone sins against a man, God will mediate for him, but if someone sins against the LORD, who can intercede for him?” But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for it was the will of the LORD to put them to death.”(1 Samuel 2:25 ESV). In the Bible God always do the reconciling and man is always reconciled. This issue is always treated as a matter of urgency because it is a feature of the gospel.
What Does “Reconciliation” Mean?
The ideas behind the principal New Testament words used for “reconciliation” (noun katallage; verb katallasso) are not in any way specialised religious language, they convey something like the purchase of goods by the payment of money. The key process is exchanging one thing for another. In the case of the exchange that makes up reconciliation, this means exchanging love for hatred, friendship for hostility. Reconciliation involves bringing together into a unity two parties that were previously in a situation of conflict. The unique centre of a Christian understanding of reconciliation with God is the life of Christ, Jesus took what was our sin and misery to give us what is his in the glory of the Father. Christ himself is the content of our reconciliation.
The First Exchange
Someone has said that if “conciliation” is the work of keeping peace, re-conciliation is restoring peace where it has been lost. The LORD’s promise is clear, “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” (Isaiah 26:3 ESV). There is no doubt that Adam and Eve were possessed by this peace in the beauties of Eden. They were assisted in keeping their minds on God by the presence of his Word that remained in their hearts when the manifest presence of God left the garden. This Word was the command, ““You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”” (Genesis 2:16-17 ESV). In Romans chapter one Paul describes what we call the Fall in “exchange” language that is directly related to our topic of reconciliation.
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honour him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.” (Romans 1:18-23 ESV)
God’s anger and judgement is directed towards human beings because they have “exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.” (Ro 1:25). Adam and Eve rejected the revelation of God’s eternal power and immortal life offered them in his Word in order to seek the blessings of creaturely life. From Eden on human beings have always chosen to create images in their own likeness and that of other creatures to serve, rather than revere the true image of God. This evil exchange was to “fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23) and it generated the need for reconciliation with God.
Abandoning the command of God meant no longer seeking peace directly from the LORD himself, but from the world. Under the judgement of God which pronounced death on all human ambitions (Gen 3:17-19), life in a fallen world became punctuated by frequent and futile anxious toil (Ps 127:2; Matt 6:25ff.). To reject God’s Word was to reject all divine characteristics; this included the loss of his promised peace. “But the wicked are like the tossing sea; for it cannot be quiet, and its waters toss up mire and dirt. There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.”” (Isaiah 57:20-21 ESV). Guilty people cannot enjoy the indestructible peace that only God provides as a sharing in his own life. Wealth will not give you this peace, “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.” (1 Tim 6:10), passing worldly pleasures cannot impart this peace. The “peace of God…surpasses understanding” (Phil 4:17) and comes directly from abiding in God himself.
Paul lists one sign that the human race is “under the power of sin” as “the way of peace they have not known” (Rom 3:1, 17). Let me enter a point of clarification here; God’s peace is not to be confused with feeling good or being free from involvement in conflicts. When Jesus was with his disciples in a small boat on the Sea of Galilee a demonic power stirred up a terrible storm threatening to sink the vessel and drown them all, because Christ’s mind was one with that of his Father who had sent him on a commission to be fulfilled on the other side of the lake, he “rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.” (Mark 4:39). The peace that was within him overpowered the restless force stirring up the waters (cf. Dan 7:2). This sort of peace is a gift of our union with God, but it does require us to seek the Lord’s kingdom to experience it; Paul exhorted the Romans, “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 14:17 ESV).
The most astounding experience of God’s peace in my life was during my Honours year in biology, I was doing research on snails and had been a Christian for about 7 months. One day when I came into the laboratory I discovered that many of the snails had become ill and were dying from some mysterious disease. I needed to make a decision quickly; I could either pull out and come back the next year without penalty, or keep on going in the hope that the plague would stop so that my results were not ruined. I left the lab and went outdoors to pray seeking the guidance of the Lord. I must say I was astounded at what happened next, because it was one of the least spiritual times in my life and I was sulking from God on a regular basis. As I prayed I was instantly overcome with an amazing and overwhelming sense of the presence of God’s peace that filled my entire being- it was so powerful I felt like I was going to die. I had my answer, I asked God to take the peace away, which he did, I went on with my research and the snails stopped dying. I have never had an experience quite like that before, but I do know every time I stop and centre on the Lord the wonderful still quality of that peace, for which we were created, marvellously returns. Such peace is a fruit of reconciliation.
Human Attempts to Reconcile God: Idolatry
To be stripped of the glories of God’s peace and to be filled with anxieties is an intolerable state for human beings. A solution has to be found, this solution is the invention of idols. There are many forms of idols, but in every man made religion the key to reconciliation with the so called God or gods comes through human effort. E.g. offerings to the deities on footpaths in Bali, the hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) in Islam. People have to “do something” to satisfy the divine power(s).
Biblical religion grounded in divine revelation is totally the opposite. In the Old Testament God said, “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life.” (Leviticus 17:11 ESV). Such sacrifices were given as tokens of grace, and were never to be the object of faith, as the letter to the Hebrews says, “for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins” (10:4). There is nothing a sinful human being can do to conciliate God. It is precisely when people forget this that God’s judgement is aroused, so we read in the prophets, ““I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; and the peace offerings of your fattened animals, I will not look upon them. Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen. But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” (Amos 5:21-24 ESV) See also, Ps 50:13; Isa 1:11.
We perhaps think that Christians are freed from legalistic attempts to buy God’s favour with sacrifices and offerings. I however have known many pastors who have burnt themselves out “working for God” trying to earn his approval by their ministries. Even more common, is the attempt to please God by giving money to the Church. There are actually three kinds of tithes in the Old Testament and no mention of tithing in the Church of the New Testament. The clearest statement about the giving of 10% of income amongst the new covenant people of God comes in Hebrews, where we are told that this practice belongs to the law; “For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness (for the law made nothing perfect); but on the other hand, a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God.” (Hebrews 7:18-19 ESV, in response to v.5). There is plenty of emphasis on giving in the letters of the New Testament, but absolutely no indication that this is in response to some sort of spiritual legislation. “Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” (2 Corinthians 9:7 ESV). There is no record of a “law/fixed regulation on tithing” in the Christian Church until the end of the sixth century. The early teachers of the Church were unanimous that believers were under no external obligation to give. What the Lord wants from us is clear, “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” (Romans 12:1 ESV). The offering of ourselves is understood to be a response “to the mercies of God” Paul has outlined in the first eleven chapters of Romans, at the centre of such mercies is reconciliation. To understand what the Bible teaches about reconciliation it is very important that we see things from God’s side.
God Takes the Initiative in Reconciliation
Reconciliation usually takes place when we realise that we have offended someone and need to take some action to make peace with them. ““You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” (Matthew 5:21-24 ESV). The offending party seeks to be reconciled with the offended party. This seems straightforward, God is the offended party, and we sinners are the offenders, BUT it is part of the tragedy of sin that we will not and cannot build a bridge to God. A person who is “dead in trespasses and sin following the prince of the power of the air” (Eph 2:1) and whose mind has been blinded by “the prince of this world” (2 Cor 4:4) is not interested in reconciliation with God.
Here are some of the attitudes that Paul ascribes to human beings in the very passages where he teaches about God’s initiative in reconciliation. It was “while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son” (Rom 5:10); “among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.” (Ephesians 2:3 ESV); “And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him,” (Colossians 1:21-22 ESV). As “haters of God” (Rom 1:30) we had no interest in being reconciled to God.
It is always God who achieves reconciliation; “All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.” (2 Corinthians 5:18-19 ESV). Reconciliation is something that God had to bring about without any response from us, it happens both apart from us and before we were even born, it is something that that has taken place even before the gospel is preached. It is something which can only be received. This is what we call counter-intuitive, it goes against all our normal human ways of thinking; so I will have to work hard to show you it is biblical.
The Wonderful Exchange
Over the years when I was lecturing theology I found that most of my students didn’t understand the true gift nature of salvation. They had not been taught that to be a Christian isn’t simply to have a changed life, it is to have an exchanged life. To be saved means much more than to have forgiveness of sins and freedom from bondage, it is to have new life in union with God. All this is concentrated in Jesus; Christ took on the characteristics of man that man might take on the characteristics of God; “ And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14 ESV). One of the early Church Fathers put it this way, “Out of his measureless love our Lord Jesus Christ has become what we are in order to make us what he is in himself” (Irenaeus). Let me give some examples of what this means.
Paul says, “And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 1:30-31 ESV). At the centre of our relationship with God is the fullness of the humanity of Jesus, “ For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,” (1 Timothy 2:5 ESV). For example, Hebrews says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:1-2 ESV). The saving faith that God has given us (Phil 1:29) is a share in the perfect faith of Jesus.
I remember being rung up by a past student of mine who had an opportunity to talk on the fruit of the Spirit at a local church, he wanted to know if he could use my Christ-centred framework in his teaching. Here are some examples of what he meant. The first fruit is “love”; Jesus said, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.”(John 13:34 ESV). The Holy Spirit gives us a share in Jesus’ own love for God and others. Then there is “joy”; Jesus promised, “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” (John 15:11 ESV). Similarly for “peace”; “ Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” (John 14:27 ESV).
We could go on, but I think the point is clear, whatever godliness we have as a share in Christ’s own life. Paul sums it up by saying, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9 ESV). “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20 ESV). I will come down to specifically apply this truth to reconciliation soon; but at this stage we need to recognise this is a reality that defines the whole New Testament approach to salvation.
Over the years Christian thinkers have become greatly excited that at the centre of the plan of God is a great “swap”. In the letter to Diognetus around the year 200 A.D. we read, “He gave His own Son as a ransom for us, the holy One for transgressors, the blameless One for the wicked, the righteous One for the unrighteous, the incorruptible One for the corruptible, the immortal One for them that are mortal. For what other thing was capable of covering our sins than His righteousness? By what other one was it possible that we, the wicked and ungodly, could be justified, than by the only Son of God? O sweet exchange! O unsearchable operation! O benefits surpassing all expectation! that the wickedness of many should be hid in a single righteous One, and that the righteousness of One should justify many transgressors!” (Letter to Diognetus 9).
One of the great theologians of the fourth century talked in this way, “Let us become like Christ, since Christ became like us. Let us become God’s for His sake, since He for ours became Man. He assumed the worse that He might give us the better; He became poor that we through His poverty might be rich; 2 Corinthians 8:9 He took upon Him the form of a servant that we might receive back our liberty; He came down that we might be exalted; He was tempted that we might conquer; He was dishonoured that He might glorify us; He died that He might save us; He ascended that He might draw to Himself us, who were lying low in the Fall of sin. Let us give all, offer all, to Him Who gave Himself a Ransom and a Reconciliation for us. But one can give nothing like oneself, understanding the Mystery, and becoming for His sake all that He became for ours.” (Gregory Nazianzen)
[Now to look at a few reconciliation passages. In Ephesians chapter 2 Paul is dealing with the way in which God in Christ has healed the conflict between Jews and gentiles; “ Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands—remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers
to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.” (Ephesians 2:11-18 ESV)]
Perhaps the clearest reconciliation passage that speaks of salvation as an exchange is 2 Corinthians 5:11-21;
“Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience. We are not commending ourselves to you again but giving you cause to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart. For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 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; that is, 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. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:11-21 ESV)
Let me highlight several parts of this passage. Firstly, “one has died for all therefore all have died”. The “one” is Jesus, and the “all” is everyone else. The death in question is not an ordinary death but means that Jesus took away the power of death in his dying for us; as Paul says, “ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:56-57 ESV). Death is only ever experienced as a punishment when we are guilty of breaking God’s law. For someone who is reconciled to God in Christ this is no longer the case; we have already died with Christ to the penalty of sin and can face God with confidence (Rom 6:1-11).
Secondly, the climax of the passage, “he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” This statement is a very clear example of reconciliation as an exchange – Jesus takes all the bad things that belong to us and gives us all the good that belongs to him. Here is a famous quotation from Martin Luther that speaks to this issue of transference, first of all Luther cites Isaiah 53:12, “”He was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” (Isaiah 53:12.) “All the prophets of old said that Christ should be the greatest transgressor, murderer, adulterer, thief, blasphemer that ever was or ever could be on earth. When He took the sins of the whole world upon Himself, Christ was no longer an innocent person. He was a sinner burdened with the sins of a Paul who was a blasphemer; burdened with the sins of a Peter who denied Christ; burdened with the sins of a David who committed adultery and murder, and gave the heathen occasion to laugh at the Lord. In short, Christ was charged with the sins of all men, that He should pay for them with His own blood. The curse struck Him. The Law found Him among sinners. He was not only in the company of sinners. He had gone so far as to invest Himself with the flesh and blood of sinners. So the Law judged and hanged Him for a sinner.”
“Our merciful Father in heaven saw how the Law oppressed us and how impossible it was for us to get out from under the curse of the Law. He therefore sent His only Son into the world and said to Him: “You are now Peter, the liar; Paul, the persecutor; David, the adulterer; Adam, the disobedient; the thief on the cross. You, My Son, must pay the world’s iniquity.” The Law growls: “All right. If Your Son is taking the sin of the world, I see no sins anywhere else but in Him. He shall die on the Cross.” And the Law kills Christ. But we go free.”
There are no limits to the breadth and power of this exchange in Christ; time is swapped for eternity, mortality for immortality, guilt for innocence. Our hostility, alienation and conflict with God are replaced by friendship, peace, communion with the Father in heaven.
The sixteenth century theologian John Calvin sums it up beautifully;
““This is the wonderful exchange which, out of His measureless benevolence, Jesus Christ has made with us; that, becoming Son of man with us, He has made us sons of God with Him; that, by His descent to earth, He has prepared an ascent to heaven for us; that, by taking on our mortality, He has conferred His immortality upon us; that, accepting our weakness, He has strengthened us by His power; that, receiving our poverty unto Himself, He has transferred His wealth to us; that, taking the weight of our iniquity upon Himself, He has clothed us with His righteousness.” (John Calvin)
[ “"Faith does not merely mean that the soul realizes that the divine word is full of grace, free and holy; it also unites the soul with Christ, as a bride is united with her bridegroom. From such a marriage, as St. Paul says, it follows that Christ and the soul become one body, so that they hold all things in common, whether for better or worse. This means that what Christ possesses belongs to the believing soul; and what the soul possesses belongs to Christ. Thus Christ possesses all good things and holiness; these now belong to the soul. The soul possesses lots of vice and sin; these now belong to Christ. Here we have a sweet exchange and struggle. Christ is God and human being, who has never sinned and who's holiness is unconquerable, eternal and almighty. So he makes the sin of the living soul his own through its wedding ring, which is faith, and acts as if he had done it himself, so that sin could be swallowed up in him. For his unconquerable righteousness is too strong for all sin, so that it is made single and free from all its sins on account of its pledge, that is its faith, and can turn to the eternal righteousness of its bridegroom, Christ. Now is this not a happy business? Christ, the rich, noble, holy bridegroom, takes in marriage this poor, contemptible and sinful little prostitute, takes away all her evil, and bestows all his goodness upon her! It is no longer possible for sin to overwhelm her, for she is now found in Christ and is swallowed up by him, so that she possesses a rich righteousness in her bridegroom." (Martin Luther)]
Reconciliation and the Blood
No matter how wonderful this exchange appears to be, it cannot come home as true to the human conscience unless it deals realistically with the force of our evil and rebellion which deserves divine judgement.
The Bible always speaks of reconciliation coming through suffering: “we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son” (Rom 5:10); “one has died for all therefore all have died” (2 Cor 5:14); “ and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.” (Ephesians 2:16 ESV); “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him,” (Colossians 1:19-22 ESV).
The language of death, blood and crucifixion means that Jesus took into himself on the cross the responsibility that we should have adopted to be reconciled to God. He entered into our place of guilt and shame by “becoming a curse for us” (Gal 3:13) and being stripped of the fullness of God’s peace which was always his portion as the obedient Son of God. Jesus is “the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29) by taking on the role that we deserve as enemies of God alienated from God and separated from his blessed life under the power of sin, Satan and death (Rom 5:10; Eph 2:12; Rom 6:9).
This means that the sins of those who have accepted reconciliation with God now have a new status; Paul says “in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them” (2 Corinthians 5:19 ESV). Where sin is “not counted” there is no longer a state of war between God and man, wrath has been taken away; hostility has ended, accusation has no hold and condemnation no longer can be passed. As Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” (John 5:24 ESV)
When Did Reconciliation Happen?
If what I have said above is true, if reconciliation with God happens apart from us and even before we wee born, then reconciliation is a past event. In Romans we read, “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” (Romans 5:10-11 ESV); in 2 Corinthians, “ All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.” (2 Corinthians 5:18-19 ESV). In Colossians, “And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him,” (Colossians 1:21-22 ESV). From God’s side reconciliation is accomplished, over, objectively complete- as Jesus said “It is finished.”” (John 19:30). This raises a vital question, if reconciliation is done already, why are things so bad! Does this mean that only a few people who live extraordinary godly lives are truly reconciled to God? The Bible teaches exactly the opposite.
Who or What is Reconciled?
Firstly, individuals are reconciled; “we were reconciled” (Rom 5:10). Then Paul teaches how the Gentiles were reconciled, “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” (Ephesians 2:13 ESV), “you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled” (Col 1:21). More comprehensively “the world” has been reconciled, “in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself” (2 Cor 5:19). Finally, everything has been reconciled, “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.” (Colossians 1:19-20 ESV). This is a very hard truth to accept, it simply does not look like everything has been reconciled.
In 2 Corinthians 5 Paul puts this in a slightly different way. Many Christians have adopted 2 Cor 5:17, as a personal statement, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” Literally however the text says, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” Paul is not simply referring to our personal newness of life, to belong to Jesus means to belong to the new heavens and the new earth which are coming through him; this is much bigger than a change at the individual level. In other words the whole universe has been reconciled to God and a new one already exists to which the reconciled belong.
If reconciliation has already happened and everything has been reconciled where do we find the reality of this glorious achievement of God? The Bible’s answer is always the same.
Where is this Reconciliation?
“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; that is, 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. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:17-21 ESV). “More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” (Romans 5:11 ESV). “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.” (Ephesians 2:13-16 ESV). “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him,” (Colossians 1:19-22 ESV)
The approach to understanding the relationship between God and the world that I am teaching is I believe biblical, and was certainly the one adopted by all the greatest teachers of the Church over the centuries. But it is seriously at odds with the way most Christians today understand salvation.
The popular “common sense” approach to spirituality/theology sees God doing things various things across history; he creates the world, speaks to the prophets, comes amongst us in Christ, dies for us, rises from the dead, saves us and leads us to heaven. But he always is pictured as doing this from the outside, he does things for us/to us but always by a sort of external arrangement. This way of understanding things is understandable in terms of Old Testament religion and non-Christian approaches to salvation e.g. Islam, but it entirely fails to understand that union with Christ takes us from the outside to the inside with God.
The Biblical understanding of all things is always centred on Jesus; at the start of the very passage where Paul teaches that “all things” have been reconciled through Christ he explains that Jesus is the Creator and Sustainer of the whole creation, “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:16-17 ESV). This means that the place of reconciliation is found in Christ’s own life, the eternal reconciliation between God, the human race and the whole universe is found only inside the life of Jesus. Jesus is not merely the agent of reconciliation; he is the content and site of the re-union between God and all things. This is why Paul can say, “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” (Colossians 3:1-4 ESV ). As we are aware of the life we share already with Jesus in God (John 3:21; 1 Thess 1:1; 2 Thess 1:1; 1 John 3:24; 4:15-16) the heavenly places, we see into the reality of all things reconciled to God.
Receiving Reconciliation
This still might not make a lot of sense, but there is another dimension to add; that of receiving reconciliation. “More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” (Romans 5:11 ESV). I would like to quote the message translation for 2 Corinthians 5 to illustrate this point; “God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We’re Christ’s representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them. We’re speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he’s already a friend with you.”
That everything is finished from God’s side and all the problem lies with us is taught in other ways in the New Testament. At the beginning of Ephesians Paul explains, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love” (Ephesians 1:3-4 ESV). In eternity God chose those who would be his children in Christ; long before we could ever experience it. Likewise, “Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Saviour Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,” (2 Timothy 1:8-10 ESV).
In the deepest and most foundational sense there is no longer any reconciliation to be achieved, only a reunion with God to be received by faith. Such faith is not some mystical operation that lies within the power of the individual who is called to believe; it comes through the preaching of the gospel.
Proclaiming Reconciliation
“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 on behalf of Christ, “Be reconciled to God.”” (2 Corinthians 5:19-20 ESV). God has given to the followers of Jesus the right and privilege of preaching the message of reconciliation, Paul says in this matter we have the status of “ambassadors of Christ”. An ambassador speaks on behalf of and with all the authority of the nation he/she represents, to speak as an ambassador of Christ is to speak with the authority of Christ in whom the reality and substance of reconciliation fully exists. Paul could not make it any clearer than by saying, “God making his appeal through us”. It is the voice of God himself that people hear in the announcement of reconciliation, God actually appeals to us to come back to him – he does not consider it too humiliating to appeal to me. (We should not be too proud to plead with others to be reconciled with us either. Sadly, I can think of occasions when I have tried to arbitrate between estranged church leaders who simply refused to reconcile. It seemed easier to deny that the other party was a true believer.)
The implications of these truths of accomplished reconciliation are immense. Peter says, “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.” (1 Peter 4:10-11 ESV). Paul explains, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17 ESV). As ordinary men and women in union with Christ speak as mouthpieces for God the power of God’s all creative and reconciling Word, fully accomplished in Christ, makes it possible for others to trust in Jesus and accept the reunion with God that has been completed in him. Our authority in ministry is not our own giftedness, but the completed gift of Christ offered to humanity. Who in their right mind would refuse such a glorious exchange?
Living the Image of Reconciliation
The Church is the one community on earth called and able to image the reconciliation achieved by God in Christ. This is not because Christians are somehow godlier-in- themselves than non-believers, but because we are those who by faith have received the reconciliation already. The great Christian vision is that nothing can frustrate God’s “plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him (Christ), things in heaven and things on earth.” (Ephesians 1:10 ESV cf. Acts 3:21). Our community is to therefore to be the one community where conflict is overcome by the rule of God’s peace (Phil 4:7).
Sadly, so much of the history of Christianity has been corrupted by alliances with powerful political and social interests for earthly advantage. To give an example that comes to mind, why would you want your new church building opened by a Prime Minister who was not a confessing Christian (John Howard at Hillsong 2002)? Conflict and competition over influence and position mars the life of the people of God to this day. Nations with large “Christian” majorities are particular prone to become Babylonian in their behaviour (Gen 11 cf. Ps 2). The Lord spoke to me some year ago and said “jealousy and selfish ambition” (James 3:14) are the great enemies of the humility which alone can reflect the fact that the life of reconciliation from start to finish is a pure gift (Eph 2:8-9).
To take the reality of reconciliation seriously does not mean laziness in spiritual life, but a new awareness and practice of spiritual discipline. In many congregations today people who call themselves “Christian” adopt all sorts of lifestyles which blatantly contradict the commands of Christ. The writer of Hebrews understands that you cannot image God’s eternal peace won by the reconciling blood of the cross cannot existence without devout living. “Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.” (Heb 12:10). This means there must be a renewal of true discipline in the Church. The discipline of the Church is not an arbitrary exercise of power, but a means of revealing that there is a final division between the old fallen creation and the new creation in Christ. Citing Paul, “to deliver” someone over “to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 5:5 ESV cf. 1 Tim 1:20) or to cleanse out “the old leaven of malice and evil” (1 Cor 5:7-8) images such eternal realities. Similarly, Jesus warned that there would be those who called him “Lord”, and even performed miracles in his name, who would not enter the final kingdom of reconciliation but abide in “the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matt 7:21-23; 25:41-46).
Conclusion
The topic of reconciliation is an enormous one, and it goes right to the heart of our relationship with God. In our fleshly humanity it is natural to experience trouble, distress and anxiety; these however are not reliable indicators of anything at all. It is to Christ we must look; he alone can mediate the full and final reconciliation that the Father and his Spirit has achieved in him for the restoration of all things. Whatever our situation – whether it is our minds, bodies or relationships that feel fractured and constantly rob us of God’s peace, Jesus is sufficient for all things.
In many ways all that I have said today is summed up in Jesus words to his disciples when he first appeared to them after his resurrection, “On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”” (John 20:19-23 ESV). This is the commission that stands before us today.