I forgot to start the recorder.
So 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 man's sins against them.
and He has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We
are therefore Christ's ambassadors as though God were making His
appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf,
be reconciled to God. God made Him who had no sin to
be sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God
in Him. So what is reconciled? The Merriam-Webster
dictionary has several definitions, but the one that most closely
aligns with our message this morning is to restore friendship
or harmony. Believers of the gospel know
that this harmony with God was destroyed in the fall. But because
of his great mercy and love for us, the elect, he and the Council
Halls of Eternity purposed and provided for us a way back to
that harmony and a restored perfect fellowship with him. That is
what we will be looking at today. I have titled this morning's
message, The Way to Reconciliation. In verse 17, it speaks of believers
being a new creation in Christ. In verse 18, it declares that
we are reconciled to God in Christ. Verse 19, God is reconciling
the world to Him in Christ. And then in verse 21, God made
Him, Christ, to be sin for us, a sin offering for us, and through
that offering, we are made the righteousness of God in Christ. So we've been going deeper into
each of these as we work our way through our text this morning,
but the outline for the message is very clearly laid out. For
us, it is in Christ, through Christ, and Christ alone that
all these sayings are accomplished. Today, as we look at reconciliation
to God made necessary as a result of the fall where mankind lost
the sweet fellowship with God that Adam had enjoyed, that harmony,
all lost, and in its place a complete separation from God was brought,
and with that the ushering in of sin and death. But what we
will see is that in Christ we have that fellowship with God
restored, and it is by Him alone that this miracle of grace is
brought about. It is not Christ and our works,
plus any kind of free will. It's not Christ plus our parents'
desire for us. It's not Christ plus the family
we were born into. It's not Christ plus our church
attendance, our baptism, a sinner's prayer, or raising of a hand.
It is in Christ alone that our communion with God will be restored. I went to a Republican debate
here a few months ago, and three of the four candidates that were
vying for the opportunity to be our district representative
in the US Congress was there. They were asked a question about
their faith and how that faith would affect the way they would
govern if elected to Congress. Well, two of the three candidates
declared they had always been Christians. As one had been born
into a devout Christian family, and one, a devout Catholic family,
and each had grown up attending church every Sunday. And that
faith they grew up with remained as the basis, the foundation,
for all their major decisions. The third candidate had a slightly
different story in that she became a Christian at the age of five
while her grandma was reading her some children's Bible stories.
She decided then and there she wanted Jesus to come into her
heart and has always tried to please him in everything she
does. Like the others, her lifelong faith in Jesus will dictate her
decisions while in Congress. Well, those are all fine stories,
all well and good, heart-tugging stories, but the conclusions
just aren't possible. I have heard a story a few times
about a preacher who, after services one Sunday, was having a discussion
with a nice little elderly lady. he asked how long she had been
a christian and her answer was well all my life his reply to
her was that's just too long in other words that's just not
possible let's look at what our text says about this and the
other things that we brought up and mentioned at the start
of our message so back to verse seventeen therefore if anyone
is in christ he is a new creation the oldest gone, the new has
come." So here Paul is laying out a pattern, one that all believers
will experience. There must be a passing from
the old man, fallen in Adam, dead in sin, at enmity against
God, vowing to never let this man rule over him, then passing
on to the new man, the new creation, no longer at enmity with God,
but rather at peace with him and now a willing servant and
a happy debtor to God's glorious grace. To explore this just a
little bit farther, let's look at what Paul has to say in Ephesians
chapter 2. So in Ephesians 2, I'll start reading
here in verse 1, and we'll read through verse 10. As for you,
you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to
live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler
of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work, and
those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them
at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature And following
his desires and thoughts like the rest, we are by nature objects
of wrath. But because of his great love
for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even
when we are dead in transgressions. It is by grace you have been
saved, and God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him
in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus. in order that in the coming
ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed
in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you
have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves,
it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared
and advanced for us to do. So this reading lays out a pretty
clear path as to how God brings his people to himself. Sinners
from birth, dead in our sins, followers of the ruler of the
air. And in verse three, Paul tells
us, all of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying
the desires of our flesh. It's not some of us, not most
of us, but all of us. No one is free of this. Why?
Because we were born sinners, We didn't become sinners by committing
that first sin. We sinned because we were sinners
by nature, by birth, all a result of Adam's fall in the garden.
Since then, all has fallen short of the glory of God, sin and
fallen short of the glory of God, but all believers will share
the experience that read about in verses four and five of Ephesians. Because of God's great love for
us, in order to display his great mercy to us, he made us alive
in Christ Jesus, even though we were dead in our transgressions.
Remember that list of things I referred to just a bit ago,
beginning with being Christians from birth, then on to it's not
Christ plus our works or our family heritage, and so on. All of those arguments that someone
will want to use to add to their works to what Christ has done,
well, each of those arguments are disposed of right here. Because
it is not works that brings life, we are made alive in Christ.
And in verses 8 and 9, Paul expands on this. For it is by grace you
have been saved, through faith, and this is not from yourselves.
It is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast. It is by God's free, sovereign
grace that we are saved. Don't boast by adding your works
to it, because God has never been pleased with man's work.
In Romans 5, Paul tells us, while we were yet sinners, Christ died
for us. He gave us a new life, and the
result, we have passed from the old man to the new man, from
dead in sin to alive in Christ. And a quick look at verse 6 reveals
to us another glorious truth. And God raised us up with Christ
and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus. Brothers and sisters, that is
reconciliation. That is the glorious truth. Communion
with God has been restored, so much so that God raised us up
with whom? Christ, and seated us with Him
in the heavenly realms, in Christ Jesus. We are one with Him, and
through Him, one with God, all because of God's great love and
mercy for us. So going back to verse 17 in
our text, we remember similar language found in Jeremiah 31
and also Hebrews 8. They speak to the passing away
of the old covenant, the covenant of the law of sin and death,
and then entering the new covenant, the covenant of freedom from
the law, replaced with freedom and grace, life, and that glorious
rest in Christ. In that same manner, we will
pass from the old man and on to the new man, that new creation
in Christ, from the darkness of the old way to the light of
the new. Have you ever wondered how a
newborn baby feels, what it senses as it passes from the mother's
womb into the bright lights of a delivery room? Hearing all
that noise, all that motion going on, can or does the baby feel
uncertainty, fear, wonder? But then does the baby feel comfort
when the mother hugs it to her breast for the first time? And
when the dad holds that baby in his hands for the very first
time? When the baby hears the familiar
sounds of mom and dad's voices? We know that babies soon do begin
to recognize and appreciate all those things. Chris and I have
a new grandson, his name is Blake, and it's pretty clear that little
guy loves his life. Anna sends us pictures and videos
all the time, and he is so full of laughter and giggles and love
for his mama and her attention. He's always jumping up and down,
excited to see her, excited to be with her, reaching out for
and loving that attention that he gets. And he continually wants
more. Well, isn't that similar to our
experience when we pass from the old man to the new man, enjoying
all that we gained in that new birth, that new birth that Christ
tells Nicodemus about when he says, paraphrasing here, In order
to enter the kingdom of God, we must be born again. Then,
when we find ourselves standing in that glorious light of the
kingdom of God, where, while standing in that light, we can
look back at the darkness we have been delivered from. Just
as Ezekiel 36 tells us, only after God has worked his marvelous
acts of grace upon us Only then can we look back and see our
evil ways and wicked deeds. We then find ourselves asking,
did he really, because of his eternal love for me, did he really
redeem me? Can it be that I should gain? Did he really deliver me from
that hopeless pit, that world of darkness, that valley of dry
bones? Well, tell me more. I'm like
Blake, I want more. I love to hear that old, old
story about how a savior come from glory, how he gave his life
on Calvary to save a wretch like me. Yes, that story of being
born again, of being accepted in the beloved, has that really
happened to me? Well, thanks be to God, if you
are a child of his, a believer in that old story, it did. And we get to hear more of that
old, old story as we go on to verses 18 through 20. Here, Paul
speaks of his God-given ministry of reconciliation. And what is
that ministry? The preaching of the gospel,
the good news. Scripture gives us a pretty good
look into Paul's life, his ministry, and from that we know Paul was
a faithful preacher of the good news. wherever God sent him and
whatever his circumstances. So much so, you can say his ministry
goes on even to this day. He proclaimed that this is how
God's people will hear the message. In Romans 10, he says this, how
then can they call on the one that they have not believed in?
And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard?
And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? and
how can anyone preach unless they are sent as it is written,
how beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news. This
is why the church is so important. This is where people come and
we gather, come to hear the good news. It's where people learn
about all God has done for us, what he has prepared for each
of us to do, and some are even called to become preachers of
the gospel. And that is why preachers are so important. They get the
message of Christ out to the world. God continues his work
from there, but he has purposed that all must first hear the
message. So it follows there must be someone
to preach to them. Beautiful are the feet that will
bring the good news. Enter Paul, who is imploring
that people hear his message, not for his glory, but for the
sake and glory of Christ. This is what God has called him
to do, bring the message of God's reconciliation to the world.
Not to this little spot on a map called Israel, but in all four
corners of this round globe, there are sheep waiting to hear
the message. And one thing we know is that
we know not who the elect are. So preach as if you are a dying
man preaching to dying men. implore them to hear the gospel
message because their life depends on it. That explains Paul's passion
here. We implore you, on Christ's behalf,
be reconciled to God. They must hear the message, the
good news, and who will hear, who will believe that good news?
Acts 13.48 is one of many verses that answers the question. And
as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. God's message
will not go out in vain. And as Christ says in the book
of John, my sheep hear my voice. I know them and they follow me. For those who don't believe,
for those who can't hear the message, not given the ear to
hear, well, it's all foolishness to them. But for those that truly
understand the sovereignty in salvation, the sovereignty of
God and salvation in election and predestination. What Paul
has to say about this in Romans eight really strikes at the heart. And we know that in all things,
God works for the good of those who love him, who've been called
according to his purpose. For those God foreknew, He also
predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He
might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And
those He predestined, He also called. Those He calls, He also
justified. And those He justified, He also
glorified. Those He predestined, He called,
and called according to His purpose. They heard because of the beautiful
feet bringing the gospel message to all that love him. And the
message was heard and believed. And the same happens today until
the last of God's sheep are called home. God's message will go out. Paul's message will be repeated. We implore you on Christ's behalf
to be reconciled to God. And then as we go on to verse
21, the heart of this message, God made him who had no sin to
be sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God
in him. So much is said in this verse.
The event at the cross was the vindication of God against sin,
against death, against the enemies of the church. Finally, that
perfect sacrifice that God required for the redemption of his people
was here. The day of salvation was at hand. He who had no sin, God put upon
him our sin. The wages of sin is death. He died suffering that death
for us because all of our deaths combined could not satisfy that
debt. could not muster up the total
of wages needed to pay that debt. So where was our hope? Who could
deliver us from this body of death? It could only be Him. Him who had no sin. Him who suffered
no guilt. He took our sin and our guilt
upon Himself, and He died, not for any sin He had committed,
for He had none. But ours, it was our sin, us,
that put Him on the cross. It was our debt he was paying.
In John chapter 10, he proclaims that he would lay down his life
for the sheep. He was the Lamb of God, that
perfect sacrifice. Let's look at the story as Isaiah
tells it. So let's go to Isaiah 53. In Isaiah 53, I'm going to pick
up reading in verse 4. Isaiah 53, verse 4, and I'll
read through verse 11. Surely He took up our infirmities
and carried our sorrows, yet we considered Him stricken by
God, smitten by Him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought us
peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all,
like sheep, have gone astray. Each of us has turned to his
own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth.
He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before
her shears is silent, so he did not open his mouth. By oppression
and judgment he was taken away, and who could speak of his descendants?
For he was cut off from the land of the living, for the transgressions
of my people He was stricken. He was assigned a grave with
the wicked and with the rich in his death, though he had done
no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the
Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer. And though
the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring
and prolong his days. And the will of the Lord will
prosper in his hand. After the suffering of his soul,
he will see the light of the light and be satisfied. By his knowledge, my righteous
servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. So there is so much in Isaiah
53 that it's several sermons all by itself. But just for our
purposes, can you see the theme here, the gospel message? And
if you will, that old, old story, it is his life for ours, our
sins. He was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The Lord has laid on him the
iniquity of us all. He was assigned a grave with
the wicked and with the rich in his death, though he had done
no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the
Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer. the Lord
makes his life an offering for sin, and by that, by his wounds,
we are healed. Yes, even Isaiah preached the
gospel way back then, the gospel of separation, substitution,
and reconciliation. It truly is the old, old story. As we continue, Looking at verse
21, it's also important to look at how Christ's obedience to
the Father plays a role in our reconciliation to God. Philippians
2 speaks to us of that perfect obedience of the Son to the Father. I've copied the passage here
into my notes so I can read it to you, but if you want to follow
along, we'll be in Philippians chapter 2, verses 5 through 11. In your relationships with one
another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus, who, being in
very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to
be used to his own advantage. Rather, he made himself nothing. By taking the very nature of
a servant, being made in human likeness, and being found in
appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient
to death. even death on a cross so once
again we see where he left his place in glory making himself
nothing a servant being made in human likeness and then being
obedient even unto death but it was because of that perfect
obedience he could be that perfect sacrifice but why would he do
such a thing in Hebrews 12 we are told to fix our eyes on Jesus,
the author and the finisher of our faith, who, for the joy set
before Him, endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down
at the right hand of the throne of God. So, for the joy set before
Him, through obedience to the Father even unto death, and then
being raised to the heavens, and now sitting at the right
hand of the Father, advocating for all the Father had given
Him, all he had sacrificed, he was satisfied. And looking back
again at Isaiah 53 verse 11, it tells us that after he has
suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied. By his knowledge, my righteous
servant will justify many and he will bear their iniquities.
He was satisfied. The father was satisfied. God's
purpose was complete in him, and that brought joy to all of
the Godhead. So as we continue to look at
Christ as the perfect lamb and the only one acceptable to God
the Father as a substitutionary sacrifice for sin, for our reconciliation
to God, I would like to make a mention of the story of Abraham
and Isaac. Throughout the Old Testament,
we are given pictures of Christ in lambs found acceptable for
sacrifice as burnt offerings for the sins of Israel, lambs
without spot or blemish. The story of Abraham and Isaac
is one of the more familiar Old Testament pictures of Christ
and his role as a substitute set by God. We know how the story
goes as Abraham received instruction from God to take Isaac up onto
a mountain and sacrifice his one and only son and Abraham
by faith obediently took Isaac up to the mountain believing
God could resurrect Isaac from the dead as we are told by the
writer of Hebrews Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the
dead and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from
death so in that faith they went up to the mountain And on the
way up, Isaac asked Abraham, Father, we have the wood and
the fire, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering? And Abraham
replied, my son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering. Well, we know that God did provide
himself that perfect, sinless, without spot or blemished lamb,
one without violence, without deceit in his mouth. not only
in that ram caught by his horns in the thicket that God provided
Abraham as a substitute for Isaac, but he provided himself in the
person of his one and only begotten son, that perfect substitute
for his church, the elect of God. Years later, John the Baptist
would be heard to proclaim as he saw Jesus off in the distance
Behold, the Lamb of God. And we know from the gospel story
that this truly was the Lamb of God, the Son of God, who had
left his place in glory to put an end to sin and death brought
about by the fall for his elect. He who had no sin had come to
do the will of the Father. The time had come. He was bruised,
he was pierced, mocked, scorned, separated from the living, even
his own father. Many times in the New Testament,
the son speaks to the father through prayer, always starting
the prayer by identifying the father as the one he is speaking
to. But in crying out on the cross,
he did not say, my father, my father, why hast thou forsaken
me? No, he cried out, my God, my
God, why hast thou forsaken me? The father and son are one. But
the father is immortal, he cannot die. So he sent his one and only
begotten son to lay down his life for all the father had given
him. And for that brief set time,
Christ cried out, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? As he was suffering the agony,
the pain, the brutality of the eternal wrath of God, the humility,
the shame of the cross. all because he was paying the
penalty for our sins. Should we wonder why he would
feel forsaken, feel that temporary but painful separation from the
Father? But before the joy set before
him, being obedient to the Father, that Lamb of God accepted his
death and then was buried. And with him, our sin, our guilt,
the innocent dying for the guilty. So now that vindication of God
over sin and death is shown complete as Christ rose up from the grave,
proving that He truly was the Son of God. If He had not arose,
we would still be waiting for that promised Redeemer to appear.
If He hadn't come forth from out of that grave, He would not
have been the One. But He did come out of the grave,
and as we were figuratively buried with Him, we also rose with Him.
free of sin, clothed in the righteousness of Christ, reconciled to the
Father who art in heaven. He arose, hallelujah, he arose,
he arose the great victor, victorious over sin, over death, over the
grave, we are again one with the Father, reconciled. Our sins,
our transgressions, all buried as far away as the east is from
the west, buried in the deepest sea to never be remembered evermore. All our sin, past, present, and
future, all buried, all done away with, the victory was complete. As Christ said just before his
death, it is finished. I recently read an article by
John Gill where he put it this way, sin is so finished and made
an end of by Christ's satisfaction for it that it will be seen no
more by the eye of avenging justice. It is so put away and out of
sight that when it is sought for, it shall not be found. God, for Christ's sake, has cast
it behind his back and into the depths of the sea." So, just
as our text declares, being reconciled to God, we now have the righteousness
of God imputed to us in Christ. That work of reconciliation by
Christ has brought it all to its conclusion. Paul puts a capstone
on this in 1 Corinthians 1, verse 30, when he proclaims, it is
because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become
for us wisdom from God that is our righteousness, our holiness,
and redemption. So what is the way to reconciliation? I hope this message has made
it clear that there is only one way, through Christ. He is for
us the way, the truth, and the life. He is the light of the
world, our reconciliation and righteousness for all who believe.
For anyone out there hearing this message who has maybe never
heard it before, I implore you, be reconciled to God. How? You may ask, well, like a newborn
baby, Rest in the comfort of God's loving arms. He has done
all the work. Come to me, you who are weary,
and I will give you rest. What do you do? You rest in him. He who sent his son to die for
you, he will never let go. For God so loved the world that
he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him
should not perish but have everlasting life. That is a promise to all
who believe. And as to that whosoever, what
is the rest of the story? Again, and as many as were ordained
to eternal life believed, the promise that God has given us
in John 3, 16, like all of God's promises, will not ever be broken. Guaranteed, there will be no
empty chairs in heaven. So just rest in Him. In conclusion,
a few more words by the Apostle Paul from Romans 7. What a wretched
man that I am. Who will deliver me from this
body of death? Yes, who will reconcile me? Me,
the hopeless one. Me, the one who can't take on
the debt. Me, the one who can't pay the
price. Me, the one who has spent my
former life rejecting Him. at enmity with him, me, the one
who was the cause of the death of his only begotten son on the
cross. But thanks be to God, he will
deliver me from this body of death. He will reconcile us. Oh, that sweet harmony is restored
through Jesus Christ, our Lord. There is no other name under
heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved. There is no
other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be
reconciled, and there is no other name under heaven given to mankind
by which we might be made the righteousness of God.