Would you turn back to 2 Corinthians
chapter 5? I've entitled this message, Be
Ye Reconciled to God. And he gives this reason for
doing so. he's reconciled to you. He's not mad. You be reconciled to him. Upon
this ground, he is reconciled to you. Of the things we experience in
life, I don't think there's anything more wonderful than when people
who were at odds reconcile. Isn't that a blessing to see
that? People were at odds. This can be in so many different
directions. People at odds, people who were
together, then they're separated, and they're brought back together,
reconciliation. You love seeing that. Reconciliation. Now, the reconciliation we're
going to talk about this morning is not like any of those reconciliations. When two people are together
and come apart at odds, when they come apart, it's both parties'
fault. Nobody's innocent in this. It's
both parties' fault. There's always two sides, isn't
there? There's always two sides. But in the reconciliation we're
talking about this morning, nobody has any reason to be at
odds with God. None at all. And yet, he is the
one who reconciles. He does it all. reconciled to God. Now in the letters of Paul to
the churches, there are nine different letters to the churches. There's more time devoted to
the church of Corinth than any of the other churches. As a matter
of fact, about 40% of his writings to the churches go to the church
at Corinth. were given a lot with regard
to this church. And one of the unique things
about Paul writing to Corinth, these two letters, is how much
time he had to spend defending himself. He spent a lot of time
with this particular church who were continually making accusations
against him He spent a lot of time defending himself. Now, it happened a lot in 1 Corinthians,
but let me show you some of these in 2 Corinthians. Look in 2 Corinthians
10. Verse seven. Do you look at things
after the outward appearance If any man trusts to himself
that he's Christ, let him of himself think this again, that
as he is Christ, even so we are Christ's. For though I should
boast somewhat more of our authority in which the Lord has given us
for edification and not for your destruction, I should not be
ashamed that I may not seem as if I would terrify you by letters,
for his letters say they, his detractors. or weighty and powerful,
but his bodily presence is weak and his speech contemptible. Look in chapter 11, verse five. For I suppose I was not a wit
behind the very chiefest apostles. But though I be rude in speech,
as they're saying, yet not in knowledge, but we have been throughly
made manifest among you in all things. Look in verse 12 of this
same chapter. But what I do, that will I do
that I may cut off occasion for them which desire occasion, that
wherein they glory, they may be found even as we. Look in
verse 22. Are they Hebrews, these people
who are detracting from him? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they the seed of
Abraham? So am I. Look in chapter 12, verse 11. I have become a fool in glory.
You've compelled me, for I ought to have been commended of you.
For in nothing am I behind the very chiefest apostles, though
I be nothing. I love the way he says that.
He realized, though I'm not behind the chiefest apostles, I know
what I am. I am nothing. Truly, the signs of an apostle
were wrought among you in all patience, and in signs, and wonders,
and mighty deeds. For what is it wherein you were
inferior to other churches, except that I myself was not burdensome
to you? Forgive me this wrong. Now, why is Paul defending himself? Now, for the most part, maybe
with regard to me and you, for every part, it's always best
to not defend yourself. Whatever accusations brought
against you, however you're maligned, however you're misrepresented,
I think of what the Lord said to the children of Israel, the
Lord shall fight for you and you'll hold your peace. Any defending
you need, the Lord will do it. So why is Paul defending himself? Because if people questioned
his authority, as God's apostle, they would question his message.
That was Paul's reasoning, and he was inspired by God the Holy
Spirit to defend himself against his detractors because he was
speaking with the authority of God, not the authority of Paul.
but with the authority of God. And that is why his message was
so important. Now, turn back to 2 Corinthians
5. Verse 12. For we commend not ourselves
again unto you. We're not trying to impress you
with our credentials. We're not trying to commend ourselves,
but to give you occasion to glory on our behalf. Instead of finding
fault with this, you can glory on our behalf that you might
have somewhat to answer them, which glory in appearance and
not in heart. Now that is really the theme
throughout the whole epistle. He's defending himself from those
who glory in outward appearance, outward religiosity, and not
in the work of grace that God does in the heart. Now he says
in verse 13, for whether we be beside ourselves, fanatical,
seemingly crazy, it's to God. Isn't God worthy of being a fanatic
about? Absolutely. Or whether we be
sober, logical, clear thinking, It's for your benefit. It's for
your cause. Four, verse 14. The love of Christ
constraineth us. Now, is he talking about our
love for him or his love for us? Both. We love him because He first
loved us. We love Him. And it's because
He first loved us. And this love constrains us. It presses upon us. It's something that we can't
get away from. The love of Christ constraineth
us in this way because we thus judge If one died for all, then
we're all dead. Now somebody's thinking, does
that mean he died for all men without exception? No, it doesn't
mean that. But he died for all the elect.
He died for the whole. And you know what's true of everybody
he died for? They're all dead. If he died, I died. And I'm dead
to the law. Law has nothing to say to a dead
man. I'm dead to the law. He died for all, then we're all
dead for this reason, and that he died for all that they which
live. You know, everybody he died for
lives. They live before God. and that he died for all that
they which live, look at this next phrase, should not henceforth
live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them
and rose again. Love, so amazing, so divine,
demands My soul, my life, my all. That's love's judgment. That is our reasonable service,
isn't it? Verse 16, wherefore henceforth
know we no man after the flesh. We don't look at men in a simply
human way. a fleshly way, the way every
unbeliever looks upon another unbeliever. We don't look like
that. We don't consider men in that
light. Yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh in a fleshly
way, yet now henceforth, though we him no more. Therefore, if any man be in Christ,
now here is this incredible, so important concept,
this thing of being in Christ. If any man be in Christ. Now what's it mean to be in Christ?
Well, the best way to understand that is what's it mean to be
in Adam? If I'm in Adam, that means I
trace my roots to him. What he did, I did. Therefore,
as by one man sin entered the world and death by sin, so that
death passed upon all men in that all sinned. You see, when
Adam sinned, I sinned. You believe that? When Adam sinned,
you sinned. Whatever he did, you did. In Adam, all die. But if any man be in Christ,
Now, if you're in Christ, that means what he did, you did. That's
what baptism signifies. That's what I am placing all
my hopes in that when he lived, I lived. When he kept the law,
I kept the law. When he died under the wrath
of God, my sin was paid for. When he was raised from the dead,
I was raised from the dead. I trace my salvation to him. Being in Him. Being one with
Him. If any man be in Christ. Somebody says, well, how do you
get in Christ? The only way you can get in Christ is for God
to put you in Christ. Of Him are you in Christ Jesus. Lord, put me in Him. Let me be
found in Him. If any man be in Christ, And
everybody that he loved is in him. Everybody that loves him
is in him. If any man be in Christ, he is
a new creation. He's not the old creation improved
or changed. He is a new creation. Now, I know this about creation.
It's exclusively God's work. Amen. It's exclusively God's
work. You didn't have anything new
creation. You weren't consulted. You didn't give any help at all.
It's exclusively God's work. And in this new creation, something
is there that was not there before. Old things are passed away. Now,
my old nature's not passed away. You know, I've heard people say
if, you know, old things are passed away. Well, my old nature's
not passed away, neither has yours. And somebody who tries
to make it sound like their old nature's passed away, they're
just lying. They're not being honest on any level. My old nature's
still there, and I would be a hypocrite and a liar to try to present
myself as not having this old nature. This old nature is still
there, but it still says old things have passed away. You know, my old relationship
with the law has passed away. I'm not guilty anymore. The law
looks at me and says I find no fault in him. My old relationship with God as an enemy
is passed away. He's reconciled to me. I can
come into his presence and be accepted. Old things are passed
away. My old motive, gone, gone. Now, like I said, you know, this
is not talking about a sinful nature because it's still there.
But I'm a new creature in Christ Jesus. Old things have passed
away. My old way of thinking of salvation
by works had passed away. Behold, all things have become
new. I'm justified. I'm not an enemy. I'm reconciled. My old history
has passed away because Christ said I make all things new. Now,
here's the fact of the matter with regard to every believer.
Your history, and remember history's based on facts, isn't it? It's
about what's actually taking place. Your history, if you're
a believer, is all good. Nothing bad's ever happened.
No sin has ever been committed. No wrong has ever been done. Old things, they're passed away. Behold, all things have become
new, a brand new history. I'm so interested in this. You
know, I've heard preachers talk about how on Judgment Day, believers
are going to be judged for their sins and rewarded to a certain
place in heaven based upon how good they are, how bad they've
been. And I remember I heard a preacher
say this about this. He said, but then you won't mind.
I said, I will. I guarantee you, I will. There's
no really gospel in that message. If my sins are brought up on
judgment day and then I'm given this high place, maybe some really
bad Christian he's put down there, you know, he's down there in
the ghetto while somebody else is up, that's foolishness. Old
things are passed away. I've got a new history and it's
all good. Behold, all things are new. Verse 18, and all things are
of God. Now what's that mean? Now all
these new things, they find their origin in God. Not in you, not in me, but in
God. Now what's that mean? God elected
me. That's where I trace my salvation,
God. God elected me before time began. God justified me. I didn't have any hand in this.
This was his work. He justified me. All things are
of God. He redeemed me. All things are of God. He regenerated me. He said, live, there was life.
That's of God. Everything in salvation is of
God, isn't it? Salvation is of the Lord. Oh, I believe that. Salvation
is of the Lord. It's not of me. It's not of my
works. It's not of something I do. Salvation is of the Lord. That's what he means. All things
are of God. Verse 18, who hath, and here's this word, reconciled. He hath, it's something he did. He hath reconciled us to himself
by Jesus Christ. Now who's the us? He hath reconciled
us to himself. Everybody be reconciled. He's
talking about the elect. If he reconciled all men, nobody's
gonna be in hell. This is talking about the elect.
This is talking about those the father gave him. This is talking
about those Christ died for. He hath reconciled us to himself. Romans 5.10 says, for if when
we were enemies, we were reconciled to God. Now, do you hear that?
He doesn't say when we asked for forgiveness, we were reconciled.
He said when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by
the death of his son. Turn to Colossians chapter one
for just a moment. Verse 20. and having made peace through
the blood of His cross. By Him, to reconcile, to bring
together those that were at odds, all things unto Himself. By Him,
I say, He's the one who did this. This wasn't a mutual coming together. He did this by himself. Whether
they be things in earth or things in heaven, and you that were
sometimes alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works,
yet now hath he reconciled. And let me show you what is involved
in this reconciliation. He's reconciled in the body of
his flesh through death. This is what his cross accomplished
to present you holy, unblameable, and unreprovable in his sight. You see, in this work of reconciliation,
he's made it where he doesn't have anything to be mad at you
about. He doesn't have anything to be angry with you about. He's
made you who were his enemies, holy, and without blame, nothing
to reprove you for. Now, this was all done by Jesus
Christ. And look back into our text in
2 Corinthians 5, and all things are of God who hath reconciled
us to himself by Jesus Christ. And look at this next phrase,
hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation. Now that's
a good name for gospel preaching, isn't it? He's given to us, us. That's me, I'm the preacher,
yeah, but that's you too. If you're reconciled, he's given
to you this ministry of reconciliation. Now, why did God leave you here? Was it to worship him? The worship is a lot more pure
in heaven. It's utterly pure. Why did God leave you here? For you to get more holy? Well,
that's impossible. You're either holy or you're
not. You don't become more holy. And as far as that goes, the
reality of the fact is every one of us are living somewhere
in Romans chapter seven. That's so, isn't it? Every one
of us. The reason God left you here is for you to have some
part in the ministry of reconciliation. Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they shall inherit the kingdom of heaven. Now he says, he had given to us the ministry
of reconciliation. Now here's what it is, to wit,
here's what I'm talking about. Namely, to wit, that God was
in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, God was in Christ as the eternal
surety of God's elect before the foundation of the world.
God was in Christ as the virgin born son. God was in Christ as
the carpenter working in a carpenter shop for 30 years in obscurity. Nobody else knew he was God.
God was in Christ. God was in Christ as the prophet.
I say unto you, God was in Christ as the law keeper. You see, when
he kept the law, God kept the law. It's the righteousness of
God. God was in Christ in the one
dying on the tree. That's the God man. God was in
Christ forsaking, and God was in Christ being forsaken. God
was the one who killed Christ, God was the one who was killed.
God was the one raising him from the dead. God was the one who
was raised. God was in Christ, reconciling
the world. And I love this. Don't you? Don't
you love him being called the savior of the world? If you're saved, he's the one
who saved you. He's the savior of the world. God so loved the
world that he gave his only begotten son. And here's how he did this
thing of reconciliation, to with that God was in Christ, reconciling
the world unto himself, and here's how he did it. Not imputing their
trespasses unto them. And do you hear that? Now let
me give you a real life illustration. I can, if I, I remember 1988. I was in the hospital. I referred to this not that long
ago, but I thought I was going to die that night. I felt sure
I was going to die that very night. I was in the hospital.
I could hear the machines beeping and I started thinking, am I
going to be saved? I'm going to meet God. I'm gonna
meet God this very night. What's gonna happen to me? And
I started looking at myself. I was a preacher. Big deal. Didn't do me any good. I started looking at my own life,
everything about me, and all I saw was sin. Nothing else. And I can remember
being utterly terrified. I'm going to hell tonight. I'm
going to be cut off. I'm going to split hell wide
open. God is going to send me to hell
and that's exactly what I deserve. And I can remember being all
by myself in that room. In utter terror, I started crying,
I'm going to hell. And the Lord brought this scripture
to my mind. Blessed is he whose transgression
is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the
Lord will not impute iniquity. You see, everything I thought
about myself was true. But here's my hope. God didn't
impute it to me. You know, I read somewhere where,
I think it was Ted Turner, who was, you know, he's opposed to
the gospel. He always has been real anti-Christian. He said, he said, Christians
are people who can't take responsibility for their own actions. Yep. Yep. I'm one of them. I'm one
of them. But here's my hope. that God
did not charge me with my sin. Now that is the ministry of reconciliation. Now that's not over. You know,
there's another side to that. If he didn't charge me with my
sin, he had to charge somebody with my sin, didn't he? God's
just. He's not just going to push sin under the rug and pretend
like it's God. God's just, God's righteous,
all sin must be punished. But the hope of the believer
is that they will not be charged with their sin. Here's the ministry of reconciliation.
God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, how?
By not imputing. their trespasses unto them. And
he hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now this is the gospel, the word
of reconciliation, the word of how God can be reconciled, how
God can accept me, how God can be pleased with me. Now look
what it says in verse 20. Now then, we are ambassadors
for Christ. What is an ambassador? An ambassador is one who does
not speak his own mind, but he speaks as a representative of
the country he's representing. He's not giving his own thoughts.
He's not giving his own opinions. And Paul says, I'm speaking as
an ambassador of Christ. I'm not giving you my opinion.
I'm not giving you my take on things. I'm not giving you how
I feel. I'm speaking as an ambassador of Christ. Now, the ambassador,
his opinion is not brought up. Just he represents somebody else. An ambassador of the United States
represents the will of the United States. Now, we're speaking as
ambassadors of Christ. Now then we are ambassadors for
Christ as though God did beseech you and call you by us. Now, in this thing of the preaching
of the gospel, like Paul said, I'm nothing.
The preacher is nothing. He's nothing. I'm preaching as though God is
the one doing the speaking. Man, if all you hear is me, we're
in trouble, aren't we? I mean, what a waste of time.
But in the preaching of the gospel, Paul says we're preaching as
ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you, as though
God did call upon you by us. We pray you in Christ's head,
be ye. reconciled to God. You'd be reconciled to God. Don't
be mad at him. Don't judge him. Don't think
harsh things of him. Don't be in disagreement with
him. Don't say, how could he do this? How could he allow that? Don't be at odds with God. The harsh things you and I have
thought about the Lord. How could He let this take place?
How could He let that take place? How could this be fair? How could
that be fair? How could this happen? Be reconciled to God. Not judging Him. Not finding
fault with Him. Not being in disagreement with
Him. Not being in disagreement with His providence. Not being
in disagreement with anything that He has done. Well, how am I to go about doing
that? Here's the only way. You will only be reconciled to
God when you see He is completely reconciled to you. It's the only way it'll happen. Now, if there is any law involved,
if there's anything you need to do to bring about this reconciliation,
you're gonna remain at odds with God. You're gonna stay mad at
Him. But when you see, He is reconciled
to you. You're holy and unblameable and
unreprovable in His sight because of His reconciliation. He's reconciled
to you. Do you hear that? He is reconciled
to you. He sees you as without fault. Now you know this is only the
believer. He doesn't see the unbeliever this way, but with
every believer, without fault. Now look what he says in verse
21. You be reconciled to God for this singular reason, for
he hath made him to be sin. For us who knew no sin, that
we might be made the righteousness of God in him. Now, I heard one man say that
this is the single most important verse in the Bible. Now, I don't
feel qualified to look at God's word and say, well, this is the
single most important verse in the Bible, but are there any
verses that are any more important than this? For he, God the Father, hath
made him the Lord Jesus Christ. And notice to be is in italics. He made him sin. Now let me tell
you the reason why he doesn't impute sin to you. He made Christ
sin. On Calvary's tree. Jesus Christ
was bearing in his own body the sins of the elect. That's what
was going on. He made him to be sin. This begins with he, not me,
not you. He hath made Him, the eternal Son of
God, the Lord Jesus Christ, the only one of whom it could be
said He knew no sin, holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners. That describes the Lord Jesus
Christ. He made Him sin. He never committed sin. He never
knew sin. But what's worse, he was made
sin. You know, I think it's really
sad that so much debate has been over this verse of scripture.
And people have even accused, I've been accused, you've been
accused. Well, you're saying Christ was a sinner. You say
he started committing sin. That's a wicked thing to accuse
somebody of. No believer's ever made that statement. We're not
saying he sinned when he was made sin, he never sinned. What's worse, he was made sin. I feel so helpless in trying,
he was made sin. On Calvary's tree, he was made
sin. He drank that cup and in that
cup was every single sin of every one of his people. He drank that
cup, he bore our sin in his own body on the tree. Let me read you a passage of
scripture from Leviticus. On the great day of atonement,
this explains something about what was taking place. Verse
20, and when he had made an end of reconciling, there's that
word, the holy place and the tabernacle, the congregation,
the altar, he shall bring the live goat. It's the Lord Jesus
Christ. And Aaron, Leviticus 16, 21,
and Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live
goat, the Lord Jesus Christ, while he was on Calvary's tree
and confess over him the iniquities of the children of Israel and
all their transgressions and all their sins, putting them
upon the head of the goat and shall send him away by the hand
of a fit man into the wilderness and the goat shall bear upon
him all their iniquities, until land not inhabited, and he shall
let the goat go in the wilderness. Now, he hath made him to be sin
for us. Now, who is the us? Am I one
of these people? Was he made sin for me? Did he
bear my sin? Now, there's only one way I can
answer that. Only one. Well, I wanna know if I'm one
of the elect. I wanna know if Christ died for me. I wanna know
if I'm born again. Quit asking those questions.
I realize we may think that way, but I'm not going to figure out
whether I'm one of the elect. Here's the only way I can know
Christ bore my sins. if I'm a sinner. Christ Jesus came into the world
to save sinners. Somebody said, well, isn't everybody
a sinner? Not the way Paul meant. I think of when Peter said, depart
from me, Lord. I'm a sinful man. I'm full of
sin. That's all I am. You don't have
anything to do with me. Depart from me. I'm a sinful man, full
of sin. That's all I am. That's my name,
that's my nature. If you cut me off and sent me
to hell forever, just and holy is your name. Christ Jesus came
into the world to save sinners. Of whom I am the chief. And notice
this last word. For he hath made him to be sin
for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made, dare we say
it, that we might be made, dare we say it, the righteousness of God. Every believer, without exception,
possesses as their personal righteousness, the very righteousness of God. So that Paul said, oh, that I
may win Christ and be found in him, not having my own righteousness. I don't want to have anything
to do with that. But that which is through the faithfulness of
Christ, the righteousness which is of God, by faith, that we
might be made the righteousness of God. Now that is reconciliation. Why is God reconciled to you?
Because you have the very righteousness of God. Easy to be reconciled to that
person, isn't it? Now, he's reconciled to you. You be reconciled. to him. Let's pray. Lord, we stand amazed at your glorious work of reconciliation,
where you've reconciled completely us to yourself. Lord, cause each
man, woman, boy, and girl in this room to be reconciled. Quit being at odds. Be reconciled
to you because of your complete reconciliation to them in the
gospel. Bless this word for Christ's
sake. In his name we pray. Amen.