In our journey to the Resurrection, we have established that we are mortal, alive only by the grace and breath of God. We have sinned, resulting in eternal separation from God and daily suffering in this life. The fact of sin in our lives and in our world should cause us to grieve deeply.
Yet God had a plan from the beginning to redeem us. Jesus came to pay the penalty for our sin so that we only have to believe in Him, surrendering our lives to Him, taking our punishment on Himself. God is calling us to repent, to acknowledge our sin, turn away from it and toward Him. He has promised to forgive us if we ask and is calling us to return to Him.
But reconciliation is not a one-step, one-time occurrence.
It is a process. We must daily live in that reconciliation, and be God’s hand
extending that reconciliation to the world. We are to be reconciled to God and
to others, but also to help others be reconciled to Him. We
are to leave the death of sin and walk forward in the life of reconciliation. That
includes saying no to sin and being obedient to God, but at the same time
putting off the shame of our past so that we can walk in the newness and
abundance of life in Christ. Sin is bad and we should treat it as such, but we
should not allow what has happened to keep us bound. We need to ask God to
forgive us but then walk forward accepting that forgiveness. We should not hold
onto what God has forgotten.
2 Corinthians 5:14-21 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this,
that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that they
who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose
again on their behalf. Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to
the flesh; even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet
now we know Him in this way no longer. Therefore if anyone is in
Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away;
behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who
reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of
reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not
counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us
the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though
God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be
reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin
on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
Take some time to consider your life. Have you been
reconciled to God? Are you walking in that reconciliation daily,
putting off sin and shame and moving forward in redemption? What can you
practically do to walk in reconciliation and help others find reconciliation
with God?
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