THE MINISTRY OF RECONCILIATION
You cannot read this chapter without being struck with the fact that it is a wonderful thing to be a Christian. There is a beautiful word at the beginning, “we know”. There is a fine ring about that word “know”. We know; it is not, we hope. And what does the Christian know? The apostle here is looking at the possibility of death. “We know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God”. He is not dismayed at the thought of death, he is not afraid; he speaks with confidence about it. What fills man's heart with fear is the thought of death, the “evil day”, the day of departure from this world. The poor Christless soul cannot face it, but here is a man who views it without fear, yea, with pleasure. He says in the previous chapter, “we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen”, 1 Cor 4: 18. The difference between a converted and an unconverted man is that the unconverted man is guided by what is seen, whilst the converted man is guided by what is not seen. A man who looks ahead in this world is praised, because he is thought to be prudent. But he does not look ahead far enough. The apostle looked ahead into eternity, and for him it was all gladsome. Christians have bright prospects there; have you? When a Christian thinks of eternity, he thinks of that word so dear to an Englishman - Home: I understand that you cannot find a word like it in any other language. It is very impressive. When I was a sailor, I remember well the feeling I had as we weighed anchor for home. The ship loaded, all ready, the command given, we are homeward bound. A thrill of delight passes through the whole ship. But home has a sweeter thought for me now. I am going to spend eternity in the Father's house. That is home for the Christian. Nearer home! What a prospect! Oh, poor unsaved sinner, dark is thy prospect. “He that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him”, John 3: 36. The preacher sees out yonder a dark, dark cloud, you see none; he entreats you to wake up to this important matter.
I turn now to the latter part of the chapter. There we read about the ministry of reconciliation. It sets before us God's attitude towards this poor world. You need reconciling to God, because, just as the prodigal went away from his father, so have you departed from God.
In chapter 3 the apostle speaks of another ministry, the ministry of death and condemnation. God came down upon Mount Sinai and gave Israel ten commandments, which told man what he ought to be. The first word that sounded out from the mount was, “Thou shalt”. Even Moses said, “I exceedingly fear and quake”, Heb 12: 21. There were thunderings and lightnings and a thick cloud. All that was terrible. Can you get any hope from that? You cannot; it can only end in condemnation. That is not the ministry of reconciliation; it is a ministry of death.
The ministry of reconciliation began when Christ came into this world. “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself”. He sent His Son into this world to tell out all that was in His heart towards man. You remember those well-known words in John 3: 16, “God so loved the world”. The first word of the law was “Thou”, the first word in the ministry of reconciliation is “God”. “God so loved” - beautiful words! You have not loved God, but God has loved. He did not demand, He loved and He gave, and the one who believes has.
“God was in Christ”. It was the unfolding of the heart of God in this world. The devil had lied about Him and the woman had listened, and so all the ruin came in. Christ came to tell men the truth. Would God keep back the fruit of a tree? He gave His Son! The source of it all was the love of God. If you sum up the life of Jesus in one sentence, it is this, “God was in Christ”. Poor sinner, come home to God. God is love.
Let me give you two instances of this. One you will find in the end of Luke 7. The Lord is invited by a Pharisee to dinner, and He goes. As He crosses the threshold He notices that there is no water given Him to wash His feet, there is no kiss of welcome for Him, no oil for the anointing of His head. He faces it, though He says nothing. He is not at home there. But there is a woman away out in the dark slums; she is a sinner; she knows she is a sinner; she is a convicted sinner. Are you? Have you a storm raging in your breast? Are you weary, worn, and sad? Do you sigh and weep in secret, covering it up from your fellows, but unable to restrain it when alone? Then will you not keep company with this woman? Will you come with her to the feet of the Saviour? There was this about it: she knew Jesus was in the Pharisee's house, she knew the Saviour was there. The Father drew her and she came. Will you come in all your deep need?
I think I see her as she enters that quarter of the town a very respectable quarter, no doubt. She comes to the door of the Pharisee’s house, she looks in, she sees Jesus there. She heeds not the scornful crowd as she passes in. She says, There is one spot for me - at His feet. She stands behind Him weeping. My blessed Master is lonely no longer, for He came down from heaven for such as she. She stands and weeps. He counts her tears. They could not put her sins away, but inasmuch as they speak of a broken heart He will not despise them. “God was in Christ”.
The Pharisee begins to reason; he has no room for grace. “She is a sinner”, he says. When we are in the presence of God we turn it this way. ‘I am a sinner’. That Holy One could read his heart, and so He says, “Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on”. Are you one of these “say on” folks? Some of you have been attending the preaching for years. Say on, say on, is your language, and you are not converted yet. You have gone away telling people, Oh, it is very nice; I like it much. Do you know that you are in the devil’s cradle? He is whispering in your ear that God will be merciful to you at the last.
“There was a certain creditor” - God - and He had two debtors, thee and thee. God give you to feel your debt. There is a difference in the amount of the debts, but one thing is common to both: “they had nothing to pay”, and the creditor “frankly forgave them both”. “Tell me”, the Lord asks Simon, “which of them will love him most?” And Simon answers, “I suppose that, he to whom he forgave most”. Simon is outside it all.
Do you say, I feel my prospects are dark and black. If I take my place by the side of that poor woman, what will He say to me? He will say to you what He said to her, “Thy sins are forgiven”. Calvary's cross has made it possible. He is speaking to you through His word. It is as true for you as for her. These words are for thee. He died to make it possible; the righteous basis of this ministry of reconciliation is laid in His death.
The other instance I will give you is in John 8. In the last verse of chapter 7 we read, “And every man went unto his own house”. Chapter 8: 1: “Jesus went unto the mount of Olives”. Most expressive: they all had homes to go to; He went to the mountain. But early in the morning He is found in the temple, and, while teaching, the Scribes and the Pharisees bring unto him a woman taken in adultery, and set her right down before Him. They think they have cornered Him now. They as good as say, Here she is. Moses says she ought to be stoned; “but what sayest thou?” He stoops down and with His finger writes on the ground. Do you know what that meant? He says, as it were, Do you not know that I wrote the law? and I am greater than the law I wrote. They were quoting the law to the One that wrote it. “When they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her”. The full light is turned on. He says, I know you, and again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Did they not know that He had to write the law a second time? They made a golden calf and worshipped it, and the first writing of the law never came into the camp. Moses broke the tables at the foot of the mount. The second tables were placed in the ark, and that was typical of Christ. These scribes and Pharisees go out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last. They went out to their religion, to their prayers, their alms and their fasting, but they went out into the dark; and, mark you, religious darkness is the worst darkness. The Lord turns to the woman, “Hath no man condemned thee? She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee; go, and sin no more”. “God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them”.
We get the basis of this ministry in verse 21. This is how this ministry is made possible. God is holy, God is love; how can His love reach out to sinners? “For he hath made him to be sin for us”. Where did He make Him sin? On the cross; there that blessed, holy, spotless One was made sin for us. Come to the cross and you will see how this ministry could be possible. An almighty barrier existed between you and God - sin. That barrier must come down. The devil’s gospel is, ‘God is love; He is merciful; He will overlook sin’. Do not listen to that. God is infinitely holy. His love cannot reach you unless the question of sin is righteously settled. Come to the cross, and you will see there how it could be. What is Jesus saying? “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”, Matt 27: 46 If God forsook you, you would be damned for ever. He forsook His Son that you might not be forsaken. And why did God forsake His Son? Because He was made sin. He was made what I am, and He bore my sins: God could not look on Him then. He was treated as though He had done it all, and that is the reason this message can come to you. God can show mercy, He can forgive sins, because the whole question has been divinely met. That is the basis of the ministry.
His love brought Him there and my sins brought Him there. There is nothing you can discover in yourself but that God has an answer to it in the cross. There is God’s judgment of it. I am gone in His death. “He hath made him to be sin for us, ... that we might be made the righteousness of God in him”. On the cross He was made what I am, and in the glory I am made what He is. Did you ever meditate on that? Sin is gone, everything is met in His death and He is gone up in glory. By faith we look to the cross and see Him made sin, and then to the glory and see Him there.
He went up with uplifted hands. Do you think His hands have ever gone down? Never; they are uplifted still. What were they doing in heaven as He went up? Methinks I see the angels looking down upon Him as He goes up out of His people’s sight. He goes up, up. See those principalities and powers, those ministers of His making way for Him as He goes higher and higher till He sits down on the throne of God. He sits there having answered to all the claims of that throne when out yonder in all the desolation of the cross.
You and I, believer, are made the righteousness of God in Him. God's eye rests upon Christ. He looks on the face of His Anointed. Why do you not look there? There is not a beauty you can discover in Christ that you will not be invested with. Think of that! It reminds me of what Paul said to Philemon: “Receive him [Onesimus] as myself”, v 7. I am received as Christ is. You may say, I find so much in me that is contrary. Ah! but God only sees Christ, and when He comes we shall bear His image. What a beautiful ministry this is! God grant that you may profit by it.
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