Verse 16. Let's listen to God's Word.
So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view.
Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.
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 men'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,
so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
As God's fellow workers,
we urge you not to receive God's grace in vain.
For he says,
In the time of my favor I heard you,
and in the day of salvation I helped you.
I tell you,
now is the time of God's favor.
Now is the day of salvation.
Thanks very much, Ralph.
Please keep your Bibles open at that passage in Corinthians.
We're not going to be moving out of chapter 5,
but it would be good to keep your focus right there.
Let's pray together.
Our Father God, we thank you for your word,
for it is not only true,
it is powerful.
It is your means for revealing to us
the greatness and the beauty of who Jesus Christ is.
And our prayer is that our focus would be upon him,
and we would learn what it is to be reconciled to him,
and to be Christ's ambassadors.
Father, we are helpless,
so we ask that you would pour out your Holy Spirit upon us
as you have been doing.
Continue to give us the Spirit
that we might understand your truth,
not just with minds,
but that our hearts would be changed and transformed,
that we would see with your eyes,
and we would live according to your ways.
We ask this in Jesus' name.
Amen.
But from our reading,
I think the main theme of the text is crystal clear.
It's summarized for us so well in verse 18.
Have a look at verse 18.
All this is from God,
who reconciled us to himself through Christ,
and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.
To reconcile is simply to restore a relationship
that has been broken,
to bring peace and harmony
where there's been hostility and fear.
And in this context,
it's our restored relationship with God.
Louis Zamperini was always in trouble as a kid.
His mother encouraged him to go to church.
In fact, she'd give him money for the collection,
but he would skive off and go spend it in the fair.
For Louis, God was just a hindrance,
not a help.
But he was an excellent runner.
In 1936, he made the U.S. Olympic team
and ran in the Olympic Games.
World War II cut short his running career,
and he became a gunner in the Air Force.
On one excursion, his plane was shot down,
and for 47 days,
Zamperini drifted on a small raft on the open sea.
Surviving attacks from the air,
he was eventually captured by the enemy.
He was now a prisoner of war.
For two years,
Zamperini was held in captivity,
where he suffered terribly.
Solitary confinement,
constant beatings,
unbearable torture,
and the routine of daily hard labour.
Miraculously, though,
he survived.
At the end of the war,
Zamperini returned a hero,
but deep down in his life,
he was struggling.
Tortured from his time in the war
and troubled by his past,
he attended a meeting
where he heard the good news
about Jesus Christ.
Through Christ,
he received forgiveness from God
and was reconciled to God.
His life was dramatically changed.
Almost immediately,
he returned to visit
those who had treated him
so cruelly in the prison camp.
Zamperini was on a mission
of reconciliation.
No longer did he hold a grudge.
No longer did he seek revenge.
No longer did he hate.
He had come to experience personally
God's forgiveness,
and he wanted his captors to know
that they too could be forgiven
and reconciled to God.
Amazingly, as he spoke in that prison,
the guards who had once tortured him
turned to Christ
and experienced reconciliation
for themselves.
It's a remarkable true story.
You can watch it on film.
It's called Unbroken.
Now, if you are a Christian,
that's a picture of your story.
Look again at verse 18.
All of this is from God,
who reconciled us to himself
through Christ
and gave us the ministry
of reconciliation.
You see, we too, individually,
and as churches together
in the Court Kerry Project,
we are on a mission
of reconciliation.
Four things we're going to look at together
from this text.
Here's the first one.
God's desire
that all
are reconciled.
God's desire
that all
are reconciled.
Verse 16.
So, from now on,
we regard no one
from a worldly point of view.
Something dramatic
has happened.
Something has changed
about how we see people.
Look at the rest of verse 16.
Though we once regarded Christ
in this way,
we do so no longer.
Paul is writing
and he's remembering
back to a point in time
where he had a wrong view of Christ.
Christ was completely insignificant,
completely irrelevant,
with nothing to offer.
But now he has been changed.
He has come to see Christ
in the right way
and he has come to see
that through Christ
there is forgiveness
and reconciliation with God
and that has changed everything.
It has changed
how he views the world
and how he views people.
It gives us
a new perspective.
Let's read the beginning
of verse 16 again.
So, from now on,
we regard no one
from a worldly point of view.
Because of Christ
and all that he has done,
we now see people
from God's perspective.
We no longer see people
from a worldly point of view.
You see,
we don't judge people
on the basis
of their social status,
their religious heritage,
or their sexual identity.
From God's perspective,
as he looks at the world,
we are all the same.
We are all separated from God
and we all need to be reconciled
to God.
So, being rich or poor,
Catholic or Protestant,
Muslim or Hindu,
gay or straight,
that is not the big issue.
The issue is,
we are all outside of God
and we all need reconciled
to God.
But that's not
the only thing
we see about ourselves.
Not only is there
a new perspective,
but there's a new creation.
Follow with me
the flow of thought.
Let's read again
the beginning of verse 16.
So, from now on,
because of Christ,
we regard no one
from a worldly point of view.
Now, verse 17.
Therefore,
if anyone is in Christ,
he is a new creation.
We no longer view people
as condemned sinners
that must be judged.
No, we now see people
who, through Christ,
can become a new creation.
Isn't that how
Louis Zamperini
saw his once captors?
He wanted revenge.
He wanted justice.
But now,
because of Christ
and the change in his life,
he saw the prison guards
as people
who could become
new creations
in Christ.
You see,
I think we all need
to take off
the worldly lens
and put on
the God lens.
And that's a challenge
for each one of us.
Instead of walking around
and inwardly condemning
those I see,
I need to walk
and look at people
from God's perspective
and see
what people
can become.
New creations.
Brand new people.
You see,
while we so often
look in condemnation,
God sees
transformation.
Verse 17.
Therefore,
if anyone
is in Christ,
he is a new creation.
The old
has gone
and the new
has come.
We can be so
concerned about
trying to change
what people believe
and how people behave
when God is saying,
I have come to do
something far more
radical and beautiful.
I have come to bring
about a new creation,
a brand new beginning,
a fresh start
in the lives
of people.
I have come
to bring
reconciliation,
to restore
that broken
relationship
so that you
are at one
with God.
So first,
God's desire
that we are
all reconciled
to Him.
Second,
God has made
it possible
for all
to be reconciled.
God makes
it possible
for all
to be reconciled.
Verse 18.
All this
is from
God
who
reconciled
us to
Himself
through Christ.
You see,
if God
needs to
reconcile
us to
Himself,
it clearly
implies
the world
is separated
from God.
there is
a division
that exists,
a relationship
that is
broken.
No longer
is there
peace and
joy,
but fear
and hostility.
No longer
that communion,
the fellowship
that Adam
and Eve
enjoyed
in the
Garden of
Eden,
it has
now been
broken.
And we
can't fix
that relationship.
We can't
do anything
to make
God love
us.
But
thankfully,
God has
taken the
initiative
and done
something
about it.
God
has made
reconciliation
possible.
First,
it's all
from God.
Look at
verse 18
again.
All
this
is
from
God
who
reconciled
us
to
Himself.
God
reconciled
us.
This is
something
that God
has already
done for
us.
You see,
knowing that
our relationship
with God
is broken,
knowing our
inability to
make things
right,
God has
taken the
initiative,
intervened,
and provided
the means by
which we
can be made
right with
God.
Rather than
divorce us,
God has
reconciled
us.
And
reconciliation
is not
something I
can do.
I can't
make peace
with God.
God
makes peace
with us.
Restoring
our relationship
with God
is something
that God
does.
It's not
something that
we can
do.
And
here's
how God
does it.
Look at
verse 18.
All this
is from
God,
who
reconciled
us to
Himself
through
Christ.
And
what did
God do
through
Christ?
Well,
jump down
to verse 19.
It explains
it for us.
That God
was reconciling
the world
to Himself
in Christ,
not counting
our sins
against us.
Let me
try and
expand and
explain that.
Suppose
I were
to walk
out on
my wife
Kirsty,
destroying
the marriage
and the
relationship.
Because of
what I've
done,
I can't
make
Kirsty,
my wife,
accept me
or forgive
me.
I have
no right.
I'm a
guilty
party.
Kirsty,
on the
other hand,
has every
right to
reject me.
That would
be just
and that
would be
fair.
You see,
the only
way the
relationship
can be
restored is
if
Kirsty,
who is
innocent,
chooses
to forgive
and no
longer holds
my failure
against me
or over
me.
Rather than
sign divorce
papers,
which is
what I
deserve,
she reaches
out to
me and
reconciles,
which is
what I
don't
deserve.
And I
think that's
a picture
of what
God has
done for
us through
Christ.
Again,
look at
verse 19.
God was
reconciling
the world
to himself
in Christ,
not counting
our sins
against us.
If Christ
or in
Christ,
God does
not hold
our sin
over us
or against
us,
why?
Because it
has all
been dealt
with in
Christ.
The divorce
papers have
been torn
up at
the cross.
God has
every right
to reject
me,
condemn
me and
judge me.
But now
reconciliation
has been
made available
and the
good news
is it's
not just
for you
and it's
not just
for me.
Look at
the middle
of verse
19.
God is
reconciling
the world.
This is
good news
for every
single
person.
God
does
not
write
people
off.
There is
no sin
that is
so great
that God
has not
dealt
with in
Christ.
His
gift of
reconciliation
is open
to all
people.
So God
longs
for all
people to
be reconciled.
God
has made
it possible
for all
to be
reconciled.
And
third,
God
has
entrusted
to us
the
message
of
reconciliation.
God
has
entrusted
to us
the
message
of
reconciliation.
Look at
the end
of verse
19
with me.
And
he has
committed
to
us
the
message
of
reconciliation.
God
longs
to
restore
the
relationship
with
him
for
a
purpose
so
that
we
might
join
him
in
his
mission
of
reconciliation.
Our
relationship
with
God
is
restored
so
that
others
can
also
know
the
joy
and
beauty
of
a
relationship
with
God.
Remember
our
friend
Zamperini?
Once
he had
experienced
reconciliation
he wanted
others
to
experience
the
same.
We
are
ambassadors.
And
in case
we're not
clear about
all of
this
look at
what
God
says
to
us.
Go
back
to
the
end
of
verse
18
the
last
part
of
verse
18.
See
what
it
says?
God
gave
us
the
ministry
of
reconciliation.
The
end
of
verse
19
he
has
committed
to
us
the
message
of
reconciliation.
Verse
20
we
are
therefore
Christ's
ambassadors
as though
God
were making
his appeal
through
us.
God's
desire
to
reconcile
the world
to himself
has been
entrusted
to people
like you
and me.
God
has
called
us
to be
his
ambassadors
his
representatives
his
spokesperson.
Now
just to
think about
that
to
entrust
that
responsibility
to you
and me
is
insane.
Why
not
entrust
it
to
Christ?
Why
not
ask
some
of the
angels
to come
and do
the
job?
Surely
they
would
do
a
better
job
than
you
or
me.
during
the
summer
I
was
involved
with
the
TIM
team.
Some
of you
here
were
part
of
that
an
outreach
program
doing
street
evangelism
and doing
door
to
door.
And
while
doing
door
to
door
I
had
this
strange
experience.
When
I
went
to
knock
on
the
door
I
would
pray
this
prayer.
Lord
please
help
me
as
I
speak.
which
was
quickly
followed
up
by
another
prayer.
Lord
I
hope
they're
not
in.
Surely
God
can
do
better
than
failures
like
me.
Well
I
think
God
knows
what
he
is
doing
when
he
is
entrusted
to
us
the
message
of
reconciliation.
If
God
can
take
people
like
us
who
don't
want
anything
to
do
with
God
and
radically
change
us
and
transform
us
into
a
new
creation
then
God
can
also
make
his
appeal
through
us.
Look
at the
end of
verse
20.
We
implore
you
on
Christ's
behalf
be
reconciled
to
God.
You
see
it's
not
my
ability
and
it's
not
your
personality
that
is
going
to
see
one
single
person
reconciled
to
God.
We
cannot
do
it.
It's
all
of
God
through
his
message.
Look
at
verse
20,
21.
God
made
him,
God
made
Christ
who
had
no
sin
to
be
sin
for
us
so
that
in
Christ
we
might
become
the
righteousness
of
God.
It's
too
good
to be
true
but
the
fact
is
it
is
wonderfully
true.
To
unpack
this I
want to
quote
from a
dead
man,
a good
dead
man,
Martin
Luther.
You
can
follow
the
quote
on
the
screen,
it's
a
little
long but
just
follow
with me
as we
read
through.
He
unpacks
very
helpfully
verse
21.
Christ
bears
all
the
sins
of
all
men
in
his
body.
Not
that
he is
guilty
of
any
but
that
he
received
them
being
committed
or
done
by
us
and
laid
them
upon
his
own
body.
We
must
know
Christ
to be
wrapped
in our
sins,
in our
curse,
in our
death
and in
all
our
evils
as he
is
wrapped
in our
flesh
and
blood.
Whatever
sins
I,
you,
or we
all have
done
or shall
do
hereafter,
they
are
Christ's
own
sins
or
else
I
would
perish
forever.
If
Christ
be
made
guilty
of
all
the
sins
which
we
all
have
committed
then
we
are
delivered
from
all
sins
but
not
by
ourselves
not
by our
own
works
and
merits
but
by
him.
That
is
good
news.
Not
advice
to live
a better
way.
This
is what
Christ
has
done
for
us.
But
even
better
this
is
only
half
the
message.
Look
at
let's
read
verse
21
again.
God
made
him
who
had
no
sin
to
be
sin
for
us.
Here's
the
second
half
of
the
message.
So
that
in
Christ
we
might
become
the
righteousness
of
God.
If
we
are
in
Christ
if
we
have
entrusted
our
life
to
Christ
we
have
been
covered
and
clothed
in the
beauty
and the
purity
of
Christ.
We
are
no
longer
seen
by
God
as a
reckless
sinner
but
now
a
reconciled
son
with
access
to
God
the
Father
and
adopted
into
God's
family.
We
can
put it
this
way.
Christ
is
treated
as we
deserve
to be
treated
so that
by faith
in Christ
we are
treated
as Christ
deserves
to be
treated.
Let me
say that
again.
Christ
has been
treated
as we
deserve
to be
treated
so that
by faith
in Christ
we
are
treated
as
Christ
deserves
to be
treated.
How
else
can we
be
reconciled?
How
else
can our
relationship
with God
be
restored?
Well
Christ
takes
my
sin
and
gives
me
his
righteousness.
This
is a
message
that
reconciled
Luther,
it
reconciled
Zamperini,
it
reconciled
those prison
guards and
it's the
message that
reconciled
you and
me and
can reconcile
the world
to God.
One
more.
God
urges us
not to
waste
his
reconciliation.
God
urges us
not to
waste
his
reconciliation.
Chapter
6
verse 1
As
God's
fellow
workers
we
urge you
not to
receive
God's
grace
in vain.
As we've
walked through
the text
God's
grace has
been seen
in two
ways.
First
God has
reconciled
us to
himself
and
second
God
has
given
us
the
ministry
of
reconciliation.
You
cannot
have
one
without
the
other.
We
have
been
reconciled
to
God
for
the
purpose
of
being
Christ's
ambassadors.
So
verse
1
we
urge
you
we
plead
with
you
not
to
receive
God's
grace
in
vain.
Do
not
waste
the
grace
of
God
that
has
been
poured
out
on
our
lives.
Don't
just
see
God's
grace
as
your
ticket
into
heaven
and
then
go
and
live
as
we
want.
It's
so
much
more
than
that.
God's
grace
means
as we
saw
verse
17
you
are
a
new
creation.
Verse
20
entrusted
with
the
message
of
reconciliation
a
new
creation
in
Christ.
I
am
now
God's
representative
where I
live
and
you
are
God's
spokesperson
where
you
work.
God
has
reconciled
us
to
himself
so
others
can
experience
reconciliation.
Don't
waste
the
grace
that has
been
given
to you
and
here's
why.
Look
at
verse
2.
for
he
says
in
the
time
of
my
favor
literally
in
the
time
of
grace
I
heard
you
and
in
the
day
of
salvation
I
helped
you.
I
tell
you
now
is
the
time
of
God's
grace.
Now
is
the
day
of
salvation.
today
this
day
is
a
day
of
grace
the
offer
of
peace
not
hostility
the
gift
of
joy
not
fear.
Yes
Christ
is
going
to
come
again.
Quickly
look
back
at
chapter
5
verse
10.
Chapter
5
verse
10.
Christ
will
come
again
5
verse
10
for
we
must
all
appear
before
the
judgment
seat
of
Christ.
That
day
will
come
and
we
will
all
have
to
give
an
account
but
until
Christ
comes
it
is
a
time
of
grace.
Salvation
not
condemnation
reconciliation
not
judgment.
It
is a
beautiful
day
of
grace.
As
we
close
I
have
two
questions.
for
us
all
here's
the
first
question
and I
ask it
to us
all
are
you
reconciled
to
God?
Are
you
reconciled
to
God?
Today
we
can run
to God
with
all our
sin
all our
mess
all our
failures
and we
can
receive
forgiveness
and
experience
a
restored
relationship
with
God
because
of what
Christ
has
done
for
us.
Today
is a
day
of
grace.
Do
not
wait.
Run
to him
and
receive
the
welcome
of a
father.
Know
his
forgiveness
and
enjoy
a
relationship
with
him.
Here's
the second
question.
Are
you
Christ's
ambassador?
Are
you
Christ's
ambassador?
Today
is a
day we
can go
to the
world
to where
we live
the places
we work
with the
message
of
reconciliation
a
message
of
what
God
has
done
in
Christ
for
us
that
we
can
become
a
new
creation.
We
can
have
a
fresh
start.
We
can
be
restored
to
God
and
have
an
eternity
to
look
forward
to.
We
can
go
because
today
is a
day
of
grace.
Look
at the
end
of
verse
two.
I
tell
you
now
right
now
is the
time
of
God's
grace.
Now
today
this
week
as we
disperse
into our
communities
into our
families
into our
work
now
is a
day of
salvation.
Let us
not waste
the grace
of God
to us.
Let's
pray
together.
Father,
you have
indeed
been
gracious
to us
and you
have
reached
down
through
your
son
and
made
it
possible
for
us
to
be
restored
to
you.
Father,
help us
that we
may go
as people
filled
with your
grace
and filled
with the
power of
your
Holy
Spirit,
that we
may go
with your
ambassadors
as new
creations,
sharing
of Christ,
proclaiming
Christ,
so that
other
churches
are planted,
so that
glory and
honor goes
to you.
We ask
this in
Jesus'
name.
Amen.