Authentic Mission
Series: AUTHENTIC
Speaker: Steve Jeffrey
Date: 8th September 2019
Passage: 2 Corinthians 5:10-6:10
00:00:00 --> 00:00:10 The context of these verses is the Apostle Paul defending the authenticity as the true apostle of the Lord Jesus
00:00:10 --> 00:00:13 because his gospel is authentic and therefore his ministry is authentic.
00:00:14 --> 00:00:21 He's being challenged consistently by this church of Corinth who are being swayed away to follow a group of people
00:00:21 --> 00:00:24 who we will discover in a few weeks as the super apostles.
00:00:24 --> 00:00:34 This gives us clarity too on what it means for us to be an authentic follower of the Lord Jesus.
00:00:34 --> 00:00:36 What does it look like to be a disciple of Jesus?
00:00:38 --> 00:00:48 And what Paul has written in 2 Corinthians 3, 4 and now 5 is meant to help us to not lose heart as a follower of Christ.
00:00:48 --> 00:00:54 He mentions not losing heart in chapter 4 verse 1, again in verse 16
00:00:54 --> 00:00:58 and he writes about the ministry of the good news of the Lord Jesus Christ,
00:00:59 --> 00:01:03 the Christian faith that has turned his life inside out and upside down.
00:01:04 --> 00:01:14 And in chapters 4 and 5 are written so that we don't walk into a life of apathy and losing heart.
00:01:14 --> 00:01:19 And see, the stakes are high for us.
00:01:19 --> 00:01:25 As we've just heard, the stakes are high for our world when we just decide to cruise,
00:01:26 --> 00:01:32 just decide to coast, to lose heart in this mission that God's called us to do
00:01:32 --> 00:01:36 and busy ourselves with trivia and irrelevancies.
00:01:38 --> 00:01:41 We get a glimpse of how high the stakes are.
00:01:41 --> 00:01:46 This was from last week in chapter 5 verse 10 with Richard Goscombe.
00:01:47 --> 00:01:52 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ,
00:01:52 --> 00:01:58 that each one may receive what is due him for the things done well in the body, whether good or bad.
00:02:00 --> 00:02:03 That is, what that verse is declaring,
00:02:04 --> 00:02:10 is that God will hold everyone accountable for their life.
00:02:10 --> 00:02:16 Every single person will answer for their life.
00:02:18 --> 00:02:20 Notice that the judgment seat of Christ is universal.
00:02:21 --> 00:02:24 We must all appear, everyone, no exceptions.
00:02:25 --> 00:02:29 We will all give an account to the Lord Jesus as the King of kings,
00:02:29 --> 00:02:31 the Lord of all, the ruler of all things,
00:02:31 --> 00:02:34 the one who holds eternity in his hands.
00:02:34 --> 00:02:48 Notice too, that while it is for everyone,
00:02:49 --> 00:02:51 we'll all be judged individually.
00:02:51 --> 00:02:54 Each one must give an account.
00:02:55 --> 00:02:58 Everyone will be held accountable to God for their life.
00:02:58 --> 00:03:10 Now, the point of chapter 5 verse 10 is meant to cause us to shudder.
00:03:10 --> 00:03:12 That's the point of that verse.
00:03:13 --> 00:03:14 It's meant to cause us to shudder.
00:03:15 --> 00:03:17 That is, there is a day of consequences.
00:03:17 --> 00:03:19 There is a day of reckoning.
00:03:19 --> 00:03:23 Eternal consequences.
00:03:24 --> 00:03:27 And no one will escape it.
00:03:29 --> 00:03:31 And so it says in verse 11,
00:03:31 --> 00:03:35 Since then, we know what it is to fear the Lord.
00:03:36 --> 00:03:37 We try to persuade men.
00:03:39 --> 00:03:40 Now, the fear of God,
00:03:41 --> 00:03:42 this final judgment,
00:03:43 --> 00:03:46 is a good motivation.
00:03:46 --> 00:03:50 But it's not the only motivation.
00:03:51 --> 00:03:54 You see, the fear of God
00:03:54 --> 00:03:57 is in no way whatsoever
00:03:57 --> 00:04:01 proof that you actually love Jesus.
00:04:02 --> 00:04:04 Fear of God by itself
00:04:04 --> 00:04:10 moves you into a life of self-confidence,
00:04:11 --> 00:04:14 a life of legalism,
00:04:14 --> 00:04:17 a life of bare minimum apathy.
00:04:17 --> 00:04:19 That's what fear of God does.
00:04:19 --> 00:04:20 In and of itself.
00:04:24 --> 00:04:26 If we do not believe in our hearts
00:04:26 --> 00:04:28 the awful truth
00:04:28 --> 00:04:30 of the enmity there is
00:04:30 --> 00:04:31 between us and God
00:04:31 --> 00:04:34 and all of its eternal,
00:04:34 --> 00:04:36 terrifying consequences,
00:04:36 --> 00:04:38 then our love for Christ
00:04:38 --> 00:04:40 will in fact be shallowed and flawed.
00:04:40 --> 00:04:42 So we need the fear of God,
00:04:42 --> 00:04:43 but that's just not enough in itself.
00:04:44 --> 00:04:46 Without the fear,
00:04:46 --> 00:04:47 love for Christ
00:04:47 --> 00:04:49 will be taken for granted.
00:04:49 --> 00:04:50 It'll be passionless
00:04:50 --> 00:04:53 and entry into all the joys of his presence
00:04:53 --> 00:04:56 is just the next thing that I expect to happen
00:04:56 --> 00:04:59 because of my life of service.
00:04:59 --> 00:05:06 You see, the horror of final judgment
00:05:06 --> 00:05:08 and I don't have time to unpack
00:05:08 --> 00:05:10 exactly what the horror of final judgment
00:05:10 --> 00:05:11 will look like
00:05:11 --> 00:05:15 except that it's meant to result
00:05:15 --> 00:05:18 in shuddering on our behalf.
00:05:19 --> 00:05:21 But the horror of final judgment
00:05:21 --> 00:05:23 makes the wonder and the awe of God's grace
00:05:23 --> 00:05:25 in the Lord Jesus for us
00:05:25 --> 00:05:28 are just beautiful
00:05:28 --> 00:05:30 and humbling
00:05:30 --> 00:05:33 and almost incomprehensible.
00:05:35 --> 00:05:37 Let us believe and feel the horror
00:05:37 --> 00:05:38 of eternal condemnation
00:05:38 --> 00:05:40 and flee from it
00:05:40 --> 00:05:44 into the loving and the gracious arms of Jesus,
00:05:44 --> 00:05:47 the judge of all people,
00:05:47 --> 00:05:50 where you will find no condemnation.
00:05:51 --> 00:05:52 In other words,
00:05:52 --> 00:05:54 as Exodus 20, 20 says,
00:05:54 --> 00:05:55 fear the Lord
00:05:55 --> 00:05:56 so that you don't have to fear the Lord.
00:06:02 --> 00:06:03 We're told in verse 14,
00:06:03 --> 00:06:04 the fear of judgment
00:06:04 --> 00:06:05 is not Paul's only motive.
00:06:05 --> 00:06:06 He says,
00:06:06 --> 00:06:09 for Christ's love compels us.
00:06:10 --> 00:06:11 And then these verses
00:06:11 --> 00:06:12 which follow on from here
00:06:12 --> 00:06:13 are just the wonder
00:06:13 --> 00:06:16 of the love of Christ for us.
00:06:17 --> 00:06:18 Verse 18,
00:06:18 --> 00:06:18 God,
00:06:19 --> 00:06:22 who reconciled us to himself through Christ.
00:06:22 --> 00:06:22 Again,
00:06:22 --> 00:06:23 verse 19,
00:06:23 --> 00:06:27 God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ.
00:06:27 --> 00:06:28 To reconcile
00:06:28 --> 00:06:32 is to render two parties
00:06:32 --> 00:06:36 to be no longer opposed to each other.
00:06:37 --> 00:06:39 It's to win over from hostility
00:06:39 --> 00:06:41 towards friendliness.
00:06:41 --> 00:06:43 It is to make two opposites
00:06:43 --> 00:06:45 consistent and compatible.
00:06:46 --> 00:06:48 And that is what these verses say
00:06:48 --> 00:06:50 that God has done for us in Christ.
00:06:51 --> 00:06:52 Totally opposed.
00:06:53 --> 00:06:54 Enmity and hostility
00:06:54 --> 00:06:56 and brought together.
00:06:58 --> 00:06:59 These verses say
00:06:59 --> 00:07:01 that it's God who took the initiative
00:07:01 --> 00:07:03 to reconcile us to himself,
00:07:03 --> 00:07:04 which is the foundation
00:07:04 --> 00:07:05 of the Christian faith.
00:07:06 --> 00:07:09 It's not about us working for God.
00:07:09 --> 00:07:11 It is all the work of God on our behalf.
00:07:11 --> 00:07:12 See it there.
00:07:12 --> 00:07:12 Verse 18,
00:07:13 --> 00:07:16 all this is from God.
00:07:17 --> 00:07:17 Verse 19,
00:07:18 --> 00:07:20 God was reconciling the world to himself.
00:07:20 --> 00:07:21 Verse 21,
00:07:22 --> 00:07:24 God made him who had no sin
00:07:24 --> 00:07:25 to be sin for us.
00:07:25 --> 00:07:26 The initiative,
00:07:27 --> 00:07:27 the momentum,
00:07:28 --> 00:07:30 and purpose of reconciliation
00:07:30 --> 00:07:31 are all from God.
00:07:31 --> 00:07:32 God does something about it.
00:07:32 --> 00:07:33 God does something about it.
00:07:33 --> 00:07:34 God does something about it.
00:07:34 --> 00:07:36 God does something about the sin
00:07:36 --> 00:07:39 that has caused the enmity,
00:07:39 --> 00:07:41 all of our rebellion against him.
00:07:41 --> 00:07:42 He does something about it.
00:07:44 --> 00:07:48 Verse 19 is the preliminary explanation
00:07:48 --> 00:07:52 of how the reconciliation is brought about.
00:07:52 --> 00:07:59 God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ,
00:08:00 --> 00:08:02 not counting men's sins against them.
00:08:04 --> 00:08:06 That's the preliminary explanation.
00:08:06 --> 00:08:09 In the work of reconciliation,
00:08:10 --> 00:08:16 God doesn't count all of our rebellion against him,
00:08:16 --> 00:08:17 against us.
00:08:18 --> 00:08:22 He doesn't hold us accountable for it.
00:08:22 --> 00:08:27 And verse 21 describes how it's possible
00:08:27 --> 00:08:30 that God doesn't count our sins against us.
00:08:32 --> 00:08:36 God made him who had no sin
00:08:36 --> 00:08:38 to be sin for us.
00:08:40 --> 00:08:42 So that in him,
00:08:43 --> 00:08:45 we might become the righteousness of God.
00:08:48 --> 00:08:50 The end of verse 19 says that
00:08:50 --> 00:08:54 God doesn't want to count our sin against us.
00:08:55 --> 00:08:55 And frankly,
00:08:56 --> 00:09:01 we don't want God to count our sins against us.
00:09:06 --> 00:09:08 The picture here is an account book.
00:09:10 --> 00:09:13 And the account book has written in it
00:09:13 --> 00:09:14 all that we've said,
00:09:15 --> 00:09:16 all that we've done,
00:09:17 --> 00:09:18 all that we've thought,
00:09:19 --> 00:09:20 all that we are.
00:09:20 --> 00:09:24 And verse 21 says that
00:09:24 --> 00:09:27 my sin
00:09:27 --> 00:09:30 is not put to my account.
00:09:32 --> 00:09:34 But that account book
00:09:34 --> 00:09:35 with my name on it
00:09:35 --> 00:09:37 and everything that I have done,
00:09:38 --> 00:09:39 everything that I've thought,
00:09:40 --> 00:09:41 everything that I've done
00:09:41 --> 00:09:43 in rebelling against God
00:09:43 --> 00:09:46 has been put into Jesus' account book.
00:09:46 --> 00:09:53 my name has been scratched off the top
00:09:53 --> 00:09:56 and Jesus has been put there
00:09:56 --> 00:09:59 and I have got Jesus' account book.
00:09:59 --> 00:10:03 my account of sin has been put by God
00:10:03 --> 00:10:06 to the account of his sinless son.
00:10:06 --> 00:10:09 Jesus has taken my place on the cross.
00:10:10 --> 00:10:13 He bore my sin in his body on the cross.
00:10:14 --> 00:10:16 He has been judged in my place.
00:10:16 --> 00:10:19 All the horrors of the crucifixion
00:10:19 --> 00:10:21 is what I, Steve Jeffrey,
00:10:21 --> 00:10:24 deserve for all of eternity
00:10:24 --> 00:10:26 without any relief
00:10:26 --> 00:10:29 including the hope of physical death
00:10:29 --> 00:10:31 from that so that the suffering would end.
00:10:31 --> 00:10:33 No ending for all of eternity
00:10:33 --> 00:10:35 is what I deserve
00:10:35 --> 00:10:37 for my rebellion against God.
00:10:37 --> 00:10:40 And verse 15, sorry, verse 10
00:10:40 --> 00:10:42 says that that's what God will do
00:10:42 --> 00:10:43 to everyone
00:10:43 --> 00:10:46 who rejects him.
00:10:49 --> 00:10:51 He was made sin.
00:10:52 --> 00:10:53 The sin of the world,
00:10:54 --> 00:10:55 that terrible burden,
00:10:55 --> 00:10:56 offense to God,
00:10:56 --> 00:10:57 all the hostility,
00:10:57 --> 00:10:57 the enmity,
00:10:57 --> 00:10:59 and the filth
00:10:59 --> 00:11:02 that separates us from God
00:11:02 --> 00:11:06 and causes us to deserve eternal torment
00:11:06 --> 00:11:08 has been placed by God
00:11:08 --> 00:11:08 unto his son,
00:11:08 --> 00:11:09 the Lord Jesus Christ.
00:11:09 --> 00:11:14 But,
00:11:15 --> 00:11:17 that's only half the story.
00:11:18 --> 00:11:19 Not only that,
00:11:21 --> 00:11:21 but
00:11:21 --> 00:11:25 his perfect,
00:11:26 --> 00:11:28 unblemished righteousness
00:11:28 --> 00:11:31 is put to my account.
00:11:32 --> 00:11:35 I cannot be condemned
00:11:35 --> 00:11:37 because
00:11:37 --> 00:11:40 my record reads
00:11:40 --> 00:11:42 perfect,
00:11:42 --> 00:11:44 unblemished righteousness.
00:11:45 --> 00:11:46 The only thing
00:11:46 --> 00:11:47 that I contribute
00:11:47 --> 00:11:48 to my reconciliation
00:11:48 --> 00:11:49 with God
00:11:49 --> 00:11:50 is the sins
00:11:50 --> 00:11:53 from which I must be redeemed.
00:11:54 --> 00:11:55 All I contribute
00:11:55 --> 00:11:57 is debt,
00:11:57 --> 00:11:58 sin
00:11:58 --> 00:11:59 that I can never repay
00:11:59 --> 00:12:02 and that only needs
00:12:02 --> 00:12:03 to be wiped out.
00:12:03 --> 00:12:04 It's the only hope
00:12:04 --> 00:12:05 is for it to be declared
00:12:05 --> 00:12:06 wiped out.
00:12:08 --> 00:12:08 Now,
00:12:08 --> 00:12:09 this is a trivial
00:12:09 --> 00:12:11 illustration,
00:12:11 --> 00:12:12 but it's kind of like
00:12:12 --> 00:12:13 my wedding day.
00:12:14 --> 00:12:15 As I exchanged
00:12:15 --> 00:12:16 wedding rings
00:12:16 --> 00:12:17 with Nat,
00:12:17 --> 00:12:19 I said to her,
00:12:20 --> 00:12:20 Natalie,
00:12:21 --> 00:12:22 with this ring
00:12:22 --> 00:12:23 I wed you
00:12:23 --> 00:12:24 with all that I am
00:12:24 --> 00:12:27 and all that I have
00:12:27 --> 00:12:28 I honor you.
00:12:29 --> 00:12:29 So,
00:12:29 --> 00:12:30 in that moment
00:12:30 --> 00:12:31 I promised
00:12:31 --> 00:12:32 to
00:12:32 --> 00:12:34 hand over
00:12:34 --> 00:12:35 all that I am
00:12:35 --> 00:12:36 to her.
00:12:36 --> 00:12:38 of course
00:12:38 --> 00:12:40 I had just
00:12:40 --> 00:12:40 finished five years
00:12:40 --> 00:12:41 of ministry training,
00:12:42 --> 00:12:43 had a hex debt,
00:12:43 --> 00:12:44 a car loan
00:12:44 --> 00:12:45 and needed to borrow
00:12:45 --> 00:12:46 $2
00:12:46 --> 00:12:47 from my father-in-law
00:12:47 --> 00:12:49 in order to get married
00:12:49 --> 00:12:50 and
00:12:50 --> 00:12:51 he figured
00:12:51 --> 00:12:51 it was a cheap deal
00:12:51 --> 00:12:52 longer term.
00:12:54 --> 00:12:55 And so in that moment
00:12:55 --> 00:12:55 I'm saying to her
00:12:55 --> 00:12:56 there you are
00:12:56 --> 00:12:58 it's all yours.
00:12:59 --> 00:13:00 It's all yours.
00:13:00 --> 00:13:05 And I know
00:13:05 --> 00:13:06 it's trivial
00:13:06 --> 00:13:07 but that's what
00:13:07 --> 00:13:07 happens when you
00:13:07 --> 00:13:08 become a Christian
00:13:08 --> 00:13:09 you bring all
00:13:09 --> 00:13:10 of your sin,
00:13:10 --> 00:13:10 you bring all
00:13:10 --> 00:13:11 of your
00:13:11 --> 00:13:12 moral bankruptcy
00:13:12 --> 00:13:15 and you say
00:13:15 --> 00:13:16 to him
00:13:16 --> 00:13:18 they're yours.
00:13:20 --> 00:13:21 They're all yours.
00:13:21 --> 00:13:26 And in his mercy
00:13:26 --> 00:13:27 he receives them.
00:13:29 --> 00:13:29 Our great God
00:13:29 --> 00:13:30 receives them
00:13:30 --> 00:13:31 and counts them
00:13:31 --> 00:13:33 to the Lord Jesus Christ.
00:13:37 --> 00:13:38 And he hands over
00:13:38 --> 00:13:39 all of his perfect
00:13:39 --> 00:13:40 righteousness
00:13:40 --> 00:13:40 to me
00:13:40 --> 00:13:42 and accounts them
00:13:42 --> 00:13:42 to me
00:13:42 --> 00:13:44 forever sealed.
00:13:45 --> 00:13:46 Forever sealed.
00:13:46 --> 00:13:50 It is to fill us
00:13:50 --> 00:13:50 with wonder
00:13:50 --> 00:13:51 and gratitude
00:13:51 --> 00:13:52 and thankfulness
00:13:52 --> 00:13:53 and humility
00:13:53 --> 00:13:54 that the death
00:13:54 --> 00:13:55 of one man
00:13:55 --> 00:13:57 the God-man
00:13:57 --> 00:13:58 Jesus Christ
00:13:58 --> 00:13:59 could bear
00:13:59 --> 00:14:00 the infinite penalty
00:14:00 --> 00:14:01 as a substitute
00:14:01 --> 00:14:03 for everyone
00:14:03 --> 00:14:04 who repents
00:14:04 --> 00:14:05 and trusts
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 in him.
00:14:10 --> 00:14:12 As a side point
00:14:12 --> 00:14:14 I am
00:14:14 --> 00:14:16 greatly distressed
00:14:16 --> 00:14:18 that in so much
00:14:18 --> 00:14:19 of the church
00:14:19 --> 00:14:20 in the western world
00:14:20 --> 00:14:22 all we want to do
00:14:22 --> 00:14:22 is talk about
00:14:22 --> 00:14:24 the love of God
00:14:24 --> 00:14:27 and to leave out
00:14:27 --> 00:14:29 the crucial
00:14:29 --> 00:14:31 central doctrine
00:14:31 --> 00:14:33 of the penal
00:14:33 --> 00:14:34 substitutionary
00:14:34 --> 00:14:34 atonement
00:14:34 --> 00:14:36 of the Lord Jesus Christ.
00:14:36 --> 00:14:37 You cannot
00:14:37 --> 00:14:39 understand
00:14:39 --> 00:14:39 the love of God
00:14:39 --> 00:14:40 for you in Christ
00:14:40 --> 00:14:42 unless you understand
00:14:42 --> 00:14:43 that a debt
00:14:43 --> 00:14:45 had to be paid.
00:14:46 --> 00:14:48 and he
00:14:48 --> 00:14:48 bore it
00:14:48 --> 00:14:49 for us.
00:14:53 --> 00:14:54 It is essential
00:14:54 --> 00:14:55 for our confidence
00:14:55 --> 00:14:56 in this work
00:14:56 --> 00:14:57 of reconciliation
00:14:57 --> 00:14:59 that we see
00:14:59 --> 00:15:00 the centrality
00:15:00 --> 00:15:00 of Jesus
00:15:00 --> 00:15:01 in it.
00:15:02 --> 00:15:02 Notice
00:15:02 --> 00:15:03 verse 18
00:15:03 --> 00:15:04 through Christ
00:15:04 --> 00:15:05 verse 19
00:15:05 --> 00:15:07 in Christ
00:15:07 --> 00:15:08 the reconciliation
00:15:08 --> 00:15:09 of the world
00:15:09 --> 00:15:10 to God
00:15:10 --> 00:15:12 happens through
00:15:12 --> 00:15:12 the death
00:15:12 --> 00:15:13 and the resurrection
00:15:13 --> 00:15:14 of Christ.
00:15:14 --> 00:15:15 It is something
00:15:15 --> 00:15:15 that's happened
00:15:15 --> 00:15:16 in history
00:15:16 --> 00:15:17 it is something
00:15:17 --> 00:15:18 that is finished
00:15:18 --> 00:15:19 and we have
00:15:19 --> 00:15:20 no part
00:15:20 --> 00:15:20 of it
00:15:20 --> 00:15:22 and the word
00:15:22 --> 00:15:24 world
00:15:24 --> 00:15:26 in verse 19
00:15:26 --> 00:15:27 is staggering
00:15:27 --> 00:15:28 staggering
00:15:28 --> 00:15:29 staggering.
00:15:30 --> 00:15:31 It says
00:15:31 --> 00:15:33 that what God
00:15:33 --> 00:15:33 did
00:15:33 --> 00:15:34 through the
00:15:34 --> 00:15:35 death of his
00:15:35 --> 00:15:36 son
00:15:36 --> 00:15:37 the Lord
00:15:37 --> 00:15:37 Jesus Christ
00:15:37 --> 00:15:38 on a hill
00:15:38 --> 00:15:39 outside the city
00:15:39 --> 00:15:40 walls of Jerusalem
00:15:40 --> 00:15:41 around about
00:15:41 --> 00:15:42 AD 33
00:15:42 --> 00:15:44 concerns the
00:15:44 --> 00:15:45 reconciliation
00:15:45 --> 00:15:47 of the entire
00:15:47 --> 00:15:48 universe
00:15:48 --> 00:15:49 with its creator.
00:15:51 --> 00:15:52 Everyone
00:15:52 --> 00:15:53 every culture
00:15:53 --> 00:15:54 every tribe
00:15:54 --> 00:15:55 every people
00:15:55 --> 00:15:55 group
00:15:55 --> 00:15:56 every language
00:15:56 --> 00:15:57 comes under
00:15:57 --> 00:15:58 that statement
00:15:58 --> 00:15:59 the world.
00:16:00 --> 00:16:01 Whatever
00:16:01 --> 00:16:03 background
00:16:03 --> 00:16:04 you come
00:16:04 --> 00:16:04 from
00:16:04 --> 00:16:06 we all
00:16:06 --> 00:16:06 worship
00:16:06 --> 00:16:07 a guy
00:16:07 --> 00:16:08 who was
00:16:08 --> 00:16:09 Jewish
00:16:09 --> 00:16:10 2000
00:16:10 --> 00:16:12 years ago
00:16:12 --> 00:16:13 who declared
00:16:13 --> 00:16:13 that I am
00:16:13 --> 00:16:14 God
00:16:14 --> 00:16:14 in this
00:16:14 --> 00:16:15 world
00:16:15 --> 00:16:16 reconciling
00:16:16 --> 00:16:16 the world
00:16:16 --> 00:16:17 to its
00:16:17 --> 00:16:17 maker.
00:16:20 --> 00:16:20 It's
00:16:20 --> 00:16:22 the extraordinary
00:16:22 --> 00:16:22 claim of the
00:16:22 --> 00:16:23 New Testament.
00:16:23 --> 00:16:24 It's the claim
00:16:24 --> 00:16:25 verses 14
00:16:25 --> 00:16:26 and 15
00:16:26 --> 00:16:27 we are
00:16:27 --> 00:16:27 convinced
00:16:27 --> 00:16:28 that one
00:16:28 --> 00:16:29 died for
00:16:29 --> 00:16:29 all
00:16:29 --> 00:16:30 and therefore
00:16:30 --> 00:16:30 all died
00:16:30 --> 00:16:31 and he
00:16:31 --> 00:16:31 died for
00:16:31 --> 00:16:32 all.
00:16:33 --> 00:16:33 Jesus'
00:16:33 --> 00:16:34 death
00:16:34 --> 00:16:34 has
00:16:34 --> 00:16:35 universal
00:16:35 --> 00:16:36 significance.
00:16:36 --> 00:16:37 He is
00:16:37 --> 00:16:38 the reconciler.
00:16:38 --> 00:16:38 There is
00:16:38 --> 00:16:39 no reconciliation
00:16:39 --> 00:16:40 with God
00:16:40 --> 00:16:41 outside of
00:16:41 --> 00:16:41 Jesus.
00:16:42 --> 00:16:42 You don't
00:16:42 --> 00:16:42 need anything
00:16:42 --> 00:16:43 more than
00:16:43 --> 00:16:44 Jesus but
00:16:44 --> 00:16:44 you can't
00:16:44 --> 00:16:44 have anything
00:16:44 --> 00:16:45 less than
00:16:45 --> 00:16:45 Jesus.
00:16:49 --> 00:16:50 This message
00:16:50 --> 00:16:51 of reconciliation
00:16:51 --> 00:16:53 with God
00:16:53 --> 00:16:53 through Christ
00:16:53 --> 00:16:54 is our
00:16:54 --> 00:16:55 message for
00:16:55 --> 00:16:56 the nations
00:16:56 --> 00:16:57 and the
00:16:57 --> 00:16:57 stakes could
00:16:57 --> 00:16:58 not be any
00:16:58 --> 00:16:58 higher.
00:16:59 --> 00:17:00 God calls
00:17:00 --> 00:17:01 us clearly
00:17:01 --> 00:17:01 through the
00:17:01 --> 00:17:02 Apostle Paul
00:17:02 --> 00:17:03 right through
00:17:03 --> 00:17:04 2 Corinthians
00:17:04 --> 00:17:05 you give
00:17:05 --> 00:17:06 yourself to
00:17:06 --> 00:17:06 this matter.
00:17:07 --> 00:17:07 You give
00:17:07 --> 00:17:08 attention to
00:17:08 --> 00:17:08 this matter.
00:17:12 --> 00:17:13 If you
00:17:13 --> 00:17:14 are someone
00:17:14 --> 00:17:15 right now
00:17:15 --> 00:17:16 who's
00:17:16 --> 00:17:17 you're not
00:17:17 --> 00:17:18 sure whether
00:17:18 --> 00:17:18 you're trusting
00:17:18 --> 00:17:19 in the Lord
00:17:19 --> 00:17:20 Jesus can
00:17:20 --> 00:17:21 I say the
00:17:21 --> 00:17:21 fact that
00:17:21 --> 00:17:21 you're here
00:17:21 --> 00:17:22 right now
00:17:22 --> 00:17:23 this morning
00:17:23 --> 00:17:24 the stakes
00:17:24 --> 00:17:24 couldn't be
00:17:24 --> 00:17:25 any higher
00:17:25 --> 00:17:25 for you.
00:17:30 --> 00:17:31 I implore
00:17:31 --> 00:17:31 you on
00:17:31 --> 00:17:32 Christ's
00:17:32 --> 00:17:33 behalf be
00:17:33 --> 00:17:34 reconciled to
00:17:34 --> 00:17:34 God through
00:17:34 --> 00:17:35 Jesus.
00:17:37 --> 00:17:38 So the
00:17:38 --> 00:17:38 message of
00:17:38 --> 00:17:39 reconciliation
00:17:39 --> 00:17:40 is what God
00:17:40 --> 00:17:40 has done and
00:17:40 --> 00:17:41 it can only
00:17:41 --> 00:17:42 do through
00:17:42 --> 00:17:43 Christ.
00:17:44 --> 00:17:44 The ministry
00:17:44 --> 00:17:45 of reconciliation
00:17:45 --> 00:17:46 on the other
00:17:46 --> 00:17:47 hand is what
00:17:47 --> 00:17:48 God can only
00:17:48 --> 00:17:49 do through
00:17:49 --> 00:17:49 us.
00:17:50 --> 00:17:50 So this
00:17:50 --> 00:17:51 bit is for
00:17:51 --> 00:17:52 those who
00:17:52 --> 00:17:53 have received
00:17:53 --> 00:17:54 the message
00:17:54 --> 00:17:54 of reconciliation.
00:17:55 --> 00:17:56 So this
00:17:56 --> 00:17:57 bit is for
00:17:57 --> 00:17:58 all Christians.
00:17:58 --> 00:17:59 This is for
00:17:59 --> 00:17:59 all of us.
00:18:00 --> 00:18:00 Verse 20
00:18:00 --> 00:18:02 We are
00:18:02 --> 00:18:02 therefore
00:18:02 --> 00:18:04 Christ's
00:18:04 --> 00:18:05 ambassadors as
00:18:05 --> 00:18:05 though God
00:18:05 --> 00:18:06 were making
00:18:06 --> 00:18:07 his appeal
00:18:07 --> 00:18:09 through us.
00:18:10 --> 00:18:11 Now the
00:18:11 --> 00:18:12 main thrust
00:18:12 --> 00:18:13 of verse
00:18:13 --> 00:18:14 20 onwards
00:18:14 --> 00:18:16 is that the
00:18:16 --> 00:18:16 message of
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 reconciliation
00:18:17 --> 00:18:18 reconciliation is
00:18:18 --> 00:18:19 our ministry
00:18:19 --> 00:18:20 of reconciliation
00:18:20 --> 00:18:21 to the
00:18:21 --> 00:18:21 nations.
00:18:22 --> 00:18:22 This is what
00:18:22 --> 00:18:23 God does
00:18:23 --> 00:18:24 through us.
00:18:25 --> 00:18:26 Verse
00:18:26 --> 00:18:27 18
00:18:27 --> 00:18:28 All this
00:18:28 --> 00:18:29 is from
00:18:29 --> 00:18:30 God who
00:18:30 --> 00:18:31 reconciled us
00:18:31 --> 00:18:31 to himself
00:18:31 --> 00:18:32 through Christ
00:18:32 --> 00:18:34 and gave us
00:18:34 --> 00:18:35 the ministry
00:18:35 --> 00:18:35 of reconciliation.
00:18:36 --> 00:18:37 The ministry
00:18:37 --> 00:18:37 is given to
00:18:37 --> 00:18:38 us, not to
00:18:38 --> 00:18:39 Christ or the
00:18:39 --> 00:18:40 angels.
00:18:40 --> 00:18:41 Verse 19
00:18:41 --> 00:18:42 And he
00:18:42 --> 00:18:42 committed to
00:18:42 --> 00:18:44 us the
00:18:44 --> 00:18:44 message of
00:18:44 --> 00:18:45 reconciliation.
00:18:45 --> 00:18:46 It's given
00:18:46 --> 00:18:47 to us, not
00:18:47 --> 00:18:47 to Christ or
00:18:47 --> 00:18:48 the angels.
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 Verse 20
00:18:49 --> 00:18:49 We are
00:18:49 --> 00:18:50 therefore Christ's
00:18:50 --> 00:18:51 ambassadors as
00:18:51 --> 00:18:52 though God
00:18:52 --> 00:18:53 were making
00:18:53 --> 00:18:53 his appeal
00:18:53 --> 00:18:55 through us.
00:18:55 --> 00:18:56 He does it
00:18:56 --> 00:18:57 through us, not
00:18:57 --> 00:18:58 Christ, not
00:18:58 --> 00:18:58 the angels.
00:18:59 --> 00:18:59 Verse 20
00:18:59 --> 00:19:01 Makes our
00:19:01 --> 00:19:02 ministry very
00:19:02 --> 00:19:02 clear.
00:19:02 --> 00:19:03 We are
00:19:03 --> 00:19:04 Christ's
00:19:04 --> 00:19:05 ambassadors.
00:19:07 --> 00:19:07 Now an
00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 ambassador's
00:19:08 --> 00:19:10 role, as we
00:19:10 --> 00:19:11 would know, is a
00:19:11 --> 00:19:12 distinguished one.
00:19:12 --> 00:19:14 We speak, we
00:19:14 --> 00:19:16 behave on
00:19:16 --> 00:19:17 behalf of a
00:19:17 --> 00:19:18 sovereign power.
00:19:19 --> 00:19:20 We represent
00:19:20 --> 00:19:21 that sovereignty
00:19:21 --> 00:19:22 and the
00:19:22 --> 00:19:23 honour of the
00:19:23 --> 00:19:23 sovereignty is
00:19:23 --> 00:19:24 at stake.
00:19:25 --> 00:19:25 That's an
00:19:25 --> 00:19:26 overwhelming
00:19:26 --> 00:19:27 thought.
00:19:28 --> 00:19:29 In his
00:19:29 --> 00:19:31 death, Jesus
00:19:31 --> 00:19:32 represents us
00:19:32 --> 00:19:33 to God and
00:19:33 --> 00:19:34 in his absence,
00:19:34 --> 00:19:34 we represent
00:19:34 --> 00:19:35 him to the
00:19:35 --> 00:19:35 world.
00:19:39 --> 00:19:40 If you
00:19:40 --> 00:19:41 have received
00:19:41 --> 00:19:42 the message of
00:19:42 --> 00:19:42 reconciliation,
00:19:42 --> 00:19:43 reconciliation,
00:19:43 --> 00:19:44 then you
00:19:44 --> 00:19:46 have the
00:19:46 --> 00:19:47 responsibility
00:19:47 --> 00:19:48 and will be
00:19:48 --> 00:19:49 held accountable
00:19:49 --> 00:19:50 for the
00:19:50 --> 00:19:50 ministry of
00:19:50 --> 00:19:51 reconciliation.
00:19:52 --> 00:19:53 See the
00:19:53 --> 00:19:53 connection in
00:19:53 --> 00:19:54 verse 15?
00:19:55 --> 00:19:56 He, that's
00:19:56 --> 00:19:56 talking about
00:19:56 --> 00:19:58 Christ, died
00:19:58 --> 00:19:59 for all,
00:20:00 --> 00:20:00 that those
00:20:00 --> 00:20:01 who live
00:20:01 --> 00:20:02 should no
00:20:02 --> 00:20:03 longer live
00:20:03 --> 00:20:04 for themselves,
00:20:04 --> 00:20:06 but for him
00:20:06 --> 00:20:07 who died for
00:20:07 --> 00:20:08 them and was
00:20:08 --> 00:20:09 raised again.
00:20:09 --> 00:20:12 as a recipient
00:20:12 --> 00:20:13 of the
00:20:13 --> 00:20:13 message of
00:20:13 --> 00:20:14 reconciliation,
00:20:15 --> 00:20:16 my whole
00:20:16 --> 00:20:17 life is now
00:20:17 --> 00:20:18 deployed in
00:20:18 --> 00:20:18 diplomatic
00:20:18 --> 00:20:19 service.
00:20:20 --> 00:20:21 I speak and
00:20:21 --> 00:20:22 live in such
00:20:22 --> 00:20:22 a way that
00:20:22 --> 00:20:24 Jesus looks
00:20:24 --> 00:20:24 like the
00:20:24 --> 00:20:25 magnificent
00:20:25 --> 00:20:26 treasure that
00:20:26 --> 00:20:26 he actually
00:20:26 --> 00:20:27 is.
00:20:28 --> 00:20:29 And 2
00:20:29 --> 00:20:30 Corinthians 6
00:20:30 --> 00:20:31 verses 3
00:20:31 --> 00:20:32 to 10
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 gives us a
00:20:33 --> 00:20:34 glimpse into
00:20:34 --> 00:20:35 the lifestyle
00:20:35 --> 00:20:35 and the
00:20:35 --> 00:20:36 expectations of
00:20:36 --> 00:20:37 an ambassador
00:20:37 --> 00:20:37 of the Lord
00:20:37 --> 00:20:38 Jesus.
00:20:38 --> 00:20:39 It's important
00:20:39 --> 00:20:39 for us to
00:20:39 --> 00:20:40 see this
00:20:40 --> 00:20:40 because this
00:20:40 --> 00:20:41 was confusing
00:20:41 --> 00:20:41 for the
00:20:41 --> 00:20:41 Corinthian
00:20:41 --> 00:20:42 church.
00:20:43 --> 00:20:43 This is not
00:20:43 --> 00:20:44 a special
00:20:44 --> 00:20:45 category of
00:20:45 --> 00:20:46 Christians like
00:20:46 --> 00:20:46 apostles or
00:20:46 --> 00:20:47 missionaries or
00:20:47 --> 00:20:47 ministers.
00:20:47 --> 00:20:48 This is for
00:20:48 --> 00:20:49 everyone.
00:20:52 --> 00:20:53 What Paul
00:20:53 --> 00:20:53 writes in
00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 verses 3 and
00:20:54 --> 00:20:55 4 is key.
00:20:57 --> 00:20:58 We put no
00:20:58 --> 00:20:59 stumbling block
00:20:59 --> 00:21:00 in anyone's
00:21:00 --> 00:21:02 path so that
00:21:02 --> 00:21:03 our ministry
00:21:03 --> 00:21:04 will not be
00:21:04 --> 00:21:04 discredited.
00:21:06 --> 00:21:07 We represent
00:21:07 --> 00:21:08 the Lord
00:21:08 --> 00:21:08 Jesus.
00:21:10 --> 00:21:11 If the
00:21:11 --> 00:21:11 ministry is
00:21:11 --> 00:21:12 discredited,
00:21:12 --> 00:21:12 the message
00:21:12 --> 00:21:13 is discredited.
00:21:14 --> 00:21:15 Jesus is
00:21:15 --> 00:21:15 discredited.
00:21:16 --> 00:21:16 You see,
00:21:16 --> 00:21:17 when you see
00:21:17 --> 00:21:18 yourself as
00:21:18 --> 00:21:19 an ambassador
00:21:19 --> 00:21:20 of Jesus in
00:21:20 --> 00:21:20 chapter 5
00:21:20 --> 00:21:22 verse 2 and
00:21:22 --> 00:21:23 as God's
00:21:23 --> 00:21:24 co-workers in
00:21:24 --> 00:21:25 chapter 6
00:21:25 --> 00:21:25 verse 1,
00:21:26 --> 00:21:27 I actually
00:21:27 --> 00:21:27 think there's
00:21:27 --> 00:21:28 an inevitable
00:21:28 --> 00:21:29 drivenness about
00:21:29 --> 00:21:30 the service.
00:21:31 --> 00:21:32 I think this
00:21:32 --> 00:21:33 is the thing
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 that captivates
00:21:34 --> 00:21:35 our life and
00:21:35 --> 00:21:36 drives us with
00:21:36 --> 00:21:36 their real
00:21:36 --> 00:21:37 great deal of
00:21:37 --> 00:21:38 focus and
00:21:38 --> 00:21:38 attention.
00:21:40 --> 00:21:41 I therefore
00:21:41 --> 00:21:42 believe that if
00:21:42 --> 00:21:42 you're casual,
00:21:43 --> 00:21:43 you're laid
00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 back, you're
00:21:44 --> 00:21:45 comfortable, you're
00:21:45 --> 00:21:46 happy to cruise
00:21:46 --> 00:21:47 along, then I
00:21:47 --> 00:21:48 would encourage you
00:21:48 --> 00:21:49 to take another
00:21:49 --> 00:21:50 look at the
00:21:50 --> 00:21:51 diplomatic service.
00:21:52 --> 00:21:53 Too many of us
00:21:53 --> 00:21:54 are just happy to
00:21:54 --> 00:21:56 go to church
00:21:56 --> 00:21:58 once or twice
00:21:58 --> 00:21:58 a month.
00:22:00 --> 00:22:00 Occasional
00:22:00 --> 00:22:01 devotional times,
00:22:01 --> 00:22:02 give money here,
00:22:02 --> 00:22:05 that's not
00:22:05 --> 00:22:06 ambassador or
00:22:06 --> 00:22:06 service.
00:22:08 --> 00:22:09 Can I, first
00:22:09 --> 00:22:10 of all, encourage
00:22:10 --> 00:22:10 you that you
00:22:10 --> 00:22:12 don't go to
00:22:12 --> 00:22:12 church.
00:22:13 --> 00:22:14 You belong to
00:22:14 --> 00:22:14 one.
00:22:15 --> 00:22:16 It is the
00:22:16 --> 00:22:16 priority of your
00:22:16 --> 00:22:17 life.
00:22:18 --> 00:22:19 You belong to
00:22:19 --> 00:22:19 a church.
00:22:23 --> 00:22:24 And when you're
00:22:24 --> 00:22:25 coasting and
00:22:25 --> 00:22:26 cruising, it is
00:22:26 --> 00:22:26 one of the sure
00:22:26 --> 00:22:27 signs that you
00:22:27 --> 00:22:27 have lost
00:22:27 --> 00:22:28 confidence, you're
00:22:28 --> 00:22:29 losing heart.
00:22:29 --> 00:22:32 look at Paul's
00:22:32 --> 00:22:33 lifestyle here.
00:22:34 --> 00:22:35 It is in fact a
00:22:35 --> 00:22:35 lifestyle that
00:22:35 --> 00:22:36 commends the
00:22:36 --> 00:22:37 greatness and the
00:22:37 --> 00:22:37 glory and the
00:22:37 --> 00:22:38 wonder of the
00:22:38 --> 00:22:38 Lord Jesus to
00:22:38 --> 00:22:39 the world.
00:22:40 --> 00:22:41 It's a sacrificial
00:22:41 --> 00:22:42 service is his
00:22:42 --> 00:22:42 lifestyle.
00:22:43 --> 00:22:44 Verse 4 again,
00:22:44 --> 00:22:45 chapter 6,
00:22:45 --> 00:22:47 rather, in other
00:22:47 --> 00:22:47 words, rather than
00:22:47 --> 00:22:48 being a stumbling
00:22:48 --> 00:22:49 block, rather than
00:22:49 --> 00:22:50 discrediting the
00:22:50 --> 00:22:52 ministry of the
00:22:52 --> 00:22:54 Lord Jesus, rather
00:22:54 --> 00:22:55 as servants of
00:22:55 --> 00:22:56 God, we commend
00:22:56 --> 00:22:57 ourselves in every
00:22:57 --> 00:22:57 way.
00:22:58 --> 00:22:59 So how does the
00:22:59 --> 00:22:59 Apostle Paul
00:22:59 --> 00:23:00 commend himself in
00:23:00 --> 00:23:01 his service?
00:23:03 --> 00:23:03 In great
00:23:03 --> 00:23:05 endurance, in
00:23:05 --> 00:23:07 troubles, hardship,
00:23:08 --> 00:23:09 distresses, in
00:23:09 --> 00:23:10 beatings, in
00:23:10 --> 00:23:11 imprisonments and
00:23:11 --> 00:23:11 riots, in hard
00:23:11 --> 00:23:12 work, in sleepless
00:23:12 --> 00:23:14 nights and hunger, in
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 purity, in
00:23:15 --> 00:23:16 understanding, in
00:23:16 --> 00:23:16 patience and
00:23:16 --> 00:23:17 kindness, in the
00:23:17 --> 00:23:18 Holy Spirit and in
00:23:18 --> 00:23:20 sincere love, in
00:23:20 --> 00:23:21 truthful speech and
00:23:21 --> 00:23:21 in the power of
00:23:21 --> 00:23:23 God with weapons of
00:23:23 --> 00:23:23 righteousness in the
00:23:23 --> 00:23:25 right hand and in
00:23:25 --> 00:23:25 the left.
00:23:25 --> 00:23:25 world.
00:23:27 --> 00:23:29 That's his
00:23:29 --> 00:23:30 diplomatic service.
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 Instead of being
00:23:33 --> 00:23:34 embittered and
00:23:34 --> 00:23:35 frustrated and angry
00:23:35 --> 00:23:39 and resentful by all
00:23:39 --> 00:23:41 the afflictions and the
00:23:41 --> 00:23:41 hardships and the
00:23:41 --> 00:23:42 calamities and the
00:23:42 --> 00:23:43 labors and the
00:23:43 --> 00:23:44 sleepless night, by
00:23:44 --> 00:23:47 God's grace, Paul has
00:23:47 --> 00:23:48 shown patience and
00:23:48 --> 00:23:49 kindness and love and
00:23:49 --> 00:23:51 he is continually
00:23:51 --> 00:23:52 propelled forward.
00:23:52 --> 00:23:57 His spirit has not
00:23:57 --> 00:23:58 been broken by the
00:23:58 --> 00:23:59 pain of his
00:23:59 --> 00:23:59 ministry.
00:23:59 --> 00:24:00 In the Holy
00:24:00 --> 00:24:01 Spirit he has found
00:24:01 --> 00:24:03 resources to give and
00:24:03 --> 00:24:04 to not grumble and to
00:24:04 --> 00:24:07 keep focusing on his
00:24:07 --> 00:24:08 duty to the Lord
00:24:08 --> 00:24:08 Jesus.
00:24:09 --> 00:24:10 To be patient in
00:24:10 --> 00:24:11 God's timing rather
00:24:11 --> 00:24:12 than to pitying
00:24:12 --> 00:24:12 himself.
00:24:12 --> 00:24:14 To be kind to
00:24:14 --> 00:24:15 people rather than
00:24:15 --> 00:24:15 taking it out on
00:24:15 --> 00:24:16 others.
00:24:16 --> 00:24:17 There are six
00:24:17 --> 00:24:19 paradoxes, if you
00:24:19 --> 00:24:20 like, in verses
00:24:20 --> 00:24:21 8 to 10 of
00:24:21 --> 00:24:23 chapter 6, I
00:24:23 --> 00:24:24 want to just focus
00:24:24 --> 00:24:25 on one because
00:24:25 --> 00:24:26 for me, this one
00:24:26 --> 00:24:28 sums up all of
00:24:28 --> 00:24:28 them.
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 Verse 10.
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 This is the one I
00:24:32 --> 00:24:32 think.
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 And this, I
00:24:33 --> 00:24:34 believe, is what
00:24:34 --> 00:24:36 our world needs to
00:24:36 --> 00:24:38 see displayed in
00:24:38 --> 00:24:40 Christ's ambassadors.
00:24:41 --> 00:24:42 Verse 10.
00:24:43 --> 00:24:45 Sorrowful, yet
00:24:45 --> 00:24:46 always rejoicing.
00:24:48 --> 00:24:49 What?
00:24:49 --> 00:24:51 Sorrowful, and yet
00:24:51 --> 00:24:53 always, how do you
00:24:53 --> 00:24:54 put those together,
00:24:54 --> 00:24:54 Paul?
00:24:56 --> 00:24:57 What this world
00:24:57 --> 00:24:58 needs from Christ's
00:24:58 --> 00:25:00 fellow workers is an
00:25:00 --> 00:25:02 unshakable joy in
00:25:02 --> 00:25:04 Jesus in the midst of
00:25:04 --> 00:25:05 suffering and sorrow.
00:25:07 --> 00:25:10 Not serving him when I
00:25:10 --> 00:25:11 feel the joy, when the
00:25:11 --> 00:25:12 things are, suffering and
00:25:12 --> 00:25:13 sorrow is over, then I'm
00:25:13 --> 00:25:14 free to serve him.
00:25:14 --> 00:25:17 When the kids are
00:25:17 --> 00:25:17 sore and the
00:25:17 --> 00:25:18 marriage, and I've
00:25:18 --> 00:25:19 got the work is
00:25:19 --> 00:25:20 settled, then I'll
00:25:20 --> 00:25:20 serve him.
00:25:21 --> 00:25:22 That's not what Paul's
00:25:22 --> 00:25:23 saying here.
00:25:26 --> 00:25:27 There are countless
00:25:27 --> 00:25:28 reasons for our hearts
00:25:28 --> 00:25:29 to break in the service
00:25:29 --> 00:25:30 of the Lord Jesus.
00:25:32 --> 00:25:35 But in them all, we do
00:25:35 --> 00:25:36 not cease to rejoice.
00:25:37 --> 00:25:38 One of the great
00:25:38 --> 00:25:39 paradoxes of the
00:25:39 --> 00:25:40 Christian life, and I
00:25:40 --> 00:25:42 believe this is unique to
00:25:42 --> 00:25:45 the Christian faith, it
00:25:45 --> 00:25:47 displays the wonder of
00:25:47 --> 00:25:49 God that we serve, that
00:25:49 --> 00:25:51 we can be sorrowful and
00:25:51 --> 00:25:53 yet always rejoicing.
00:25:55 --> 00:25:56 No other religion
00:25:56 --> 00:25:56 offers you that.
00:25:59 --> 00:26:00 When you have Jesus, you
00:26:00 --> 00:26:02 can lose everything else
00:26:02 --> 00:26:02 with joy.
00:26:03 --> 00:26:05 That's what our world
00:26:05 --> 00:26:05 needs to see from
00:26:05 --> 00:26:06 Christians.
00:26:07 --> 00:26:08 The grace of God is so
00:26:08 --> 00:26:09 infinitely valuable.
00:26:09 --> 00:26:09 people.
00:26:11 --> 00:26:12 Our vision here at
00:26:12 --> 00:26:13 St. Paul's is to
00:26:13 --> 00:26:14 unite our diverse
00:26:14 --> 00:26:15 community in the good
00:26:15 --> 00:26:16 news of the Lord
00:26:16 --> 00:26:18 Jesus, which means
00:26:18 --> 00:26:20 that he is our joy.
00:26:21 --> 00:26:22 And whatever your
00:26:22 --> 00:26:22 cultural background
00:26:22 --> 00:26:24 says is your ultimate
00:26:24 --> 00:26:25 joy, Jesus trumps it
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 all.
00:26:26 --> 00:26:27 Don't care what it
00:26:27 --> 00:26:27 is, Jesus says, I'm
00:26:27 --> 00:26:28 better.
00:26:29 --> 00:26:29 I am your joy.
00:26:31 --> 00:26:32 And our community
00:26:32 --> 00:26:33 needs to embrace Jesus
00:26:33 --> 00:26:34 as their only hope and
00:26:34 --> 00:26:35 their deepest joy, and
00:26:35 --> 00:26:36 they need to see it in
00:26:36 --> 00:26:36 us.
00:26:36 --> 00:26:39 What do you think it
00:26:39 --> 00:26:41 says to them when we
00:26:41 --> 00:26:43 have a casual, take it
00:26:43 --> 00:26:45 or leave it approach to
00:26:45 --> 00:26:46 Christ's demands over
00:26:46 --> 00:26:47 our lives?
00:26:48 --> 00:26:50 Jesus has given us a
00:26:50 --> 00:26:53 job, and Paul pushes
00:26:53 --> 00:26:54 the point in chapter 6
00:26:54 --> 00:26:56 verses 1 and 2, as
00:26:56 --> 00:26:57 God's co-workers, we
00:26:57 --> 00:26:59 urge you not to receive
00:26:59 --> 00:27:01 God's grace in vain, for
00:27:01 --> 00:27:03 he says, in the time of
00:27:03 --> 00:27:05 my favor I heard you, in
00:27:05 --> 00:27:06 the day of salvation I
00:27:06 --> 00:27:08 helped you, I tell you
00:27:08 --> 00:27:10 now is the time of God's
00:27:10 --> 00:27:12 favor, now is the day of
00:27:12 --> 00:27:13 salvation.
00:27:14 --> 00:27:15 Now in those couple of
00:27:15 --> 00:27:17 verses, Paul is making
00:27:17 --> 00:27:19 both a simple point and a
00:27:19 --> 00:27:21 slightly more complex
00:27:21 --> 00:27:21 point.
00:27:22 --> 00:27:25 In verse 2, Paul quotes
00:27:25 --> 00:27:27 from Isaiah 49 verse 8,
00:27:27 --> 00:27:28 which was just read out to
00:27:28 --> 00:27:30 us, written hundreds of
00:27:30 --> 00:27:31 years earlier, and what does
00:27:31 --> 00:27:32 he say?
00:27:32 --> 00:27:36 He says, for he says.
00:27:37 --> 00:27:39 Paul is actually using the
00:27:39 --> 00:27:43 tense in that verse, which
00:27:43 --> 00:27:46 means that God is still
00:27:46 --> 00:27:47 saying.
00:27:48 --> 00:27:49 What he said hundreds of
00:27:49 --> 00:27:52 years earlier, he is still
00:27:52 --> 00:27:54 saying now.
00:27:55 --> 00:27:57 He is still speaking.
00:27:58 --> 00:28:00 That's the really simple
00:28:00 --> 00:28:01 point he's making there.
00:28:01 --> 00:28:03 This God who spoke then
00:28:03 --> 00:28:05 continues to speak with
00:28:05 --> 00:28:06 authority now.
00:28:09 --> 00:28:13 He is, however, a
00:28:13 --> 00:28:16 slightly more significant,
00:28:16 --> 00:28:17 deeper point, complex
00:28:17 --> 00:28:18 point.
00:28:20 --> 00:28:22 What God has said throughout
00:28:22 --> 00:28:23 history, he's still saying,
00:28:24 --> 00:28:25 the slightly more complex
00:28:25 --> 00:28:27 point is that in Isaiah 49,
00:28:27 --> 00:28:31 God is speaking to his
00:28:31 --> 00:28:33 servant who we know now to
00:28:33 --> 00:28:35 be the Lord Jesus Christ.
00:28:36 --> 00:28:39 God is saying that he has
00:28:39 --> 00:28:40 heard his servant.
00:28:41 --> 00:28:42 In Isaiah 49, he's heard
00:28:42 --> 00:28:43 his servant.
00:28:43 --> 00:28:45 He has come to the aid of
00:28:45 --> 00:28:47 his servant and he has
00:28:47 --> 00:28:48 helped the servant to
00:28:48 --> 00:28:50 fulfill his mission.
00:28:53 --> 00:28:55 And that's exactly what Jesus
00:28:55 --> 00:28:56 has done throughout his life.
00:28:56 --> 00:28:57 in his death and his
00:28:57 --> 00:28:58 resurrection and opening the
00:28:58 --> 00:29:01 way for humanity to be
00:29:01 --> 00:29:03 reconciled with God and
00:29:03 --> 00:29:04 given them eternal life.
00:29:05 --> 00:29:07 God has equipped him and
00:29:07 --> 00:29:08 helped him for that mission.
00:29:11 --> 00:29:13 The day of salvation was the
00:29:13 --> 00:29:15 day of the servant, the day of
00:29:15 --> 00:29:17 the death of Jesus for the
00:29:17 --> 00:29:20 reconciliation of humanity to
00:29:20 --> 00:29:20 their God.
00:29:21 --> 00:29:23 And in quoting that verse to
00:29:23 --> 00:29:25 the Corinthians in the present
00:29:25 --> 00:29:28 tense, Paul is now saying
00:29:28 --> 00:29:30 that the day of salvation is
00:29:30 --> 00:29:32 continuing in the present
00:29:32 --> 00:29:34 through the servants of the
00:29:34 --> 00:29:34 servant.
00:29:36 --> 00:29:37 That's the point he's making.
00:29:39 --> 00:29:41 First with Paul and then
00:29:41 --> 00:29:43 those who embrace the gospel
00:29:43 --> 00:29:43 through Paul.
00:29:44 --> 00:29:48 God is saying now is the time
00:29:48 --> 00:29:49 to embrace the gospel.
00:29:49 --> 00:29:54 And it falls on every single one
00:29:54 --> 00:29:56 of us to listen and to
00:29:56 --> 00:29:59 respond unless we ourselves
00:29:59 --> 00:30:01 receive the grace of God in
00:30:01 --> 00:30:01 vain.
00:30:04 --> 00:30:07 When God speaks to us as he
00:30:07 --> 00:30:10 does in the present, it is to
00:30:10 --> 00:30:13 take priority over everything in
00:30:13 --> 00:30:14 our life.
00:30:14 --> 00:30:16 That's Paul's point here.
00:30:17 --> 00:30:20 It is so easy to slip into this
00:30:20 --> 00:30:22 Corinthian mindset and just put
00:30:22 --> 00:30:23 God on pause.
00:30:24 --> 00:30:26 I'll respond to you when I get my
00:30:26 --> 00:30:27 life back together.
00:30:28 --> 00:30:30 I'll respond to you when everything
00:30:30 --> 00:30:31 suits.
00:30:31 --> 00:30:37 way too much of our modern church
00:30:37 --> 00:30:39 has bought into this view that
00:30:39 --> 00:30:41 God exists for me.
00:30:41 --> 00:30:43 He exists to meet my needs, to get
00:30:43 --> 00:30:45 me out of trouble when I'm in it
00:30:45 --> 00:30:46 and pretty much stay out of my way
00:30:46 --> 00:30:47 the rest of the time.
00:30:49 --> 00:30:51 Now, very few of us actually
00:30:51 --> 00:30:53 articulate our theology like that,
00:30:54 --> 00:30:56 but it is our operational theology
00:30:56 --> 00:30:58 because it's the way we live our
00:30:58 --> 00:30:59 lives.
00:31:00 --> 00:31:03 We come to church when it suits.
00:31:05 --> 00:31:08 We get involved when my life is in
00:31:08 --> 00:31:08 order.
00:31:09 --> 00:31:14 And so we embrace the grace of God
00:31:14 --> 00:31:14 in vain.
00:31:18 --> 00:31:20 Time with God is often the first
00:31:20 --> 00:31:21 thing to go when the moments of
00:31:21 --> 00:31:22 pressure are on.
00:31:23 --> 00:31:24 Giving, serving stops in crisis
00:31:24 --> 00:31:26 moments or just busy times.
00:31:27 --> 00:31:27 Why?
00:31:27 --> 00:31:30 Because our operational theology is
00:31:30 --> 00:31:33 God is there to serve me.
00:31:37 --> 00:31:39 And yet what it says here is the
00:31:39 --> 00:31:40 normal Christian life is a life of
00:31:40 --> 00:31:41 diplomatic service.
00:31:42 --> 00:31:45 All other pursuits serve that
00:31:45 --> 00:31:46 pursuit.
00:31:46 --> 00:31:48 Our support of them is diplomatic
00:31:48 --> 00:31:49 service in and of itself.
00:31:51 --> 00:31:53 And so I want to say to those
00:31:53 --> 00:31:54 gathered here now
00:31:54 --> 00:31:58 who haven't received Jesus,
00:31:58 --> 00:32:03 I urge you to receive God's grace in
00:32:03 --> 00:32:03 the Lord Jesus.
00:32:04 --> 00:32:07 Today is the day of salvation.
00:32:07 --> 00:32:12 I urge you to receive God's grace.
00:32:13 --> 00:32:17 He's calling you to receive him.
00:32:18 --> 00:32:20 To surrender to him.
00:32:21 --> 00:32:22 To stop putting him to one side.
00:32:23 --> 00:32:25 To stop operating as if he's there to
00:32:25 --> 00:32:26 serve you and to fully serve you.
00:32:26 --> 00:32:29 And you may have sat in churches all
00:32:29 --> 00:32:29 of your life.
00:32:29 --> 00:32:33 I loved hearing the story
00:32:33 --> 00:32:37 I read it this week of a Christian man
00:32:37 --> 00:32:41 who had spent his entire life in church
00:32:41 --> 00:32:44 involved in a global ministry.
00:32:45 --> 00:32:46 Global ministry.
00:32:46 --> 00:32:51 And in his 20s
00:32:51 --> 00:32:54 discovered the gospel for the first time.
00:33:01 --> 00:33:02 Christ died for all
00:33:02 --> 00:33:04 that those who live should no longer
00:33:04 --> 00:33:05 live for themselves but for those
00:33:05 --> 00:33:07 but for him who died for them
00:33:07 --> 00:33:08 and was raised again.
00:33:09 --> 00:33:11 That is for you who've received this message.
00:33:13 --> 00:33:14 Give yourself to its service.
00:33:14 --> 00:33:16 The ministry of reconciliation
00:33:16 --> 00:33:17 is sheer hard work.
00:33:18 --> 00:33:19 It's not being ambassador
00:33:19 --> 00:33:20 when it feels right
00:33:20 --> 00:33:21 or when it seems correct
00:33:21 --> 00:33:23 or a positive response is there.
00:33:23 --> 00:33:24 It's guaranteed
00:33:24 --> 00:33:25 or when it's convenient to do so.
00:33:26 --> 00:33:28 It is to shape your whole life.
00:33:28 --> 00:33:29 I loved hearing the story
00:33:29 --> 00:33:30 of an elderly Christian man
00:33:30 --> 00:33:32 recently dying of cancer.
00:33:32 --> 00:33:33 His main concern
00:33:33 --> 00:33:35 was to die so well
00:33:35 --> 00:33:38 that those around him
00:33:38 --> 00:33:39 caring for him,
00:33:39 --> 00:33:40 nurses, doctors, family
00:33:40 --> 00:33:44 just saw Jesus
00:33:44 --> 00:33:46 and the joy of Jesus.
00:33:47 --> 00:33:49 He hadn't lost heart
00:33:49 --> 00:33:49 in the troubles
00:33:49 --> 00:33:50 and the distresses
00:33:50 --> 00:33:51 and the hardship.
00:33:51 --> 00:33:52 He hadn't
00:33:52 --> 00:33:53 just
00:33:53 --> 00:33:55 given up.
00:33:59 --> 00:34:00 So maybe that's you.
00:34:01 --> 00:34:02 Over time
00:34:02 --> 00:34:03 there's been a loss of heart.
00:34:03 --> 00:34:04 Just happy to cruise along.
00:34:04 --> 00:34:05 Happy to kind of
00:34:05 --> 00:34:06 just spend your time
00:34:06 --> 00:34:06 talking,
00:34:07 --> 00:34:08 thinking about theology,
00:34:09 --> 00:34:10 Christian huddles,
00:34:10 --> 00:34:11 that kind of stuff
00:34:11 --> 00:34:12 but not actually
00:34:12 --> 00:34:14 giving yourself
00:34:14 --> 00:34:15 to the work of God
00:34:15 --> 00:34:15 in this world.
00:34:16 --> 00:34:17 Maybe you're
00:34:17 --> 00:34:18 trading on past stories.
00:34:19 --> 00:34:20 Someone who got converted
00:34:20 --> 00:34:22 somehow around you
00:34:22 --> 00:34:24 10, 15, 20 years ago.
00:34:27 --> 00:34:28 Maybe you've lost heart.
00:34:28 --> 00:34:33 As recipients of the message
00:34:33 --> 00:34:34 of reconciliation
00:34:34 --> 00:34:35 you've been called
00:34:35 --> 00:34:36 to make this message clear.
00:34:38 --> 00:34:39 That is your purpose,
00:34:39 --> 00:34:40 it is your calling,
00:34:40 --> 00:34:41 it is your ministry.
00:34:42 --> 00:34:42 Give your life
00:34:42 --> 00:34:44 to God's global agenda
00:34:44 --> 00:34:45 by holding out
00:34:45 --> 00:34:46 this message
00:34:46 --> 00:34:47 from a heart of love
00:34:47 --> 00:34:48 and a life of service.
00:34:51 --> 00:34:52 As we've sung this morning
00:34:52 --> 00:34:53 and I might add
00:34:53 --> 00:34:54 with a little bit of gusto
00:34:54 --> 00:34:56 and I hope it's true.
00:34:57 --> 00:34:58 Christ alone
00:34:58 --> 00:34:59 is our ceaseless message.
00:35:00 --> 00:35:01 Grace and peace
00:35:01 --> 00:35:02 is the overflow
00:35:02 --> 00:35:03 of our lives.