Text: 2 Corinthians 5:11-21
Title: Making sense of the Christian Life
“Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience. We are not trying to commend ourselves to you again, but we are giving you the opportunity to take pride in us, so that you can answer those who take pride in what is seen rather than what is in the heart. If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
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.”
If the Christian life could be compared to any one sport it would have to be the game of baseball.
There are four bases in a baseball game. There is first base, second base, third base and home plate. And in order to get to home you must first touch the three other bases.
What do the bases represent in relation to the Christian life?
1. Reconciliation.
“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.” (V21)
In relation to the Christian life we see here that first base represents reconciliation with God.
How does someone get to first base and reconciliation with God?
It may help to look again at a baseball analogy.
In a baseball game there is really only two major ways you get to first base. You get to first base either by getting a hit or by getting a walk.
A hit is something you do for yourself but a walk is something that someone else does for you.
Do we get to be reconciled to God at first base because of something we do or do we get reconciled to God at first base because of something that is done for us by someone else?
All of us at one time would have said that we get reconciled to God because of something we do but is that the right way to get reconciled to God?
“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.” (V20-21)
You and I get reconciled to God not because of something we did but because of what God did for us in Christ Jesus.
Baseball is all about numbers.
For example you have your batting average, you have your total number of hits and rbi’s.
There is something very significant about all those numbers. They are all numbers based upon what a player has done in the past.
Our scripture text tells us that every person has a number.
That number is the number of sins that is against us.
Some of us have a number in the millions others of us are in the thousands. None of us know for certain how many sins are against us we only know that the number grows every day.
Lets do the math. If I sin only three times a day that’s over 1000 in a year.
But when we become reconciled to God through Christ all those sins are no longer counted against us.
“That God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them”.
A double exchange takes place at first base. We give God our sin and in exchange God gives us the righteousness of God.
In a spiritual sense it would be more correct to call the first base bag the cross of Christ.
It was on the cross that God made him who had no sin to be sin for us. We know this to be true because Jesus said so.
“My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?”
And it was on the cross that God made us who had no righteousness to be the righteousness of God.”
“And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.
At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life..” (Matthew 27:50-52)
2. Renewal
“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.”
At first glance it would appear that our scripture verse implies that once we are reconciled to God through the work of Christ on the cross then new things automatically happen. However nothing could be further from the truth.
Accepting Jesus Christ as our savior only makes change possible it does not guarantee it.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone and is going and the new has come and is coming.”
The key verse in understanding how renewal works is verse 15.
“and he died for all that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.”
Some people are saved but are living for themselves and not for Christ.
Just like reconciliation, renewal is a work of God.
We are renewed as Jesus Christ lives through us.
How does Christ live through us?
1.Through our life- what we are
“What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience.” (V11)
2.Through our lips- what we say
‘We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.”
3.Through our ministry- what we do
“We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.”
4.Through our money- what we give
5.Through our prayer- what we claim in Jesus’ name.
(special credit to John Maxwell for these 5 oberservations)
As we allow God to change us in these five areas we will see renewal happen.
3.Reaching out.
Left on base. (The number of people left on base after the third out is recorded)
95% of Christians never share their faith.
There are three things you and I must know if we are to reach out to others.
1.The fear of the Lord.
Since, then we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men" (v11)
What does Paul mean here? Well we find the answer by looking back at the previous verses.
The fact that every Christian will stand before God and give an account of what he or she did after they became a Christian.
The fear of the Lord will set you free from the fear of men.
2.The Love of Christ
For Christ’s love compels us…(V14)
Although many considered Paul out of his mind for sharing Christ it was the Love of Christ that compeled him to reach out to others.He was convinced that Christ loved everyone and that Christ proved his love by dying on the cross.
You can give without loving but you cannot love without giving.
3.The value of people
‘…So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view…”(v16)
The Apostle Paul reached out because he had an eternal view of others. He saw others as people who were loved by God and meant to spend eternity with God.
In conclusion
It would be helpful to take a moment and find out which base we are on. Are we reconciled, renewed and reaching out to others?
“To take pride in what is seen rather than what is in the heart.”
