2 Corinthians 5:16-19
”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, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 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 people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.“
Have you ever attempted to balance a difficult equation?
There’s a lot more to it than simply getting the right answer. We need to understand the step-by-step process if we want to be able to apply it and find new solutions in the future. In fact, most solutions in life involve a process, and the idea of reconciliation is no different.
It’s not enough to know that reconciliation is the answer to disunity and injustice, though. We have to seek to understand and actively engage in the process. Reconciliation is the hard-but-good, beautiful-yet-messy, worth-it kind of work.
As a follower of Jesus Christ, we are not only called to understand and engage in the process of reconciliation; we are thoroughly equipped to be a minister of reconciliation. Scripture affirms that every believer is a minister of reconciliation, empowered by God Himself (2 Corinthians 5:11-21).
So how do we do that? Psalm 34:14 lays out a few steps for us:
“Turn from evil and do good, seek peace and pursue it.”
Turn from evil and do good. Turning from evil means both rejecting evil outwardly and addressing it inwardly within our own hearts. We confess the sin that caused the fracture by acknowledging our role in conflicts with God and others, and we turn from our old ways and actively seek peace.
Seek peace and pursue it. Peace isn’t the absence of conflict; it’s the presence of restored harmony. Seeking peace means we aren’t just peace-keepers; we are peacemakers who actively pursue being a part of restoration. We listen empathetically and strive for understanding. We see and are attentive to the brokenness around us and ask where God might be calling us to be a part of reconciliation. And we put in the work because this kingdom work is worth it.
And because of the reconciliation work of Jesus Christ accomplished on the cross, reconciliation is not a problem to be solved; it's a process that we’ve been invited to. Jesus Christ is reconciling the world to Himself. How will we join Him?
My brothers and sisters in Christ, my hope is that we all are prayerful (for all eternity) for a word and/ or a sign from God, where he can use each of us in this kingdom work, as followers of Jesus.
Peace be with you,
Deacon Valerie
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