Jesus Christ demonstrated his love for humanity by sacrificially giving his life on the cross and resurrecting from the dead. Because of this incredible act of love, those who are in Christ have become new creations. All of our past mistakes, sins, and miscues have been covered by the blood of Jesus. Our past no longer has the last word and final say over our lives. We have been given a fresh start. We have been reconciled to God and we, in turn, can give hope to others by making an appeal for God’s forgiving love to them as well. We as Christians, as part of the discipleship process have to learn that Jesus’ love reigns over our past. As we study today, my prayer for you is that you fully embrace the freedom and the identity that Christ had provided to you through His death and resurrection and that we live lives no longer defined by who we were, but claim vicrtory over all things because of who He has made us to be.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come! Everything is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation. That is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and he has committed the message of reconciliation to us.
Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us. We plead on Christ’s behalf, “Be reconciled to God.” He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. —2Corinthians 5:17-21
I. OUT WITH THE OLD AND IN WITH THE
As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed
our transgressions from us. —Psalm 103:12
Everything is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation. That is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and he has committed the message of reconciliation to us.
Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us. We plead on Christ’s behalf, “Be reconciled to God.” —2 Corinthians 5:18-20
II. GOD’S LOVE
US AND GOD’S LOVE
US
He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. —2 Corinthians 5:21
III. OUR
IS REPLACED BY GOD’S
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. We have also obtained access through him by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we boast in the hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also boast in our afflictions, because we know that affliction produces endurance, endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope. This hope will not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
For while we were still helpless, at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly. For rarely will someone die for a just person—though for a good person perhaps someone might even dare to die. But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. —Romans 5:1-8