For the past few years, the following words of Paul in 2 Corinthians 5 have been completely blowing my mind:
“18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.”
Recently, Matt taught a sermon on the various aspects of salvation. He put forth eight different things Christ accomplished for us through his death and resurrection. As he taught, the idea that resonated most deeply with me was reconciliation.
One of the definitions for reconciliation provided by Webster describes it as “two conflicting parties restoring peace and harmony.” I love this definition because of the depth and meaning in the phrase “peace and harmony.”
You see, in God’s original design as we find it in Genesis 1 and 2, life was completely peaceful and harmonious. Life was better than good, – like nothing we can comprehend. At the center of God’s plan was the perfection of relationships. God, who always will be, was in perfect relationship with himself as a triune God. Adam and Eve had a perfect relationship with God, with each other, and with the entire created world. In scripture, the Hebrew word shalom, often translated peace, provides the most adequate descriptions used to illustrate this state of harmony. However, shalom (peace) loses its power when translated to English. In Hebrew, the word means much more; shalom communicates perfect interdependent harmony among all. Shalom is all things working together in unison to accomplish a common goal. There is nothing lacking! More than just the absence of something wrong, it is like a 100 piece orchestra functioning at full capacity, each member intricately dependent upon each other producing a glorious sound.
This was what God had in mind for the cosmos at the time of creation. Shalom was the way he would be best glorified and we would be best satisfied in Him. Unfortunately, as you know, the events of Genesis 3 took place and shalom was severed, everyone and everything now marching out of rhythm and playing out of tune.
Which brings us back to our word, reconciliation. Through the person and work of Jesus, God brought us back to himself. He not only forgave us and instilled peace, but also reconciled us to himself and restored relational harmony. He did not forgive us only to instill a vague sense of peace. He reconciled us to a living relationship with himself and restored relational harmony. We are now synced up with God in a way that makes everything else around us make sense. We can now choose to love, think, live, eat, drink and play the way were intended to all because of the gracious act of reconciliation. This is shalom being restored. Now all other relationships have the potential for, even the expectation of, reconciliation because of our Lord Jesus.
Miraculously, God didn’t stop there. As if that weren’t enough, Paul says in v18 that God is now using us to reconcile the world to himself! Are you kidding me? We messed it up! We chose to sin! We botched the entire deal, for ourselves and everyone around us. Man destroyed shalom so badly that nothing short of the gospel could fix it. And now God wants to use us to help be a part of the solution?
If we messed things up so badly, then why would God want to use us to help him as he continues to reconcile this fractured world back to himself?
The part that has been blowing my mind for over two years now is this: If we messed things up so badly, then why would God want to use us to help him as he continues to reconcile this fractured world back to himself? If we are so broken that God had to kill his only son for us, how is there anything of worth or value within us? Reconciliation is still the answer! Because we have been forgiven and reconciled, we are now bearers of shalom in the world. And although we still can’t play our instruments to their full potential, the gospel sets us on our way. We are on a path pointed toward perfect harmony, God is being honored, and his created order is responding.
I am so thankful for reconciliation! It is incredible to know that my sin has been completely dealt with and that my relationship with him is safe and secure and I have been completely restored to God through Jesus. And now, what’s more, all of the broken relationships that I am a part of, and mostly responsible for, can be reconciled because of God’s great plan for shalom.
- Jeremy Keever, The Institute & Discipleship, Kairos & Resources