Daily Devo

Ministers of Reconciliation

By: Gina Welsh

Thursday, October 10, 2024

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. 2 Corinthians 5:18-19

My childhood friends and I loved to play King of the Mountain. Whoever was "King" had to maintain their throne by being strong enough to push everyone else away. Unlike us, our eternal King never pushes anyone away! On the contrary, God constantly pursues us and invites us to join His kingdom. Scripture says that if we call ourselves Christ Followers, we are God's chosen ambassadors. Our mission as ambassadors is to tell others about Jesus and to help people understand how to be reconciled back to God.

We all know someone who doesn't believe in God. Or maybe they aren't interested in God because they don't believe God loves them. Others may say they believe, but they don't understand God's plan for their lives is much better than their own. They may not know God, but they do know us. If we know them, we can pray for them! Wait for God to open a door of opportunity, then be ready to tell them what God has done for you. Trust God, and He will strategically direct you to someone who is ready and willing to hear the gospel. Remember, no one can come to Christ unless the Father draws him, (John 6:44). There's a biblical account of that happening in Acts 8:26-35, and that beautiful story ends with Philip telling an Ethiopian the Good News about Christ.

It often takes a while before someone is ready to ask Jesus to be Lord of their life. But scripture says we must be patient, like a farmer who plants seeds. Farmers plant, water, and care for the seeds they plant, but it's God who makes their crop grow and produce a harvest. But the ministry of reconciliation mentioned in 2 Corinthians 5 urges us to pray for them as we ask God to help them surrender.

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. 2 Corinthians 5:20

When God changes someone's life, be sure to give Him all the credit. As His minister of reconciliation, be joyful when He allows you to help someone be reconciled to Him!