The Great Exchange — 2 Corinthians 5:16-21
To Whom It May Concern • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 2 viewsNotes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Twenty-three years ago, my mom was worried about me not having a date to the prom. So, she conspired to set me up with her coworker’s sister-in-law from Clay County. And, I don’t know how many 16 year old guys you’ve been around, but it’s not exactly the dream of 16 year old young men to be set up by their moms; so, I wasn’t very enthusiastic about the idea. But, as reluctant as I was, I took her out to the Wagon Wheel to get my mom off my back, and that moment, that moment which began with something as small as my mom’s worry, changed my life forever. I married that girl, and she changed everything about me. She’s taught me contentment and supported my ministry and harnessed my ambition and taken care of me when I was too sick to take care of myself. She’s kept me going when I didn’t think I could take another step and amazed me with the way she’s nurtured our family. It’s hard for me to think of a single memory that doesn’t have her in it. Honestly, I don’t even want to imagine what my life would be or who I would be if she wasn’t in it.
Have you ever stopped to think of how different your life would if you had not met Jesus? Maybe you’ve been a Christian so long that it’s hard to even conceive of all of the ways that He’s influenced your life, or maybe you’ve only been a Christian for a short time and it’s easy for you to remember. But, think of those besetting sins in your life that flare up again and again. Think of how much you struggle with pride or greed or discontentment or lust or anger, and then think of how much more exaggerated those things would be were it not for the refining grace of Jesus. Think of how deep your shame would be if you didn’t have forgiveness, how unbearable your bitterness would be if you didn’t have hope, how out of control your selfishness would be if you didn’t have the cross. For me personally, I’m convinced that, apart from Jesus, I would be a lonely, bitter, miserable person, even if successful on the outside.
God’s Word
God’s Word
We need to keep in front of us how the Gospel has changed us and how the gospel is changing us, or we risk missing out on the fullness of who God has for us to be and intends for us to enjoy. That’s what was happening in Corinth. They were tied up in silly disputes and awful sins because they were allowing their thinking to revert back to the old ways before they met Jesus. So, Paul wants them to refocus on the new way of thinking that was given to them through the gospel. And so, we see here Three Ways the Gospel Changes Us (Headline) so that we can make sure our lives, church, and relationships are as good as they can be.
We have a new “perspective.”
We have a new “perspective.”
2 Corinthians 5:16–17 “From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
Helen Keller was born in Tuscumbia, AL and became both deaf and blind as an infant. The world that she grew up in was one of darkness and silence. It would’ve appeared as though she was destined for a life that would be miserable and lonely, even pointless. But, a teacher named Anne Sullivan would step in to change all of that. She introduced Helen to a new way of understanding the world — through touch and sign language. And, this shift in perspective unlocked Helen’s potential. She learned not only to communicate but also to read, write, and eventually speak. Keller went on to graduate from college, become a celebrated author, and advocate for disability rights, social equality, and education.
You know, the world we’re born into isn’t all that different than Hellen Keller’s. We may be able to see colors and shapes, and we may be able to hear our mom’s voice or listen to music, but the world we are born into is dark and silent nonetheless. We can’t see what God is doing or who God is, and we’re unable to hear and love the truth about God without intervention. So, our God-given potential and God-given purpose go unrealized because of our spiritual blindness and deafness. But, do you remember what it was like when all of a sudden all of things that you heard about Jesus finally made sense? Do you remember what is was like when your heart was overwhelmed with the guilt of your sin and at the same time the love of your Savior? Do you remember what it was like when you finally heard God speaking to your heart through his word? It was like the lights were turned on, wasn’t it? It was like you were hearing for the very first time.
And, it changed your perspective forever, didn’t it? That’s what Paul is talking about in verses 16-17. He’s saying that because we have seen Christ, “from now on” we see everything and everyone differently than we used to. Jesus has changed our perspective. He’s turned on the lights. He’s opened our ears. At the forefront of Paul’s mind is how we see people. Corinth had a way of viewing people, Paul included, from the world’s perspective rather than from Christ’s perspective. They thought Paul, for example, was an inferior apostle, and they’d completely overlook people who possessed gifts or status they found unimpressive.
Viewing Jesus “rightly” leads to seeing others “differently.”
But, Paul is saying: Once you view Christ rightly, you will view everyone else differently. In fact, Paul seems to be here reflecting upon his own experience with Jesus. He had once viewed Jesus from the world’s perspectives and categorized him with the flesh’s categories. So, he saw Jesus as being just another fool pretending to be from God who led people away from the truth rather than into it. But, what happened? On the Damascus Road, Jesus literally turned on the lights for Paul. Paul beheld Jesus in his resurrection glory, and in an instant, he went from a man wanting to kill disciples of Jesus to being willing to die as a disciple of Jesus.
Jesus changed his perspective, and He changed how Paul saw others. When he saw Christ rightly, he saw everyone — and this included the Corinthians — differently. We usually see people for who they are, and we usually maximize what’s wrong with them while minimizing what’s right with them. That’s what Corinth was doing with Paul and with others. But, when we gain Jesus’ perspective, when we experience how He transforms us, now we begin to see who people are meant to be and by God’s grace can be. Paul’s patience with Corinth was born out of God’s grace to him. Paul was the worst of the worst, and apart from Jesus, still would’ve been. So, he can be patient and gentle and kind with this broken church, knowing it’s only grace that has made him any different.
And, the same is true of you. Verse 17 intends to bring Isaiah 65 into our minds. God had allowed his people to be led into exile, but Isaiah prophesied that a greater, second Exodus was coming when God would restore his people, renew his covenant, and bring them into an even greater Promised Land than Canaan — a new creation, a new heaven, and a new earth. And, Paul’s point is that this Exodus “has come,” and God’s renewal of his creation “has come” — through YOU. The change in your life and the transformation of your nature and the formation of your character into the image of Jesus is the proof that the New Creation isn’t just on its way. It “HAS COME” already, and it’s come through you.
Viewing others through “new” eyes removes “old” perspectives.
So, we’ve got to stop looking at people through the “old” eyes of the flesh. “The old has passed away.” People are being remade. God is at work in this generation because Jesus has come! People CAN change. People are BEING changed. YOU HAVE changed. YOU are BEING changed. You’re the proof! The lights are coming on. Ears are opening up. And, we believe that because we’ve experienced that. Viewing others through “new” eyes removes “old” perspectives. How do you view others? Very few things will affect the tone and attitude of your life more than your answer to that question. Don’t give up on your dad whose heart seems so hard. He isn’t beyond Jesus. Don’t give up on your daughter with an addiction. She isn’t beyond Jesus. Don’t look down upon the waitress or roll your eyes at the drama queen in your office. That’s the old way of thinking, and “the old has passed away!” No! Pray that Jesus would turn on the lights, and then judge them only by his potential in them.
We have a new “purpose.”
We have a new “purpose.”
2 Corinthians 5:18–20 “All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 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. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”
Earlier I mentioned that Isaiah 65-66 form at least part of the context for 2 Corinthians 5. In that passage, Judah is remembering how they used to be so close with God and they thrived with Him. But, they had rebelled against him and sinned. Now, they were soon to be in exile, out of the Promised Land that flowed with milk and honey and into a foreign land where they would be oppressed and miserable. Yet Isaiah 65-66 whispers hope: reconciliation’s coming. A New Creation, a fresh Promised Land, is on its way despite their mess. Paul grabs this in 2 Corinthians 5 so that he can, shout that Jesus is making it real.
For Paul this begins with our justification. I hope you see that we’re only four sermons into Paul and justification has come up every time. It’s THE central doctrine of Paul’s theology. And, you see it here as the means by which Paul understands our enjoyment of the New Creation begins. “In Christ God is reconciling the world to himself, NOT COUNTING THEIR TRESPASSES AGAINST THEM.” That is, our need for reconciliation implies the fracture in our relationship with God. So, God sent Jesus that He might count our sins against him, “not counting (our) trespasses against (us).” This is God’s process for making us new, how He renovates and restores. He removes what is old and broken in us by nailing it to Jesus’ cross.
And, that is what leads to our reconciliation. Five times in these three verses Paul uses the word “reconciliation” in one way or another. It’s at the center of what He want you to understand has happened to us because of Jesus. And, there’s something beautiful here that I want you to see if you’re going to feel the full wonder of this. Paul says, “All this is from God.” He “reconciled us to himself.” He chose to “not count (our) trespasses against (us).” Whenever there’s a broken relationship, if there’s going to be reconciliation, someone has to pursue it. And, logic would have it that the one who damaged the relationship would be the one to make it right, wouldn’t it? That’s how relationships are supposed to work. But, that’s not how God approached us. Reconciliation is God overcoming our problem at his initiative by restoring our relationship with him. He’s the One pursuing you. If it were left up to you, you’d stay in exile, but He’s come to find you.
We are “justified “to be “reconciled.”
Paul follows the same logic that we see in 2 Corinthians 5 in Romans 5:1-11. He starts with justification, and then shows that justification moves to reconciliation. Now, I want you to think about that picture. Justification, as we’ve seen, presents God as the judge. But, He’s not just any Judge. He’s also the Plaintiff. He’s the One you’ve slandered. He’s the One who you have defamed. He’s the One you’ve stolen from. He’s the One you’ve blasphemed. He’s the One you’ve hurt. And then, He’s the One that looks at you and declares you, “Not guilty.” That’s where we left a few weeks ago, isn’t it? But, it’s even more beautiful than you can imagine. This Judge, this Judge who is also the plaintiff, this Judge who you have treated so unfairly and has acquitted you of so much, He’s also your Dad. That’s the picture. Any other Judge on earth if He said you were not guilty, both parties — Him and You — would probably hope to never run into one another again. But, this Judge walks down off of his judgment seat, and He gives you a hug. He invites you home to share a meal. He has gifts waiting on you when you walk through the door. He’s wanted this far more than you have. He wants his Son back, and so He has acquitted him, forgiven him, and reconciled with him. That’s what Isaiah 65 is dreaming of, and that’s what has happened for you. You were justified to be reconciled.
We are “reconciled” to be “reconcilers.”
And, the result is that now you have a new position that comes with a new purpose. Paul says that now “God (has given) us the ministry of reconciliation.” He’s “entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.” “We are ambassadors of Christ.” (My RA crew, here’s our theme verse. Royal Ambassadors, where you at?) God didn’t just bring you into his glorious kingdom to enjoy it as a subject. That would’ve been awesome. But, He’s brought us in to award (“gave us” = gift) a distinguished appointment within his cabinet. We don’t just get to enjoy the Kingdom. We get to participate in the victories of the Kingdom. We have been reconciled to be reconcilers. We reconcile people to God and to one another through Christ. So, we can’t be thinking about them through those old ways of the flesh. That’s “passed way.” “The New has come,” and we get to play a role in making it “new.”
You see, we are ambassadors in reverse. Ambassadors in antiquity were usually sent from small nations to the mighty nations — like Rome — in hopes of being able to negotiate some kind of a peace treaty. They went on behalf of the King in hopes of being able to secure the kingdom, and that often meant a life of begging and groveling. But, that’s not the kind of ambassadors we are. We have Good News! We have been sent out by the Mightiest King of the Mightiest Kingdom to go to every tiny nation in every forgotten place and offer them peace. We go on behalf of the Super Power to offer an alliance that ensure provision and protection and prosperity. We’re ambassadors in reverse representing an upside down Kingdom to the world so that they can enjoy an upside crown themselves. And, we go “imploring” them — not groveling, not politicking — but “imploring” them because we have the Good News they need. I mean, who would refuse that offer?
Brothers and sisters, your purpose is to enjoy your reconciliation with your Dad and to offer that reconciliation to your kids and your neighbors and your coworkers and your classmates and to every forgotten person in every forgotten place on earth. Man, God isn’t the oppressive oaf that our culture makes him out to be. He’s a joyful, loving King, and He’s your dad.
And, He has given us a new purpose to live out a…
We have a new “passion.”
We have a new “passion.”
2 Corinthians 5:20–21 “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
“Implore” implies passion, doesn’t it? It’s raw, urgent, a cry from the heart. You don’t “implore” someone with a shrug; you do it because you’re on fire about something. It’s not just asking—it’s begging with love, pleading with conviction. You “implore” when you see someone hurting and know you’ve got the answer. That’s Paul—he’s imploring because he’s tasted reconciliation with God, and it’s wrecked him in the best way. He can’t fathom anyone yawning at it. So when he tells Corinth, “Be reconciled to God,” it’s a gut punch: If you’re numb to this, if you’re stuck in the old life, wake up! This isn’t something you get over—it’s the pulse of a new creation, and Paul expects it to burn in us too.
Verse 21 is a summary of that reconciliation so that we can be reminded of what’s happened for us. In fact, it’s a summary of the whole Big Story. The entire Bible is, in one way or another, summarized in this single verse. It may be the most theologically dense verse in the whole Bible. Martin Luther called it “The Great Exchange.”
God gave “Jesus” our “bad.”
“For our sake,” that implies that God loves us and desired a relationship with us, and it implies that relationship was fractured. Both of those things are implied there. I need you to feel that. We were sinners who deserved death, but God loved us. We were broken and separated from life, but God loved us. We were born blind to God and deaf to his word, but God loved us. So, “for our sake,” Jesus came.
And, on the cross, God took everything wrong in you, everything bad in you, everything impure in you, and He put them on Jesus. He gave Jesus all of the credit for your bad. That is, “for your sake,” God made “him (Jesus) to be sin who knew no sin.” Be careful—when it says God made Jesus "to be sin.” This isn’t Jesus becoming a sinner; that can’t be. A sinner can’t save us. Jesus never sinned—not once. He didn’t need forgiveness from His Father. So what’s this about? It’s the Old Testament coming alive. Ever wonder why we don’t slaughter animals anymore? Here’s why: Jesus became the final sin offering, an offering so sufficient that it rendered all others forever obsolete. Think of the lamb on the altar. Did it lie? Cheat? Hate? No—it was innocent. Yet they killed it. Why? To take the people’s punishment. Sin demands death, and the lamb’s blood showed the cost of their guilt. Now see Jesus: perfect, pure, never a harsh word or selfish thought. He loved God’s Word, prayed faithfully, kept every law with a joyful heart. A perfect son, a perfect friend, a perfect neighbor. YET WE KILLED HIM. God placed our curse on Him. Jesus, the spotless Lamb, was nailed to the cross, bearing the wrath we deserved. Isaiah 53 says it this way: “But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
God’s mercy toward a rebellious world had held back His anger—until now. In the Garden, they breathed another day. In the flood, a remnant was spared. In Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot and his family escaped. But, on the cross, the full wrath of God was to be poured upon the the Son of God. “It was the will of the Lord to crush him.” The only man to have ever lived and not deserve the wrath of God would be the very one to experience it fully here on earth. That’s the Big Story.
All of your bad came crashing down in God’s wrath upon Jesus because God, “for your sake,” wanted to be reconciled with you. I need you to feel that. I need you to see that. This is the cost of your reconciliation. This is the starting point of our passion. This is what propels us forward as “ambassadors” with a “message of reconciliation” in a “ministry of reconciliation.”
God gave “us” Jesus’ “good.”
But, it doesn’t stop there. All of your bad was given to Jesus so that all of Jesus’ good might be given to you. That’s the Great Exchange. Martin Luther wrote: “He was made sin for us — what a strange and unheard of thing. The righteous, holy, and sinless one becomes the very thing we are, that we might become what He is.” That is, God hasn’t welcomed you into his Kingdom holding his nose. He isn’t resenting you for what you’ve done. He isn’t repulsed by your filth. That doesn’t capture the picture. God sees you as pure as Jesus, as clean as Jesus, as “righteous” as Jesus, as holy as Jesus. He gave Jesus all of your bad, not so that you He could his nose to let in some reprobate, but so that He could give to you all of Jesus’ goodness that you might be received into his Kingdom with the joy of a Father receiving his Son.
This is the Scandal of the Cross. This is the Great Exchange. Jesus was exiled so that you could enjoy the Promised Land. Jesus was sacrificed on the altar so that you could live free. Jesus was condemned by the Judge so that you could be accepted by the King. He recieved your inheritance, and you have received his.Do you feel this? This isn’t just something meant for knowing. This isn’t just something meant for Sunday School. This Scandal, this Great Exchange, when rightly understood, can be nothing less than the passion of your life because it’s the hope of your life. So, this morning, “we implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” And, if you are “reconciled to God,” I “implore” you to live like it and sing like it and love like it.
