Ambassadors
"We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us." (2 Corinthians 5:20)
Paul had a difficult relationship with the Corinthian church. We don't know all the details (partly because some of his correspondence with them has been lost), but we know enough to recognize that there was conflict, people were hurt on both sides, and the cause of Christ was damaged in the process. It wasn't an easy situation, though there is reason to believe there was reconciliation at some point. But, in the middle of the conflict, Paul continues to reach out, to write to these fellow believers (even writing what is called a "painful letter"), to urge them (and probably to remind himself) to live, act, speak and think in ways that honor Jesus. One of the images he uses as he encourages them is "ambassador." In fact, he reminds them that those who believe in Jesus are ambassadors of Jesus.
Ambassadors, I think, have a difficult job. They have to put aside their own desires, wants, and preferences in order to represent someone else. An ambassador living in a foreign land does not represent him or herself. Their job is to represent the country they come from. A United States ambassador living in another country does not tell that government what he or she thinks. Rather, their job is to communicate to the government what the United States government's policies, positions and preferences are. In other words, everything the ambassador does represents his or her home government, and what the folks in the other nation think of our country is often shaped by the way the ambassador behaves, speaks and lives.
So, Paul is saying we are ambassadors for Jesus, and in so doing, we're called (even ordered?) to put aside our own preferences, preferred ways of living, hurtful speech and language, even our own thoughts and ideas and subordinate those to the preferences, way of life, language and thoughts of Jesus. We represent him, and what others who are "outside" his kingdom think of him is often determined by the way we live, think, speak and act.
Our failure to realize this is why so many today say they like Jesus (which means they sort of like what they know about Jesus, or what, perhaps, they have read about him) but they don't like Christians. Gandhi reportedly once said he liked Christ but he didn't care for Christians because they were so unlike their Christ. If we who claim to believe in Jesus really represented Christ in what we say, do, post online, the ways we act and live, the ways we treat each other...what sort of world do you think could be formed by such ambassadors?
I am writing this primarily because I know I don't always get it right and I need to be reminded who I am quite frequently. So to anyone I have hurt or pushed away because of un-Christlike behavior, I ask for forgiveness. I am Christ's ambassador. I want to represent him well. I want to be able to represent him better today than I did yesterday; that's my prayer each and every day. May it be yours as well.
Paul had a difficult relationship with the Corinthian church. We don't know all the details (partly because some of his correspondence with them has been lost), but we know enough to recognize that there was conflict, people were hurt on both sides, and the cause of Christ was damaged in the process. It wasn't an easy situation, though there is reason to believe there was reconciliation at some point. But, in the middle of the conflict, Paul continues to reach out, to write to these fellow believers (even writing what is called a "painful letter"), to urge them (and probably to remind himself) to live, act, speak and think in ways that honor Jesus. One of the images he uses as he encourages them is "ambassador." In fact, he reminds them that those who believe in Jesus are ambassadors of Jesus.
Ambassadors, I think, have a difficult job. They have to put aside their own desires, wants, and preferences in order to represent someone else. An ambassador living in a foreign land does not represent him or herself. Their job is to represent the country they come from. A United States ambassador living in another country does not tell that government what he or she thinks. Rather, their job is to communicate to the government what the United States government's policies, positions and preferences are. In other words, everything the ambassador does represents his or her home government, and what the folks in the other nation think of our country is often shaped by the way the ambassador behaves, speaks and lives.
So, Paul is saying we are ambassadors for Jesus, and in so doing, we're called (even ordered?) to put aside our own preferences, preferred ways of living, hurtful speech and language, even our own thoughts and ideas and subordinate those to the preferences, way of life, language and thoughts of Jesus. We represent him, and what others who are "outside" his kingdom think of him is often determined by the way we live, think, speak and act.
Our failure to realize this is why so many today say they like Jesus (which means they sort of like what they know about Jesus, or what, perhaps, they have read about him) but they don't like Christians. Gandhi reportedly once said he liked Christ but he didn't care for Christians because they were so unlike their Christ. If we who claim to believe in Jesus really represented Christ in what we say, do, post online, the ways we act and live, the ways we treat each other...what sort of world do you think could be formed by such ambassadors?
I am writing this primarily because I know I don't always get it right and I need to be reminded who I am quite frequently. So to anyone I have hurt or pushed away because of un-Christlike behavior, I ask for forgiveness. I am Christ's ambassador. I want to represent him well. I want to be able to represent him better today than I did yesterday; that's my prayer each and every day. May it be yours as well.
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