Ambassadors For Christ

Leslie is one of our many faithful
ambassador's of Christ at Zion. I
give thanks for his service to God
and for representing Christ
no matter where he is.
 

"So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God." 2 Corinth 5:20

What exactly does it mean to be an ambassador of Christ? How are we to represent him?

 

While I served as a chaplain at a juvenile correction facility, I often asked the question of the young men, who purported to be Christian, if they were going to continue to represent their old gangs or if they would represent Jesus. I recall a story one young man shared about how he had become involved in a gang fight outside of a church. He and his friend had worn their colors to worship as did a couple of rival gang members. Imagine that! They all belonged to the same congregation. After he told the story, and hearing it spoken aloud himself, he realized how fully he had put his gang affiliation before God and before the family of God. He had been practicing idolatry in a house of worship. He had been blatantly representing his gang rather than Jesus in the church of Jesus Christ.

 

Most of us are a little more cautious about our conduct inside of a church building. We want to look and act like representatives of Christ within the context of a congregation. But, what about outside the church building? The Church is; after all, not a building. Who or what are we ambassadors for when we go out into the world?

 

May God help us to be more aware of our call to be ambassadors of Christ, proclaiming the Good News of his Kingdom for all who would believe in him.

God's Peace - Pr. J

1 Corinthians 5 Representing Jesus

1 Corinthians 5 NIV
So much for the commonly accepted notion that we are not to judge one another.

Today we find Paul exhorting the Christians in Corinth to expel the immoral from among them. He is not saying that they are to be judging the world; those who do not know Christ. He is saying that we are to confront those whose are sexually immoral; and the greedy and swindlers; the idolaters; slanderers; and drunkards and yet claim to be a brother or sister in Christ. We are to remind them, as Paul has, that this is unacceptable for one who claims to be a Christian. Paul tells us that we are to expel that person from among us.

No, the Christian should definitely not be judging the world's morality; not when our own house is such a mess. Sadly, the morality of the world crept into the church from the very beginning and is still there. It appears totally acceptable to live with various lovers and have children by various fathers none of whom were actually married to the woman. It is acceptable to prefer false idols; whether they are money, substances that make you drunk or high, or any of the multitudes of things we seek for self-pleasure over worshipping and serving the one true God. It's just the way it is. But, that is not the way it is suppose to be - not for the one who claims to follow Jesus. It is the beginning of a new year. It is not too late to resolve to change how we live and represent Jesus.

When I worked at the Juvenile Correction Facility I could tell which gangs which youth belonged to; which gang they "represented," just by observing them a little. It didn't take much. The tattoos, the clothes they wore; even how they tied their shoes were dead give-a-ways  as to who they were "representing." But, even more telling than what they wore were the actions that betrayed who they were loyal to. Who are we loyal to? Can the world tell or do we look and sound and act just like any other non-believer to them? To young readers and the old who insist on misrepresenting Christ; instead of gang signs try making the sign of the cross.

May God help us all to remember that it is Jesus whom we are to "represent."

God's Peace - Pr. J