07/08/2024
The living plus sign
'Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.' 2Co_5:20
1. We have not seen the cross of Christ, until we have seen it as a great plus sign - By which God and man are drawn together in holy reconciliation
a. Above the cross - a Loving heavenly father is bending down from His throne and offering a hand of reconciliation to an estranged family member.
b. Beneath that cross - is the great confused mass of blundering, sinning, suffering humanity, alienated from God, lost in its ways from its own choosing, and divided by those innumerable barriers which sin sets apart.
c. Upon that cross - in the form of a living plus sign, is the quivering bleeding body of the Son of God, the great reconciler, who has:
'broken down the middle wall of partition between us ... that He might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross' Eph_2:14-16
2. We have not really seen Christ untill we have seen Him as the Christ of the cross.
a. It is thus primary, that we see Him through the eyes of Peter - who knew Him so well and loved Him devotedly, and who emphasized not His prepossessing personality, His superior mind, His magnificent character, His lofty ethics, or His flawless life, But His atoning death!
b. It is thus primary, that we see Him through the eyes of Paul, who emphasizes, not the Christ of the wayside, the sea side, the synagogue, or the market place, but the Christ of the cross 1Co_2:2
c. It is thus primary, that Christ Himself desires to be remembered. How did He spend that last evening with the disciples before His death? Significantly, He did not devote those briefly precious moments to a review of His life, but a preview of His death; not to the sermon on the mount, but the sacrifice on the mount.
'This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. ... This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you' Luk_22:19-20 .
Thus it is the Christ of the cross, primary, whom we memorialize in the Lord's supper ' till he come.'
3. We have not really seen our earthly mission or heavenly destiny untill we have seen it in the light of the cross - that great plus sign on the skyline of Calvary
a. There, suspended between heaven and earth, is the living plus sign, the throbbing, outstretched form of the Son of God, with hands uplifted in that holy prayer of reconciliation, '...Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do...' Luk_23:34
b. Behold the cross, behold the gates of paradise swinging open, while the angels sing their welcome to the returning thorn crowned, crucified, but resurrected and glorified Son of God!
c. And who are those that follow in His train? they are sinners all, but sinners cleansed, forgiven, reconciled!
d. To such a high destiny we move, as the people of God; but all around us are the lost, the unreconciled, in whom we have a great uncompleted mission to fulfill. Nowhere is the earthly mission of God's people more perfectly expressed than in the words of the apostle, 'Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.' 2Co_5:20
e. To all alike, the reconciled and the unreconciled, the great plus sign speaks. Its two fold message is the hope of the world:
I. What does it say to the unreconciled?
A. The atoning work of Christ is finished
1. The chasm between the sinfulness of man and the holiness of God has been bridged. The way is thrown open for the lowliest of sinners to come to the throne of grace and receive cleansing and forgiveness.
It is a great day in American history, when the first continental railway was completed. A memorial occasions was planned for the laying of the last rail and the last tie, and the driving of the last spike, out on the western frontier where the project was brought unto completion. On the appointed day, after elaborate preparations, with die publicity, a large crowd gathered for the concluding ceremonies. When the last spike had been driven, he assembled crowd broke out into an applause, while reporters who had tapped the telegraph wires flashed the good news to the world. the great feat had been accomplished, spanning the continent from coast to coast! That was indeed a great day.
2. But it was a greater day when the reconciling Christ, with cruel spikes driven through His hands and feet, cried out from the cross, 'It is finished!' Now angels could flash the news to the ends of the earth, and sinners can forever rejoice, 'It is finished!'
B. The great plus sign is still adding! - unceasingly it is adding souls to the household of God.
1. It makes men brothers through the only means by which the brotherhood of man is ever to be achieved, mainly, through the fatherhood of God. There is a sense in which all the sons of men are the sons of God; but in the prevailing New Testament sense not all the sons of men are the sons of God, by any means. Only 'But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: ' Joh_1:12 , and when, through the new birth, two men have become the sons of God, they have by the same token become brothers to one another.
a. To a mixed company of believers, Jesus said, '...all ye are brethren ... one is your Father, which is in heaven ' Mat_23:8-9.
b. To a group of unbelievers Jesus said, 'Ye are of your father the devil ' Joh_8:44
2. The living plus sign unites hostile elements by the only tie that truly binds.
After the first world war, the Arabs in Palestine and the British soldiers of the army of occupation generally regarded each other as mortal enemies. One of the \British soldiers, a devout Christian, visited the reputed tomb of Jesus. As he approached the tomb he was startled to note, just inside the opening, a tall swarthy Arab warrior, with hands folded in deep meditation. The British soldier waited, not wishing to intrude, and not knowing what might happen next. When finally the Arab warrior turned to leave the tomb, their eyes met. The Englishman extended his hand and uttered one word, 'Jesus'. The Arab took his hand and responded with the equivalent of 'Jesus'. It was a warm lingering handshake. Not one word further was spoken, but both men realized that they were brothers, sons of the same Father, servants of the same Master.
3.The reconciling Christ is still at work; the ancient invitation still stands: 'Be ye reconciled to God.'
a. He purifies as He reconciles
The sinner could never, in the filthiness of his unforgiven state, be lifted to the holy bosom of the heavenly Father. Helpless, and hopeless, he must look to the reconciling Christ.
Samuel Chadwick of Leeds, England, once announced a service for infidels only. Nineteen men followed. After long and apparently fruitless discussion. A large crowd came. they would not sing nor join in prayer, and the preaching was under constant heckling. After the service Dr Chadwick invited any who was interested in further discussion to meet him in the vestry. After long and fruitless discussion, Dr Chadwick said, ' Suppose we grant your philosophy to be sufficient for the man who has moral character, social position, economic sufficiency and domestic happiness; what will you do for the man who has none of these, whose life has been wrecked by the ravages of wrong living, and from whom all hope has departed?' The lawyer who had become the spokesman for the group, arose, offered his hand to the minister, and said ' I would bring him to you, Dr Chadwick; for you have his only hope.' What a tribute to the redeeming, reconciling Christ!
b. He pays as He reconciles
i. What the sinner in his bankrupt state could never do for himself, Christ does on his behalf. He gave His life, ' a ransom for many' mk 10.45
A Pastor came to the new realization of this fact through an almost fatal accident. When he had recovered to the point where he could barely walk again, he became concerned about the staggering bills that had been piling up. There had been two nurses and two or three doctors, costly prescriptions, and other extraordinary expenses. But in all those weeks of illness he had, of course, paid nothing. He walked to the nearby business district of his little town, and stopped first at the druggist. When he asked about his account, the druggist opened up his old fashioned ledger and showed him a long list of items. ' you see, its a big bill,' said the druggist. 'Yes,' said the preacher, weakly, ' I was afraid of that. I can't pay now, but will pay just as soon as I can.' Then the druggist removed his hand from the bottom of the page, and the preacher saw in big, red letters the word PAID. His Deacons had paid the bill. He went to two other places where huge bills had been accumulating. Every debt had been paid. As he walked home overwhelmed with gratitude. he began singing in his heart, ' Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe; sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.'
ii. The great plus sign on the skyline of Calvary speaks again.
C. The reconciling Christ is still at work - the ancient invitation still stands: 'be ye reconciled to God!'
II. What does it say to the reconciled?
A. According to:
1. The Apostle Paul ' He hath reconciled us,', we are ' redeemed' says the Apostle Peter, not 'with corruptible things, as silver and gold... but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and spot.' 1Pe_1:18-19. We are cleansed sat the Apostle John, not by the exemplary life of Christ, but by His sacrificial death, not by His holy teachings, but by ' by the blood of Jesus Christ' 1Jn_1:7
a. In speaking of our redemption, the apostle Paul borrows from the vocabulary of the slave market of his day.
b. Some of us have vivid memories of the old market place of horse and buggy days. The first Monday of each month was the traditional 'trade Day', when every farmer with live stock to sell or trade would bring it to the public square in the country seat. Here, a mule offered for sale would be tied to the hitching rail, where he might stand for hours in the broiling sun. Prospective purchases might open his mouth to determine his age, prod him in the flanks, drive him around in a gallop to make sure he was sound in the wind, and then decide that he would not do. This might be done repeatedly before a purchaser may be found, and next year the mule might be returned to the same place and subjected to the same experience. In the slave trade of Paul's day, the usual word for such a purchase was ... 'market place'. But it is speaking about our redemption, Paul uses the much stronger term ... which suggests the finality of our redemption, our permanent removal out of the market place Gal_5:13.
2. ' He hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation'
a. Our supreme task is to interpret that Living Plus Sign and to introduce unreconciled, unforgiven friends to the reconciling Christ.
b. Our motivation is that of the first century ' For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.' Act_4:20
The great divine embarrassment is the prevailing shortages of men and woman to bear witness. How shamefully causal we often are! 'I don't want to be tied down.' How familiar that sounds! Our Lord was willing not only to be tied down, but to be nailed to the cross, for our redemption. Love so amazing so dive, demands my soul, my life, my all!'
c. The most rewarding of all human endeavors is that of introducing others to the reconciling Christ. ' He that winneth souls is wise' prov 11.30; and ' they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament and they that turn many to righteousness, as the stars forever and ever' Dan_12:3
d. Without a doubt, the sweetest music in heaven will be reserved for those who directed others into the great heavenly chorus of the redeemed.
'Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.' Luk_15:10
Conclusion: There is something intensely personal about the cross. From each of us is a call for a response. To the unreconciled, it says, 'Come - be reconciled!' To the reconciled, it says, 'Go tell others!' There is said to be 31102 verses in the bible. Not one could be more important than this: 'Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.' 2Co_5:20 . For the unreconciled nothing could be more urgent than to heed this invitation. For the reconciled, nothing could be more urgent to convey the invitation to others. It is the worlds only hope.
Eph_2:14-16 Col_1:20 Extracted and slightly edited - Expository Preaching without notes, Plus Sermon preached without notes, P13. Charles Koller
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