Ambassadors for Christ

Blog written by Deb Lovett.
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Have you ever been asked to represent someone?
 
Several years ago I was chosen to represent our family at my grandmother’s funeral. I was asked to read the scripture. My cousin was asked to represent her branch of the family tree in a different way during the service.
 
Maybe you have been told, on occasion “When you put on this uniform, you represent this…” Company or Team, or maybe even this country. We are expected to follow particular rules and act a certain way because we don’t just represent ourselves, we represent something bigger.
 
A favorite scripture of many is:
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)
 
We tend to focus on the truth of the first part of the verse, but according to the second half we discover we are called according to his purpose. We are called according to God’s purpose.
 
One of God’s purposes for us is to represent him in this world. When we put on the Lord Jesus Christ (Rom. 13:14) we no longer represent ourselves only, we now represent him; we are commissioned as his ambassadors.
 
Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ … (2 Corinthians 5:20a)
 
To be an ambassador for Jesus is a very high and honorable calling. As ambassadors we are citizens in the land of our King, yet we have been chosen to represent our King in a foreign land. The foreign land is where we serve our King now. We act in his best interest. We make decisions that will please him. When we interact with people in this land, we listen and speak on our King’s behalf. When people see us, we want them to see our King – the One we serve. In order to represent him faithfully, we must know our King’s will intimately by studying the Word, and actively live under his authority by obeying his will.
 
As an ambassador of Jesus, God has given us the message he wants us to speak to this foreign world on his behalf.
 
…God [is] making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. (2 Corinthians 5:20b)
 
God has reconciled us to himself through Christ, and he now gives us — his ambassadors — that same message of reconciliation to speak on his behalf to those we meet in this foreign land. We are to urge them – beg them, “Be reconciled to God!” We tell them it is for our sake he made Jesus to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Cor. 5:21).
 
The only way to be reconciled to God is through the atoning work of Jesus Christ. Because of Jesus’ death on our behalf, God will not count our sins against us. Jesus paid the price for our sin on the cross so we can have peace and a restored relationship with God. This is the message God wants us to tell the world.
 
Today if you hear his voice, trust and believe in Jesus’ atoning work on the cross to restore your relationship with God. Receive your commission as his ambassador and go forth representing him in this foreign land with the message given to us by God -- the message of reconciliation to God through Jesus.