Who is Your One?

1. 0:00 Good morning, good morning, good morning everyone. My name is Audrey and my name is Cam and we're going to hear to read the scripture. So if you would all stand with me on this wonderful Sunday morning and we're going to read the word of the Lord. All right, so we're going to be in 2 Corinthians 5 this morning and I'm going to start here in verse 14.
2. 0:18 For the love of Christ controls us before we have concluded this, that no one has died for all, therefore all have died. And he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves, but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
3. 0:36 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.
4. 0:52 Behold, the new has come. 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.
5. 1:12 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, he 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.
6. 1:28 This is the word of the Lord. The greatest gospel verse in the Bible, 2 Corinthians 5, 21. He made him, who knew no sin, sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
7. 1:49 Let me unpack those 15 Greek words. He, God, made Jesus sin. What do you mean he made Jesus sin? Only in one sense. He treated him as if he had committed every sin, every committed by every person who would ever believed, though in fact he committed none of it. Hanging on the cross, he was holy, harmless, undefiled.
8. 2:07 Hanging on the cross, he was a spotless lamb. He was never for a split second a sinner. He is holy God on the cross. But God is treating him, I'll put it more practically, as if he lived my life. God punished Jesus for my sin, turns right around and treats me as if I lived his life.
9. 2:24 That's the great doctrine of substitution. And what you get is complete forgiveness, covered by the righteousness of Jesus Christ. When he looks at the cross, he sees you. When he looks at you, he sees Christ. We're in our series called Core Values.
10. 2:53 And we've been talking about how in a world full of messages, there's a lot of noise out there, a lot of static. And through it all, we want to know what voice is true, what voice is real, what has stood the test of time that we can build our lives on.
11. 3:11 And one voice, through the ages, has spoken a time-tested message that we believe we can build our lives on and this church on. And that is Jesus Christ. And so what we've talked about over the past few weeks is how Jesus is our message.
12. 3:30 And we must preach Christ as Lord, because there is no other message to that. And last week, we looked at how people must be our priority. And how as a church, we want to be a place where people can belong before they believe. We'll always have a seat at the family table for those who want to find out more about this man who claimed to be God.
13. 3:50 Today, we're going to turn our attention to our third core value, not just as a church, but for us as individuals. And that is why mission must be our mindset. And how as a church, we want to help you reach your world for Christ.
14. 4:09 Now, let me tell you why this is important as a church. You see, if a church forgets that it is to live on mission, then our faith becomes a hobby. You see, the gospel isn't just for us.
15. 4:28 It isn't just to make us feel better and to understand more. It is a message that we are to reflect and proclaim to a lost world. That's what the Great Commission was all about. And that's what Jesus meant when he said, as the Father sent me, so I am sending you.
16. 4:46 Mission must be our mindset so faith doesn't become a hobby. Furthermore, we must not let a church become a club. It's called to be a Christian outreach, not a Christian club. We must replace our preferences with God's purpose for us.
17. 5:07 We must remove this notion of consumerism in the house of the Lord and instead replace it with discipleship. Furthermore, we must have a burden for the lost because that is the heart of our Heavenly Father.
18. 5:22 Last but not least, if mission doesn't become our mindset as a church, Christianity is going to become some sort of self-improvement project. Meaning that, you know, we're going to be more focused on us and what we believe and getting better morals for our life and our family rather than understanding that God has something so much more for us than that.
19. 5:45 He has a mission and a purpose for each one of our lives. And he desires that we live a life of lasting significance that has an eternal impact, that isn't just about controlling ourselves, but it's about proclaiming his message to a world that desperately needs it.
20. 6:03 And so that is why as a church, mission must become our mindset. There is not one church, not one church in the Bible that wasn't a multiplying church. It was never meant to be a lounge, but a lunch pad.
21. 6:19 And if mission does not become our mindset, we will miss that, and we will die because we're no longer serving the purposes that God has for us, to bring glory to himself through the proclamation of his word and to send us out those doors proclaiming his word to a watching world.
22. 6:36 Now, it's not just for a church, but it's also for us as individuals. You see, if mission isn't our mindset, that then a marriage will just become about expectation management. Parenting won't be about raising up the next generation, but rather behavior control.
23. 6:58 And a job, well, it's now just a paycheck. You see, mission changes everything. Heidi and I have the privilege of speaking all around the country at Family Life Weekend to remember marriage conferences.
24. 7:14 We see thousands of couples every year whose lives and legacies are changed when they get this simple principle that they weren't just brought together for their happiness, but for their holiness. And their spouse is not their enemy.
25. 7:30 Their spouse is a gift from God. And together, they better reflect the attributes of God. And they are sent out into the world as a marriage on mission. And when they get that, let me tell you, it changes everything for good. And we've literally seen divorce papers ripped up because of that.
26. 7:49 I talked to a buddy the other day. And he told me that his life feels like Groundhog Day. He gets up. He goes to work. He scrolls on his phone. He goes to bed. He hits repeat. And so we had to really dive in and look at what is the meaning of work?
27. 8:10 And is it something we just do to burn time and provide? Or is it a calling that God has given us? And when his mindset shifted from just work as a job to now work as his calling, it changed everything.
28. 8:26 And now he doesn't just go to work. He gets to serve at work. And by the way, nothing has changed at work besides a missional mindset. But man, has it changed everything for good. As parents, like we're not just trying to raise good kids to keep them out of trouble.
29. 8:45 As Christian parents, we want to raise up the next generation of world changers for Christ. That was the vision behind this school. That's what they seek to do day in and day out. To help these children know that they are set apart by God for the purposes of God.
30. 9:01 That they matter and their lives are going to matter for the sake of eternity. And so when mission becomes our mindset as parents, we don't just control behavior. We raise up the next generation for Christ. And now every parenting moment becomes an opportunity rather than an inconvenience.
31. 9:21 You see how mission changes everything? Not only as a church, but as individuals. And in our passage today, this is what Paul wants us to get and to understand from the very heart. That we were not saved just from something, but we were saved for something.
32. 9:43 And when mission becomes our mindset, it's going to change everything for good. Will you pray with me? Heavenly Father, thank you that you have called us, your people, and our brokenness to be a faith family.
33. 9:59 Thank you. Thank you. You're welcome. On mission. Our lives matter. Our moments matter. And every day we have is a gift from you. Would you help us through the power of your spirit and the proclamation of your word to understand your truth that we might live in accordance to it.
34. 10:20 And we pray all these things in Jesus' name, amen. You know, as we looked at the scripture today from that beautiful young couple, Cam and Audrey, can we hear it for them? That was hard, wasn't it? These are future doctors doing amazing things that I would pass out doing.
35. 10:39 And I could tell your heart was fluttering up here, and you got through it. Good job. Good job. You know, they read the word of God to us. And here we heard from 2 Corinthians chapter 5 where Paul is writing one of the most affluent and influential churches that he ministered to, AKA it would be much like a church in Miami.
36. 10:57 And he wanted to remind them that they were now a new creation. You know, I had the privilege of going out this past Friday with some of the families here from the church. And we were over at their house, and there was a bunch of kids running around, and the dads were pulling out the cars because we were about to go around the neighborhood.
37. 11:16 And anyways, he pulled out this old Chevrolet truck. I mean, 1950s Chevrolet truck, you know, the rounded hood, the curved back. Back when they made cars beautiful, you know. And so, this thing is pulling out, and all of a sudden I hear him just rev it up and crank it.
38. 11:31 And it doesn't sound like an old truck. It was like, and I was like, what did you do to that? And it sounded amazing. And so, he said, come on over here. And he opened up the hood of this old truck, and there, behold, was an 800 horsepower Chevrolet Corvette engine hidden in this old truck.
39. 11:54 Underneath, the suspension had been completely remodeled. You see, this truck wasn't just updated. It wasn't just polished and cleaned and improved. It was a new creation. It was amazing.
40. 12:10 It was beautiful. And there's something about that that just reminded me of this scripture, that in Christ, we are a new creation. We are new. We are forgiven. We are welcomed. We are sent. Our identity is not achieved.
41. 12:27 It is received. I can tell you, you know, like, there were so many years of my life that I thought I was what I did, what I had, what other people thought about me. In other words, I tried to find my identity in anything and everything but Christ.
42. 12:44 And then, I began to wrestle with the scriptures. And God opened my eyes to understand that my true identity is not achieved. It's received. And if you want an example of that, look at Jesus. Jesus, when he goes into the wilderness, and he's tempted by Satan before, before he begins his ministry.
43. 13:05 And what happens? Three times, Satan challenges him, if you are, if you are, if you are. And each time, Jesus responds, it is written, it is written, it is written. Because he knew that his identity was not achieved.
44. 13:24 It was received from his heavenly Father. And he went out from there and began his public ministry, recognizing that he was called and set apart by God. You know, the same is true for you and I in the sense that our identity is never going to be achieved.
45. 13:43 We will never be able to do enough. We'll never be able to have enough. And it doesn't matter what other people think about us, because there's only one opinion that ultimately matters, and that's our heavenly Father. You know, only owners can label things. Only owners can possess things. And ultimately, we are God, and in Christ, he is ours.
46. 14:03 And he calls us his beloved. And so, instead of trying to find our worth and what we do, what we have, and what other people think about us, we get to go out there and worship and honor him with our very best. Not for our glory, but for his. And that is the power of love, and that is the power of vicarious redemption, and that is the power of becoming a new creation in Christ.
47. 14:27 So many of us think we're disqualified. God can't use us. We've gone too far. We've sinned too much. And I want you to know that is not true. That is not true at all. And in large part, that is why we talked about, not long ago, the woman at the well, and Nicodemus, the tax collector.
48. 14:46 That we would be reminded that God uses crooked sticks to draw straight lines. He doesn't call the qualified. He qualifies the called, and he sets us apart for his purposes, and he'll take our brokenness and our pain, and he'll redeem it, and he'll restore it.
49. 15:04 And that's where our passion and our purpose will come from, because it's not about what we do, it's all about whose we are. And in Christ, we are a new creation with a new mission. And that's what we read about next.
50. 15:20 Look at verses 18 through 20 in our text today. It has two powerful words, ambassador and the ministry of reconciliation. Reconciliation. You know, an ambassador is someone who represents their leader in a foreign land.
51. 15:39 And they speak on behalf of the interest of their kingdom, not the host nation in which they stand. They have an interest in that nation because they have been sent there to serve it, and to help it, and to build a relationship between it and wherever they come from.
52. 15:59 That's the role of an ambassador. And so, in Christ, we have a new kingdom that we are a part of, and a new king whom we represent. And we don't speak in our authority, but in his authority. And we're not so much concerned about our citizenship on earth as we are our citizenship in heaven.
53. 16:18 And so, we come here now as new creations representing a new king, which is not us, and not anyone around us, but Christ our Lord. And so, that is our role as an ambassador. And may we never forget it. Furthermore, as ambassadors, what are we called to do?
54. 16:36 We are called to a ministry of reconciliation. Now, that is something really amazing. It's a term we don't use very much, but it's a powerful term. In fact, I was serving in the Army Reserves, and I had gotten sent to airborne school as a chaplain.
55. 16:55 And there, I was standing amongst a lot of soldiers. And I love soldiers because they're honest, and they speak what's on their heart and mind. And, well, they talk about things that a lot of us wouldn't talk about in church in ways that we wouldn't talk about in church. And so, anytime they ask me what I do, it's always an interesting question because I know there's going to be an immediate response.
56. 17:17 Either, that's awesome, or, well, I don't know if I want you around here. So, instead of telling this particular soldier I was a chaplain, I told him I was actually a minister of reconciliation, helping soldiers find forgiveness for their sins so they could be right with God.
57. 17:32 He had been talking about a lot of things he shouldn't have been doing and saying. Well, he looked at me like, that's a weird chaplain, and he's about to ruin my weekend. But he went on and moved down elsewhere. But then another soldier came up to me because we were just standing in line, doing what the government does best, having all of us hurry up and wait.
58. 17:54 And so, we were just standing there for hours. And so, I pulled out my little pocket Bible, and I was reading it. And a soldier came up to me, and he had so many questions. Is that the Bible? It is. Tell me this and that, and what does it say about this? And I've never understood. And so, we began to talk, and we had plenty of time to talk.
59. 18:11 And finally, at the end of asking all his questions, I asked him a question. I said, have you ever sinned? He said, you better believe it. I've sinned a lot. In fact, I'm planning on sinning tonight. I said, all right. Well, how do you find forgiveness for your sins?
60. 18:28 And he said, well, I just hope my good works outweigh my bad works, to be honest. I said, how are you doing in that? He said, well, I don't know. And I said, you know, given your profession of jumping out of perfectly good airplanes for a living, that might be something you want to figure out sooner than later.
61. 18:45 And so, we began talking about the gospel. And right there on that hot Georgia day, that soldier placed his trust in Christ. And today, he is still walking with the Lord, trying to raise his family right and serve his country honorably.
62. 19:04 And let me tell you, he is a dangerous man. But he's the kind of man that you want to confront evil in the dark places of earth. And he is shining bright there as a light for Christ. You see, this is the ministry of reconciliation.
63. 19:20 Yes, praise God. He's working. He's changing lives. And this is the ministry of reconciliation that we have all been given. Not because we're better, but because our Lord... But because we're beggars who have found food and can point people where they can find food too.
64. 19:38 That is the ministry of reconciliation. And this is what is so beautiful. God doesn't just make his appeal around you. He wants to make his appeal through you. And that's what verse 21 is all about and why mission must become our mindset.
65. 19:55 Because here we read about the great exchange. that he who knew no sin became sin for us so that we might become the righteousness of God.
66. 20:11 There was a man named Jim Elliott who went to Wheaton, and he was considering studying medicine, but there he just felt deeply compelled to proclaim and share the gospel, and he felt a call to missions.
67. 20:27 And so instead of pursuing medicine and other opportunities, he pursued ministry, and he felt a burden for Ecuador where there were people there that had never heard the name of Jesus Christ. And so he boarded a plane, and he got married, and he headed over there with his new wife.
68. 20:46 They studied the language so that they could reach this tribe in Ecuador that had never been reached. And they studied so hard, and they worked so diligently. And finally, as they felt ready, they went and landed in a float plane. And they got out, and they tried to reach these people with this message of the gospel.
69. 21:05 They were compelled, in verse 14, by the love of Christ through verse 21, this ministry of reconciliation, this great exchange, this message of hope for all people. And there they stood on the shore of that island and were met by the very people that they came to serve and love.
70. 21:24 And they were not welcomed. They were killed immediately. People were distraught and heartbroken. What a waste. What a tragedy. But in Jim's journal, he had left these words. He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.
71. 21:44 He was so deeply compelled by the gospel. His wife felt that the mission must continue. And so she boldly went back to that tribe to minister to them. And do you know what happened? They received her.
72. 21:59 And over time, the very tribe that had killed her husband and all the friends that landed that day placed their faith in Christ. Many of them did. In fact, the Pilate's son, who was later born, went back to that tribe.
73. 22:18 And the very man that killed his father baptized him. This is the power of reconciliation. The hope that Christ can bring.
74. 22:33 The change that he alone can bring. And this is what we are called to as ambassadors for him. You know, what's amazing is that you would think, game over, beautiful story. I'm glad it worked out for that family.
75. 22:50 But the story didn't stop there. The mission didn't stop there. In fact, so many young people were so motivated by the sacrifice that Jim Elliott and his family and the courage of his wife and the testimony of that tribe and what they were now professing, that in army, thousands of laborers were raised up and sent all over the world.
76. 23:13 What you thought would have ended missions actually inspired missions. Because people thought to themselves, if that message is worth dying for, then surely it must be worth living for as well. This is what it means to be compelled by the love of Christ.
77. 23:32 This is what it means to be an ambassador for Christ. To proclaim a ministry of reconciliation. And to proclaim this message of what is known as the great exchange. That he who knew no sin would become sin for us so that we might become the righteousness of God.
78. 23:48 It's an imputed righteousness. Righteousness means right standing before God. We didn't earn it. We can't stand before God because of things we have done, but because of what Christ has done for us. He takes our shame so we can receive his glory.
79. 24:06 He lays his life down so we can live. He bears our sin so that we can have life. This is the message that we have been entrusted with as a church and as individuals.
80. 24:22 We must proclaim it. We must not forget that mission is to be our mindset. Because we are called to proclaim this ministry of reconciliation to a world that desperately needs it. You know, I was recently reading a story that Kent shared with me about Judge Tomey, who sits on the New York State Supreme Court.
81. 24:47 And there he has heard thousands and thousands and thousands of cases and trials over his many decades in office. One, though, stuck out to him. You see, there was a killer being tried. And the family who had lost their son to that killer had sat for 16 months waiting for that trial.
82. 25:10 And for two weeks they sat there looking at this man who executed their son and their grandson. And their hearts were so broken and so distraught. And that killer, who had quite the record, just stood there, stone cold, staring angrily with hate and fury in his heart.
83. 25:30 And yet in that moment, right before they were laid down the sentence, the mother and the grandmother had an opportunity to speak. And instead of addressing the jury who was about to sentence this killer, they looked at the killer.
84. 25:48 And the grandmother said these words. She said, you did not honor the golden rule. You didn't love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. And you certainly didn't love your neighbor as yourself.
85. 26:08 For 16 months, I've wanted to hate you. But I cannot. Because you are my neighbor. You have my address. If you write to me, I will respond.
86. 26:25 In that moment, the judge said for the first time in the entire case, the killer's head hung low. His eyes were softened. Finally, in that courtroom, there was a moment of humanity.
87. 26:43 Because the gospel light began to shine forth through this message of forgiveness. May we who have received the same kind of mercy now extend it as ambassadors to Christ.
88. 26:58 This is why mission must be our mindset. Or we forget one of the most important purposes for which Christ not only saved us, but sends us. So what do we do given this information and given this text today?
89. 27:13 Number one, who is your one? Who's the person that's far from God but close to you? Who's the person that you know needs to hear this ministry of reconciliation?
90. 27:30 Because chances are you might be the one to proclaim it. I want you to pull out a pen, paper, your phone. I want you to write down that person's name right now. And this week, go ahead, you may do so.
91. 27:46 Write it down right now. And this week, I want you to pray for that person. I want you to look for an opportunity to share this ministry of reconciliation, this message. That Christ, who knew no sin, became sin for them so that they could become right before God.
92. 28:06 This is the message that we must proclaim. And then I want you to take a step of faith as an ambassador of Christ, recognizing your call of reconciliation. Now, for those of you that feel like you're far from God, and you're just checking out this whole God thing.
93. 28:27 You know, I talked to my neighbor last night, and I had a wonderful conversation with him. He's a very intelligent man. He's done very well in his life. He's a professor.
94. 28:43 And he's literally lived and taught and traveled all over the world. He grew up in a country where they said there was no God. And to believe in God is a mental crutch. And for the first time in his life, he's beginning to wrestle with the possibilities that there could be a God.
95. 29:02 And that he has revealed himself. And he wants to know more. And as a church, you've been so welcoming. You've been so kind to create a space at the table for him. I thank you for that. He's a good man.
96. 29:18 And he is in a journey right now. And I pray that he will come to know the love of our Savior and find the forgiveness and hope that Christ alone can offer him. But if you find yourself like that man in a place where you're far from God but you want to come home, then today is your day to exchange your guilt for his righteousness.
97. 29:41 Your shame for his glory. It's not about what you can do. It's all about what Christ has done. And my encouragement to you today would be reconciled to your Heavenly Father who loves you and paid it all for you.
98. 29:58 Because that's how much it is. you mean to him. Mission must be our mindset because it propels our life in the right direction for the glory of God and the good of others. Will you pray with me? Heavenly Father, thank you.
99. 30:16 Thank you for this opportunity to turn our attention to your word. May we be compelled by your love. May you change us from the inside out. Make us a new creation. Help us to understand what it means to be an ambassador for you and to be given a ministry of reconciliation.
100. 30:39 And God, may we who receive mercy extend it to others. Put in our hearts the one this week that you want to use us to reach for you. And for those of us in here who are far from you today, who want to be reconciled to you, I pray you would hear this prayer as they pray it in their own hearts.
101. 31:03 Lord Jesus, I need you. I'm so sorry that I have strain so far from you. I've questioned your your existence and your goodness. And I want to know you. I want to walk with you.
102. 31:20 I want to experience your goodness and grace. I need you to forgive me of my sins and set me free, Lord. I want my life to count. And I want to live a life that leaves a lasting legacy.
103. 31:35 I can't do this in my own strength. So would you do for me what I cannot do for myself? Would you save me and sustain me? And we pray all these things in the precious name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.

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