Cool, thank you. Be glad if you’re able to keep… thanks, man. Be glad if you’re able to keep your Bibles open at page 840, or if you’ve got your device, 2 Corinthians chapter 5:1. I’ll pray for us. Our loving Heavenly Father, we do thank you for the great privilege of being able to look at what you have to say to us in your word, in the Bible. We pray for these few moments now. Please give us open ears to hear what you have to say and soft hearts ready to respond, and we ask it in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Introduction
On the 19th of November back in 1999, a ship, the Green Lily, was caught in a ferocious storm off the coast of England. Suffering from engine failure, the ship was drifting towards the rocky coastline. A coast guard lifeboat was sent out to rescue the crew, but the storm was so violent, the waves were so huge, that the boat, the rescue boat, could not get alongside the stranded ship. The Green Lily ran… a helicopter was brought in to rescue the crew, and with the storm raging, a helicopter winchman, Bill Deacon, volunteered to be lowered down to the ship. He would attach a winch to the crew who, in their terrifying circumstances, one by one would be raised to safety. Braving huge waves and G-force wind, Bill Deacon made sure that each member of the crew was rescued.
Sadly, with the last man in the helicopter, a huge wave washed Bill Deacon off the deck of the ship into the ocean before the winch could be lowered down to him. The next day, Bill Deacon’s body was found, and he was posthumously awarded the George Cross medal for bravery. What makes this all the more amazing was that an inquest was held into the death of Bill Deacon and the whole thing that happened, and it was discovered that one of the factors contributing to his death was the poor attitude of the crew of the Green Lily. They failed to realize the great danger they were in. In fact, it was reported that they were remarkably casual. They thought it was a bit of a picnic, yet Bill Deacon sacrificed his life for them.
I want you to imagine you’re one of the ship’s crew. You’re safe in the helicopter, and you’re looking down, and you see this huge wave wash Bill Deacon into the raging ocean after he has saved your life. How would you feel? I mean, having experienced such a great rescue, you can never be the same. You’d live with gratitude. Your life was in danger, about to be lost, and now you’d be thankful, thankful for the man who saved your life, especially since you’d been so casual in the whole process, and especially since he’d lost his life rescuing you.
Having experienced such a great rescue, you can never be the same.
How much more is this true as we consider Jesus’ great rescue of us, his death on the cross? But why is Jesus there? Why is he on the cross? It’s no accident of history. Jesus wasn’t caught out by surprise. Jesus knowingly went to the cross in love, despite the fact that none of us have loved God as we should. Despite the fact that in some way each of us has rebelled against God, ignoring him, not listening to him, not honoring him as we should, Jesus loves us, and Jesus proved his love rescuing us for an eternity without God by dying on the cross, taking the punishment for us turning away from God. This is amazing.
In the Bible reading we’ve just had from 2 Corinthians 5:11, the Apostle Paul will tell us that Jesus Changes Everything. Jesus changes everything, and he changes everything because of three things: one, Christ’s love controls us; two, we are Christ’s ambassadors; and three, the right time is now. Christ’s love controls us, Christ’s love urges us, we are Christ’s ambassadors, and the right time is now. Let’s briefly look at each one.
Christ’s Love Controls Us
Christ’s Love Urges Us
Christ’s love controls us, verses 14 to 15: “Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we all died to our old life. He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves; instead, they will live for Christ who died and was raised for them.” Now have a look at that word “believe.” That’s an important word because what we’ve just read, this is Paul’s firm belief. I wonder if you can see what God is saying to us this morning. Having given this great consideration, Paul firmly believes, he’s convinced. Paul is convinced that Christ’s love took him to the cross. Paul’s firm belief is that in Jesus’ death and resurrection, Jesus makes forgiveness, new life available to any person who would turn to him in repentance and faith.
Paul’s firm belief is that in Jesus’ death and resurrection, he gives sure confidence and hope to any person who would put their trust in Jesus. Paul’s firm belief is that because of the love of Christ, we have all died to our old life, and now those who receive this new life will no longer live for themselves; instead, they will live for Christ who died for them and was raised for them. That is so important. We need to… let’s hear it again. Look at it again. Paul is convinced that because of the love of Christ, we’ve all died to our old life. Now those who receive this new life will no longer live for themselves. How will they live? Well, instead, they will live for Christ.
I want to ask you this morning, is that your firm belief? Do you have a firm belief that now everything is about Jesus? Everything changes. It is a huge reset in the way we think and live. It impacts our motives, our goals, our dreams, our ambitions, our desires, our plans, our time, our thinking, our life. Everything changes. Do you believe? Are you convinced, like Paul, that Jesus is the only hope for our world? Are you convinced that Jesus is the only hope for Riverstone? Is your firm belief that without Jesus… do you firmly believe that without Jesus we’re absolutely lost? This firm belief, this understanding of Christ’s love, it urges Paul to speak of the saving love of Jesus. God, through Paul, is challenging the Corinthian Christians as he is challenging you and me this morning. In Jesus, we have a totally new agenda, a new program, and Paul was convinced of this. I wonder if you are.
In Jesus, we have a totally new agenda, a new program.
Paul values this new life in Christ more than anything, not the things of the world which are here today and gone tomorrow, but Jesus, Jesus who loved him, Jesus who laid down his life for him. Now, for some of you here this morning, this might be a new thought. “Oh, I never really thought about it like that.” This might be a new idea. “I never really thought Jesus’ love…” new idea. If that’s you, can I encourage you to respond and to say thank you to Jesus. Thank you for rescuing me. Thank you for saving me. Respond to his love, follow him, trust him, realizing that following Jesus, it’s not just a good way to live, it is the only way to live. If you’re not sure, if you want to know some more, talk to Daniel, talk to Miles so you can find out some more about this.
For others here this morning, this firm belief about Jesus means being refreshed, reinvigorated, reminded. Remind yourself this is what life is about. It’s following and trusting Jesus, and soak it in like Paul. Stand firm on this belief, become even more persuaded how magnificent Jesus’ love is, how the love of Christ changes everything. Be reminded, be convinced of the urgent need for our world, for Riverstone, to hear about Jesus. How can you respond? How can you grow in your belief? I want to urge you to pray. Pray for God to change people. Pray for God to give people soft hearts, open ears, open eyes so they can see and hear and respond to Jesus. Keep praying for God to change you. Keep praying for God to provide opportunities for you to speak with the people in Riverstone and the surrounding suburbs. As the first Christians did, pray for boldness, pray for wisdom to know what to say, pray for opportunities to speak with people you know, to invite them to come to church with you, come to the gingerbread events, come and hear the difference that Jesus will make. Keep praying and be ready to see how God will answer your prayers.
How Jesus Changes People
See, this is how the love of Christ urges us and pushes us and compels us. Sometimes we… it is so encouraging to see how Jesus changes people. I think of some of the people that I was at… we were at at Glenmore Park, moms, dads, grandparents who would come weekly to our church playing group, and they would come with the intention to prayerfully and lovingly look for opportunities to speak to other moms and dads and carers who brought their children along so they could have these opportunities to talk about Jesus. There were teams of people that kept Tuesdays free. Why did they keep Tuesdays free? Because Tuesday was scripture day, and they wanted to make sure that they were available to teach scripture in the local primary schools. There were wonderful moms and dads who, after a massively busy week, they would come along on Friday night to be part of youth group and to chat to the high school students, looking for opportunities to talk again of this magnificent difference that Jesus makes.
One of the things the guys regularly used to do, the guys at Glenmore Park, that would be regularly thinking, “What are the different things that we can do to engage with the other non-Christian dads in this part of the world? How can we have opportunities to talk to them about Jesus?” There were high school students, and they had heaps of responsibilities, but high school students, they would come during the week or they would come on Sundays, and they would help lead kids groups. Why would they do that? They wanted to see these children grow up with a firm trust in Jesus. Families who regularly invited neighbors over for barbecues or coffee or chats, yes, it was to build friendships, but yes, it was also to prayerfully look for opportunities to speak about Jesus or invite them to come to church.
There’s nothing more important than Jesus. There’s nothing more urgent than people hearing about Jesus.
Why do people do these things? Life is so busy, and we all know there is so much that is happening in life, responsibilities, obligations, commitments, so many sport and work and family, we got to rest. All these people knew there’s nothing more important than Jesus. There’s nothing more urgent than people hearing about Jesus, and Jesus changed them. Jesus changes everything. How? Let me ask, how is Jesus changing you? How is Jesus changing your churches together? You work out to reach the people of Riverstone and the surrounding suburbs. Well, that’s our first one. Christ’s love urges us, compels us, pushes us out.
We Are Christ’s Ambassadors
A Message of Reconciliation, Peace, and Hope
Secondly, we’re Christ’s ambassadors. Have a look at verses 18 and 20: “All of this is a gift from God who brought us back to himself through Christ, and God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them, and he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, come back to God.” Being an ambassador, it’s a big deal, isn’t it? You represent your country, you speak for your country. As we look at stuff that’s going on in our world around us now, we get a picture of how important that role of being an ambassador actually is. In the first century, there’s no modern communication, there’s not jets that zoom you around, no Zoom or anything like that. The king couldn’t be everywhere, so the ambassador would go and represent the king, and he’d deliver the king’s messages, he’d make announcements on behalf of the king.
I wonder if you can see what God is saying to us. As Christians, as followers of Jesus, we are Christ’s ambassadors. What a privilege that is. What is the message we’re called to deliver? It’s a message of reconciliation, of peace, and of hope. My goodness, doesn’t our world need some hope right now? Here are the facts: we simply don’t trust God as we should, we don’t honor him, and rather than trust him, look to him, we run away from him. We trust and look to the things of the world, and of course we know, don’t we, that as we look to the things of the world, they cannot do the things that we want them to do. The things of the world cannot give us peace, the things of the world cannot give us hope. Rather than depend on God, we try to live independently of him, often living as if he doesn’t exist. That is what the Bible calls sin, and it cuts us off from God, making us enemies with him.
What is the result? While we appear to live in comfort, it’s just shallow. Our comfort is shallow because if we dig deeper, we find that despite our technology and our education and our wealth, our world is lost. The world has lost its bearings. We’re in a mess. Anxiety, greed, depression, violence, addiction, greed, confusion. Our world laughs at God, mocking him, yet our world is full of fear where we live as if we’re drugged, blinded to the reality. Today, God is making clear as Christ’s ambassadors, we have a far better message to deliver, a far better message than our world could possibly ever hope to come up with. What do I mean that we have a far better message? See what God has done. See how God has acted to rescue us on the cross.
As Christ’s ambassadors, we have a far better message to deliver, a far better message than our world could possibly ever hope to come up with.
God’s Amazing Grace
Chapter 5 verse 19, take this in: “For God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them.” On the cross, chapter 5: 21, “God made Christ who never sinned to be an offering for our sin so that we could be made right with God through Christ.” In those two verses, God is saying something mind-blowing, something is absolutely extraordinary. Once you and I, we were enemies with God, but now in Jesus, we’re friends. We are reconciled with God. Once all we knew was guilt, fear, shame, now we have peace, now we have hope. It has been Karen and my privilege to sit with grown men and women as they’ve heard this, as they’ve understood this, to have tears running down their faces, absolutely overwhelmed with joy and relief at such good news. Do you know those things? The removal of fear, the removal of guilt, taking away our shame, knowing that God is for me and not against me, knowing that I have a future that I can look forward to. What a message you and I are privileged to deliver.
Chapter 5: 19, “God gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation, so we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, come back to God.” If you’re a Christian, a follower of Jesus, you are Christ’s ambassador. It’s an incredible privilege, but it does come with significant responsibility. God is saying through each one of us, he’s making his appeal to the world through us, come back to him. When you wake up in the morning and you walk out your front door, when you get on the car, when you get on the bus or the train, when you walk into the shops, when you walk into your workplace, your classroom, on the sports field, as you chat with your neighbors, the things you talk about, the decisions you make about your future, where you live, how you use your time, how you’ll set up your home, you are Christ’s ambassador. You represent Jesus. We have the message that our world so desperately needs to hear.
Can I ask you as you’re sitting there to think about the people that God has brought into your life? Think about the people that God brings across your path, neighbors and work colleagues, the parents of your kids’ friends, the people you meet at the shops. Will you prayerfully look for opportunities to share this love of Jesus, this good news of Jesus with these people? As you pray, be ready to see how God will answer your prayers because Jesus changes everything. Can I urge you, keep thinking about what it means for you to be Christ’s ambassador.
The Right Time Is Now
The Day of Salvation
Thirdly, the right time is now. Chapter 6: 1-2, this is what Paul says: “As God’s partners, we beg you not to accept this marvelous gift of God’s kindness and then ignore it. For God says, ‘At just the right time I heard you; on the day of salvation I helped you.’ Indeed, the right time is now. Today is the day of salvation.” One of my favorite movie actors is Bruce Willis. A number of years ago, he was in a movie called Sixth Sense. Bruce Willis was cast as a psychologist. In that movie, he met a boy who could see dead people. It’s a powerful movie because it reminds me when I see people in the street, when I go to the shops, when I hang out with friends, go for a walk or have a coffee at the local cafe, unless these people have put their trust in Jesus, they are just like dead people destined for an eternity without Jesus. As that sinks in, that is absolutely heartbreaking, that’s just devastating, and it should create within us a great sense of urgency because these people desperately need Jesus to give them real life, eternal life.
We didn’t actually read it this morning, but in chapter 5:1, Paul reminds us that we must all stand before Christ to be judged. If your trust and hope is in Jesus, standing before him on that last day, wow, that is something you can really look forward to, finally to be at home with our Lord who will wipe away every tear. That is a day to look forward to. For anyone who has not put their trust and hope in Jesus, that last day appointment, that will be a terrible thing. That is why in chapter 5: 11, Paul starts the section that we did read. He says, “Because we understand our fearful responsibility to the Lord, we work hard to persuade others.” We work hard to persuade others. This is our responsibility. Therefore, as best we can, gripped by this urgency, prayerfully, lovingly, we try to persuade others, urging them, respond to this offer of forgiveness, come back to God.
We work hard to persuade others.
Jesus Has Rescued You
Knowing we must all stand before Christ, gripped by this urgency, knowing Christ’s love, knowing we’re all Christ’s ambassadors means reaching a world like ours is the responsibility of all who call ourselves Christians. It’s not an optional extra. We’re all called to share the good news of Jesus. As I finish, let me take us back to the wrecked ship, the Green Lily. If you’re a Christian, you were once on that ship. You remember on that ship, you were in great danger. Now having been rescued, you can never be the same. How much more is it true from what God has been saying to us this morning that Jesus Changes Everything. Jesus Loves You. Jesus has died for you. Your sin is paid for. You’re reconciled to God through Jesus. You’re Christ’s Ambassador, all because of God’s Amazing Grace. Jesus has rescued you. You can never be the same.
Consider this, our world is on that ship. People in Riverstone and the surrounding suburbs, people you know are on that ship, family, friends, neighbors, work colleagues, schoolmates, they’re on that ship, and they’re in danger of perishing, of spending an eternity without God. The clock is ticking, the ship is about to break up, their lives are about to be lost. Remember, we know the winch man. We know the one who can save them. We know the one who can rescue them. We know Jesus. Can I urge you, will you prayerfully look for opportunities to introduce them to this winch man? Prayerfully look for opportunities to talk to them about Jesus so they too can be saved, rescued by him. Jesus changes everything. Three reasons to speak about Jesus: Christ’s love controls us, it urges us, we’re Christ’s ambassadors, and the right time is now. Let me lead us in prayer. I’ll pray. Heavenly Father, we do thank you for Jesus. We thank you for his amazing love. Thank you that in Jesus our sin is taken away and we have peace, we have forgiveness. Thank you that we are made new, and thank you for the privilege of being ambassadors, of being able to speak of this amazing love. We pray that as your ambassadors, you’d please help us to honor you in all we do. Please give us that sense of urgency, and we pray for our church. Please help us to be ready to speak your Word of Life to a world so desperately needing it, and we ask it for the Glory of Jesus. Amen.