Archive for June 23rd, 2010
Shultz:
2 Corinthians 5:18-21
Second Corinthians 5:18-21 enlarges upon and completes the truths expressed in 5:14-15. Second Corinthians 5:16-17 describes two consequences of Christ’s death for those who believe (cf. 5:15). First, for believers there is now a completely different way of viewing reality (v. 16).87 Second, anyone who is in Christ is a new creation, and a part of Christ’s new order for the universe (v. 17).88 All of these benefits of being in Christ are from God (v. 18a),89 as God is the one “who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation” (2 Cor 5:18b-19). These verses state that God reconciled the world to himself through Christ, and the results of this reconciliation are the forgiveness of sins and the preaching of the cross.90
Reconciliation is a distinctly Pauline idea,91 and most broadly it refers to God’s work in which, out of his love, he acts to bring about harmonious relations between himself and his creation.92 God reconciles through Jesus Christ, on the basis of the work of Christ, the atonement.93 Reconciliation is primarily an objective act; it is something that God has done for humanity in the cross of Christ.94 It is also a subjective act, however, because human beings must themselves subjectively experience the reconciliation that God has wrought in order to have fellowship with him.95 Both the objective and the subjective senses of reconciliation are present in 2 Corinthians 5:18-21.
Second Corinthians 5:18-19 are parallel statements, in that verse 19 repeats and amplifies the thoughts of verse 18.96 The objective work of reconciliation appears at the beginning of each verse, in that God has reconciled “us” (v. 18) or “the world” (v.19) to himself. The need for a subjective receiving of God’s reconciliation is highlighted at the end of each verse, as Paul speaks of the ministry and the message of reconciliation.97 This ministry and message of reconciliation is clarified in verse 20, which states “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” In light of God’s reconciling act and consequent entrustment of the message of reconciliation to Paul, Paul describes himself (and others who follow after him)98 as Christ’s ambassador. God makes his appeal through his ambassadors, and people need to believe this appeal in order to be reconciled to God; they need to subjectively experience the objective reality of God’s reconciliation in order to have a relationship with God.99 Second Corinthians 5:21 returns to the objective idea of reconciliation and describes how God accomplished reconciliation in Christ.100 The verse states, “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”