THE KING’S BUSINESS
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accept it and who on their part are “recon ciled to God” (cf. 1 Tim. 4:10). Monday, February 18 . 2 Cor. 5 : 20 , 21 . Paul here speaks of himself as an “ambas sador for Christ.” What an exalted office, and this same exalted office is open to each of us. The word translated “for” means literally, “on behalf of” (as it is trans lated in the Revised Version). As an “ambassador on behalf of Christ” Paul beseeches those to whom he has written, to be “reconciled to God.” Their reconcili ation to God also was to be “on behalf of Christ” (see R. V.). There is a two-fold reconciliation: (1) God reconciling us to Himself, i. e., God restoring us to His Himself from one of condemnation to one favor, changing our judicial standing before of justification; ( 2 ) our being reconciled to God, i. e., our giving up our enemity against God. The first part of this recon ciliation God Himself has already effected. By the atoning death of His Son God has reconciled us to Himself, i. e., has restored us to His favor, changing our judicial stand ing before Him from a standing of con demnation to -a standing of justification. The second part of this reconciliation we should do at once. The beseeching of the ambassador is as if God.Himself besought us. How wonderful that an infinite and holy God should entreat finite and sinful men. It would seem as if men would do the beseeching. In the 21st verse the reason is given why we should be reconciled to God, and what an amazing reason it is. Jesus “knew no sin,” He was absolutely sinless* (John 8:46; Heb. 7:26); yet God “made Him to be sin on our behalf,” i. e., God put;Him in the place of sin, reckoned our sin to His account (cf. Gal. 3:13; Isa. 53:6). God’s wondrous purpose of love in doing this was “that (more exactly, in order that) we might become the righteousness of God in Him,” i. e., that we might have God’s righteousness put to our account. The teaching is that there is an absolute interchange of positions between the sinless Jesus, and our sinful selves.
He stepped into our place of condemnation and curse on the cross, and the moment we accept Him we step into His place of perfect acceptance before God (John 17:23). The moment we accept Christ, we are as perfect, as far as our standing before God is concerned, as is Jesus Him self, indeed as perfect as God Himself, we become “the righteousness of God.’’ But this is “in Him,” in Jesus, and only in Him. “Near, so very near to God,. Nearer I cannot be; For in the person of His Son, I’m just as near as He. Dear, so very dear to God, Dearer I cannot be; For in the person of His Son, I’m just as dear as He.” Tuesday, February rp. 2 Cor. 6 : 1 - 3 . There should be no chapter division at this point. Verse 1 follows immediately upon verse 21 of the preceding chapter without any break in the thought. In the Authorized Version it begins, “We then.” In the Revised Version it begins with “And,” this close conjunctive .particle showing how closely the thought here fol lows the thought of the preceding chapter. Paul has *just spoken of the wonderful work God has done to reconcile men unto Himself and save: them, now he joins his work with God’s and speaks of himself as working together with God (cf. 1 Cor. 3:9, R. V.; Acts 15:4). As working together with God he entreats the believers in Cor inth not to receive this wOndrous grace of God, which he has just described in chapter 5, verses 18-21, “in vain.” Many di> receive it in vain by neglecting it, rejecting it, or turning it into lasciviousness, making the grace of God which should lead to holiness of living, an excuse for sin (Heb. 2:3; 3:12-15; Jude 4; Rom. 6:1, 2). Paul backs up his entreaty to improve the grace of God by quoting what God said to the Christ in Isa. 49:8, “In an acceptable time I hark ened unto thee, and in a day of salvation did I succor thee” : God has heard Christ’s
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