Ambassadors

By Samantha Rodriguez

“That is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and he has committed the message of reconciliation to us. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us. We plead on Christ’s behalf: “Be reconciled to God.” He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”—2 Corinthians 5:19-21 (CSB)

Let’s think about social media for a minute. What’s so intriguing about random people living across the globe sharing about their lives? I think it’s the fact that we feel connected to them because of how they intentionally try to make us feel like we’re part of their day-to-day lives. The unboxing, the gender reveals, the restaurant reviews, the room tours. If you look at it, the common denominator in all these things is that someone is sharing either something new, or something they love, in order to hopefully get you to share in that experience, too. Behind the paid partnerships is often a desire to get their audience involved with something they believe in and have found to be true and enjoyable. 

We should feel the same way when it comes to our faith! Our desire to share the joy and excitement of life with others comes from the fact that God created us in His image, and a major part of His image is His relationship with the Son and the Holy Spirit. That is why we also seek others to share the joy of life with. Why then is it so much easier to share the superficial stuff with people over our eternal hope? Our sinful nature often keeps us timid and fearful, and until we are with Christ in heaven, it will always be in conflict with the Holy Spirit who lives in born-again Christians. We must not forget, though, that the Spirit who lives in us is the same Spirit who raised Jesus from the grave (Romans 8:11)! If the Lord has given us victory and power through His Spirit and guarantees that in His perfect love for us there is no fear, then we have no reason to shy away from sharing our faith. 

It’s more than a simple privilege or blessing to be saved by Jesus, it’s also our responsibility to share that message of reconciliation with others. We are now ambassadors for Christ. As Paul reminds the Corinthian church of the light of the gospel and their role as ministers of that gospel, he explains that our role as new creations in Christ Jesus is to share that message with those around us. 

Why would we want to keep such amazing and literally life-saving news to ourselves? God loves us so much that, even though He does not need us, He wants to include us as a working and valuable part of His wondrous story. The least we can do in return for what He did for us is surrender our lives to Him and say, “Here I am, Jesus. Teach me, use me, send me.”

DIG: It is the Holy Spirit who gives us the power to be ambassadors for Christ, yet we often underestimate His power and importance. Why is it so crucial that we received the Holy Spirit once Jesus left earth and we received salvation? Read John 15:26–16:15, Acts 1:8, 2 Corinthians 2, 3:16–17, and Titus 3:5.

DISCOVER: What keeps you from sharing the gospel with others? I know that for me it is the fear of rejection and fear of an angry response, but we have no right or reason to be living in fear anymore. We have the greatest news in the world and should be excited to share it with others! Identify what is holding you back and take a step today to begin overcoming whatever it may be. 

DO: You and I both knew this was coming. Be bold today and invite that person to church. Share a Bible verse with a stranger or the story of Jesus with a friend. Shoot that family member a text. Whatever, or whoever, it may be that the Lord is calling you to do, take a step of faith and do it today.