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Reconciliation By Stephen Bignall

And it encompasses faith, repentance, redemption, it's just rich with gospel imagery and the experience of, sorry, the experience of, what did you press before to make that, it's on is it? Okay, thank you, yeah, sorry, different setting, picks up a bit more background noise, just consider me background noise. Please turn in the booklets to page 8 and we're looking at reconciliation, words of life and works of power, these four gospel words. There's a book called 18 Words by J. I. Packer, it has more than our four words, it has 18 key Bible words, among them faith, repentance, reconciliation and I believe redemption but if you can grab that book it would be a very helpful book. Words of life and works of power.
Reconciliation is one of the works of power on God's part. So God's act of his work of
redemption calls for our faith. He buys us at a great price, he purchases us, he frees
us at a great price and faith in that wonderful work of Jesus Christ in redeeming us brings
life but also repentance as we shall see is another gift of God and repentance has to
do with God's reconciliation of himself towards us. Repentance would have no fruit for us
if God was not reconciling himself to us through his son. There's hostility between
the human race and their creator. You could describe the history of the world after Adam
and Eve's disobedience and mankind falls into sin, you could describe the history of the
world from a human perspective as the long war against God. That's how we could describe
the human perspective of history, the long war against God. The scripture, particularly
the New Testament describes humanity as enemies toward God, alienated in our minds by wicked
works but the wonderful thing is that God, as he commands us to do, loves his enemies
and blesses them that curse him and on the cross as you see in John 17 Jesus Christ prayed
for those who despitefully used him. Father forgive them and then in John 17 he says,
put any praise for them, for those who will believe on me through their word. So everyday
picture of reconciliation, for an Australian it should not be hard. If you've been in school
any time in the last 30 years, reconciliation is on the national mind. In the national mind
reconciliation between the majority of the nation and the histories of our nation brought
about the alienation of two people. 97.5% of us originally are from somewhere else within
the last two centuries. 2.5% of us are descended from the original peoples and there is a call
for reconciliation, national reconciliation, a process of reconciliation, an end to the
hostility that brought about the dispossession of one people and the possession of the land
and materials and liberty generally that that brings by another people. So here we are today,
couriers and non-couriers, all Australians and reconciliation is a vital process and
part of our nation's consciousness and need and there is a continuing hostility. So reconciliation
is important to us as a nation and if that hostility does not cease there can be no reconciliation,
that's the key point. Reconciliation presupposes a condition of hostility and that's why I
think, you know, anyone who knows our nation and knows those peoples from whom we are descended,
whether couriers or non-couriers, knows there is a hostility between two communities and
that's why there needs to be reconciliation, it's based on actions, real actions or perceived.
But also at an individual level, reconciliation is needed where there is a separation and
a breakdown in relationship. So we talk about the need for reconciliation between a parent
and child. We talk about the need for reconciliation in a marriage that is breaking down. There's
hostility there, there's enmity, there's a breakdown of that relationship which by its
very nature expresses a fundamental unity. A husband and a wife, so shall a man love
his wife as Christ loved the church. They shall become one flesh. It's a fundamental
unity and when that breaks down through hostility there's a need for reconciliation. So they're
the everyday picture. I always want to ground it whenever I teach truth in human experience.
So these are real needs for reconciliation nationally, whatever part we play in that
and individually, whatever relationship we possess, sons and fathers break down, mothers
and daughters, mothers and fathers. We need to constantly seek an end to the hostility
that destroys our relationship. Now when Paul's defining the Bible in Romans 1, he talks about
this. You know I've always thought, I'm not sure that I would have started to explain
the Gospel in the same way Paul did. He says in Romans 1 and verse 15, he says, as much
as is in me, I am ready to preach the Gospel to those who are in Rome also. It's wonderful.
Verse 16, for I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation
for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness
of God is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, the just shall live by faith.
You think, wow, what's he going to say next? For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven
against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness.
He starts with the wrath of God and then as he goes on, he starts to talk about people
being without excuse and he begins to quote from the Old Testament so that by Romans chapter
3, in verse 10 it says, there is none righteous, no not one, there is none who understands,
there is none who seeks after God, there is none, they have all turned aside, they have
all together become unprofitable. Romans 3 verse 12, there is none who does good, no
not one, their throat is an open tomb, with their tongues they have practiced deceit,
the poison of asps is under their lips, whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness, their
feet are swift to shed blood. And on and on it goes. Verse 9 it says, now we know that
whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law that every mouth may be
stopped and the whole world, that is the human race, the whole of humanity, may become
guilty before God. You see, hostility is mutual, the hostility is mutual. That's quoting from
I believe it's Psalm 14 there and it begins with this question, the Lord looked down upon
the children of men to see if there was anyone that did understand, if there was anyone that
didn't seek good, if there were any sought after God. That's a loose translation but
if you look up Psalm 14 later you'll see. The Lord looked to see and what did he see?
He saw the counter position of man. Sin is the lack of any conformity to the nature,
character and will of God. So it's the opposite of everything God is, intends and commands.
That's sin. It's a counter position, it's a hostile position to God. So who's going
to move towards reconciliation? Well unless God does there can be no reconciliation because
he's the offended party. He's the one against which all the wrong has been done. He's
the one that's been despised, mistreated and rejected. He's the one against which man's
fundamental enmity works itself out. He's the offended party, he's the greater party.
So reconciliation if you look at that Bible definition there it involves a change in the
relationship between God and man or man and man and by that we mean the generic man. So
men and women are included in that, we're one mankind. It assumes that there has been
a breakdown in the relationship but now there has been a change from a state of enmity,
that's hostility, enemies and fragmentation being broken apart to one of harmony and fellowship.
The old word for fellowship is communion. Common union. Now the example, again look
up Baker's Theological Dictionary, you don't have to rush out and buy that huge tome, although
you can it's great but get it online, it's all free. Just look up Baker's Theological
Dictionary and you can find the definition to all sorts of Bible words like propitiation,
which is related to God's intention to reconcile himself. An example of this for us is Joseph
and his brothers. Let's see the work first of all between human beings, this powerful
work. So you go to Genesis 45 and everybody should know and most of us do know the story
of Joseph, his murderous brothers. They're intending to kill him, they're jealous of
him. In an attempt, a pragmatic attempt to save him and it's out of no love for him,
it says all of his brothers hated him, but out of a pragmatic attempt to save him so
that he'd escape the anger and spare his father the sorrow of losing a son, he's sold
off into slavery and he has this tremendous experience of being abased and being exalted
and he has a false accusation against him, he's forgotten by friends, he's imprisoned
without trial, he's on remand without ever getting a day in court for years because that's
what the Egyptian prison was for, he was on remand, he was awaiting trial and his case
never comes up. Wouldn't be too good, you've got the policeman's badge on there, but forever
on remand, never get your day in court. And then one day he's exalted to Pharaoh's right
hand through his godly counsel, through God's wonderful providence and he becomes Pharaoh's
father, the father to Pharaoh. What a powerful... Pharaoh was, like the president of the United
States is today, you mightn't love his country, but his country had a lot of economic power
and a lot of military power and when the bad times came, it was nice to have Egyptians
around, if you get food you can maybe allow yourself militarily, even though you mightn't
have liked them too much, I suppose that's, you know, whether you love or dislike, the
American people, their nation is a very key one in world affairs and they have great capacity
to do either good or evil. Pharaoh's place was like that. So if you're the father to
Pharaoh, you have all power. His murderous brothers turn up. Payback. I once told a group
of young career kids, I said to them, forgiveness means an end to payback and they went, where's
the fun in that? And they weren't having fun these guys. The payback cycle in the school
that I was at was, they were pounding the living daylights out of each other. Kids were
being driven to consider self destruction and taking their own lives because of payback,
just an endless cycle of hatred and hurt. It was alright while you were doing the paying
back and then the cycle kicked around again. But what does Joseph do? Here's his chance.
Well, he just can't restrain himself in the end. Then Joseph, chapter 45 verse 1, then
Joseph could not restrain himself before all those who stood before him and he cried out,
make everyone go out from me. So no one stood with him while Joseph made himself known to
his brothers and he wept aloud and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard it. Then Joseph
said to his brothers, I am Joseph, does my father still live? But his brothers could
not answer him for they were dismayed in his presence. And Joseph said to his brothers,
please come near to me. So they came near. Then he said, I am Joseph, your brother whom
you sold into Egypt. But now do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because
you sold me here for God sent me before you to preserve life. That's reconciliation.
We go a little further. You know, maybe he's just thinking, well, Dad's still alive. I
better not. There's going to be payback. We'll wait for Mum and Dad are dead. Does that ring
any bells? What happens after the funeral? We all gather, don't we? We gather so often.
What happens after the funeral? We start to divide it all up. Grudges come in. I want
that. Mum wanted me to have that. And lifelong divisions in families after Mum and Dad are
dead over what Mum and Dad had in life. Chapter 50, Dad's dead. Suddenly the brothers
are thinking, well, maybe Joseph was, you know, feeling alright about it because Dad
was alive. We didn't want to give him any more grief. And now Dad's dead and so are
we. Because here we are now living in Egypt and Joseph has all power really. And so they
make up a lie. Our father said to us while he was alive, you know, powerful thing when
you come. You know, I've heard some people speak in dead people's names. Sometimes in
the pastor, the previous pastor's name. If pastor was still alive, he would have said,
you don't know that. You've got no idea what he would have said if he was still alive.
You know, we make these fabrications. And, you know, it's an old human preoccupation.
Hypothetical is about what a dead person would have said should they still be alive.
Chapter 50, verse 15. When Joseph's brother saw that their father was dead, they said,
perhaps Joseph will hate us and may actually repay us for all the evil which we did to
him. So they sent messages to Joseph saying, before your father died, he commanded us saying,
thus you shall say to Joseph, I beg you, please forgive the trespass of your brothers and
their sin, for they did evil to you. End of quote. Now please forgive the trespass of
the servants of the God of your father. So they implicate God as well. They're genuinely
frightened. And Joseph wept. This man, Joseph, is an extraordinarily gracious man, isn't
he? He's full of empathy and love for his worthless brothers. Joseph wept when they
spoke to him. Why was he weeping? Because he'd forgiven them. He'd reconciled himself
to them. That they should doubt his love and the veracity, the reality of what he'd done
broke his heart. It was true he loved them. It was true that he'd forgiven them. It was
true that he believed that God had sent him before them to save life. It was real reconciliation.
Then his brothers also went and fell down before his face and they said to him, behold,
we are your servants. Joseph said to them, do not be afraid for am I in the place of
God? There's only one who can judge, condemn or free and fully release. I'm not in God's
place. But as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to
bring it about as it is this day to save many people alive. Now, therefore, do not be afraid.
I will provide for you and for your little ones. What a tremendous statement. He's a
man. He's a man. I was not said of him specifically in scripture. Here is truly a man after God's
own heart. Yes? Reconciliation. It's real. It's permanent. Redemption is real and permanent.
You don't become unredeemed. If you've been redeemed, you know that because you've exercised
faith in Jesus Christ, that is permanent. And so is God's reconciliation of us to himself
in his son. That gives you a springboard for repentance day. Reconcile to God. It's a permanent
condition in which God initiates an end to hostility. He changes the nature of the relationship
from a state of enmity and fragmentation to one of harmony and fellowship. We can never
be reconciled to God if God does not work reconciliation, if he doesn't change the relationship
in which we stand from enmity and fragmentation, separated from God without hope and without
God in the world. To what? Saved by Christ, sons of the Father, one with him. That's what
peace means. You see, peace isn't just an end to hostility. Peace isn't just a cessation
of war. It's the beginning of a new and stable relationship in which good things grow. It's
the provision of the resources and the room to do the best things together with stability.
That's peace. Okay? So Romans five. Is it a permanent condition? Should we be worried
that, you know, I know I was reconciled to God, but how does he think of me now? I've
done this. I'm unsure. How does he feel about me now? Well, how did he feel about you before
you even knew anything about him? What did he do about you, Christian person, you who
believe in Jesus? Are you going to cast away your confidence? Romans five, verse one. Therefore,
having been justified by faith, now we know what that means. We have peace with God through
our Lord Jesus Christ. And we're learning what that means. Through whom also we have
access by faith into this grace in which we stand and rejoice in the hope of the glory
of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulations
produces perseverance. And it goes on to tell us what those things develop. And then it
says in verse six, for when we were still without strength in due time, Christ died
for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die, perhaps for a good man,
someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love towards us in that while we were
still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more than having now been justified by his blood,
we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if when we were enemies, we were reconciled
to God through the death of his son, much more having been reconciled, we shall be saved
by his life. So we were enemies, all of us. Enemies alienated in our minds by wicked
words. Enemies before we even lived. God looked down through the ages he saw. What did he
see? He saw enemies. And then he sent his son. And through the death of his son, he
was reconciled to his enemies. Having been reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
Remember what David talked about? Not only Christ's sacrifice, the just for the unjust,
the good for the evil, the holy for the unholy, but it's his life. The vitality and power
of how he lived and the fact that he yet lives, he has the power of an endless life.
And that's why God's reconciliation is real. Christ ever lives to make intercession for
us. It's real. It has its foundation in his intention. And not only that, but we also
rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, for whom we have now received the reconciliation.
And older versions used to translate that the atonement, but it's the same word that's
translated reconciliation throughout the King James Bible in other areas. It's the same
word. So the atonement can be called the reconciliation. That's God's great act to show that he's
brought humanity, that pardoned humanity, that redeemed humanity, that humanity that
will be drawn to him, all whom the Father gives me shall come to me. Of all whom he
has given me, I shall not lose one. The Lord knows them that it is. You can be sure that
you're not in the state of enmity now. You've come to God. You have harmony. You have fellowship.
It's a permanent condition. And therefore, you can explain that to other people.
There is a very dangerous gospel abroad that uses God's benevolence in a wrong way. He
says, you know, the Lord loves you. Well, you don't know that until you see it demonstrated
in his Son and appropriate it. You don't know that you're reconciled to God until you come
to Jesus. For the wrath of God abides. That's how Paul starts. On all ungodliness and unrighteousness
of men. God is still angry with the wicked every day. There is still hostility between
those that are sold into sin and condemned under the law and serve the prince and power
of the air. Those that are without Christ are still yet to receive the reconciliation.
And there are those who will be unreconciled to God through all eternity. So we mustn't
talk. It's wonderful to talk about God's universal love towards humanity. But God's saving power
in Jesus Christ affects the fallen wonderful reconciliation of a new humanity that will
dwell with him forever. God does not punish those eternally in hell to whom he is reconciled.
Be reconciled to God is the great command. Flee from the wrath to come. Be reconciled
to God is the plea of a gospel message and a gospel servant. You must know that reconciliation
personally. You must avail yourself of God's. All the day long I stretch forth my arms
towards a disobedient and denying people. So that's why we go to 1 Corinthians. He's
talking to a church that had a lot of problems. You read what the Corinthian church had problems
with and it's exactly what the church has problems with today. And 2 Corinthians chapter
5. This is easy to remember if you want to look a bit more at reconciliation. 2 Corinthians
chapter 5, Romans chapter 5 are key passages in it. 2 Corinthians chapter 5, it's talking
to us about if anyone is in Christ they are a new creation. There's this new creation.
You know you've been born again. The God who commanded light to shine out of darkness
has shone in your heart. Chapter 4 tells us. Here are these ambassadors for Christ. In
verse 17 it says if anyone is in Christ they are a new creation. All things have passed
away, all things have become new, all things are of God who has reconciled us to himself
through Jesus Christ. All things are of God. You see it's a work of power. When we were
yet without strength in due time Christ died for the ungodly. And he has given us the ministry,
the service of reconciliation. Do you know what your Christian service is? Do you know
what your life is in Christ? It's a ministry of reconciliation. That's why you can't afford
to let race or history or personal experience separate you from those to whom Jesus has
sent you. And look, in his mercy, my indigenous friends, he's sent you to every gubba that
you bump into. And my non-indigenous friends, as couriers that you hold at arm's length
and whose streets you pass through quickly with your windows up. He's sent you to them
as well. Some of them are your brothers and sisters, your Koori believers. Look at all
these white fellas here today. Your white fellas. Look at all these Kooris. Here we
are. It's wonderful, isn't it? It's the most wonderful thing. Reconciliation. That's right
Adel and Rue, isn't it? You guys often think are living proof to me of it. Dave and Rose,
all our children in Christ marrying one another's children. God has given us peace. It was a
wonderful thing to be given peace personally, corporately. You know what Jerusalem is called?
There's a Jerusalem that is above, which is the mother of us all. What does Jerusalem
mean? Possession of peace. It's a wonderful thing. So here in this passage, if you want
to know it's between you and God, it's peace between you and God and our life and our ministry
and our service for Jesus together is to call others to it. We've received it and we're
ambassadors through Christ and for Christ. Look at this. All things of God, verse 18,
who has reconciled us to himself through Jesus Christ. He's given us the service, the ministry
of reconciliation. That is that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not
imputing, not reckoning, not holding and charging their trespasses to them as has committed
to us the word of reconciliation. What is that word? It's the gospel. It's the good
news. It's the message of Christ. There's a reconciling word. It tells us of God's intention
to reconcile everyone to himself who will come as a sinner to Jesus. You know, you could
fear God. There was an old Welsh preacher, you know, he's a bit like the Welsh John Bunyan
and he used to use all these military and navel allegories. His name was Christmas Evans.
What a thing to call a kid. His parents called him Christmas Evans and they had one eye and
they used to say that that one eye was the hard one. He was a pretty tough man but he
was converted and he described his experience was like the experience of the Apostle Paul
he said. Here was Paul with all his fleet of ships, self-righteousness, enmity against
Christ and he comes into battle and the Lord shipwrecks them all and here he is on the
deck of his doomed ship, an enemy and the fleet that he's sailing against, the great
captain, leaps onto the deck and Paul drowning and dying in his self-righteousness and enmity
to Jesus Christ, he picks him up and he carries him to his own ship and he takes him prisoner
and he sets him free. He's reconciled to him and he reconciles him to himself. That's
the end of the great battle. It's God's intention. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ as
though God were pleading through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God.
Are you reconciled to God? Not do you fear him? Not do you believe that he exists? Are
you reconciled to him? Have you felt his embrace? Are you aware that there's no hostility between
you and he? Not because he has this general geniality to all humanity but because at the
cost of the son of his love, at the price of his redeeming work, he's demonstrated his
love to you and that while you were still a sinner and alienated from him by your wicked
works, Christ died for you and lives for you and faith in him is everything. That's to
know the reconciliation and that's what we call people too. Not a better you, not your
best life now, not even primarily a sense of worth. Salvation, deliverance, reconciliation
to God. That's the thing because once affected, it never ends. And here's God's promise that
for whatever reason, I've got to end. Just one more for this. You may have heard me quote
this before, I apologise but I don't really. This is a wonderful... Isaiah, Isaiah 54 calls
for a song. Ado asked me what to sing and we settled on how deep the Father's love for
us. It's a song that encapsulates all the words we're learning about, all the acts of
God and what he calls us to. And here's a song, Sing O Baron, Isaiah 54 verse 1. You
who have not born... You're barren, you can't bring forth a child. Break forth into singing
and cry aloud. More are the children of the desolate than the children of the married
woman. There's a picture of the church not fearing, verse 4. You will not be disgraced
or ashamed. You'll forget the shame of your youth. You know, there are things that happen
to us in youth and the church is pictured in two ways. There's someone who was widowed
in youth or shamed in youth by her former husband. And now she's wed to Christ. So you
forget the shame of your youth. You will not remember the reproach of your widowhood
anymore. For your maker is your husband. The Lord of hosts is his name and your redeemer.
So there's redemption. He's the Holy One of Israel. He's called the God of the whole earth.
But here's reconciliation. The Lord has called you like a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit
like a youthful wife when you were refused, says your God. For a mere moment I've forsaken
you, but with great mercies I will gather you. With a little wrath I hid my face from
you for a moment. But with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you, says the Lord, your
redeemer. For this is like the waters of Noah to me. For as I have sworn that the waters
of Noah would no longer cover the earth, so have I sworn that I would not be angry with
you nor rebuke you. For the mountains shall depart and the hills be removed, but my kindness
shall not depart from you, nor shall my covenant of peace be removed, says the Lord, who has
mercy on you. Mountains will depart, brothers and sisters. The hills will be removed. He
comes in the clouds. There'll be those who call upon the rocks and they'll be in the
caves of the earth and they'll call upon the rocks to hide them, but that won't be the
case for you. You'll see the face of he who loved you and washed you from sin. You'll
see the face of your beloved who is going to gather you to himself forever. You'll know
that there's a covenant of peace and a kindness that cannot depart from you. You'll know that
peace come for you. The call from the grave, your eyes will open in a resurrection body
and you'll see him who loved you. That's reconciliation.