LAKEVIEW MISSIONARY CHURCH

Weekly Update for February 22, 2023

AN AMBASSADOR FOR CHRIST

In seminary I worked as a caddie at a private golf club which provided lots of time to talk with my coworkers. Time after time they shared stories of disappointment and disgust about church and Christians.
            They talked about TV pastors getting rich from the pennies of poor elderly women. They talked about local pastors that were caught having affairs with women in the church. They talked about so-called internet pastors who fancied themselves as “apologists” that could disprove evolution when the pastor had no training or knowledge of basic science.
            I sometimes wondered if there was any Christian that was serving as a bridge—an ambassador—to draw that person to Christ.
            In the Old Testament the nation of Israel was isolated. They didn’t use ambassadors. Additionally, God had told his people that he wanted them to be separate from the other nations around them. They were supposed to be unique, holy, and not compromised by neighboring nations (Exodus 19:6).
            But that changed in the New Testament. Paul wrote, “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” (2 Corinthians 5:20, NASB). Paul says we Christians are supposed to be Christ’s ambassadors. The Greek Word Paul uses here is presbeuo which Paul also uses in Ephesians 6:20, “for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.”
            The word picture Paul paints in his readers’ minds is someone that represents where he is from (his home country) and where he goes (a foreign country). For us, our citizenship is in heaven, but God has placed us on earth to represent Him. That’s what an ambassador is.   
            I was a Christian attending seminary in order to become a pastor. While working at that golf course I served as Christ’s ambassador. This might have been one of the first times these guys met and interacted with a real Christian.
            As a strong Christian I knew that my “citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20), but my place of employment was a secular job with earthly guys who were living immoral lives. But that’s where ministry happens! The first step of serving as Christ’s ambassador starts with being in a foreign nation..
            This position as ambassadors is a position we hold. God has given us a new heart and regenerated us (Jeremiah 31:31-33), we have been born again (John 3:3-8), and because of that we have been adopted by God (Galatians 3:26-27, 29-4:7). We truly “are” Christ’s ambassadors.
            It’s a place we get to enjoy. We didn’t earn that place and we didn’t deserve it (Romans 3:23; 6:23). Instead, God gave us a gift of salvation through faith (Romans 5:8; 6:23). That faith saves us from death and gives us eternal life (Romans 10:9-10). Because we call on Jesus we will not die, but instead will live with him forever (Romans 10:13).
            If we follow the ambassador metaphor, you could say it is an “office” we are placed in. But what is this “position” or “office” used for?
            It’s not enough to just “be.” Paul wants people to be “for Christ.” This means going places we might not otherwise go. I have a friend that likes to go to bars because he knows he will meet non-Christians that are going through difficult times. (He doesn’t have a beer, but he sits and talks.) I have another friend who prepares his sermons at Panera Bread because he wants to be around real people living real life while he prepares his messages. A senior pastor I used to work for spent as much time as possible at a locally-owned coffee shop because he wanted to connect with the people that lived and work nearby our church.
            To be “for Christ” means we are out in the community representing Him. We are trying our best to get to know others and love them. Why? This love for others is based on our love for God. Because we “love, because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19).
            God loved us before we knew Him, followed Him, or loved Him. Likewise, we too must love others even before they know us or love us. That’s how we are “for Christ” showing love to others before they know us or Christ.
            We are His ambassadors representing His love in a foreign nation—the world—to people that don’t know Him.
Christopher L. Scott