Read 2 Corinthians 5:11-21
Those who brag about having a spectacular ministry rather than having a sincere heart before God are false preachers, who were concerned only about getting ahead in this world. They were preaching the Gospel for money and popularity, while Paul and his companions were preaching out of concern for eternity. You can identify false preachers by finding out what really motivates them. If they are more concerned about themselves than about Christ, avoid them and their message.
Everything that Paul and his companions did was to honor God. Christ’s love controlled their lives. Because Christ died for us, we also are dead to our old life. Like Paul, we should no longer live to please ourselves; we should spend our life pleasing Christ, who died for us and rose from the grave.
Christians are brand new people on the inside. The Holy Spirit gives them new life, and they are not the same anymore. We are not reformed, rehabilitated, or reeducated; we are recreated, living in vital union with Christ (Colossians 2). At conversion we do not merely turn over a new leaf; we begin a new life under a new Master.
God brings us back to Himself by blotting out our sins (Ephesians 2) and making us right with Him. When we trust in Christ, we are no longer God’s enemies, or strangers or foreigners to Him. Because we have been reconciled to God, we have the privilege of encouraging others to do the same, and thus we are those who have the task of reconciling people to Him.
An ambassador is an official representative of one country to another. As believers, we are Christ’s ambassadors, sent with His message of reconciliation to the world. An ambassador of reconciliation has an important responsibility. We dare not take this responsibility lightly. How well are you fulfilling your commission as Christ’s ambassador?
When we trust Christ, we make an exchange: He takes our sin and makes us right with God. Our sin was laid on Christ at His crucifixion. His righteousness is given to us at our conversion. This is what Christians mean by Christ’s atonement for sin. In the world, bartering works only when two people exchange goods of relatively equal value. But God offers to trade His righteousness for our sin; something of immeasurable worth for something completely worthless. How grateful we should be for His kindness to us.