In his second letter to the Corinthians saint Paul writes, “20 we are therefore Christ’s ambassadors…”. As soon as I read those words, I knew I was going to borrow them for the theme of today’s sermon. I have always thought it would be cool to be an ambassador. I think the first time I was introduced to the concept of ambassadorship was as a child watching some show like Miami Vice. I don’t remember if it was Crocket and Tubs or Magnum PI and TC, or Cagney and Lacy for that matter but I remember the cops trying to arrest a hoodlum who had just driven a red-hot Ferrari through a store front window, but they couldn’t arrest him because as an ambassador the hoodlum had diplomatic immunity. As a rebellious ten-year-old boy with a, let’s call it mischievous nature, I thought that was just about the coolest thing I had ever heard. As far as I understood it, from my viewing of 80s police dramas, an ambassador could do whatever they wanted to do whenever they wanted to do it and there was nothing johnny law could do about it. If you asked my friends what they wanted to be when they grew up most would tell you they wanted to be a baseball or football player, a few nerds would say they wanted to be doctors or lawyers, but if you asked me, I would tell you, ‘when I grow up, I want to be an ambassador’.
However, when I grew up and learned what an ambassador really is and does, I changed my mind. Turns out an ambassador isn’t an international playboy who gets to drive a Ferrari around town all day. It is actually a serious job staffed by serious people. An ambassador is the President’s highest-ranking representative to a foreign country. They serve as the voice of the president in diplomatic situations and alert the president to anything or anyone who might interfere with the American way of life. Further, an ambassador often performs this important function in unfriendly or downright hostile territory. The number of car bombs that are detonated outside U.S. embassies is enough to make any ambassador think twice about hopping in a Ferrari and going for a joy ride. I don’t remember exactly when I stopped wanting to be an ambassador, it was probably after going to the musical Miss Saigon and seeing what happened to the U.S. embassy that did it for me, but at some point, I realized an ambassador was entrusted with more responsibility than I wanted and was surrounded by more hostility than I was comfortable.
Which is why no one is more surprised than I am that today I stand before you as an ambassador. As Paul was sent to the Corinthians I have been sent to the Johns Creek-ians to be an ambassador for Christ. But I must say, of all the foreign lands to which I could be dispatched and to all the exotic people to whom I could be deployed I am thankful this is my ambassadorship. When you read through Paul’s letter to the Corinthians you get the impression Paul’s ambassadorship was less welcoming, hospitable, and supportive than mine. I am thankful for you; thankful for your prayers, your words of encouragement. I am thankful for the way you provide for me and my family. I am thankful for this embassy from which we get to conduct our Sovereigns business. Next week I have the opportunity to preach at one of our sister churches and I will be encouraging them to treat their ambassador with as much love and respect as you treat yours.
I am privileged to be Christ’s ambassador to the Johns Creek-ians. Much to the chagrin of my ten-year-old self, I did not show up here today in a red-hot Ferrari, but I did show up to share with you a message from our Sovereign and that message is, I am not the only ambassador in this room. In his second letter to the Corinthians saint Paul writes, “20 WE are Christ’s ambassadors”. “We” is me, but “we” is also you.
I wish that I could teel you being an ambassador was all Ferraris and freedom, but I can’t. Truth is this is serious work. You are to be the voice of God in a land that is becoming increasingly hostile to the Christian way of life. And, trust me, I would understand if that’s not something you want to be. I would understand if you would rather be a sightseer who prefers not to get involved with such things. To be honest there is not a great deal for you to gain. You already know who Jesus is and what He has done for you. With His death on the cross your debt of sin has been paid in full; with His resurrection from the dead your salvation has been secured. Being an ambassador doesn’t make you more forgiven and it doesn’t make you more saved. Being Christ’s ambassador doesn’t give you more, if anything, it leaves you with less. It leaves you with less time, at least one hour a week less as you attend worship and if you volunteer or serve on any kind of council or committee it leaves you with less than that. It leaves you with less money, it leaves you with less than what you put in the offering plate and if there is any kind of free will offering or ambitious ministry to fund it leaves you with even less than that. It leaves you with less comfort, like when you park farther away or sit closer to the front so a guest can have one of the “good spots” or when you are teaching Sunday School, hanging a banner, cleaning up communion, brewing the coffee or serving snacks so that your brothers and sisters don’t have to miss bible class. Being one of Christ’s ambassadors doesn’t give you more, if anything, it leaves you with less. I would understand if you didn’t want to be one of Christ’s ambassadors, I would understand if you simply wanted to be a sightseer in this land.
But before you decide you don’t want to be an ambassador listen to the compelling argument Paul makes in 2 Corinthians 14-21. In verse 14 saint Paul writes, “For Christ’s love compels us.” The word “compel” makes me think of a tube of toothpaste. In order to get every cavity fighting drop of paste out of the tube sometimes you have to rub it over the side of the sink, tightly roll up the bottom and squeeze it out of the top. Sometimes that is what God has to do to us. God knows that our natural desires is to ask ‘what’s in it for me’ and that sometimes we need the paste squeezed out of us. The big difference between us and a tube of toothpaste is God does not compel us with force rather He compels us with love, Christ’s love, to be exact.
Paul writes of Christ’s love all throughout theses verses. In verse 21 He tells us Christ loves us. There Paul writes, “21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”. Talk about being left with less?!? Think about what less Jesus was left with as our Savior. He was treated with less dignity, honor and respect to be sure but ultimately, He was left with less life. All so that you might become the righteousness of God. The great exchange God performed between “Him” and “us” where our sins were put on “Him” and His righteousness was put on “us” tells us how much God loves us.
But also, before that, in verses 16-17, Paul writes of the love Christ has for others. Paul writes, “16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. …” Paul writes, “17…, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” Just as God looks at us and sees Christ’s righteousness, so also, He looks at others and sees the new creation Christ has made them to be, and that is how our God also wants us to see the others. Our God does not want us to view people as though they were commodities in an investment portfolio that can be bought and sold depending on what value they might bring us. God does not want us to look at people and think what we can get out of them. Rather, God wants us to look at others and see people that He loves as much as He loves us and think about what we have that we can give to them.
But also, also, before that, in verses 14-15, Paul tells us Christ loves all people. Paul writes, “14… we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all…”. All, All, All. Three times the word “all” is repeated in rapid succession so that we understand that we are not the only ones Christ loves. He loves all people. He loves old people. He loves young people. He loves happy people. He loves grumpy people. He loves outgoing people. He loves shy people. He loves funny people. He loves boring people. He loves us people. He loves all people.
Christ’s love for us, His love for others, His love for all compels us to be ambassadors. Even though it leaves us with less, being one of Christ’s ambassadors is what we want to be. Thankfully, by God’s grace and mercy that is what we are called to be. In verse 19 Paul writes, “he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.” In verse 20 Paul tells us God chooses to make His appeal “through us.” He didn’t need to do that. Christ doesn’t need ambassadors. Christ created the universe, along with the Father and the Holy Spirit He spoke all that is into being. Even when He set aside the full use of His divine abilities when He walked this earth as also true man, Christ commanded the wind and wave, He cast out demons, and raised the dead all with a word from His mouth. Christ does not need anyone to speak for Him. Further, when it comes to ambassadors, He has better choices than you or me. He has a entire host of heavenly beings who have proven themselves to be ready and reliable messengers. Christ doesn’t need ambassadors especially ones who need to be compelled to serve. Yet, He chose you and He chose me. He chose us to be ambassadors who share the message of reconciliation with each other, with others, and with all.
Christ doesn’t need us need us to be His ambassadors, rather, He allows us to be His ambassadors. Therefore, let us be committed to that work. Let us recognize the resources we have at our disposal, both individually as people and collectively as a congregation. Let us seriously consider the opportunities we have before us both the easy and the simple and the challenging and difficult. Let us acknowledge that this facility is not a compound, it’s an embassy and the people who are currently sitting in it are not sightseers you are ambassadors. Let us recognize, consider, and acknowledge, then let us do; let us do the work that has been entrusted to us in the place we have been sent to serve. Let us share the message of reconciliation with each other, with others, and with all.
The love of Christ compels us, the message of reconciliation has been committed to us. By the grace and mercy of our God, we, me and you, are Christ’s Ambassadors. Let’s get to work! Amen