God Was in Christ: What the Cross Actually Accomplished Between Us and God
2 Corinthians 5:18-20 declares: "Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 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."
When we read these words today, we often sanitize them. We turn the raw, seismic collision of heaven and earth into a neat theological abstraction. But I have come to realize that if we miss the sheer audacity of what happened at Calvary, and what Paul is arguing in this passage, we miss the very heartbeat of the Christian faith. What did the cross actually accomplish between us and a holy God? And how does that staggering transaction radically redefine our daily existence here in New Bern, NC?
Let us open the Scriptures together and examine the theological weight of verse 19, the ministry of reconciliation, and what it means to be trained as ambassadors in Christ's body.
I. The Divine Initiative: God Was in Christ
First, we must confront the foundational truth of the gospel: reconciliation does not start with us. In our fallen, stubborn state, we were spiritual nobodies running away from our Creator, much like Adam hiding behind the bushes in Eden. We did not scheme up a plan to bridge the infinite chasm between Creator and creature.
As the Apostle Paul states, "All this is from God" (2 Corinthians 5:18).
To understand the weight of this, we must look at the historical and theological landscape of the ancient world. In Greco-Roman religion, gods had to be appeased by human sweat, blood, and ritualistic bribery. The initiative always lay with the trembling mortal trying to placate a capricious deity. But Christianity turns this entire system upside down. God Himself took the initiative.
As the great reformer Martin Luther eloquently observed in his commentary on Galatians:
"This is the master rule, the most substantial and certain foundation of all Christian doctrine: that we do not know God in His majesty, or in His wrath, or in His power, but we know Him in Christ crucified. Christ is the mirror of the heart of the Father. In Him we see that God is not a tyrant, not an executioner, but a loving Father who so loved the world that He stepped down into our mess to rescue us."
Listen to me: God did not stand on the balcony of heaven shouting down instructions for our self-improvement. He stepped onto the arena of human history. "God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself" (2 Corinthians 5:19). That phrase, God was in Christ, is the ultimate changing of the guard in human history. The Creator enveloped Himself in human flesh, experiencing our temptations, absorbing our griefs, and marching resolutely toward a Roman cross.
II. Not Imputing Their Trespasses: The Heart of the Atonement
At this point, we arrive at the theological epicenter of verse 19: "not imputing their trespasses to them."
What does it mean for God not to count our sins against us? Does a holy God simply wink at evil? Does He sweep our rebellion under the cosmic rug? Absolutely not! If God ignored sin, He would cease to be just.
To grasp the legal and relational gravity of this, look at how the Bible handles justice and mercy elsewhere. In Romans 3:25-26, Paul explains that God put forth Christ as a propitiation, a sacrifice of atonement, to demonstrate His righteousness, so that He might be both just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. The cross was not a divine temper tantrum; it was the ultimate courtroom verdict where our debt was paid in full.
Think about the terminology. To "impute" (logizomai) is an accounting term. It means to ledger a charge to someone's account. Because of our sin, our spiritual ledger was bankrupt, stamped with overwhelming guilt. But at the cross, a magnificent exchange took place. Our sins were imputed to Christ, and His perfect righteousness was imputed to us.
Doubt should push you right to the foot of this cross! When your conscience accuses you of past failures, do not run away into isolation. Run straight to the text. God is not counting your trespasses against you because He counted them against His own Son instead.
As Charles Spurgeon once preached on this very doctrine:
"Oh, what a marvellous thing is this! The believer's sins are gone: gone by divine decree, gone by substitutionary sacrifice, gone into the wilderness of forgetfulness, never to be found again. The justice of God is as satisfied with the believer as if the believer had never sinned, because Christ has borne the penalty in his stead. Where is the condemnation now? It is buried in the grave of the risen Savior!"
This is not mere poetry; this is legal, judicial, and spiritual reality for every believer.
III. Entrusted with the Word: The Ministry of Reconciliation
Once our account is settled, what happens next? Does God save us simply so we can punch our ticket to heaven and sit comfortably in the pews?
Never! Verse 18 and 19 tell us that God "has given us the ministry of reconciliation" and "has committed to us the word of reconciliation."
Here at New Vision Ministries, we frequently talk about the church as a training ground rather than a country club. We are not gathered here simply to enjoy pious isolation; we are being equipped for the Great Commission. God takes reconciled rebels and turns them into ambassadors.
What does an ambassador do? An ambassador does not represent their own agenda or kingdom. They represent a foreign sovereign in a hostile land. When you walk through the neighborhoods of New Bern, NC, you are walking as an emissary of heaven. You carry a message that the world desperately needs to hear: peace with God is available through Jesus Christ.
This changes how we view interpersonal conflict, community accountability, and reconciliation within the body of Christ. Too often, when offenses happen, our natural, secular impulse is to dig our trenches, demand our rights, and launch lawsuits or social media campaigns. But Scripture calls us to a radically different path. We are governed by the spirit of love and forgiveness, not secular litigation. If God did not count our trespasses against us, how can we hold petty grudges against our brothers and sisters in Christ?
IV. Ambassadors on Mission: Living Out the Gospel Today
Listen! The brokenness you see in our culture: the division, the anxiety, the existential despair: cannot be healed by political platforms or economic reforms. Only the gospel of reconciliation can heal a fractured soul.
When Paul writes, "We implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God" (2 Corinthians 5:20), he is dripping with passion and urgency. He is not offering a polite suggestion; he is pleading with the lost to lay down their arms of rebellion and surrender to the King of kings.
This is why our weekly gatherings matter so much. Every Sunday at 10 AM and every Wednesday Bible study at 6 PM are designed to train you, sharpen you, and root you deep in the Word of God. We are learning how to stand shoulder-to-shoulder, holding one another accountable in love, so that we can effectively reach our community.
If you are looking for a spiritual family in the New Bern area, I invite you to join us. Whether you are struggling with doubt, seeking a deeper relationship with Jesus, or looking for a place where you can be trained to serve, our doors are open. Come check out our upcoming events and worship with us as we live out our calling as ambassadors of reconciliation.
Conclusion: Faith Over Feelings
At the end of the day, living as a new creation governed by the ministry of reconciliation requires faith over feelings. Your feelings will often tell you that you are unlovable, that your past is too heavy, or that your conflicts are too complex to resolve. But faith looks straight at the cross and declares: "God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself."
Your personal testimony is the living proof of this reality. When you forgive when you have been wronged, when you speak the truth in love, and when you point your neighbors to the cross, you are fulfilling the very mission Christ entrusted to His church.
Let us embrace our identity not as weary wanderers, but as forgiven, empowered ambassadors of the King. The old you is gone. Step out into the mission field today, and let the world see the transforming power of God's grace.