The Ministry of Reconciliation
In the mid-1970s, David Berkowitz went on a shooting rampage in New York City that spanned several years. At one of the crime scenes, he left a letter signed, “Son of Sam.” Berkowitz claimed the motive for the killings was Sam, a demonic spirit in his neighbor’s black Labrador.
Berkowitz was arrested on August 10, 1977. When police searched his apartment, they found it a jumbled mess, with Satanic graffiti on the walls. They also found detailed diaries that noted hundreds of fires he claimed to have set throughout New York City.
In May of 1978, he pled guilty to six counts of murder and received six consecutive life sentences. However, his plea agreement made him eligible for parole after twenty-five years.
Then, in 1987, David Berkowitz met Jesus and his life was transformed. No longer is he “Son of Sam,” now he is “Son of Hope.” Though he has a parole hearing every two years, he has consistently asked not to be released. Though forbidden access to a computer, David, through a local church, has established an online ministry ariseandshine.org where you can read his testimony and writings. He also is active in ministry inside the prison where he’s incarcerated.
Most of us can’t identify with David’s experience. But just like him, we either were or are all estranged from God and in need of reconciliation. And that’s the focus of our study today from Second Corinthians 5:17 to 21, “The Ministry of Reconciliation.”
Listen now as I read the Holy Spirit-inspired words of the apostle Paul.
This text explains the several foundational TRUTHS that help us understand the process and effects of the ministry of reconciliation.
The First TRUTH (about the ministry of reconciliation) is,
It is Initiated by God
Paul opens this text by further explaining what we talked about in our previous study; how the love of God transforms and controls us. When we come to know Christ by experience and not just intellectually, we become a new creation. We’ll talk more about that later and about the impact it has on our lives.
It is critical that we understand the process of reconciliation; it begins with God, not man. Paul says that this new creation with all its effects has come “from God who has reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ…” When Paul speaks of being reconciled that automatically means there’s been an estrangement, a break in the relationship. When we were still in our sins, we were God’s enemies, our relationship was broken, and we were hostile to Him. But it wasn’t His fault; it was ours. God doesn’t have a need for reconciliation, but we do. And He is in the great business of reconciling us to Himself.
Our English word, reconcile, comes from the Greek katalasso. In literature outside the Scriptures, it was used of exchanging coins. The exchange of coins implies a transaction and so does reconciliation. The coins represent a store of value that is being exchanged for something the purchaser values. T...
