PRIVILEGED TO BE CHRIST'S AMBASSADOR

To function properly in God's kingdom, you must know and understand who you are. One of our privileges of our identity in Christ is that we are ambassadors for Christ in this present world. We act on behalf of Christ, and that means we have a great responsibility which carries spiritual and eternal significance. The responsibility or privilege is outstanding because we do it in Christ's stead.

Reference: 2 Corinthians 5:20 Amplified Bible (AMP) 'So we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making His appeal through us; we [as Christ's representatives] plead with you on behalf of Christ to be reconciled to God.'

When a sovereign nation has diplomatic relations with another country, it appoints an ambassador to become its representative in that foreign land. In today's Scripture reference, Paul pointed out that we are Christ's ambassadors. And what does this mean? Well, we can still see some similarities in the roles of diplomats today. Am­bassadors are sent as representatives to live in a foreign culture. Same way, as new creations in Christ, we live in the world, even though we are not of the world (John 17:14-19).

Remember, we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives, according to Philippians 3:20 (NLT). That means, a true ambassador for Christ is one that is born again; he is in Christ and he lives for Christ because he has been purchased by His precious blood (see 1 Peter 1:18-19 NIV). As Christians, we represent the one who died for us here on earth. And as a result, we live 'for him' not for 'ourselves' (Galatians 2:20 NASB). As the face of the kingdom we represent, we act in line with the Kingdom realities, just as stated in 1 Corinthians 15:48 which says, 'Earthly people are like the earthly man, and heavenly people are like the heavenly man' (NLT).

We have a general purpose and specific purpose as well but our main purpose is to show others what Jesus has done for us, by demonstrating our Kingdom demeanor, generosity, and love to them. In Paul's day, ambassadors from Rome were slightly different from the nations' ambassadors we have today. They were representatives in a land that would soon become a province of the Roman Empire. So their responsibility was to bring others into the Roman family.

Our role as ambassadors for Christ is similar because as Paul makes it clear that, 'it is as though God is making his appeal through us' (2 Corinthians 5:20 NLT). As ambassadors for Christ, we proclaim the message of God's Kingdom on earth and by sharing it with others, we reconcile them to God. In other words, on Christ's behalf, we've been given the ministry of reconciliation, to introduce others to Christ and help bring them into the family of God. Praise God!

Scripture Reading - 2 Corinthians 5:11-21; Philippians 1:27; Colossians 3:1; Ephesians 2:19.

Guided Prayer: Heaven Father, I thank you for granting me the privilege to be your ambassador here on earth, through the ministry of reconciliation. My passion to share the message of the Kingdom is constantly fuelled, as I dedicate myself to ensuring that your righteousness is established in the hearts of men in my world. By your Spirit, I'm guided to represent you faithfully every day in Jesus' Name, Amen!