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47: Called to be agents of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:17-19)

Scripture Reading2 Corinthians 5:17-19

If it sounds as if Paul is calling us to grit our teeth and try harder to be good, then we are missing the point of 2 Corinthians. Paul intends for us to see the world in a completely new way, so that our actions stem from this new understanding.

Paul wants us to become so thoroughly transformed that we become members of a “new creation.” The mention of “creation” immediately takes us back to the story of God’s creation of the world. God’s intent for creation includes work as a central reality of existence. When humans disobeyed God and marred the creation, work became cursed (Gen. 3:17–18), and humans no longer worked alongside God. Thus when Paul says, “Everything has become new,” everything includes the world of work as a core element.

God brings the new creation into existence by sending his Son into the old creation to transform or “reconcile” it. “In Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself.” Not just one aspect of the world, but the whole world. And those who follow Christ, who are reconciled to God by Christ, are appointed to carry on Christ’s work of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:18). We are agents to bring reconciliation to all spheres of the world. Every day as we go out to do our work we are to be ministers of this rec­onciliation.

There are three essential elements of the work of reconciliation. First, we must understand accurately what has gone wrong among people, God, and creation. If we do not truly understand the ills of the world, then we cannot bring genuine reconciliation. Second, we must love other people and work to benefit them rather than to judge them. If we love the people we work among and try to improve our workplaces, products, and services, then we become agents of Christ’s reconciliation. Finally, being seeds of God’s creation requires that we remain in constant fellowship with Christ.

If we do these things, we will be in a position to bring Christ’s power to reconcile the people, organizations, places, and things of the world so that they too can become members of God’s new creation.

Prayer: Jesus, thank you that in you, a new creation has come. You have reconciled us to yourself. Help me to live my life and do my work in a way that spreads the message of reconciliation. Amen.

For Further Exploration: Read Reconciling the Whole World (2 Corinthians 5:16–21) from the Theology of Work Bible Commentary.


Author: Theology of Work Project

Theology of Work Project Online Materials by Theology of Work Project, Inc. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Based on a work at www.theologyofwork.org

You are free to share (to copy, distribute and transmit the work), and remix (to adapt the work) for non-commercial use only, under the condition that you must attribute the work to the Theology of Work Project, Inc., but not in any way that suggests that it endorses you or your use of the work.

© 2014 by the Theology of Work Project, Inc.

Unless otherwise noted, the Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, Copyright © 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission. All rights reserved.

45: Serving others at work (Romans 12:1–3)

Scripture ReadingRomans 12:1–3

To bring the communal aspect of salvation to life means a reorientation of our minds and wills from self-serving to community-serving. Paul asks us to think less about ourselves and more about the community.

We are unable to put others first without God’s saving grace. Only if our minds are transformed from self-centeredness to other-centeredness—imitating Christ, who sacrificed himself for others—can we put reconciliation, justice, and faithfulness ahead of self-serving aims.

With transformed minds, our purpose shifts from justifying our self-centered actions to bringing new life to others. For example, imagine that you are a shift supervisor at a restaurant and you become a candidate for promotion to manager. If your mind is not transformed, your chief goal will be to beat the other candidates. It will not seem hard to justify actions such as withholding information from the other candidates, spreading dissent among workers, or avoiding collaboration. This will harm not only the other candidates but also their shift workers, the restaurant as a whole, and its customers. On the other hand, if your mind is transformed to care first about others, then you will help the other candidates perform well, not only for their sake but also for the benefit of the restaurant and its workers and customers. How can you apply this to your own work situation?

Prayer: Jesus, forgive me for my self-serving tendencies. Help me to value reconciliation, justice and faithfulness ahead of self-serving aims. May your example inspire me to take a community-centered approach to my life and work. Amen.

For Further Exploration: Read The Community of Grace at Work (Romans 12) from the Theology of Work Bible Commentary.


Author: Theology of Work Project

Theology of Work Project Online Materials by Theology of Work Project, Inc. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Based on a work at www.theologyofwork.org

You are free to share (to copy, distribute and transmit the work), and remix (to adapt the work) for non-commercial use only, under the condition that you must attribute the work to the Theology of Work Project, Inc., but not in any way that suggests that it endorses you or your use of the work.

© 2014 by the Theology of Work Project, Inc.

Unless otherwise noted, the Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, Copyright © 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission. All rights reserved.