Jesus’ Role as Reconciler
For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile everything to himself, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Colossians 1:19-20 (CSB)
Jesus came on a mission of reconciliation. This mission occurred because humanity existed as separated from the Lord and could not form a way to reconciliation through human efforts. Thus, the Lord sent Jesus to be the needed Reconciler between humanity and the Lord. In Colossians 1, the apostle Paul summarized this truth and affirmed what Jesus declared in John 14: He alone is the way, the truth, and the life and that no one comes to the Father but by Him.
JESUS FULFILLED THE TASK OF THE RECONCILER
We live at odds with the Lord. Because we are rebels, our sin separates us from the Lord and causes us to deserve death, eternal separation, and eternal wrath. Yet God, in His love for us, sent Jesus to carry out the deserved punishment so that reconciliation could occur. The apostle Paul declared this by writing, “by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”
The work of Christ on the cross provided the necessary eternal sacrifice to achieve everlasting atonement before the Lord. Jesus' sacrifice on the cross opened the way for rebellious humanity to find peace with God. His work affirmed that He alone is the path to reconciliation. The task of the cross was one that only Jesus could accomplish. Thus, Jesus fulfilled the vital role of the Reconciler.
GOD DESIRES RECONCILIATION WITH YOU THROUGH CHRIST
We live in a world that seeks many ways to be reconciled with God or to earn His favor. All these approaches ultimately fail to fulfill the necessary sacrifice required for reconciliation with the Lord. Therefore, we must understand that reconciliation is not about believing whatever you want or in whoever you want; it comes through Christ alone and through faith alone in Jesus Christ.
The apostle Paul noted that Jesus came to " reconcile everything to himself.” This declaration means that no one comes to the Father except through faith in Jesus Christ. He alone is the Reconciler. He alone is the one whom the Father sent to be the exclusive way to be included in the family of God. Christ's coming, Christ's work, and the offer of salvation through Christ, which brings reconciliation, are available because God desires that all would receive salvation through Christ by faith. This reconciliation is available because of God’s great love for us.
QUESTIONS
1. What various ways do people attempt to reconcile themselves with the Lord?
2. Why is Jesus as the only, true Reconciler provide hope to the hopeless?
