2Co 5:17-20, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”
An ambassador is a representative of a State to another, or to an international organization. At the time of his arrest, Jesus said to Pilate: "My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world." (Jn 18:36). Thus, as Christians, we live in the world, but we are not of the world (Jn 15:19; 17:14 and 16).
The ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation; so, as a diplomat, he is in charge of implementing the foreign policy of his country (the strategic and political choices of the highest authorities of his State - head of state, Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs/ External Relations or Secretary of State). The ambassador is therefore subject to a government which gives him authority, and at the specific request of which and in whose name he exercises it (except for routine business that do not require a ministerial message). As for us Christians, our foreign policy and our mission statement in the world is defined by God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. We are subordinate to God's Kingdom, the source of our power and authority: “Go! Behold, I send you forth… Into whatever house you enter, first say, Peace to this house… And into whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you. And heal the sick that are in it, and say to them, The kingdom of God has come near you! …Behold, I give to you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the authority of the enemy. And nothing shall by any means hurt you.” (See Luke 10:3-19); and we exercise this power and this authority in His Name.
Figuratively, the word ambassador includes any person who is in charge of a message or a mission. Paul said: “Pray for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador…” (Eph 6:19-20). We are thus responsible for spreading the message of the gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven where we belong, in the world.
What is the role of an ambassador?
. To represent his country (the sending State) consistently. Some ambassadors are extraordinary and plenipotentiary; they are the personal representatives of the Sovereign or the Head of State, and are usually dispatched to another head of state rather than the government. So we must realize that just as Jesus represented the Father during his earthly stay, we are also the personal representatives of Christ and of God on earth. “No one has ever seen God. The only Son, who is the same as God and is at the Father's side, he has made him known » (Jn 1:18): ‘No one has ever seen God; but his ambassadors, Christians, you and I, have made Him known.’ This is why we cannot paste "In Jesus' name" to anything; we can only relate it to the things that Jesus Himself would have done; things which are in harmony with the Kingdom of God.
. To protect the interests of his country and its nationals, within the limits permitted by international law. The Lord’s interests, our brothers’ and sisters’ in Christ, and those of the Kingdom of God must come before all others. Indeed, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge.” And, “As we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” The brethren are citizens of the same Kingdom as we are (Ac 4:19, Gal 6:10). To be continued…
May God bless you with a fruitful week; a week full of understanding.
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