The Truth about Reconciling to Christ in the World

How do we go about the process of reconciling who we are in Christ and who we are living in the world?

There is a gray area in our walk with God. There is no gray area in the word of God. Or in God himself, however there is gray area in our understanding of God’s word. And how to reconcile God’s word with the world we have become a product of. Having seen and been exposed to the world as sinners; we learn and grow and experience the world through our five senses that are tainted with sin. We learn from people who seem to sin without remorse so it becomes a normal part of life. No big deal, right? What is the truth about reconciling to Christ in the World?

It seems, we so comfortably sin to the point that we don’t even realize we are sinning. It is so ingrained in us; we do not give it a second thought. How do we reconcile that? How do we go about the process of reconciling who we are in Christ and who we are living in the world to live our best lives?

“We are constantly attempting to bring two opposing forces into agreement with each other.”

Reconciling to Christ is a Process

Furthermore, the answer to those questions, in all honesty, is it is a process and a constant struggle. I grew up in church and never heard anyone say how challenging it is to give your life to Christ and truly surrender your life to him. It was even more rare for anyone to explain how to reconcile yourself to Christ. And what happens once you’ve reconciled yourself to Christ in the world.

As I continue to read and explore the bible, it seems as if everything the bible teaches us about how to live is almost the exact opposite of our natural inclination. It is opposed to what the world has taught us all of our lives! God hates sin. Sin is in (the physical) world and of the (spiritual) world, the world(physical and spiritual) hate God and his people. We love God and reconcile ourselves with God through Jesus Christ, but now the world hates us because of it! We are constantly attempting to bring two opposing forces into agreement with each other.

The Act of Reconciling to Christ

The definition of reconcile is to “restore friendly relations between, cause to coexist in harmony; make or show to be compatible, make one account consistent with another, especially by allowing for transactions begun but not yet completed.” The latter intrigues me to think about an account and transactions in the context of Jesus Christ; dying for our sins (the transaction). And because of that, we now have connection to our Father in Heaven. Access to the (account) inheritance of our Father. “Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault.”(Colossians 1:22 NLT)

The truth about reconciling to Christ

Whoa, how wonderful to be considered holy and blameless in the presence of God. Conversely, while it is wonderful to be completely transformed and acquire a new identity in Christ, we still have to live in this physical world! “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I choose you to come out of the world, so it hates you. ” (John 15:18-19 NLT)

Yikes, I don’t know about you, but for me it is uncomfortable to be in the same room with someone who mildly dislikes me. Let alone, trying to live your entire life with someone (the world) who hates you?! As I’ve stated, it is a process. The transaction of reconciliation first to Christ. And then considering how to live your life, as a new creation in Christ, in the world. It is a daily reconciliation with the way you live your life in the everyday world. The world is not patient enough to let you figure it out with encouragement and forgiveness. Oh no, expect the world to be grilling you from the sideline, criticizing you, making you feel unworthy. In a nutshell, chewing you up and spitting you out for wanting to live differently. The worst part is, it is not always strangers doing the grilling.

A New Creature in Christ

The new testament records an incident when Jesus went into the temple and became outraged that people were selling animals and exchanging foreign money. “…Get these things out of here. Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace! Then his disciples remembered this prophecy from the scriptures: Passion for God’s house will consume me.” (John 2:16-17 NLT) When we reconcile ourselves to Christ, he is now living in us. We are inviting him into our world. If Jesus was here in the flesh today interacting with the world the way we do, how do you think he would react? How angry would he be at what’s going on?

Some thoughts we have on God, I think, is of God as out there, somewhere far away. When we reconcile through Christ, we are inviting him to right where we are in this moment. As we reconcile people to Christ as we are instructed to, we must also discuss how to live reconciled to Christ as new creatures in the sinful world. Teach them the truth about reconciling to Christ in the world; it doesn’t happen overnight. “And all of this is a gift from God, who bought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him.” (2 Corinthians 5:18 NLT)

A Forgiving Father

Maybe it’s just me, but it is hard work. My goal is to consistently live my life in a way that is pleasing to God. I hope that I am not giving off a pessimistic vibe. I am just expressing that it is a struggle to know what to do and how to do it to live wisely. While you consider how to live your life that is pleasing to him with guidance from the Holy Spirit and the Word of God, there will be also critics along the way.

Something to consider, how will you respond to resistance, discouragement, and misunderstanding, from others? How will you handle a shift in the dynamics of relationships? What do you do when others constantly bring up old faults? The truth about reconciling to Christ in the world is it’s a process. Just know that no one gets it right 100% of the time. You will make mistakes. At times you will be unsure of what to do. Good thing God is aware of all of this and is a forgiving Father. “O Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive, so full of unfailing love for all who ask for your help.” (Psalms 86:5 NLT)