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All right, church, here we go again.
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We started a series last week talking about redemption, reconciliation and restoration, and our focus today is going to be reconciliation. You know, Paul, in Ephesians, the first chapter said, our father God planned for our redemption, our reconciliation, our restoration before the foundation of the world. And as I said last week, I believe this tells us how much God loves and cares for us. So here’s a couple verses, or three verses actually, that speak to that. In Ephesians, chapter one, verses four and five, it says, even as in his love, he chose us, actually picked us out for himself as his own in Christ, before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy, consecrated and set apart for him and blameless in his sight, even above reproach before him in love, for he foreordained us, destined us, and planned in love for us to be adopted, revealed as his own children through Jesus Christ in accordance with the purpose of his will, because it pleased him and it was his kind intent.
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Hallelujah.
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God did all this before the foundation of the world. That was his plan for us. Then in Ephesians 111, it goes on to say this, in him we also were made God’s heritage, God’s portion, and we obtained an inheritance, for we have been foreordained, chosen and appointed beforehand in accordance with his purpose, who works out everything in agreement with the counsel and design of his own will. God planned for you. God planned for you to be a part of his family, a part of his kingdom, and to be blessed by experience the heritage of being a part of his family, and to experience the inheritance, to enjoy the inheritance that he has for all of us. We’ve been chosen and appointed to walk.
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In all of this.
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Hallelujah. We have been redeemed, and we also have been reconciled. And today we’re going to look into that. Let me remind you of this. In Genesis, chapter three, the Lord is talking to Adam and Eve and the serpent. And he says this to the serpent, and he’s declaring to the serpent what’s coming. Here’s what’s coming. Because of what you’ve done, the evil you’ve performed here, there’s a consequence, and here’s what’s coming.
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Genesis 315 says this, and I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will bruise and tread your head underfoot, and you will lie in wait.
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And bruise his heel.
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Paul comes back after knowing this and studying this and being trained in it. He talks about the fulfillment of this in Galatians four. Galatians four, four and five. Paul writes this, but when the proper time had fully come, God sent his son, born of a woman, born subject to the regulations of the law, to purchase the freedom of to ransom, to redeem, to atone for those who were subject to the law, that we might be adopted and have sonship conferred upon us and be recognized as God’s son. God’s heart to redeem mankind was fulfilled in God’s son, Jesus Christ. Jesus came to give us back what Satan had stolen from us. And not only did Jesus come to redeem us, he also came to reconcile us. And today we’re going to discover what.
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Does it mean to be reconciled.
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The word reconcile, in the Hebrew, here in the Old Testament, means this.
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It means to cover over.
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It means to pardon sin, to obtain forgiveness, to be free from a charge, to obliterate, abolish what stood between us, to cancel, to pardon, to purge, to cleanse. Jesus came for that reason. God’s heart was that he came to cover us with his love. He came to pardon our sin, to obtain forgiveness. He paid the price for all of this. And Leviticus 630, we see a type and shadow of this Israel, it says, and no sin offering whereof any of the blood is brought into the tabernacle of the congregation to reconcile withal and the holy place shall be eaten, shall be burnt in the fire.
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So this sin offering that comes for.
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Reconciliation with the Lord, he said, you can’t eat it, not even the blood. I want it obliterated. I want it abolished. I want it canceled out, burn it so it no longer exists, and I.
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Can’T see it anymore.
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Ezekiel 45 20 says this, and so thou shalt do the 7th day of the month for every one that Erreth and for him, that is simple. So shall you reconcile the house. God’s heart is to be in relationship with his children. Reconciliation brings us back into relationship with him. So there is nothing between us. He doesn’t want anything between us, holding us back from 100%, walking in the fullness of his love and relationship with him. Now, in the New Testament, there are three greek words translated reconcile, that also show God’s intense desire to be one with us. And let’s look at those right now.
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Number one, the word reconcile, in the Greek, means to fully bring back to.
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A former state of harmony, to draw to himself.
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In Ephesians 216, we see this. It says, and that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the entity thereby. So he was talking about Jew and Gentile there both being reconciled and God destroying the entity stood between us and.
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Him through the cross, through what Jesus did.
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This verse could read, based on the translation of this word, reconcile. It could read like this. Ephesians 216, my version. He drew us to himself, bringing us into a state of harmony, making us one by obliterating and abolishing what stood between us by the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. Think about that. God loves us so much. Jesus loved us so much that he says, hey, I’ll go. I will be the one who goes in and obliterates and abolishes anything that stands between us and gets rid of it.
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And I will bring forgiveness and atonement of sin so that we can be.
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In relationship with those who are meant to be a part of the family.
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Of God, and we all are meant.
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To be a part of the family of God.
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Colossians 120 says this, and having made.
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Peace through the blood of his cross.
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By him, to reconcile all things unto himself, by him I say, whether they be things in earth or things in.
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Heaven, he’s reconciled it. He’s made peace through the blood of his cross. You are one with God.
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If you’ve received the Lord Jesus as.
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Your savior, you were one with God.
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You were one with Jesus, you are.
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One with all of heaven, everyone who’s there. You are a citizen of heaven.
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You are simply here in the earth, representing heaven. In fact, heaven is with you. You have heaven here on earth.
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And a part of what we’re to.
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Do is to bring heaven here on earth. We are not waiting for this to happen one day in the future. It is a reality.
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Right now we are citizens of heaven.
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One with God, because not only have we been redeemed, we’ve been reckoned, we’ve.
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Been brought back into harmony with hell, a harmonious relationship.
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Now the second word here we’re going.
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To look at that’s translated reconciled is the greek word that means this. It means to be restored to the.
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Favor of God, to recover God’s favor. Favor, ha ha.
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When Jesus redeemed us and he reconciled us, we were restored to the favor of God. We recovered God’s favor that had been.
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Lost at the fall of man.
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Hallelujah.
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We have all of God’s favor.
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Romans 510 says this, for if when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his son, much more being reconciled, we shall be.
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Saved by his life. So let me read that again with.
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The definitions that I just shared with you.
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So if when we were enemies, we.
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Were restored to the favor of God by the death of his son, much more being restored to the favor of.
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God, we shall be saved by his life, spirit, soul and body, we shall be made whole, redeemed, reconciled, walking in God’s favor, having recovered the favor of God, we are made whole completely, spirit.
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Soul and body, we are saved, living.
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The life of Christ.
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Hallelujah. Hallelujah.
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Second Corinthians 518. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and have given to us the ministry of reconciliation. All right, he has reconciled us to.
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Himself, he has drawn us to himself.
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Brought us back into harmonious relationship, we.
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Have been given back the favor of.
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God, restored to us the favor of.
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God by Jesus Christ.
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Now we’ll look more at the ministry of reconciliation in a minute, but I.
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Want you to see that you’ve been.
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Reconciled, restored to favor, drawn to God.
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Your father by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, he who paid the price for.
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Us to be his purchased possession, his peculiar people. It goes on in two Corinthians five, here in verse 20, to say this now then, we are ambassadors of Christ, as though God did beseech you by us, we pray you in Christ’s be.
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Ye reconciled to God.
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Be ye reconciled.
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To God, be restored to the favor.
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Of God through Jesus Christ. Let us share this message with you.
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Hallelujah.
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You are the redeemed and you are the reconciled, and you’re walking in the.
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Favor of God today. It is yours. Colossians 121 says, and you that were sometimes alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled.
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Hallelujah.
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Through Christ you’ve been reconciled, he’s brought.
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You back into harmonious relationship with him.
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He’S drew you to himself, he’s restored you his favor, you’ve recovered his favor, hallelujah. You are his blessed one, his children. Glory to God.
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Hallelujah.
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His son, his daughter, his child. You are a part of the royal.
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Family, and you walk in his favorite.
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Now there’s a third word here that’s translated, reconciliation, and it means it’s similar to the one we just shared with you about being restored to favor. It says this the restoration of favor of God to sinners that repent and put their trust in the death of Christ Jesus. So by repenting and putting your trust.
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In Christ Jesus, you are reconciled and restored to favor.
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Two Corinthians 518 again. And all these things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, giving us the ministry of reconciliation.
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Now, if we’ve repented, we’re in Christ. We’ve all been given the ministry of reconciliation.
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Now what is that? Well, it defines it right up here. It’s the restoration of God’s favor to sinners that repent and put their trust in the death of Christ Jesus for them.
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And so anyone we share the good news with, that they get to walk.
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In the fullness of God’s favor. That’s a ministry of reconciliation. That’s a ministry of inviting them into the restoration of God’s favor.
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We get to be a part of.
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That, and we get to do that. Second Corinthians 519. The next verse says this, to wit, or to know that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, drawing the world into him, not imputing their trespasses unto them, and hath committed unto.
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Us the word of reconciliation. We have the word of reconciliation. God has given us the word, the good news that he wants you to share with everyone else, that they will.
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Walk in his favor, in his love.
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In his grace, in his mercy.
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Hallelujah.
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Hebrews 217 says this, wherefore in all.
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Things, that word all there means all things. It behooved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. He brought atonement, he brought ransom for our sins. He sanctified us, covered us, restored us.
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Hallelujah.
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Reconciled us unto our father God. Jesus did all of this for us.
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Because he loves us so much.
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You are reconciled to Christ.
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Say that with me. I have been reconciled to my father.
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And to Jesus Christ.
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Hallelujah.
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You are a child of God.
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Not only that, because you’re a part of the royal family. You get to rule and reign in this life.
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Hallelujah.
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You don’t have to wait till heaven. You can rule and reign right here.
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In this life, because everything Satan stole has been given back to us.
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So we have what God told Adam and Eve.
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We have that. We have dominion here in the earth.
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You have authority. You have a realm of responsibility here in the earth as a child of God, representing the kingdom of God here in the earth.
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So let’s go back, I want to.
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Go back to second corinthians 519 just.
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For a moment, to know that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself. So he has brought us back into relationship, put us back in that proper place and position that God ordained for all of us from the beginning. So he’s brought us back into relationship with himself, with God our father, not imputing their trespasses unto them.
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So God’s not blaming you for anything.
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You’re forgiven, you’re cleansed. It has all been obliterated, done away with, totally eliminated. Hallelujah.
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You are clean, you are justified, you are righteous.
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And because of that, the Lord has.
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Said, hey, go out and share the.
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Word of your testimony, the word of reconciliation. Go out and share about my favor.
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That I’ve restored to all mankind who.
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Will come to me and come into relationship with me.
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We have been given the word of.
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Recovering and being restored to the favor.
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Of God to share with all of those around us.
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And they all, guys, they all need to hear it. There are over 2 billion people on.
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This planet, planet that profess Jesus Christ.
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As their savior, profess to be Christians, but there are 7.8 billion total on the planet.
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So we still have over 5 billion.
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People to go out and share with.
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Hallelujah.
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Let’s go share with as many as we can. Let’s get out. That’s why we want to be on all the airwaves, sharing any way we.
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Can share because we’ve been given the.
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Word of recovering and being restored to the favor of God.
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God’s favor is yours.
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You don’t have to earn it. You don’t have to deserve it. You don’t have to buy it. All you have to do is to receive it, believe it and receive it, and then walk in it.
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Today you can get up every day.
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And say, thank you, Lord, for your favor. Thank you, Father God. Thank you, Jesus.
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I’m walking in your favor today. We have been bought with a price and brought into a state of renewed.
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Harmony and favor with our God. Today with our father, with our savior. Hallelujah. You are a favored child of God. Let’s bow our head in prayer today.
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Lord. We just want to rejoice in you and thank you for your redemption.
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But thank you for reconciliation, Father. Thank you for bringing us back into.
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Favor with you for forgiving us, justifying us, Lord Jesus, making us righteous, totally obliterating and demolishing anything that stands before us, forgiving us of all of our sins and restoring your favor to us, your full favor.
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We walk in it today and throughout eternity and we thank you for it, Lord.
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And I pray, Father God, that you stir this in the hearts and lives of those who are listening and that we go out and share it this week with others.
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And we see others come into the kingdom of God, see others begin to walk in this place of reconciliation and favor with you. And we thank you for it, Father.
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Thank you for it.
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Jesus.
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We praise you for it in Jesus name.
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So be it. God bless you.
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Go out and walk in his favor this week. Pastor Conia is coming with a closing thought and prayer.
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You have a highly blessed and favored week. Amen.
