Paul has been earnestly defending his ministry to the Corinthian Christians. He shows that everything he does is before God, whether people judge him as being in his right mind or out of his mind. He lives the way he does because he is compelled by the love of Christ to no longer live for himself. Paul himself is an example of how Christ makes people a new creation (17). Since we are new creations in Christ, we should not judge people from a worldly perspective but learn to live before God, as Paul did. (16)

Paul reveals that the gospel ministry is essentially a ministry of reconciliation (18). To reconcile means to restore a broken relationship. On the cross, our sin was put on Jesus, making it possible for sinners to have a restored relationship with the holy God (21). Our message is that reconciliation is possible in Jesus, both with God and with people. When we understand what Christ did, we can overcome human differences, being reconciled to each other through forgiveness.


Application: Father, thank you for your great love in Jesus that gives me a new way to live. May we see a great work of reconciliation in our time.
One Word: We have the message of reconciliation