journey onWord with us

When the ambassador walked onto the plane last Tuesday, no one seemed to notice. People on the plane had no idea about the responsibility or position of the man sitting in row nine. But on this particular day, the ambassador was more concerned about his own comfort and peaceful ride than any of the people scattered throughout the airplane.  It just so happened that the group sitting in front of this representative were not the least bit respectful of him. And you can imagine how the ambassador could be frustrated by the five disrespectful passengers in row eight. Two looked to be teenagers, and three were small children … and they were out of control! How dare those people not have more respect for the ambassador and, instead, create chaos and noise on what was supposed to be a quiet ride.

Maybe you’ve already figured out that it was ambassador Nichols who was on the plane; a representative of Jesus Christ. But last Tuesday, that ambassador was focused too much on his life and too little on his mission. When we look at what an ambassador does, two Google definitions are helpful.

am·bas·sa·dor
noun

• an accredited diplomat sent by a country as its official representative to a foreign country
• a person who acts as a representative or promoter of a specified activity.

 Since reading about ambassadors in II Corinthians five last week, I have been challenged and convicted about the believer’s role as an ambassador.

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.
II Corinthians 5:18-20 (ESV)

Reading those verses should give every true Christ-follower a pause of thanksgiving. We have been reconciled to God through Christ. Our greatest relationship! As we continue through the verses, all believers should also be challenged about our mission. God has entrusted to us the ministry of reconciliation. We are ambassadors for Christ! He makes his appeal of reconciliation through us. What a responsibility!

It is easy for us to understand the definitions listed above. How would we respond to one of our representatives to a foreign country being more concerned about their own personal issues over his/her mission? Correspondingly, last week ambassador Nichols, a representative of Jesus Christ, lost a bit of focus on his role. I am not saying my specific mission was the row in front of me, but it certainly would have been better to show grace and not get so irritated.

Generally, I sense that many Christ-followers have lost sight of their mission. Are we taking our God-designed title too lightly?  It isn’t solely pastors, elders or those called by God to far away lands that carry the weight of ambassadorship. God wants all of His followers to carry the message of reconciliation to a lost world. People pass through our lives daily who need to be reconciled to God through Christ … at work, home, and in our social settings. I can’t re-do last Tuesday’s failure to look at my mission more seriously, but I’m still an ambassador … and my term is not finished. And neither is yours! Serve it well.