Alva Review-Courier -

It could be argued that mankind has an instinctive knowledge of God as demonstrated by the universal religious impulse that is a characteristic part of every culture. This instinctive knowledge of God usually consists of two related ideas: that there is a God in heaven who is perfect, righteous and holy, and who is a perfectly righteous and impartial judge of humanity. Conversely, on earth, there are ordinary people like you and me who fall short of the righteous standards of this holy God, and are, therefore, subject to his judgment and appropriate retribution.

This instinctive knowledge, however, is not Christianity, for the simple reason that there is no room for Christ in this kind of formulation. Sadly though, many Christians, based on this incomplete, instinctive knowledge of God, think that the plan of God is to assess and judge our lives, meting out retribution for all wrong behavior.

When we read the New Testament, we find a very different message. For instance, writing to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul says, “All things are of God, who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation.” The word reconcile means “to restore friendly relations, to cause to coexist in harmony, to show to be compatible.” Notice that this restoration of friendly relations, this coexistence in harmony, was accomplished by God himself, not by us. When Paul writes “all things are of God,” he means that God did it all by himself, without our help or participation.

The idea of reconciliation is the opposite of judgment and retribution. Furthermore, Paul says that this reconciliation has already taken place. We sometimes imagine that God is sitting back in heaven, looking down with displeasure on sinful humanity, waiting for us to repent, or confess, or perform some other act of contrition, before reconciliation can be achieved. On the contrary, God did not (and does not) wait for us to do anything. He “hath” (past tense) reconciled us to himself through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ on the cross. The idea of separation from God exists only in the mind of man. As far as God is concerned, he has already reconciled humanity (including me and you) to himself through the death of Christ. Our only part is to respond to God, through faith, and to acknowledge what he has already accomplished on our behalf. Today God is interested not in retribution but in reconciliation.