When I was a young boy, one of my great experiences as a young Christian was to join the RA’s (Royal Ambassadors) in our church. I suppose it was the Baptist version of the Boy Scouts. I loved going to weekly meetings and the annual summer camp. I earned badges and wanted to advance through the various levels of achievement. As I grew as a Christian, I discovered a deeper meaning that went beyond camps and badges. I discovered what it meant to be an ambassador for Christ. Take a moment and read 2 Corinthians 5:14-21. Of course, the key verse is verse 20. Our mission as His ambassadors is to entreat people to be reconciled to Christ. We don’t represent ourselves, our denomination, or our church. We represent Christ!
It was at one of these summer camps that I was called into the ministry. My goal has always been to represent Christ. However, I have found that sometimes I represented myself, my preferences and biases, my denomination, or my church. These were failures in my role as an ambassador for Christ.
If I am to represent Christ, I must keep ever before me the image of Christ, His teachings, and His actions and then seek to imitate Him in all I do and say. This world is no longer my home. My home is with Christ. It is His Kingdom that I represent in a broken, rebellious, fallen, foreign world. This is true for all who follow Jesus. We have a responsibility not only as disciples but also as ambassadors to make the message of reconciliation our first and only priority.
As citizens of a deeply divided nation, we are naturally drawn into that division. We may even become convinced that the answer to our problems is one political party or another, one candidate or another. We must guard against believing that social or political movements will change the world. Until hearts are changed, divisions will remain and hatred will persist. The followers of Christ are called to be ambassadors with a message of reconciliation–the Gospel. Our hope is in Christ, who alone can change thee heart and replace hatred and division with love and reconciliation. That is our mission. It is our responsibility. We are ambassadors for Christ!
