The Ministry of Reality: Text: 2 Corinthians 5:16-21
Introduction: The Identity Crisis
We live in a world that is having a nervous breakdown over identity. Men and women, boys and girls, are desperately trying to figure out who they are, and they are doing it by looking inward to the swirling chaos of their feelings, or outward to the shifting sands of cultural approval. They define themselves by their desires, their grievances, their politics, their race, their sexuality, their resume, or their pronouns. This is what the apostle Paul calls knowing someone "according to the flesh." It is an evaluation based on external, earthly, and ultimately temporary standards. It is an attempt to build a house on a sinkhole.
Into this frantic and futile project of self-creation, the gospel of Jesus Christ speaks a word of shattering and liberating authority. It tells us that our identity is not something we invent, but something we receive. It is not discovered by looking inside ourselves, but by looking outside ourselves to the finished work of another. Our identity is not a matter of self-expression, but of divine declaration. God does not help you become a better version of yourself. He kills you and makes you into something entirely new. And this new thing is not defined by your old metrics, your old failures, or your old fleshly categories. It is defined by one thing and one thing only: your union with the risen Christ.
This passage in 2 Corinthians is the charter of this new world. It is the constitution of the new creation. Paul is laying out the fundamental reality that changes everything: how we see ourselves, how we see others, and what we are now supposed to be doing in the world. This is not a self-help seminar; it is a declaration of cosmic regime change. The old world, with its fleshly standards of evaluation, is obsolete. A new world has been inaugurated, and we are its citizens and its ambassadors.
The Text
Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer. Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their transgressions against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
So then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as God is pleading through us. We beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
(2 Corinthians 5:16-21 LSB)
A Revolution in Perception (v. 16)
The passage begins with a radical consequence of the gospel: our entire way of seeing the world is overturned.
"Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer." (2 Corinthians 5:16)
To know someone "according to the flesh" is to evaluate them by worldly standards. It is to see a man and think first of his race, his wealth, his political party, his education, or his social standing. It is to see a woman and think first of her appearance or her marital status. This is the default setting of the fallen human heart. We are inveterate labelers and sorters, constantly sizing people up based on the criteria of the old, fallen age.
But Paul says "from now on," this is over. For the Christian, this entire system of evaluation has been rendered obsolete. Why? Because the cross has re-calibrated all of reality. Even the way the apostles first knew Christ, as a man from Nazareth, a carpenter's son, a Jewish teacher, is no longer the primary way they know Him. That was knowing Him "according to the flesh." Now they know Him as the resurrected and ascended Lord of heaven and earth, the head of a new humanity. And if we now see Christ in this new way, it means we must see everyone else in this new way too.
The person sitting next to you is not primarily a Republican or a Democrat, rich or poor, black or white. They are either "in Christ" or "outside of Christ." That is the only ultimate distinction that matters. This demolishes all the identity politics that currently plague our culture. In the church, there is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male and female, for we are all one in Christ Jesus (Gal. 3:28). Our new identity in Christ is so overwhelming that it relativizes every other identity we once held dear.
The New Genesis (v. 17)
This new way of seeing is grounded in a new reality. Verse 17 is the central declaration.
"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come." (2 Corinthians 5:17)
This is one of the most potent statements in all of Scripture. If you are "in Christ," which is Paul's shorthand for being a Christian, you are not a renovated sinner. You are not a cleaned-up version of your old self. You are a "new creation." The Greek word here is ktisis, the same word used in the Greek Old Testament for God's original creation in Genesis. This is not a course correction; it is a new genesis. God has done in your soul what He did in Genesis 1. He found it formless and void, shrouded in darkness, and He spoke, "Let there be light."
Notice the finality of the language. "The old things passed away." This is in the aorist tense in Greek, indicating a past, completed action. The old man, with his guilt, his condemnation, his slavery to sin, his old identity, was crucified with Christ. It is gone. It has passed away. And "behold, new things have come." This is in the perfect tense, meaning they have come in the past and their effects continue into the present. The new identity, the new status, the new life, is a present and abiding reality.
This is objective. It does not depend on your feelings. You may not feel like a new creation. You may still struggle with old sins. But your identity is not based on your performance; it is based on your position. You are "in Christ." And because you are in Him, God sees you as a new creation, clothed in the righteousness of His Son. The Christian life is the process of learning to live like who you already are.
The Divine Initiative (v. 18-19)
Where did this new creation come from? Paul is emphatic. It is entirely God's doing.
"Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their transgressions against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation." (2 Corinthians 5:18-19)
Salvation is monergistic. That is a fifty-dollar theological term that means it is the work of one. God is the sole author and finisher of our faith. "All these things are from God." He initiated it. He accomplished it. He gets all the glory. We were not seeking Him; He was seeking us. We were not trying to build a bridge to Him; we were running in the opposite direction. The central problem was not that we were alienated from God, but that we were enemies of God. Our sin had created a state of war.
And God is the one who makes peace. He "reconciled us to Himself through Christ." He did not reconcile Himself to us; His disposition toward us in Christ has always been one of electing love. He reconciled us to Himself. He changed us. And how did He do it? "God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself." The cross was not an act of cosmic child abuse where an angry Father punished a reluctant Son. It was the triune God, working in perfect unity. The Father sent, the Son willingly came, and the Spirit applied the work. The heart of this reconciliation is a glorious legal declaration: "not counting their transgressions against them." This is the essence of justification. God does not overlook our sins; He imputes them to Christ. He counts them against Jesus, so that He can justly not count them against us.
And because this has happened, we are given a job. We are given "the ministry of reconciliation" and "the word of reconciliation." Our new identity comes with a new vocation. We are to announce this great reality to the world.
Ambassadors for the King (v. 20)
Paul now defines this new vocation with a powerful political metaphor.
"So then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as God is pleading through us. We beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God." (2 Corinthians 5:20)
An ambassador does not speak his own opinions. He is a representative of his king in a foreign land. He carries a message that he did not write. His authority is entirely derived from the one who sent him. This is our role. We are ambassadors for King Jesus. We are living in a hostile, rebellious territory, and our job is to deliver the terms of peace offered by our King.
And what is the tone of this message? It is an urgent plea. "God is pleading through us." "We beg you on behalf of Christ." This is not a mild suggestion. It is a passionate, earnest, desperate appeal. The stakes are eternal. And the message is a command: "be reconciled to God." It is not "try to reconcile yourself" or "do your best and God will do the rest." It is a command to receive a reconciliation that has already been accomplished. It is a call to surrender to the victorious King and accept His gracious terms of peace.
The Great Exchange (v. 21)
The final verse is the foundation upon which everything else rests. It is the theological engine of the gospel. How can a holy God not count our sins against us and declare us righteous? Here is how:
"He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2 Corinthians 5:21)
This is the Great Exchange. This is the doctrine of double imputation. Our sin, all of it, was legally credited to Christ's account. He who was personally sinless was treated as if He were the greatest sinner who ever lived. On the cross, He bore the full, undiluted wrath of God that our sin deserved. He was "made... sin on our behalf."
But that is only half of the transaction. The other half is that His perfect righteousness, His flawless record of obedience, is legally credited to our account. We "become the righteousness of God in Him." When God the Father looks at a believer, He does not see our stained and tattered record. He sees the perfect, spotless righteousness of His own Son. This is not a legal fiction; it is a legal reality. It is the only basis upon which we can stand before a holy God. We are not just forgiven; we are declared righteous. We have a positive, perfect righteousness that is not our own.
Conclusion: The Ministry of Reality
This is the gospel. This is the ministry of reality. Because of the Great Exchange (v. 21), we who are in Christ are a New Creation (v. 17). Our old identity is dead and gone. Because we are a new creation, we have a new way of seeing everything and everyone (v. 16). We no longer operate by the world's fleshly standards. And because we are new creatures with new eyes, we have a new mission (vv. 18-20). We are ambassadors of the King, entrusted with the word of reconciliation.
Our job is to go into this world, which is still trying to build its identity on the rubble of the fall, and announce the good news. You don't have to invent yourself. You don't have to earn your worth. You don't have to hide your sin. There is a new world, a new reality, available to all who will repent and believe. The King has made peace through the blood of His cross. He is pleading with you, through us, His ambassadors. Lay down your arms. Abandon your futile project of self-creation. Surrender to the King of love. Be reconciled to God.