Our New Season, 2 Corinthians 5:14-21
Rev. Gregory E. Singleton, 7th District
It’s amazing that, at least to me, that it feels like we are further along in 2024 than we actually are. But I’m happy that we are still in the first days of this brand new year. We are in great position to be different, be better, in fact to be great! And while some are comfortable being how they’ve been and think they have done everything that’s required of them and if that’s not good enough, too bad. But God did not create us to be of a mindset of “that’s good enough”, He made us to get better and better and better. And if we don’t at least attempt to get better every time we have the glorious opportunity, then we do ourselves a disservice and more than that we do God a disservice. Lamentations 3:22-23 says “It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed (dead), because His compassions fail not. They (His mercies) are new every morning: (Jeremiah declares) Great is thy (the Lord’s) faithfulness! Do we really Believe God woke us this morning to be just like we were? Do we think the God let you have your right mind so that we can think the same old way – a way that got us in trouble over and over again. Do we think that God GAVE us His only Son so that we can be average or that we don’t push the boundaries of what we were yesterday. No, this morning I declare to you that God wants us to put Him to the test. God wants us to approach His Throne with expectation, approach Him with wonder in our eyes and with the desire to see what He’s going to do for us Next!!! He gave us new mercies, we owe it to Him to give Him a NEW creature – The old one is good for nothing but this new person that woke up this morning is just what God wanted you to be!!! Do we want to please God – even if we don’t know how – do you want to be good for God? Then let’s all forget the old and become New!!! Does anybody trust God enough to just do what He says! He’s asking us to move to higher heights in Him.
A ministry of reconciliation. If we look at Paul’s writings in 2 Corinthians chapter 5 we’ll see that Paul started this chapter talking about death and dying “for we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” But amazingly, at least to me, Paul transitions to living! Consider these propositions:
- Christ died for us! All of us, all of mankind and since He died for us we should live not for ourselves but we should live for Christ.
- We are to look at others they way Christ looks at us. Christ didn’t and doesn’t, Praise God, look at our sins but He looks at us as His creation and just like His death was to reconcile us to God, our lives, our ministry is to reconcile non-believers to Christ. What if someone had not told you about God? What if no one told you how great Christ is? What if nobody told you He’s a waymaker – a heart fixer? Christ has appointed each of us as His ambassadors! We are His representatives!!!
- How do we perform as ambassadors? We are to encourage ourselves and others to reach out for:
NEW Hope – NEW Opportunities -NEW Grace
NEW Praise- NEW Life – NEW Joys – NEW ways to witness! NEW ways to shake off the old persons we once were and become the Shining example of WHAT A CHILD OF GOD SHOULD LOOK LIKE! A NEW SMILE – A NEW WALK – A NEW TALK – A NEW FAITH – WHERE WE REALLY WALK BY FAITH AND NOT BY SIGHT!!!
Rev. Gregory E. Singleton Is The Pastor Of Pine Grove African Methodist Episcopal Church In Hodges, South Carolina, In The Seventh Episcopal District.
