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Ambassadors for Christ

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Pacific Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Oakland, Cal. · Nov 14, 1878

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 4, No. 43.

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Ambassadors for Christ.

By James White

A sermon delivered before the church at Battle Creek, Mich., Sabbath morning, October 26, 1878.
BY ELDER JAMES WHITE.
TEXT: "Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us; we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God." 2 Cor. 5 : 20.
THE apostle uses a figure in this text which has been understood by all nations, at least since his day. Ambassadors are sent from one king, emperor, or government to another, to treat with them on important matters of state. But the apostle here no doubt refers to the special ambassadors who are sent in times of war to treat on terms of peace. This well illustrates the rebellion of man, the ruin of the race, and the great plan of reconciliation and redemption through Jesus Christ.
Once man walked and talked with God, Christ and angels, in happy Eden! The happy pair were honored with a beautiful home, with everything "pleasant to the sight and good for food." But man transgressed the law of God, and the race has since been in rebellion against the government of heaven. An angel once honored in heaven rebelled and fell from his high estate, and has since led his fallen fellow-angels, and the fallen sons of Adam, to take up arms against the government of the God of high heaven. The question was brought before the court of heaven, What can be done to reconcile man to God and God to man? Feeble man had raised his puny arm in rebellion against the government of the Almighty, and must perish in his rebellion and folly unless means could be instituted for an atonement which would bring repentance, pardon, reconciliation and peace.
The character of God's moral government is such as to require an atoning sacrifice superior to law. Angels are amenable to the holy law of God and are inferior to it, and therefore the Lawgiver could not accept the death of even one of the sinless angels as an atoning sacrifice for man. But Christ, who thought it not robbery to be equal with God, and was therefore equal with him, laid aside the glory of the law-making and law-administering power and authority, and became a sacrifice and mediator for a race of rebels in arms. And thus our adorable Redeemer became God's ambassador to offer terms of reconciliation, redemption, and eternal life to those who are justly condemned to death.
"Ambassador is a title by which the highest order of diplomatic ministers is distinguished, and the person holding such a high commission may be defined to be an officer sent by one sovereign power to another to treat on affairs of state. The credentials, or letters of credence, of an ambassador are addressed directly by his own sovereign to the sovereign to whom he is sent, and with whom he has the privilege of personal communication. In the performance of all his diplomatic duties, an ambassador is understood to represent, not only the affairs, but the dignity and the power of his Master; and by the law of nations he has many important rights and privileges."—Chambers' Encyclopedia, Vol. 1, p. 189.
Christ, God's ambassador, came to those in rebellion to disarm and subdue them by his love. He proclaimed to a lost world the conditions of reconciliation, died an atoning sacrifice for his enemies, rose from the dead for their justification, and to enjoy that last interview with his first apostles, the Master led them up the mount of ascension. Mark well his words addressed to them, to be perpetuated, and alike applicable to the ministry to the end of the Christian age: "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye, therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost." Matt. 28 : 18, 19.
It is God's ambassador, in whom was invested the authority of administering the law of the Ruler of the universe and treating in matters of peace with the party in rebellion, who thus speaks. He did not come to legislate, but as a teacher of the divine law and minister from the court of heaven. He kept his Father's commandments. He magnified the law and made it honorable. All his teachings and acts were in strict conformity to the moral code, the great constitution of the government of heaven. Ambassadors are not sent to Russia, Great Britain, or to France to make laws. The work of legislating is left to Congress. Christ came not to give a code of laws to his church, but to do the will of his Father in heaven.
When Ross Brown went from Oakland, California, as our minister to China, his mission was not to make laws for the government he represented, but to do the will of the law-making power of this great republic. And as the acts of the ministers of our government are conformable to its laws, so the teachings of Christ, God's ambassador, are in harmony with the moral code. So jealous was he of the government he came to represent that he warned his disciples against heretical views which would limit the perpetuity of the moral code. He speaks in these words:—
"Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets; I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled."
When one inquired of Christ, "What good thing shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?" he answered, "If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments." And the great Teacher immediately quoted five of the precepts of the moral code, which shows what he meant by "the commandments." Again we hear from him by way of Patmos, in that last benediction upon the loyal subjects of the kingdom of grace, who are waiting for the coming and kingdom of their Lord: "And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his works shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city." Rev. 22 : 12–14.
The great commission continues: "And these signs shall follow them that believe: In my name shall they cast out devils. They shall speak with tongues. They shall take up serpents. And if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them. They shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover." Mark 16 : 17, 18. Christ's first apostles did not then comprehend these words in all their gracious fullness. They did not understand the nature of his kingdom, and inquired, "Lord wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you. And ye shall be witnesses unto me, both in Jerusalem and all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." Acts 1 : 7, 8.
Again he says, "Behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you; but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high." Luke 24 : 49. In obedience to this injunction they did tarry, and they continued their prayers for the period of ten days, for the seal of their ministry. "And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing, mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance." Acts 2 : 1–4.
This endowment from heaven was necessary to that inspiration which would bring his teaching during his ministry to their minds, and that there might be manifested in them all that was promised in the fulfillment of their mission. "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance whatsoever I have said unto you." John 14 : 26. With the divine anointing, they went out in the name of their Master, God's first ambassadors, and, in the words of the evangelist, "They went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following." Mark 16 : 20.
The apostle declares that "all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation, to wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them, and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation." 2 Cor. 5 : 18, 19.
"What unparalleled condescension and divinely tender mercies are displayed in these words. Did the judge ever beseech a condemned criminal to accept of pardon? Does the creditor ever beseech a ruined debtor to receive an acquittance in full? Yet our Almighty Lord, our eternal Judge, not only vouchsafes to offer these blessings, but invites us, entreats us, and with the most tender importunity solicits us not to reject them."—John Wesley, as quoted by Dr. Clarke.
Says the gifted Charles Wesley:—
"God, the offended God, most high, Ambassadors to rebels sends; His messengers his place supply, And Jesus begs us to be friends.
"Us, in the stead of Christ, they pray, Us, in the stead of Christ, entreat To cast our arms, our sins, away, And find forgiveness at his feet.
"Our God in Christ, our embassy, And proffered mercy, we embrace, And gladly reconciled to thee, Thy condescending mercy praise.
"Poor debtors, by our Lord's request A full acquittance we receive; And criminals with pardon blest, We at our Judge's instance live."
"An ambassador is a person sent from one sovereign power to another, and is supposed to represent the person of the sovereign by whom he is deputed. Christ, while on earth, represented the person of the Sovereign of the world; his apostles and their successors represent the person of Christ. Christ declared the will of the Father to mankind; apostles declare the will of God to the world. We are ambassadors for Christ."—Clark's Commentary, Vol. 6, p. 338.
"Reconciliation is spoken of as our indispensable duty. As God is willing to be reconciled to us, we ought to be reconciled, and it is the great end and design of the gospel, that word of reconciliation, to prevail upon sinners to lay aside their enmity against God. Faithful ministers are Christ's ambassadors sent to treat with sinners on peace and reconciliation. They come in God's name with his entreaties and act in Christ's stead, doing the very thing he did when he was upon this earth, and what he wills to be done, now that he is in heaven. Wonderful condescension! Though God is no loser by the quarrel, nor gainer by the peace, yet by his ministers he beseeches sinners to lay aside their enmity and accept of the terms he offers, that they would be reconciled to him, to all his attributes, to all his laws."—Henry's Exposition, Vol. 6, p. 488.
God's ambassadors, Christ's true ministers, by the authority of their great commission, baptize "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." This not only shows the importance of baptism, but that both the Father and the Son, and also the Holy Spirit, have a part in the conversion of sinners. The Father is our lawgiver, Christ our mediator, and the Holy Spirit our reprover, comforter and sanctifier. God pity those who are converted by a gospel that has only the Son in it, leaving the Father out altogether, and immersion supplying the place of the Holy Spirit. It is no marvel that ministers of this sort should depart from the language found in the original commission, and baptize their converts in "the name of the Lord Jesus."
Happy thought, indeed, to those who keep the commandments of God, the commandments of Christ, and the commandments of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, and who enjoy the sanctifying peace of the Holy Spirit, that they have been buried with their divine Lord in baptism, "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost."
The indignity shown to the terms of peace which have been offered to ruined men is illustrated by the parable of the householder who "planted a vineyard, and hedged it round about, and digged a wine press in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country. And when the time of the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might receive the fruits of it. And the husbandmen took his servants, and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another. Again, he sent other servants more than the first, and they did unto them likewise." Matt. 21 : 33–36.
This part of the parable shows the manner in which the prophets of God have been treated. God has sent them with messages of warning to his people, and reproofs of threatened wrath upon the ungodly, for which they have suffered death in the most cruel manner men and demons could invent.
"But last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son. But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir, come let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance. And they caught him and cast him out of the vineyard, and slew him. When the Lord therefore of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto these husbandmen? They say unto him, He will miserably destroy those wicked men, and will let out his vineyard unto other husbandmen, which shall render him the fruits in their seasons."
In this last portion of the parable the enmity against Christ, and his death and the rejection of the Jews, are illustrated. In this cruel manner was God's ambassador treated, and the sin of the Jewish people has not gone unpunished. The ambassadors of Christ who have, instead of their Master, offered to sinners the terms of reconciliation, beseeching them to be reconciled to God, have been treated in a similar manner. Even the great apostle uses these words, "Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints. And for me, that utterance may be given unto me that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds, that therein I may speak boldly as I ought to speak." Eph. 6 : 18–20.
Here we find God's ambassador in bonds, while offering terms of peace to his persecutors. What an indignity! What an insult to the God of heaven! As if one of our ministers to a foreign court negotiating matters of state, while conducting himself in the most lawful manner, should be seized and put in irons. No greater insult could be offered to this great nation than such an act.
"This enmity to God began wholly on man's part; but the reconciliation was entirely devised, revealed, and effected by his offended Sovereign. In the person of Emmanuel, in his mediation and atonement, who 'was made sin for us, though he knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him,' the foundation of this blessed reconciliation was laid; for 'God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself.' When the kings of the earth appoint ambassadors, they generally send them to those who are of their own rank in society; nor would they deign to send a solemn embassy to their own rebellious subjects, when vanquished, disarmed, and condemned. But 'the King of kings and Lord of lords' appoint ambassadors from himself to us poor apostate worms, and helpless, perishing sinners!
"Earthly princes select persons of dignity and eminence to represent their persons and act by their authority on these important occasions; but the Lord of glory deputes pardoned rebels and reconciled enemies to go to their former associates in rebellion on this embassy of peace! The gracious proposals which they are instructed to make, and the encouraging terms which they are commanded to use, are equally expressive of condescension, compassion, and good will to men; for the Lord himself, who might justly and could easily destroy them forever, is pleased to 'beseech them to be reconciled to him!'
"This language of our God and Saviour, by his ministers, to his feeble but haughty enemies, must appear wonderful beyond conception to the holy inhabitants of heaven; yet the reception with which it often meets, and the contempt and disdain which it excites, must exceedingly increase their astonishment; and it will assuredly satisfy them concerning the propriety and equity of punishing the irreconcilable haters of God, 'with everlasting destruction from his presence.'
"The 'ambassadors for Christ,' however, must adhere to their instructions, with whatever reception they may meet. They should 'magnify their office,' and endeavor to represent their Lord, by exhibiting his image in their own example, as well as 'declaring his whole counsel.' They must conform to the laws and customs of his kingdom, and not to those of this evil world; neither fearing the contempt or rage of men, while 'in Christ's stead they pray them to be reconciled to God,' nor yet seeking to please men, or expecting any recompense, save from their gracious Lord.
"On the other hand, let all who hear the gospel remember that the faithful minister is the ambassador of Christ to them, sent to treat with them concerning 'reconciliation to God;' and that his Lord will surely punish every insult and injury offered to him, as if done to himself in person. The refusal of this proffered peace will leave men 'the enemies of God' forever; the removal of faithful ministers from such as have slighted his message is the recall of an ambassador of peace, and the forerunner of a declaration of war. Let sinners then hear the voice of God, 'beseeching them to be reconciled to him;' let the trembling penitent rejoice in the assurance that his application for 'peace with God will not be rejected.'
"Let professed Christians examine their supposed interest in Christ, the great Reconciler, by inquiring whether they are become the friends of God, his cause, and his people; let ministers not only 'warn men by the terror of the Lord,' but beseech them by his abundant mercies, to repent and turn unto him; and let believers consider whether God can now withhold any good thing from them, or whether they can venture, lose, labor, or suffer too much for Him who gave his beloved Son to be the sacrifice for their sins, that they might be 'made the righteousness of God in him.'"—Scott's Bible, Vol. 6, p. 231.