On Reconciliation

When we started the homeschool process, we decided to be a part of a co-op. Some people describe it like a mini private school, because the co-op determines curriculum and provides the lesson plans. That’s one of the reasons we liked it because it could possibly be a good transition for myself and my daughter since we are taking this decision one year at a time. When we signed up, we had to sign forms, and one thing we agreed to do to be a part of this co-op was to abide by the biblical rules for peacemaking.

Reconciliation. Ugh. Most people I know do everything they can to avoid reconciliation and try to ignore the problem. One of my good friends, who is a pastor’s wife, even told me that she’d never actually seen biblical reconciliation work.

I got to thinking about reconciliation to Christ and to others again this past week, when two things occurred. First, my daughter got her feelings hurt by another student who inferred that my daughter was not really welcome into the group. I emailed the teacher to see what really happened, and said she would address it with the class if needed. I left on my little trip to Allume and did not really respond any further to it. Then, the main theme of Allume was “together,” and a secondary theme was racial reconciliation.

When I came back to the land of the living, off the mountain top high spiritual retreats often give you, I began to think about my daughter again and ponder whether other people at the co-op really care about true reconciliation.

Often, reconciliation is messy. People may get hurt worse before they get better. If the biblical model is not truly followed, people get cut off (I’m sure there are times for this). Often, restoration looks quite different from what we think. We think, we hope everything will be the same, but restoration often makes changes in our hearts, in the hearts of the restorer, and we are not the same.

Reconciliation with Christ is similar. We become reconciled to Him, and for His side of things, we are made perfect, but in and of ourselves, we hold on to our human natures. We fail to accept our new identities. We don’t walk the path Christ leads us too. This process changes our hearts as we seek reconciliation again and again, though we need it only once.

¹⁶ So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. ¹⁷ Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! ¹⁸ All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: ¹⁹ that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. ²⁰ We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. ²¹ God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:16-21

God did not have to reconcile us. We were in the wrong every time, and yet He did. When He did so, He gave us a ministry – to be reconciled to others, to offer peace, hope, and love.

The dictionary online defines reconciliation simply as, “when former enemies agree to an amicable truce.”

If God says to love our enemies, and reconciliation is agreeing to a truce with an enemy, then reconciliation must be an act of love.

God has given us this love, and we must offer it to the world and every enemy. Only through Christ is this even possible. Wow! I cannot help but worship Him when I think of the wondrous possibilities.