Living As God's Ambassador

Therefore the law was our tutor

to bring us to Christ, that we

might be justified by faith.

But after faith has come, we are

no longer under a tutor.

For you are all sons of God

through faith in Christ Jesus.

For as many of you as were

baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Galatians 3:24–27

            The apostle Paul reminds the Galatians and us that we were under the law so that we might come to Jesus Christ and our justification is by our faith.  Paul writing to the Romans spoke: “For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace” (Romans 6:14).  In the past men took this Scripture literally and did all they desired, not matter what it was, they felt that Paul was saying that they could sin and that sin not be accounted to them: is this what Paul was saying? No! “What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? Certainly not” (Romans 6:15)! The Law pointed to men what sin is and what is require of men by God but the law did not save a person and by keeping the law man was not now sinless. Works do not bring us into favor with God by the works alone. Faith is required so that any works done by a man, or a woman, are done not for being some philanthropic person doing some good, no faith in God drives a person to do what God would do and all that is done is for God and not for ourselves. If a person places himself, or herself, in a position that makes them by some necessity outside of faith making cause for any work, makes a person a slave to that work. The question for any of us is: what or who are we under, for it is by this placement that we are slaves to that placement. Sin is sin, God judges’ sin, and man cannot remove sin from their life by any sort of works. The Law pointed to us our sinfulness and being under the law, man was a slave to that law. Man slaved to meet the letter of the law thinking by doing so they would be declared righteous. In some sense no one can do the Law without faith and this is true of those who are working for God now in this present age. Faith is a requirement if the Law or any work is acceptable to God. Many churchgoers think that they must “do,” they must “have,” and this doing or having is a sign of God’s approval. Is it? No! God does not need our work, or what we do for us to have His approval. We are to have simple faith in Him. Period! We are to place ourselves under Him and by doing so we become a slave, a bondservant, to Him. How is this possible? Paul gives us the answer: “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether or sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness” (Romans 6:16–18. Notices this fact: It is God to be thanked for it is by Him and Him alone that we are set free from sin and that the promise to Abraham is applied to us and we know that this is true if we truly believe from the heart. It is the heart, the seat of our emotions, the place where we allow ourselves to become another’s. Marriage is one such event in a person life whereby love for the other person is an emotion that drives you to become a slave, a bondsman to that other person. God has given us faith (Ephesians 2:8), and the apostles have given us in writing the doctrine of God. What is this doctrine? He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the debt owed to Him and this debt gives to those who believe eternal life, not to Jews only, but to many in the nations: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male or female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.  and if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:28–29).

            Our old man was crucified by Jesus Christ who became the curse for God’s children the law could not give us salvation, it was weak and pointed to our sinfulness. Jesus Christ was crucified and bore our punishment even though guiltless, and this He did in order to free us from the debt of sin and to bring to an end our punishment: “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit” (Romans 8:1). Yes we are free from the punishment of God by means of Jesus’ work upon the cross, but, and this is a most important but, we are not to sit back tacitly applying the work of Jesus Christ on the cross, that freedom in Christ. We are to be active and not walk in sin any longer for we are to walk in the Spirit, that Holy Spirit given to all believers. We are ambassadors of Jesus Christ, we are His bondservants to do His will, we have work to do, and that is to walk in righteousness. God has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ (2Corinthians 5:18), and we now walk by faith and not by sight (2Corinthians 5:7). Take your eyes off of works. Do the work of an ambassador and allow the gospel to be seen in you, heard in your speech. People should be able to see in you something different, to see that you are a Christian, not in name only, but in your life. Will this be easy? NO! Do we have help? YES! What then is stopping you from what God has made you? You are chosen by Him; equipped by Him, helped by Him; you are an ambassador for Him. We are His bondservant and we are to be converted to Him and be His arms, legs, and mouth speaking the gospel: Jesus Christ is God, Jesus Christ is Savior, and by doing so children of God see, and hear, and allow the faith given to them by God to turn their lives over to Him in complete submission. This is our good and acceptable work.

Therefore, since we have this ministry,

            As we have received mercy,

We do not lose heart.

                        2Corinthians 4:1

Let our praise to God be seen

Richard L. Crumb