They told me when I stepped on this upper step that I would be live. So I'm just verifying that this morning. I do count it a joy to be with you this morning and thank you doll for opening up the pulpit and uh, for q calling me yesterday asking me if I would step in and I'm delighted to, but just to let you know that my relationship with Dow did begin over 20 years ago when our pastor who married my wife and I was pastoring the bible church in Little Rock Arkansas and he said that, you know, through, through an exchange of that conversation, it was Karen Dow's wife's in-laws attended that church there and he said, I should reach out to dowel and just uh, introduce myself, get to know him and just share our ministry with him. And so del I just want to say, thank you for your friendship. I'm not filling your shoes, I'm stepping into your footprints up here. So thank you for allowing me to be with you this morning. I would like to ask you what comes to mind to your mind. I know what comes to my mind when I mentioned politics, politicians, I don't wanna hear no outbursts. I just want you to mold this over in your mind when I mentioned politicians, government, governmental leaders, republicans, democrats. What comes to your mind when I, when I tell people that this is the ministry that I'm involved with, they say, well, they sure need it down there. And yes, that is true. But it also they say, well, that that's a big mission field and yes, that's true. But the reality is that the church needs to fulfill the other end of that obligation and pray for our leaders. Now, the scripture is explicitly clear that we need to be in prayer for our leaders and we'll look at that in just a few moments this morning. But whatever came through your mind when I ask you that question this morning, what do you think? What what about so and so and I'm sure your mind spun the gamut of what you thought, who you saw. But what about if this were true? If our politicians elected officials, we're more like Daniel. Remember in Daniel and Daniel Chapter six, he's getting ready to be promoted to be the emperor over the Kingdom. And it said about this about Daniel when he was in the government affairs, he said then the commissioners and say traps began trying to find grounds of accusation against Daniel in regards to government affairs. But they could find the ground of accusation or evidence of corruption and as much as he was faithful and no negligence or corruption was to be found in him, Daniel 6, 4 show of hands. How many would like to see that in our politicians and our elected officials? Absolutely. We would. And that would just delight our soul in such a way that we would have a little more respect for those in elective office. They need our prayers. I can't tell you how many times I've visited offices when I'm there in the state capital and I go into an office and obviously a staff person would draw me in, he said, Jeff, look, these people say they're christians and they send these kinds of notes into our offices that ought not to be so, they need to know that we're there to pray for them. We need to have better men and better women in the political arena. I mean, when you think about Daniel, when it was said about Daniel and Daniel six, he went to Babylon in captivity as a teenager and you know, I I just said just the other weeks, I said, when I look at my kids, Did I prepare them at the age of 15 to be carried off into Babylon to make them fruitful messengers for God to make them ambassadors for God in that arena? If that were to happen. And I think that that is an area that we need to be as a family focused on. But it's not only that we need to have people in government who has convictions who have convictions, who will stand on those convictions and vote for those convictions, Just like William Penn in 1682, when he formed the frame of government for Pennsylvania, he said this, he says governments like clocks go from the motion men give them and as governments are made and moved by them. So by them, they are ruined too. Wherefore governments rather depend upon men than men upon governments. Let men be good and the government cannot be bad. If it be healed, they will cure it. But if men be bad, let the government be ever so good. They will endeavor to warp it and spoil it To their turn. And we're seeing that in our society today, this was 1682. It could be 2020, 2022. Penn goes on to write, I know that some say, let us have good laws and no matter for the men who execute them. But let them consider that though, good laws do well. Good men do better for good laws may lack good men and men and men and be abolished and evaded by them by men. But good men will never lack good laws nor suffer ill ones. And so the idea that Penn was trying to communicate is yes, we need good Godly men and women in the political arena. And we're watching the demise of that. We're watching the demise of what he spoke of in the 1600s. Is that bad men have risen to power now and they're, they're saying, well, we're not going to enforce that law. We're not going to adjudicate that crime. That ought not to be so. And so penn concluded 100 years later, john Newton. And we we know that john Newton is the is the slave trader who was converted to christ, right? You wrote the song Amazing Grace. We sing it all the times. I love to hear the bagpipes when they pipe that amazing grace. And so what john Newton was dealing with was yes, there was a need for for righteous men and righteous women in the political arena. But but john Newton understood that christ and the church was the supreme institution that he has established, right, We know that at least God, some say five institutions, but there there are five the church, the family and then government, and it needs to be in that order. Some say marriage and I count marriage as part of the family and the other institution is that of commerce. But I wanted to understand this morning that the church is the supreme institution that God has ordained and that he has established that we live in, you know, being in the position that I'm in. I'm often asked why we don't get involved in political issues. Well, as we're going to look at this morning, it's not politics that change people's lives. And there's a book out by dr Macarthur says, why government can't save you, a lot of people think that yes, government can save people in reality they can't. And so there is this, there's this tension and I experienced early on in ministry when I came here, I met a gentleman, I'm not going to mention this name, who went to, who went to seminary with are the President of the seminary that I went to and he asked me a question, he was a little furious at me. Why don't you get involved more on the political side? And my thought is politics never saves no one. No one. And that's the same thing that John Newton said 100 years later after pen In the 1700s and he was, he had a minister friend of his who was bifurcating, he was he was a minister called by God, but he wanted to be involved in the political agenda. And john Newton writes a letter, it's called true patriotism In the mid 1700s. He says, dear friend, he doesn't give him a name, he says, allow me to say that it excites both my wonder and my concern that a christian minister such as yourself, just think it worthwhile to attend political reforms. When I look upon the present state of our nation, such an attempt appears to me to be no less vain and foolish. Then it would be to paint the cabin while the ship is on fire or while the ship is sinking or decorate the parlor, why the house is on fire? He says, when our Lord jesus was upon earth, he refused to get involved in disputes or politics. Friend who appointed me luke says to be judge or arbitrator over you christ said, my kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants with fight God God's Children belong to a kingdom that is not of this world and that is us. We are strangers and pilgrims on earth. Part of the scriptural scriptural character is that they are quiet in the land and I'm not promoting capacitive, pacifist, pacifist statism, but we are to live a quiet and tranquil life. He goes on to say that satan has many contra vance's to amuse people. He has many schemes and to divert their thoughts from the real danger. He goes on to make this comment, my dear Sir, talking to his pastor friend, my prayer to God is for you that he would inducing you to employ the talents he has given you in pointing out sin as the great cause and source of every existing evil and to engage those who love and fear him instead of wasting time in political speculations for which very few of them are competent p a new that attempting political reform does not produce eternal value or eternal reconciliation. And so our passes this morning, I want us to open our scripture to uh is second Corinthians five. And as you're turning there, we're going to look at verses 18 to 21. But in this passage here Or in 2nd Corinthians in General, Paul is having to give a defense for his apostle ship. We know as we read first Corinthians and you probably and you know, I'm sure you know that there was issues in the church at Corinth that paul had to address and to set or right because Chloe's people brought these not allegations, but these questions to paul and paul time after time address those issues. But here the opponents of the apostle paul are in Corinth and they're wanting to say that he's some kind of false apostle. And paul is having to make a defense for himself as to his apostles ship and so he addresses the greatest need among mankind. And in 2nd Corinthians five. So what I'd like to do is read verses 18 through 21. Well, I'm going to back up the verse 17 paul says therefore, if any man be in christ, he is a new creature. 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 trespasses against them and he has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for christ as though God were entreating through us. We beg you on behalf of christ, be reconciled to God. See mankind's greatest need is not a political agenda. It's not political reform, it is about being reconciled to God being reconciled to God. And so as as we involved in our ministry with our legislator, we will never go behind the committee or go before committee to to address one issue or the other in favor or against because in doing so we will isolate our mission field. Our mission is not for republicans, our mission is not for democrats, our mission is mankind. And so we want to be sensitive and walk in the way that would be pleasing to the Lord and to let them know that we're there with the Ministry of reconciliation. Were there to serve them And that's hard for a politician to understand. I won't mention his name. But some years ago I I was passing out the bibles to our new freshmen legislators and at the time we passed them out on the on the house floor and those that were there, we presented the bible to them with their name on it and there was a few that were not there. So I went by his office, this particular legislator and introduce myself and what our ministry aim is, who I was, what we were doing and without even having a prior conversation to me. Before he goes, what's your angle? He pointed his finger, watch your angle and I had to say I have no angle I have. We just want to be here to serve you to pray for you. We want to be ambassadors for christ to you, but he couldn't get over that. I was there wanting something from them, you know, when we when we first started our ministry there, it was that we we we had I felt a little stiff arm like a football player in that they would keep me at arm's length for a season. But as time went on, I I noticed that that that facade soft and and then the Lord allowed us to just really to have a breakthrough in the ministry there to to really get to know our legislators and to let them know that we were there to serve them. And so what what we've done since then is we have a Wednesday bible study for them. There's a handful of folks that that come that attend that and that's good. And just to see the growth of them over the years has really been encouraging not anything that I have done, but to to to get them to to look at the scriptures to have an in depth study and to see what God would truly want from them in the ministry that they're in. Because yes, government leaders are there because they are ordained of God. And so we would just want to be encouraging to them in their in their mission as they're they're representing us representing the state of south Carolina throughout throughout the whole state, but paul in this passage here, he gives us our mandate that's not only capital ambassadors mandate, it is ours, the church, the mandate that God has given to us. We see in verse 18 that we've been given a ministry of reconciliation. You see mankind has separated from God from birth. He is destitute. He is without God and second. And excuse me in Ephesians two paul says this. Speaking of mankind us before we were regenerated In Ephesians two, he said, and you were dead in your trespasses and sins in which you formerly walked. According to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air of the spirit. Now that is now working in the sons of disobedience among them, we too all formerly lived in the lust of our flesh, indulging in the desires of our flesh and of the mind and were by nature, Children of wrath, Paul tells us in Ephesians that we were Children Destin for wrath, but that great transformation takes place in verse four, But God being rich in mercy because of his great love which he loved us. Even when we were dead in our transgressions, he made us alive together with christ for by grace, you have been saved and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in order that in the ages to come, he might show the surpassing riches of his grace and kindness toward us in christ Down in verse 11 of of Ephesians to remember that you two were formally the gentiles in the flesh who were called on circumcision by the circumcision which is performed by human and performed in the flesh by human hands. Remember that you were at that time separated from christ excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now, in christ you who are formally four off, far off, were brought near. That's our ministry. Our God, our Savior delights in deliverance. He delights in transformation. He delights to have his gospel communicated through his people to transform the heart of his people. So the gospel is the only thing that changes. And john Newton wanted to express that in what I quoted to his pastor friend, to remind him that, yes, there there are political issues out there, but that never changes anyone's eternal destiny. The gospel does that. And that's the ministry. We've been given not only myself the one that I'm involved in, but also the ministry of the Church. Verse 19 provides us the message of reconciliation, namely, that God was in christ, reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against him. He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Yes, sin is the bad news. Sin is that which plagues all of humanity. And the wages of sin is death and the soul that sends shall surely die. We know that right, we're all destined to die because of sin. But then again, as I just read in Ephesians to mankind is dead. and Paul in Romans five says this also, He reminds us in verse six of Romans chapter five that we were helpless and that while we were helpless at the right time, christ died for the ungodly for one will hardly die for a righteous man. Even though perhaps a good man, someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates his own love toward us. In that while we were sinners, here we are, we're helpless. Ungodly. We're sinners. We're separated from from God from christ. And while we were in that state, Verse 10 says for while we were enemies, we were reconciled through the death of his son much more. Having been reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. So we were helpless. Were ungodly. We're sinners. We're enemies of God. And he reconciled us through the death of his son on the cross. And that's the good news, right? We can have our sins forgiven. We can be reconciled to God, we can have his wrath abated from us for all eternity. As Paul said in Romans 5 11, we have now received the reconciliation. The God promises that there is no now therefore no condemnation for those who are in christ, jesus. That's Romans Chapter eight, God made an un influenced choice to reconcile himself to you and to me, there's nothing good in ourselves that would make us presentable to God, But God says, no, I will reconcile you to me through the death of my son on the cross. And we'll look at that in verse 21. So we as God's messenger, proclaim a message of reconciliation In these four verses In verses 1819, 20 and 21, 5 times, he mentions the word reconcile reconciliation. The verbal content of that is is to be reconciled to God. Where where we're reconciling were reckon reconciliation. We have been reconciled to God and paul makes use of the verbal forms of reconciliation they're in in those short passages. So we are his messengers. We are ambassadors where were begging people that we come in contact with. Mhm. To be reconciled to God as he says at the end of verse 20 we beg you on behalf of christ be reconciled to God. So it's his ambassadors ambassador doesn't speak his own message. And ambassador speaks the message of the of whom he represents, right? So we have the king's message that we need to communicate. We don't speak on our own authority. We speak on the king's authority. Ah we're not in this world's kingdom but we're in the kingdom of heaven. So we have an ambassadorship that we need to fulfill and it's not based on what we desire, but what God has said. But in verse 21, he provides us the means. We see the ministry we've been given in verse 18 We we see the message in verse 19, we see the the the the messenger in verse 20. So in verse 21 is the means, the means of reconciliation is substitution. Eri atonement. He says he that is God made him christ, who knew no sin to be seen on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in him. And I would encourage you for your afternoon reading if you were to just read Ephesians one and see how many times paul mentions in christ being in christ, being in him and the and the importance of being in christ and having that reconciliation, sin is our issue and God on the cross provided a perfect substitute christ said in in the in the sermon on the mount in Matthew seven said unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. So we as believers need a perfect righteousness. We need a righteousness as outside of ourselves to righteousness as alien to ourselves, a righteousness that only God can provide and he provided it and that is our greatest need. one Theologian put it this way, Stephen Charnock, in his, in his, in his book there he said, christ was personally pure yet officially culpable. He was personally holy yet forensically guilty guilt without knowing the filth as Stephen Charnock says he felt the punishment without being touched with the pollution he bore in his body on the cross the wrath of God that was do each of us because our sin deserves infinite wrath. But God provided a substitute in our stead christ on the cross being our substitute he became are offering. And so with that our ministry is primarily that of reconciliation. Yes, there's political issues. I'm, you know, there's not a week or a day that goes by that. I don't ask one of the elected officials what's going on here? You know, what's going on there? Why is that happening? And I'll get all kinds of answers. But our ministry is that of reconciliation. God provided our greatest need. Will he not provide the lesser needs that we have in this life? And absolutely sure he will and he will do that. So as we think about this, the new year, the new 2022 I just want us to to be mindful and, and I hope I can come back and just share what we as a church body needs to do uh in regards as it relates to our elected officials, I have a a little flyer here, but primarily I have a a prayer calendar that's right here. What I've done is just set it up, divided our legislature in such a way that we can pray for them on a regular basis, that we can uphold them so that they know that we are there uh praying for them and if maybe when I come back and speak to the missions group that that I can go more in depth on this, but I just want to know that those guys down there, those ladies also are there by God's appointment and it is incumbent upon us as the Church, not on us as capital Ambassadors, but us on the upon the Church to uphold them in prayer and to be in that arena with the Gospel and let God transform their lives. And so with that, that is our ministry. Yes, it's the Ministry of the Church, but it's also the Ministry of Capital Ambassadors and vice versa. We want to see men and women reconciled to God. We want to say God transformed their heart and life and make them useful vessels for his kingdom. And yes, we need to present the Gospel in such a way that the Cross is truthful and we know that the Cross for some those who are perishing, you know, it is foolish to them, but for us who are being saved, it is the power of God. So we want to see God do that in the hearts and lives of his people in that arena,