April 19, 2009: Rebuild, Restore, Renew – Michael Hidalgo

In the words preceding this passage Paul speaks about the Church being “Christ’s Body.” Here he speaks about reconciliation happening through the physical body of Christ. This reconciliation is about the suffering that Jesus went through on the cross to present us free from accusation. What role then is the church to play in this? Surely we cannot, like Christ, “die for the sins of the world,” for we know this happened once for all time. 

But the link cannot be missed. Reconciliation comes through Christ’s body – and we are the body of Christ. We will raise the question then – “What role do we, the Church, play in leading others toward reconciliation?” Paul speaks about this being a “hope held out in the gospel.” He has even become a slave to this.