Today we live in a society where people are being victimized by the constant flood of false doctrines. They all come from the appearance of being Christian. The biggest satanic lie of the age that these false systems propagate is that Christ is not enough for your salvation. Every false system denies the sufficiency of Christ and holds fast to the teaching that it is not possible for a man to be reconciled to God by Jesus Christ alone.

Reconciliation refers to bringing two clashing parties back together again. In scripture the meaning of the “reconciliation” goes beyond the relationship between two human beings. It refers to the restoration of the right relationship between man and Holy God.

Scripture talks about at least five terms that illustrate man’s Salvation. Those five terms are: justification, redemption, forgiveness, reconciliation, and adoption. In justification, the sinner stands before God as the accused and is declared righteous or not guilty. In redemption, the sinner stands before God as a slave and is granted freedom by a ransom. In forgiveness, the sinner stands before God as a debtor, and the debt, having been paid, is forgotten. In reconciliation, the sinner stands before God as an enemy, and is led to peace as a friend. In adoption the sinner stands before God as an outcast or alien, and is made a son.

Forgiveness deals with the fruits of our lives which is sin. Redemption deals with the root of our human nature -we are slaves to sin. Reconciliation deals with our condition -we are enemies of God. Adoption deals with our position -we are outcasts. So, when a person is saved everything is taken care of – fruit, root, condition and position. This is called justification.

The Mission of God

God looked over all that He had made, and He saw that it was very good (Gen 1:31). God created humanity in His image and had a perfect relationship with Adam and Eve at the beginning. Then sin entered the world and shattered that relationship. The world became hostile to God, the universe was cursed and alienated from God. The mission of God since the fall is to reconcile this broken world to Himself again.

Two sides of the reconciliation

In the process of reconciliation, both parties have to agree to the terms of reconciliation. On one side, the sinner’s attitude towards God has to be changed. On the other side, God’s attitude towards sinners also has to be changed. Man is hostile towards God because they love sin, and he is incapable of loving God (Rom 8:7). Man must be supernaturally transformed from being a sinner to being righteous, being a God-hater to being Christ-follower. And, God is angry with the sinner every day (Ps 7:11), because God cannot look upon sin, and sin had to be dealt with. Man could not be reconciled to God unless something is done to appease God’s wrath and to transform man’s nature.

What has God done?

Reconciliation is God’s initiative. When we were utterly helpless, powerless to provide for our own salvation, Christ died for the sinner. God has reconciled the world to Himself through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ on the cross (Col 1:20). It is by Christ that the whole universe is going to be brought back to God. God appeased His wrath by pouring it out on innocent Christ. And, He made the sinner a new creation by faith in Christ (2 Cor 5:17). On one side God transformed us, made us new, and on the other side He dealt with our sin problem by placing our sin upon Christ and putting Him through an agonizing death on the cross. He paid the penalty of sin in our place. He became a sin for us and we became His righteousness. That took care of God’s wrath and Sinners transformation.

There is only one mediator

Our salvation is possible only through the death of Christ. There is one mediator between God and men, it’s Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5). God says nothing about Mary -a Co-Redemptrix, nothing about rosary, nothing about the sacrament of the Eucharist, nothing about fasting, nothing about purgatory, nothing about infant baptism, nothing about speaking in tongues, nothing about slaying in Spirit, nothing about church membership. If anyone teaches that you need to participate in sacraments, ceremonies and good works, or speak in tongues to be saved, that’s a lie straight from hell. The work of salvation is not a cooperative effort between the sinner and God – God does a little, and you do a little. It is totally a work of God, and all the sinner contributes is simply an open hand.

No one is holier than a sinner who has received grace. – Nicholas Zinzendorf

When you put your faith in Jesus Christ, instantly, you become holy, blameless and without any fault before God (Col 1:22). There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:1). Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God that has declared you holy and righteous. (Rom 8:33). Beloved, this is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven (Col 1:23). If anyone preaches to you a gospel contrary to this, a curse be on him (Gal 1:8).