2 Corinthians 5 Devotional

The Great Exchange

“God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.”2 Corinthians 5:21 (BSB)

Earthly life, Paul says, is like a tent in which we groan, longing for the permanent home God has prepared and guaranteed by giving his Spirit (5:1-5). Believers walk by faith rather than sight and aim to please the Lord, knowing that all must appear before Christ's judgment seat (5:7-10).

What drives Paul is the love of Christ, who died for all so that the living would live for him (5:14-15). Anyone joined to Christ is a new creation (5:17). All of it comes from God. He reconciled us to himself, not counting people's sins against them (5:18-19). The last verse shows how. God made his sinless Son to be sin for us, so that in union with him we are counted righteous before God (5:21). Our sin was laid on Christ, and his righteousness given to us. So Paul, as Christ's ambassador, pleads with people to be reconciled to God (5:20). Because God has already made peace through his Son, you can come to him without earning your welcome.

To think about: What keeps you from resting in the peace God has made with you through Christ, and who might need to hear that he has made it?