SNT 0809 Ambassadors for Christ
Ambassadors for Christ
Shows what God tells us believers’ responsibilities are in life – to be ministers, soldiers, stewards, witnesses, slaves, fellow workers and ambassadors – and the importance and benefits of being the best in these responsibilities.
SNT – 809
May 16, 1976
Format: audio - transcript
Publication Date: 05-16-1976
Pages: 5
Victor Paul Wierwille was a Bible scholar and teacher for over four decades.
By means of Dr. Wierwille's dynamic teaching of the accuracy and integrity of God's Word, foundational class and advanced class graduates of Power for Abundant Living have learned that the one great requirement for every student of the Bible is to rightly divide the Word of Truth. Thus, his presentation of the Word of God was designed for students who desire the in-depth-accuracy of God’s Word.
In his many years of research, Dr. Wierwille studied with such men as Karl Barth, E. Stanley Jones, Glenn Clark, Bishop K.C. Pillai, and George M. Lamsa. His formal training included Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Theology degrees from Mission House (Lakeland) College and Seminary. He studied at the University of Chicago and at Princeton Theological Seminary from which he received a Master of Theology degree in Practical Theology. Later he completed his work for the Doctor of Theology degree.
Dr. Wierwille taught the first class on Power for Abundant Living in 1953.
Books by Dr. Wierwille include: Are the Dead Alive Now? published in 1971; Receiving the Holy Spirit Today published in 1972; five volumes of Studies in Abundant Living— The Bible Tells Me So (1971), The New, Dynamic Church (1971), The Word's Way (1971), God's Magnified Word (1977), Order My Steps in Thy Word (1985); Jesus Christ Is Not God (1975); Jesus Christ Our Passover (1980); and Jesus Christ Our Promised Seed (1982).
Dr. Wierwille researched God's Word, taught, wrote, and traveled worldwide, holding forth the accuracy of God's "wonderful, matchless" Word.
2Co 5:18
2Co 5:18-21; 6:1
Dr Wierwille reads letters
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Ambassadors for Christ
Once you’re born again, you’re an ambassador.
Then the question is: How is your walk? How is your witness? What are you really exemplifying?
Take your Bibles tonight please and go to 2 Corinthians. I told you a little while ago in the announcements that Jesus Christ sent out the apostles two-by-two, that he sent out the twelve. And later on, as you know, he sent out seventy more. And he sent them out two-by-two.
And I’ve learned long ago that whenever you can do things as closely aligned and patterned to what Jesus Christ did, you’re pretty well walking in alignment and harmony and guaranteed success.
As I was developing this particular evening in my heart and life, there are so many things in God’s Word that I could share with you regarding the national and international outreach via the Ambassador program. That if you wanted to stay perhaps another few hours, I could cover half of what I know is in the Word for ambassadors. And I am sure you don’t want to stay that late tonight so I just want to share some of the basics with you.
This great record in 2 Corinthians is not unfamiliar to grads of the class on Power for Abundant Living. Because it is in the part that I bring my umbrella and my suitcase and a few others into the picture. And in the fifth chapter of 2 Corinthians says in verse 18:
2 Corinthians 5:18a:
And all things are of God,…
By the way, the text includes the word “new” after “things”—all things new. When you’re born again you become new.
2 Corinthians 5:18b:
…all things [new] are of God who hath [past tense] reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
Isn’t that beautiful? God has reconciled us to Himself. ‘‘To reconcile” means “to bring back together that which has been separated.” You take an electric line that has been broken. When they put that line together it is technically reconciling that line, bringing back together that which has been separated. And this verse declares very beautifully that God hath reconciled. Reconciled us to Himself. The separation was between God and who? Man. Because he was just a natural man of body and soul, without spirit, had no spiritual connection with God. So God reconciled man to Himself; He brought us back together with Him. God did that most beautifully by condescending in His son, Jesus Christ who became man. Absolutely beautiful. So that you and I might become the righteousness of God in him. He brought Jesus Christ down, so to speak, so that you and I might be brought up to Him. God hath reconciled us to Himself. God reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ; not by God but by whom? Jesus Christ. That’s what it says, class, that’s what it means. Jesus Christ is not God. God is God; Jesus Christ is who? His Son. You know that. Right. You have to become a confused adult Christian to know that God is Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ is God—the Word does not state it at all. God reconciled us to Himself—not by God. He didn’t reconcile us to Himself by God but by whom? Jesus Christ, the son of God. That’s right.
Then look what He did. After God reconciled us, then He gave to us. “…hath given to us”; He gave it. He gave it. He gave it! God doesn’t give conditionally, as we might. Once God gives, He has given it. Just think about this for a moment: We have what God has given. The whole world can say we don’t have it, but we know we have what God “hath given.” He gave to us the ministry of reconciliation. He gave it to us. Whether you like it or whether you don’t like it, you know what you got—the ministry of what? Reconciliation. And you’re responsible for what you got! So if you never want to have the ministry of reconciliation, just don’t get born again. That’s right. But the moment you got born again (and it’s God in Christ in you, the hope of glory), God gave to you what? The ministry of reconciliation. He didn’t give it to angels. He didn’t give it just to clergymen. He didn’t give it just to Harvard graduates or Princeton graduates or college graduates. He gave it to believers, human beings who are born again of His Spirit. Now if the believer happens to be a theologian, that’s great. If he happens to be a college graduate, great. If he happens to be a farmer, wonderful. If he happens to be a factory worker, wonderful. His occupation is not the criterion; every born-again believer has the same ministry of reconciliation. And, ladies and gentlemen, you’re responsible for what you’ve got. Someday when you appear before the Father, you’ll have to give an account of what you did with that which He gave to you.
Do you know why most Christians aren’t doing much with what they have? They don’t know what have. No one has told them what they have except the negatives. They really do not know that they have the ministry of reconciliation. If you didn’t know you had a dollar in your pocket, you couldn’t spend it, right? Do you see why this ministry is so dynamic and so alive and so vital? All we do is to teach people the accuracy of God’s Word and we believe what’s written. . I believe the banker who sends out a statement and I believe it. I travel along and I see a sign next to the bank that says temperature and time, remember? I believe that. Am I being any more illogical if I’m willing to believe God’s Word? I think it’s illogical to believe the sign that says 72O (time and temperature) and refuse to believe God’s Word. Because God’s Word has stood a lot longer than the temperature and time sign outside the bank! That’s right. And I believe what the Word says. And that’s made all the difference in my life. Make a difference in yours too. That’s right.
God hath reconciled (past tense). He hath reconciled. So somebody says to me “Oh you ain’t very much.” I say now wait a minute. Don’t you tell that to me because I have a Father…you can call me an nincompoop but you can’t call my Father a nincompoop; that’ makes me mad, spiritually. That’s right. Have you ever tried it on my earthly father? If your earthly father loves you and if I said anything against your earthly father, what would you do? But you see, they do that to the Heavenly Father—we just don’t let them do it. Because my Heavenly Father is who the Word says He is, and what He gave, He gave. My earthly father gave me things. Well, if I have a Heavenly Father I have no doubt He can do it because my Heavenly Father is a little bit bigger than my earthly father. Because my Heavenly Father created the heavens and earth in which we live. That’s something my earthly daddy never did.
And He hath given to us the ministry—the ministry, the ministry. He’s given it to us. What a privilege. What a wonderful joy to have that. Well, bless God, let’s do something with it. Let’s move it! He’s given it to us. Here’s a bouquet of flowers. It’s got twelve of them in it. Now she can give each of you twelve a flower and gives the rest of you a leaf off of it. If you’ve got it, you can give it away, right? We’ve got the ministry of what? Reconciliation.
Do you know what the word “ministry” literally means? It means “service rendered by a servant.” He’s given to us the ministry. The ministry—service to be rendered by a servant. We’re sons of God in our direct relationship with Him, but we’re servants to our fellowmen. That’s the ministry He’s given to us. Verse 19 says:
2 Corinthians 5:19:
To wit [namely, primarily], that God was in Christ,...
He wouldn’t have had to be in him if he was God. Oh my goodness! God was where? In Christ. Had Jesus Christ been God, God wouldn’t have been in him, for he would have been God, right? Here it says God was in Christ. And the Word of God says it’s God in Christ in you when you’re born again of God’s Spirit. Then Jesus Christ said, “The works that I do you shall do also.” Someday this thing is going to live in you; and when it does, it’ll turn you on. It will make life worth living. It makes life with a capital “L”, capital “I”, capital “F”, capital “E”—then double it, triple it, raise it to the nth degree. Just makes LIFE, period. Look at that: God was in Christ.
2 Corinthians 5:19 continued:
. . .God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses [their sins] unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
There it is! He has given us the ministry to be of service as servants, and He also has given us the Word with which to do the job. He has committed unto us His Word—the Word, the Word! He’s committed it to us. And if anybody is ever going to know what God makes available and really be delivered, you and I are going to have to tell it like it is—not like people say it may be. We need to read what is written and say what the Word says! God has committed unto us the Word of reconciliation; it’s His Word that reconciles men and women to God. That Word builds believing, and all believing equals receiving. Verse 20 says:
2 Corinthians 5:20:
Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.
It says ‘‘NOW,” not when we die, but right now—right after each one of us is born again of God’s Spirit, filled with the power of the holy spirit, NOW we are ambassadors for Christ. We have the ministry of reconciliation, we have the Word that we’re responsible for holding forth, and we are ambassadors. Whether you like it or whether you don’t like it, you’re an ambassador. Well, bless God, you ought to like it.
A citizen might spend a lot of money to get to be an ambassador for a nation. When you’re born again you’re an ambassador for God. It’s just like a tail on a dog—it’s there. The tail is there whether the dog likes it or not. Once you’re born again, you’re an ambassador. Then the question is: How is your walk? How is your witness? What are you really exemplifying? What do people see when they see you? Do they see Christ, or do they see a copped out person? Do they see a man that is a real man of God? Do they see a woman that is a beautiful woman of God who has principles, commitment, and dynamics, and who is in control of her life and just stands? You decide. You’re the ambassador.
“…we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.” Now verse 21:
2 Corinthians 5:20:
For he [God] hath made him [Jesus] to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
How righteous is the righteousness of God? Romans 8:1 says, “There is therefore now no condemnation....” The Word of God and Jesus Christ within are the only things I’ve ever seen that take condemnation out of a human being. Otherwise you are going to go through life, if you are really sincere and honest and don’t want to cheat everybody, you would be condemned a lifetime. Jesus Christ in you takes condemnation out—cleanses you on the inside. You’re radiant. Somebody once described this as “swallowing a bushel of sunshine.’’ You’re just totally effervescing from the inside. You’re electrifying; you’re dynamic; you’re loving, you’re kind, you’re patient, you’re longsuffering. You just live that way. Isn’t that beautiful? We are made the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.
Workers Together with God
Verse 1 of 2 Corinthians 6 says:
1 Corinthians 6:1:
We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.
We then, are workers together with Him. What a category to be in, to be a worker together with God through Jesus Christ! That’s moving in the top echelon, with the “top brass.” To be a worker together with God who created the heavens and the earth—what a privilege! What an ambassador! To be a worker with God.
There’s a great joy in serving; and in our worldwide outreach, learning to serve is also a joy. (That’s part of our W.O.W. Ambassador program.) Many times to serve someone in the senses world is just a lot of bologna. And the only reason they serve is that they get paid at the end of the job otherwise they wouldn’t do it. People have to be taught how to serve so they learn to serve with joy.
In all of our outreach programs, our people learn to give in order to receive. By the way, they also learn the joy of work, because so many times people don’t like to work until they get to be ambassadors for God. Those four hours on the field, like the W.O.W. ambassadors work. That four hours, they get into that work and enjoy working. I feel sorry for people who are learning to enjoy their retirement. At thirty-five, they are thinking of retiring at sixty-two. It didn’t say in that scripture that we have the ministry of reconciliation until we are sixty-two. That’s the truth of God’s Word. What do you want to retire for when you got a ministry to carry out, a Word to do it with. When you can bring men and women to God and see their lives change. I thank God I can work. If you’re not thankful you can work, I’ll take you to a few places where there are people who are so totally emaciated that can’t work. Maybe if you were in that condition, you might be thankful if you could work. That’s like you can complain about having no shoes until you meet a man who has no feet.
I thank God for work. Twenty hours a day, I thank God. If I could stand to do it twenty-three-and-a-half hours a day, I’d do it too, just for the joy of working. I just get the biggest kick out of working. I just love to work! I learned in the Word of God that God never gave His Word to a lazy person. Every man and woman who ever received an abundance from God believed God and really worked. They’re the ones to whom God revealed His Word. For example, the Apostle Paul was never a slouch. Even when he persecuted the Christians, he was diligent and worked hard at it. Later on, when he joined God’s team, he worked even harder. There is joy in working. You know why most kids don’t know joy and working? Because their parents didn’t teach them joy and working. Give them to me in the Corps and W.O.W., I’ll teach them. We teach our people to enjoy work. That’s part of the training of life. You don’t like to mow grass? Just DO IT! (The finest way to get to do something is to tell me you don’t want to.) You see just to have the joy of working; that’s part of being an ambassador of God. Isn’t that wonderful.
Disciplined Living
Another great principle in the outreach of the ministry of reconciliation is disciplined living. Most people are so undisciplined they never live—they merely exist. Living comes in discipline. That’s why the word “disciple,” a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, means “a disciplined one.” There is no Living—with a capital L—in abundance until you get that discipline. No one can force it on you. You, by your own choice, discipline your life out of love for God and others. That self-discipline is fantastic, and that’s what being an ambassador is all about.
The ambassador has the joy of serving. They learn to serve. They learn to receive by giving, because all the laws of receiving are contingent upon the laws of giving. For example, if I want to receive strength in this arm, I don’t let it hang and say to it, ‘‘Arm, get strong.’’ If I want strength in this arm, I give. I give, I give—and as I give by exercising it; and I build up all the muscles. The laws of life are like that. To be an ambassador you have to be giving in order to be receiving, and you have to enjoy working and serving, and you have to have the discipline that goes with it if you’re going to succeed.
You know, it says in the Word of God that as ambassadors, we are also soldiers. And the word “soldier” means one who is trained and disciplined to battle.
Secondly it says we are servants. And the servant is one who serves. And I taught you earlier that the word “ministry” is service rendered by a servant. We are sons of God perpendicular, but we are servants on a horizontal level to all the people of the world. You see our pulpit is the world. My whole thinking of this teaching platform is not here but international to the end that it’s worldwide. My vision of this thing that I’m teaching tonight is the world—the world. The world is my pulpit; the world is your pulpit—the whole world. Not just Headquarters or Timbuctoo or some other little town—it’s the world that is our pulpit for the declaration of greatness of God’s Word. So we are servants.
Number three it says we are stewards. A steward is second in command in a household. A steward is the one who has been given the power of attorney. We are second in command. God first, the believer second. That’s why we are stewards, oikonmia.
Number four it says we are witnesses. And that means one who witnesses a live witness. We are living witnesses to the greatness of the power of God.
Number five it says we are slaves. And the word is doulos. A slave is a renewed-mind committed son of God. A servant is committed but a slave is a renewed-mind commitment. It’s a deeper commitment than the word “servant”. Doulos is where you are so committed that nothing will shake you. You’re just committedly committed. Just sold out, that's it. If it never comes to pass it’s still God’s Word. Then you are committed. That’s doulos.
Number six it says we are fellow workers. I read you that a little while ago. Fellow workers with God.
And number seven, of course, is where I began. We are ambassadors.
These are the categories that are given in the Word regarding the believer who has the ministry and the Word of reconciliation.
Sharings
I want to share a couple of letters with you. I could share hundreds and hundreds of letters like these that I’m going to read—do very little of this. Because we have so many signs, miracles and wonders, we wouldn’t get anything else done but tell about the signs, miracles and wonders. But I thought tonight in this particular phase—and these are just not letters that I had to dig down in the pile and pick out. These are just letters that came in this week. So it’s rather current. We get them all the time. The first one I want to share speaks of Power for Abundant Living—a good class to get people to God’s Word and get God’s Word in people. This letter is addressed to me and it says:
God bless you with the fullness of His capacity in the name of our lord and savior, Christ Jesus. My husband and I completed the Power for Abundant Living class, and I find words are inadequate to thank you for the love and care you have poured into your teaching….
My husband and I have been married for eleven years and have two sons. We lived the first ten of these years with resentment and malice toward each other. Neither of us expected to remain married through this year. Our negative belief and the tension surely was reflected in our children. I was first introduced to the Ministry two years ago, but at that time I was rather enjoying my unhappiness and rejected the love and guidance offered me.
The goodness of the believers’ words came back to me repeatedly during the following year, however, so I called them, saying that I wanted to go to the Rock of Ages with them.My husband would not go, but as it was in my heart to learn more, my sons and I went without him. The beauty and the tenderness we encountered there were compounded by the miracles and teachings we witnessed. I hungered for more of God’s wonderful Word. After the Rock, my husband agreed to attend a fellowship with me. Our sons attended a Children’s Fellowship during our adult meeting. When they returned to the room afterward, their faces were so radiant that, to me, it seemed the entire room was illuminated.
After hearing the teaching of a single fellowship meeting and seeing how radiant our children were, my husband signed a check for the Power for Abundant Living class. We have been blessed continually since that moment.
At times when we had no money, the food in our house lasted twice the time it normally would. When we had little money for food, everything we needed was drastically reduced in the supermarket. Another time, my husband needed a pair of shoes, but he shared it with no one except God. The next day our neighbor, an elderly man, sent over a new pair of shoes which did not fit him well. Guess who they fit? I could go on and on and on, as each day brings an increase to the abundance. But I’m sure this does not surprise you. After all, you taught us how to receive God’s abundance.
Last night, when we spoke in tongues for the first time, the power and glory of our Lord was finally and forever shown to us. The beautiful saints standing behind us, and you before us, encircled us with the purest love through Christ Jesus. As we spoke, tears and laughter periodically punctuated the spirit’s utterance. The joy we felt was too great to be contained in our bursting hearts. The love and gratitude we feel for you is boundless, and we pray for you daily in our spiritual prayers. If we might in some small way offer you any help, it would bless us enormously. With love in Christ—
That’s the result of a class called Power for Abundant Living. What changed their lives? The Word of God.
When that Word of God is properly planted and watered and believed, God gives the increase. Someone had spoken the Word as an ambassador for Christ, and the lives of that family changed.
Here’s something a W.O.W. Ambassador wrote:
I’ve been really amazed at what I’ve been learning as a W.O.W. Joy is what I’m bubbling over with; being thankful for what God has given me has stopped me from limiting Him. I can’t do without this family and especially my Father.
Jesus Christ said in John 5:30, “I can of mine own self do nothing:…”I’m realizing that when I let Him bless me every day, life sure is exciting. Limiting God gets me nowhere. Dr. Wierwille taught us that real love is giving and real giving is living. I wondered how could I make this more real in my life. Being thankful to our Father has made it come true.
We have the privilege of reconciling people back to God, and what a privilege it is. Giving is a joy. I’ve grown to the point that I love people, even if they couldn’t care less about me, because I just remember they don’t have what I have in life.
There is no reason to get bitter toward anyone. All they need is a little love, care, and concern. What a freedom I’ve come to in my life. Every day now there is so much to be thankful for, just realizing this once in my life is another thing to be thankful for. It is an honor to know that there are two sides to believing. And I can be sharp about taking the positive side. That too is something to be thankful for. I love this life and speak God’s Word because I want others to have it. Being a W.O.W. has taught me to be grateful and will to continue. I love you and thank you for your concern.
Here’s another one from a W.O.W. Ambassador:
…I’ve been tremendously blessed by operating God’s principles of giving, receiving and believing. Receiving so much that it is on my heart to write and share it with you. Before I set out to be an Ambassador, I had set several goals to accomplish. One was to operate giving equals receiving to my maximum capacity so I could really begin to see the full scope of this great part of God’s Word. When I arrived I had one small suitcase of clothes and wearing a pair of tennis shoes. I thought the best way to begin in the area of giving would be to abundantly share, so I decided to give half of my paycheck to abundant sharing. After that things really started popping….there is not room enough in my heart to share with you all the blessings God has poured out to me….I praise God for your faithfulness and stand on God’s rightly divided Word. God bless you.
The final one I want to read is from someone in the Corps:
God bless you in that name, that continues to become more real to us every day—Jesus Christ, the lord. Today at the point of my life and growth in God’s Word, something is burning on my heart that I desire to share with you. As far as I can remember I have never personally expressed my overwhelming gratitude to you concerning how the Corps program literally set our marriage in its truly honorable position.
Sometime before we entered to Corps our marriage was not only on the rocks, it was out in the deep gasping for breath. Not more than a few weeks prior to going into the Corp someone told us, If you really haven’t got it all together, you better not go in the Corps because you will never get your marriage together in the Corps. But a few days following we were most miserable until someone else corrected us by saying, There was nowhere else in the world that made things jell any better. And we both believed it. The results came abundantly. I do not attribute our success to an excessive amount of concentration in various tactics used in our lives together, to get it together. We didn’t do this. I do base our victory on the fact that the Corps poured out such an abundance of God’s Word to us that we both individually began to really love ourselves. Hence it was simple to love each other.
This year on the field is fantastic. The greatest thing that I’ve seen about marriage is that it is something that builds every day. It builds as each gives to the other. I see no way that any of this giving would be done correctly unless priorities are understood and carried out. By this I mean that the greatest decision that a person can make is the unqualified commitment of Romans 10:9.