<p>5:20 <i>Therefore, we are ambassadors on behalf of Christ, as though God were entreating the world by us. We beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God- </i>We are the face of Christ to this world, and to our brethren; He has no arms or legs or face on this earth apart from us, His body. God &ldquo;makes His appeal by us&rdquo; (2 Cor. 5:20 RSV). Paul's logic here parallels the Corinthians with &quot;the world&quot;. He begs them to be reconciled to God (knowing that some of them weren't in relationship with God and &quot;had not the knowledge of God&quot;, 1 Cor. 15:34). And yet Paul elsewhere writes so positively about them. Their status in Christ meant that he on one hand felt towards them as to the Lord Jesus, confident of their salvation. But Paul is a realist, his love didn't make him blind. And sensing the real possibility of their condemnation, of the eternity they might miss, he <i>begs</i> them. The Lord's passion for the world's reconciliation led Him to the cross; and it is that same passion which He seeks to articulate through us. The other references to Paul's 'begging' or 'beseeching' the Corinthians relate to practical matters- the same word is used of begging them to accept back the disciplined brother (2 Cor. 2:8) and to contribute to the Jerusalem Poor Fund (2 Cor. 9:5). It was through these things that they were in practice reconciled with God. For our relationship with Him depends upon our relationship with our brethren. Paul will conclude 2 Corinthians by begging the Corinthians to &quot;be comforted&quot; (13:11), using the same word as here translated &quot;beg&quot;. Paul knows that the Corinthians must make the choice to accept the appeal he was making, but he appeals to them by all means.</p><p>God desires to &ldquo;reason together&quot; with men (Is. 1:18). This is extraordinary indeed. God is seeking to persuade men to accept the forgiveness available in the blood of His Son. And He asks us to do this work for Him, to reflect this aspect of His character to the world, with that same spirit of earnest humility: &quot;As though God did beseech you by us; we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God&quot;. No wonder in the context Paul says that we should <i>therefore</i> watch our behaviour and attitudes. The fact men turn away from God's <i>beseeching</i>, His <i>praying </i>that they will accept His grace, is surely the greatest tragedy in the whole cosmos, in the whole of existence.&nbsp;</p><p><i>Because</i> of the cross, the atonement which God wrought in Christ&rsquo;s offering, we beseech men to be reconciled to God. Appreciating the cross and the nature of the atonement should be the basis of our appeal to men. And indeed, such an appeal is <i>God</i> appealing to men and women, in that there on the cross &ldquo;God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself&quot;. The blood and spittle covered body of the Lord lifted up was and is the appeal, the <i>beseeching</i> of God Himself to men. And this is the message that we are honoured to preach on His behalf; we preach the appeal of God through the cross. See on Jn. 19:19. &quot;All men&quot; can have their part in a sacrifice which represented &quot;all men&quot;. And this motivates us to preach to &quot;all men&quot;.&nbsp;</p>