Although the Corinthians had been saved and reconciled to God halfway, they still lived in the flesh; that is, they lived in the soul, the outward man, the natural being. The veil of the flesh, of the natural man, still separated them from God. This means that their natural being was a separating veil. Therefore, they needed the second step of reconciliation. In 2 Corinthians 5 Paul was working to accomplish this second step. He was working on the Corinthians to cut the veil of the flesh asunder, to crucify their natural life, to consume their outward man. What the Apostle Paul was doing in 1 and 2 Corinthians was to cleave the separating veil of the flesh so that the believers at Corinth could enter into the Holy of Holies.
The blessings of God can be found in the Holy Place, but God Himself is in the Holy of Holies. In the Holy Place are the blessings of the Spirit, the lampstand, and the incense altar. But in the Holy Place there is not the direct presence of God. In order to have God Himself, we must be reconciled further and come into the Holy of Holies. We must take the second step of reconciliation to be brought into the presence of God. This is full reconciliation. This reconciliation brings us not only out of sin, but also out of the flesh, the natural man, the natural being. Then we are brought to God and become one with Him.
Verse 21, the last verse of chapter five, says, “Him Who did not know sin He made sin on our behalf, that we might become God’s righteousness in Him.” Here we have the ultimate consummation of God’s salvation—the righteousness of God.
We must remember that the new covenant ministry is a ministry of the Spirit and of righteousness. This ministry imparts the Spirit of life into the believers. This issues in a state, a condition, that is called righteousness. Before we were saved, we were in a condition that was altogether condemned by God. Nothing was right, and God could by no means justify the condition we were in. But after we were saved, we were brought into a state where we could be justified by God. This is righteousness. However, if we are honest, we shall admit that, on the one hand, we are in a righteous condition, but, on the other hand, certain things related to our living still are not right. These things may not be comparable to the gross sin that may have been in our living before we were saved. Nevertheless, there are matters which are not right. In particular, there is still the separation between us and God caused by our natural man, our self. This is sin.
Suppose a certain man and his wife are not saved. They have difficulty getting along with each other and often fight. Sometimes they argue in a very crude manner. But suppose one day the husband gets saved and comes into the church life. He begins to change, and this change affects his wife. Eventually, she also gets saved and comes into the church life. Like her husband, she too begins to change. Now this man and wife are in a state which the Bible calls righteousness. However, the man, now a brother in the Lord, has a very strong disposition. (Disposition is different from character, for disposition is absolutely part of our being, our constitution.) Moreover, the wife is very peculiar and seldom agrees with others. Often she contradicts others. How could she and her husband live peacefully together, since he has a strong disposition and she is very peculiar? Although they may no longer fight with each other in their old way, they do not agree with each other. As a result, they do not talk to each other very much. Since conversation invariably leads to disagreement, the husband may tell his wife that it is better for them not to talk. What this man and wife have is a halfway reconciliation and a halfway righteousness.
However, suppose this brother and sister hear a message on the need for further reconciliation. The husband begins to condemn his disposition, the wife condemns her peculiarity, and they both condemn their natural life. As a result, there is the possibility that they may be brought into the Holy of Holies to enjoy the Lord. Then the husband may say, “Praise the Lord!” and the wife may respond, “Amen!” If this is the situation of this couple, they will be in a condition that may be called the righteousness of God.
In 5:17-21 we see three matters: the new creation, full reconciliation, and God’s righteousness. Why do we say that this righteousness is the ultimate consummation of God’s salvation? This claim is based on 2 Peter 3:13, which speaks of righteousness dwelling in the new heaven and new earth. The fact that righteousness will dwell in the new heaven and new earth indicates that everything will be brought back to God in full. Everything will be headed up and set in good order. Nothing will be wrong, and nothing will be out of order. Everything in the new heaven and the new earth will be right and satisfactory to God. God will be able to look at the entire universe and justify everything.
Have you been saved and brought into Christ? Are you now in Christ? If you can meet these conditions, you are a new creation. But even though you may have the assurance to say that you are a new creation in Christ, you may not have the boldness to declare that you are the righteousness of God. The reason you lack this boldness is that you are like a butterfly that has not fully emerged from its cocoon. Only when our “cocoon” has been fully done away can we say that we are God’s righteousness. Until then, we can say that we are only partially the righteousness of God. We need the cross to do a further work on us so that the remainder of our cocoon may be consumed. Eventually, at the latest in the New Jerusalem, we shall fully be God’s righteousness. Then God will be able to boast to His enemy, Satan, that everything in the New Jerusalem is righteousness, that nothing is wrong or defective, that everything is satisfactory to God. Therefore, God will be able to justify everything in the New Jerusalem. This is the righteousness which is the consummation of the ministry of the new covenant.