Reconciliation in Christ...

Two prayers of John Calvin from his Commentary on Hosea

 Grant, Almighty God, that inasmuch as thou drawest us at this time to thyself by so many chastisements, While we are yet insensible, through the slothfulness and the indolence of our flesh, - O grant, that Satan may not thus perpetually harden and fascinate us; but that we, being at length awakened, may feel our evils, and be not merely affected by outward punishments, but rouse ourselves, and feel how grievously we have in various ways offended thee, so that we may return to thee with real sorrow, and so abhor ourselves, that we may seek in thee every delight, until we at length offer to thee a pleasing and acceptable sacrifice, by dedicating ourselves and all we have to thee, in sincerity and truth, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Grant, Almighty God, that since we are too secure and torpid in our sins, thy dread majesty may come to our minds, to humble us, and to remove our fear, that we may learn anxiously to seek reconciliation through Christ, and so abhor ourselves for our sins, that thou mayest then be prepared to receive us: and that unbelief may not shut the door against us, enable us to regard thee to be such as thou hast revealed thyself, and to acknowledge that thou art not like us, but the fountain of all mercy, that we may thus be led to entertain a firm hope of salvation, and that, relying on the Mediator, thy only-begotten Son, we may know him as the throne of grace, full of compassion and mercy. O grant, that we may thus come to thee, that through him we may certainly know that thou art our Father, so that the covenant thou hast made with us may never fail through our fault, even this, that we are thy people, because thou hast once adopted us in thy only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

These are prayers of a Christian, one who is saved and being saved - reconciled and being reconciled. In this is the ongoing work of salvation found in the path of ongoing reconciliation, i.e. repentance of our sinfulness and faith in the One who by his blood reconciled and is reconciling us to God. We 'saved sinners' flee to the gospel again and again, for therein is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes.

From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Cor. 5:16-21)

Paul implores those 'new creations' in Christ, those who have been reconciled, to continue to be reconciled to God.  He then points the believers to the gospel - 'For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.'  This is the business of the church - reconciliation - carried out through the proclaiming of Christ in his Word, the administration of Baptism and Lord's Supper, and shepherding of Christ's sheep.  As Paul writes to the same believers in another place, For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God (1 Cor. 1:18).