[spunkets]

"18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God."

Re: 2 Cor 5:18-20,"Why start at verse 19, how about verse 18? ...It seems pretty clear that St. Paul speaks of a “ministry of Reconciliation” and that he [and the Apostles] were ambassadors for Christ as if God were appealing through us [The Apostles and thus the Church were sent/founded by Christ and are his instruments of reconciliation]"

No. God reconciled us to Himself. Us refers to anyone and everyone who "is in Him", which does not refer to some special class of folks. 2 Cor 5:21, "21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. Us here does not refer to some special class, it refers to ALL those that value the same things that God does. It is in Him, not in "special class, or group of folks, nor in some subset those that are "in Him". The idea that God reconciled only a few and only through them others could be reconciled to God is counter to what God taught and is reprehensible.

[CTrent1564]

spunkets:

Nowhere in my post did I say that God only reconciled a few as I am not a Hyper Predestination kind of guy, i.e. God reconciled a few elect and those he did not he created for the purpose of sending into hell.

St. Paul speaks of a ministry of reconciliation, which is linked to the authority Christ gave the Apostles to forgive sins in his name as recorded in St. John’s Gospel [cf John 20: 21-23] and the authority to bind and loose as recorded in St. Mathew’s Gospel [cf. Mt 18:18]. In addition, St. James in his Epistle (cf. James 5:13-17] clearly refers to both “Confession” and “Annointing of the Sick” which are both in Catholic Theology Sacraments of Reconciliation and the context of the passage starting in verse 13 is “to call the presbyters of the Church” so the “confess your sins directive” related to the ministry of reconciliation/confession that Christ gave to the Church.

Finally, I will not link all the Church Fathers who interpreted Christ statements such as above to refer to the fact that Christ gave His Church the authority to forgive sins as they are many and thus the Church and the Sacraments are thuse the “normative instrument” thru which God reconciles humanity back to himself despite your “protests” otherwise.