“For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus.”
1 Timothy 2:5
This short verse reveals an immensely important dynamic in our relationship with God and Jesus. We know that there is one true God, the God of Abraham and Isaac and Moses and Jacob and David and all of the patriarchs, prophets, judges, and kings of the Old Testament. We know that Jesus is the only begotten son of this God. The two are distinct persons of the same God. Jesus is the word of God through whom all things were created. Jesus became flesh and walked this earth in the form of a human man nearly 2000 years ago. Fully God and fully man, he lived perfectly and without sin. For this reason, he was able to offer himself as the ultimate sacrifice for our sins. If we believe that God is just, then we know that sin must not go unpunished, the same way any lawbreaker in our city or country would face consequences. For sin, the consequence is death. God so desired to save us from that fate that he offered his son, a piece of his very self, to be sacrificed on our behalf – to take the punishment that we deserved and to pay the debt that we could not pay.
In doing so, Jesus became our mediator. God requires justice, and Jesus pays the price. In fact, he paid it already, once and for all time on the cross. Through that sacrifice, if we are joined with him in his death and resurrection through faith, repentance, and baptism, we are able to inherit the eternal life that only Christ truly deserved. When God demands justice for our sins, Jesus answers for us. He says the debt is paid. The Holy Spirit that lives in us testifies in agreement. Thus, we inherit eternal life.
All of this seems complicated, and in some ways it is. But the simple truth is this. There is one God who alone is good and holy. He humbled himself by allowing a part of his very own being to become flesh and blood. He lived a perfect and holy life, but was rejected and hated by the people he came to serve and save. He loved them and us anyway. He, despite all of the power at his disposal, submitted to his sentence of death on the cross so that we may all be spared the punishment ourselves. He died but could not be held by death, and rose from the grave.
He became our mediator, our bridge between our sinful nature and the holiness of God. He paid our debt and washed us clean. He gave us the key to heaven. All he asks in return is that we believe, repent, and accept the life he has in store for us.
Prayer:
Father,
Thank you for your perfect plan of salvation. Thank you for loving us sinners enough to give your only son on our behalf. I pray that you would forgive me, help me to turn from my sin and follow you fully. I pray that the Holy Spirit would testify on my behalf through the blood of Jesus.
In His Name,
Amen.
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