The Bible portrays Jesus as the bridge who restores the relationship between God and mankind. Nobody comes to the Father, but by Me, says Jesus. This is what the Word of God means when it refers to Jesus as our Mediator.
The need for a mediator arises from the fact that we are separated from God because of our sin, preventing a direct and perfect relationship with God and everybody else made in His image.
But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so… (Isaiah 59:2)
In the world which God made, the separation caused by sin has several consequences.
First, sin creates a moral debt that we cannot repay on our own (Romans 6:23). That moral debt is what causes our seperation. And, since God is the source of all life, separation from Him ultimately means death.
Second, sin affects our relationship with others. It leads to strife, selfishness and a distortion of the happy relationships God intended for us. It means a state of brokenness now, and eternal separation later.
In the Gospel , Jesus Christ is the means of reconciliation. Through His death on the cross and through His resurrection, Jesus pays the penalty for sin, offering forgiveness and redemption to all who place their faith in Him.
All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting our sins against us. (2 Corinthians 5:18-19)
Reconciliation with God brings about the forgiveness, restoration, and renewed relationship we so desperately long for.
We want life. We want restoration. But, as sinners, we want it in our own terms. We may be okay with Jesus playing His part in the great story of our redemption but, rather than cast our crowns at His feet, we want to help hold up the trophy, or at least, take up a little space on the podium.
We long to be justified and hate to be accused of wrongdoing. We want to be seen having gotten at least something right. We want to be seen as having made some worthwhile contribution. And when that fails, we will make excuses.
But, but, but…
But God does not call us to play our part in our own salvation any more than He expected Lazarus to play a part in his own resurrection. God grants the salvation He has already accomplished through His Son and it is God who provides the legs needed to come out of the grave you currently occupy.
So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. (Romans 9:16)
Raising your hand at the youth rally and voting for Jesus does not save you. Filling in a card at the end of the service on a Sunday does not save you. Saying the sinners prayer does not save you. Getting baptised does not save you. Your belief in the doctrine of justification by faith alone does not save you.
Your family tree will not save you. Your purity will not save you. Your reading list, your fasting and your likeability will not save you.
Your good deeds will not save you. Your wishful thinking will not save you. Your generosity and your charity will not save you. Your popularity will not save you. Being nice will not save you.
Wearing denim skirts and a hanky on your head will not save you. Your good standing with the church will not save you.
Attending a John Piper concert will not save you. Bible college will not save you. Becoming a monk, a deacon or a preacher will not save you.
Many of these things are signs of saving faith, but whether lumped all together like the rocks at Babel, or taken one by one, none of them will save you. None of them will open Heavens’ gate.
Scottish preacher, Alastair Begg, once painted the following imaginative picture (which I have taken the liberty of imagining even further) of what it means for Jesus, and Jesus alone, to save us.
So, the thief on the cross (Luke 23:42-43) finds himself at the gates of paradise where he’s met by a couple of angels guarding the way to the tree of life.
One of the angels steps forward, flaming sword in hand, and asks him, “What are you doing here?”
“I don’t quite know”, said the thief. “Well,” says the angel, “Have you been born again?”.
“Huh?”, came the reply.
“Have you been baptised?”
“Er, no”.
“Well, what church did you go to?”. “None”. “Hmm”, the angel continued, “Do you speak in tongues?”. “What’s that?”, asked the man. The angel looked at the man and began to scratch his head.
“Well, do you subscribe to the five points of Calvinism ? How often do you pray? Did you tithe to the church? Did you a attend any of Billy Graham’s crusades – we held them in just about every city.
Frustrated, with all the questions, the thief at last said, “Look, man, I don’t know about any of that. All I know is that the man on the cross next to me said I could come.”
And with that, the gates were opened.
What do You Want to Read About?