One Mediator

For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time.

(1 Timothy 2:5-6)

Meditation

There is only one God, but he expresses himself in three distinct personalities. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. This is the doctrine of the Trinity. I cannot say I fully understand the Trinity, but I have faith in what the scriptures say. No, the word ‘Trinity’ is not in the Bible but that’s just the word for the name that’s clearly interpreted for the godhead. Some want us to believe that Christ was nothing more than a good man, possessing no divinity at all. However, Christ’s own words say, he and the Father are one. His purpose on earth was to pay our ransom out of bondage to sin.

We no longer have to kill an innocent animal and burn it on an alter to pay for our sins. There’s no reason to wait until we’re at a church to have the priest pray for our sins. A prayer said to a saint in the hope it will be passed on to the Father, will fall upon deaf ears. We can go right to the Lord with our prayers and supplications at any time. We can do that because Jesus, who is God and a man, is the only mediator between us and the Father. He is the bridge between the holy God in heaven and sinful man. We don’t need the blood of a sacrificial animal to temporarily cleanse us of our sins. We don’t need the smoke of that sacrifice, burning on an altar, to carry our prayers up to God. He knows our every thought; he hears our every prayer.

Because this is a fallen world no matter where we go, we face many who hate us simply for our belief in Jesus Christ. They hate Jesus and so they hate us. We have zero chance of changing their minds about Christ if the first thing we do is start quoting scripture to them or yelling they’re going to hell for their behavior. Simply quoting Bible verses or pointing out a person’s shortcomings, does not make us a good witness for Christ. Not many people ever respond positively to being called a sinner when they don’t even know what sin is. Our testimony about Christ should come after we’ve shown our love for them even though they hate us. We have the best witness in our changed lives. At the proper time, we can share with them how Jesus has transformed our hearts. Hallelujah!

Prayer Time

Father God in heaven, you, who have given us all things, have given us the greatest gift of all when you gave Christ to a pitiful world. You are deserving of every ounce of praise we can muster, and then more. Thank you that we can talk directly to you in prayer, and don’t have to confess our sins to another human being before we can be forgiven. You love us all equally, even those who hate you. Help us to love like you do. Help us to give our testimony even to those who will persecute us. Never let us respond to their hateful acts with hateful acts of our own. Thank you, Jesus for willingly offering yourself as a sacrifice, paying the price for our sins. Help us to always be mindful and grateful for the work you accomplished on the Cross. Thank you for standing between us and Satan, the Accuser. His mission is to destroy as many of us as he can. He knows his time is short and therefore, his anger drives him even harder than ever to lead us astray and into destruction. Forgive us when we listen to him when we know better. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen!