“For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time.” - 1 Timothy 2:5-6
Mediator. That is an interesting understanding of the what Christ does. Mediators are kinda neutral third parties that help work out disputer or differences. Mediators help resolve conflict. In fact in law when they try to work things out, out side of court before it goes to a suit, it is called mediation and a mediator works with the parties in involved to resolve the conflict and come to a settlement. When Paul writes to Timothy he describes Christ as the mediator between God and mankind.
Conflict resolver. Christ resolves the conflict between us and God. Christ helps us to open up the dialogue and to talk to God. Christ makes it possible for our relationship with the God who creates us and loves us to be restored.
It is important that we not miss the three letter word "all." Christ gave himself as a ransom for all. He did not just die for the good people, or for Christians, or for a certain race or economical status. He did not pay the ransom and mediate for a certain country or origin, or a particular gender. He "gave himself as a ransom for all people." Christ is your mediator. Christ is my mediator. Christ is every one's mediator. He did for all so that all can be restored into right relationship with God.
The part I am wrestling with in the description of Christ as mediator is the "neutral third party" understanding of a mediator. In mediation as we understand it in our world the mediator is to be unbiased and neutral about the situation. I don't see Christ as either neutral or unbiased.
Jesus is God. Christ is the Son, the second person of the Trinity. Jesus says, "I and the Father are one. If you have seen me you have seen the Father." Jesus is resolving a conflict that we have with him. He is restoring a relationship with him. He is paying the ransom that is owed to him for what we have done to him. That doesn't sound neutral. Maybe he leans in the favor of God?
But wait.
Jesus is in love with you. Jesus is in love with the whole world. He says, "No greater love has anyone than this that they lay down their life for their friends." Jesus gives his greatest love to all of us. Jesus isn't mad at you he is made about you. He loves you. You are the apple of his eye and you are precious to him. He loves you and me so much that he mediates for us by giving himself as a ransom for all people. Neutral? No way! He is very much connected to the outcome of the resolution. The deepest desire of his heart is that all of us would love him in return. He wont force us to-- because that wouldn't be real love. He loves us too much to make us love him. He wants you and I, he wants the whole world, to know what true love is. So, he opens up the dialogue with the words "I love you." He shows that he love us when does what is necessary in order for the reconnected us to God and he says come to me. The choice is now ours. We have to enter into the mediation with the mediator. We have to love him in return. Fall in love with him. Live in love with him.
Love today.
In Christ's love and mine,
Doug
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