Christ Jesus, The Mediator

Introduction

Today’s message brings us to the very heart of why the Bible exists.

We are, of course, going to speak about Christ, but this time in His role: the One who was sent to be the way, the truth, and the life, the final sacrifice, so that those who believe in Him may have eternal life.

This role was clearly given by God, for Christ Jesus, as it is written, is God made flesh, the second person of the Trinity, He who is, who was, and who is to come, the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.

So what is this divine role called, the one that brings sinful men back to God for eternity? A mediator. Yes, Jesus Christ was sent by the Father to be this perfect Mediator, fully man and fully God, in order to bring men back to God Himself.

At first, we might think that everything has already been said in this introduction, but we will go further to understand our separation from God and the vital need we had for this perfect Mediator sent by God to save us.

Foreword

But before we begin, we must understand that God, in His infinite love for His creation, revealed His will through imperfect human authors. They were inspired by the Holy Spirit to write the Bible. This is what must be believed today as the Word of God, living, true, and without error, so that we may all stand on the same foundation.

Without this love made known through His Word over the centuries, revealing God’s desire to save us, men would have remained forever separated from His presence and His holiness.

Context of the Passage

“For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.” 1 Timothy 2:5-6 ESV

We can see that the author of the Epistle to Timothy seeks to bring the truth of the gospel of salvation back to its proper place. The main warning was to guard the pure doctrine of Christ as it truly is, in all its fullness, without weakening any part of it, and also to encourage believers’s communities in this challenging task, since confusion and many local beliefs were common.

Paul was constantly opposing false teachers, because they were widespread, spreading false teachings, mixing works with grace, or failing to place Christ as their foundation as the one and only Mediator between God and men.

Yes, for those of us who are forgiven and redeemed from our sins, justified by God and born again by the Holy Spirit, this may serve as a reminder. But for those who do not yet understand the true place of Jesus Christ, this passage is essential so that they may be convicted and regenerated by the truth.

What Is a Mediator in a General Sense?

A mediator, as we understand the term today, is a person chosen to stand between two or more parties in order to help resolve a conflict, whether personal, professional, or of another kind.

The mediator speaks with each side to help find a solution that removes the conflict and restores the relationship, allowing everyone to move forward together.

However, even when a conflict is settled, the situation can remain fragile. A mediator may help the parties reach an agreement, but the conflict can return, sometimes even more strongly, or a new one may appear later. This kind of mediation is temporary and limited, depending on the willingness of those involved.

What Is a Mediator in the Biblical Context?

Under the Old Covenant, there were two types of mediators: priests (Levites) and prophets.

The priests served God’s people by standing between the people and God, first in the Tabernacle and later in the Temple, where the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place were found. Forgiveness for sin was received only through sacrifices established by God, which temporarily satisfied His righteous judgment.

After these sacrifices were offered, the people returned to their daily lives and had to come back again whenever repentance was needed. This system showed that it was incomplete and that salvation could come only from God Himself, not from human effort.

There were also prophets who served in a mediating role by communicating between God and men. They received messages from the Lord and faithfully delivered them to the people, often facing strong opposition.

However, their messages were sometimes misunderstood, only partly understood, or prophetic, speaking about things that were still to come.

These two mediators, the priests and the prophets, were shadows pointing to greater things ahead, leading to the complete forgiveness of sins and the once-for-all salvation of souls.

Why Did We Need a Mediator?

This is a foundational question, one that helps us love our God even more as we come to understand His perfect plan for the salvation of men and recognize the privilege of being saved by His grace.

The separation between God and mankind came from the disobedience of Adam and Eve, at a time allowed by God Himself. This separation kept men from returning to God’s presence, holiness, and glory. By what actions, then, could men bring itself back to God and receive forgiveness? None.

When Abraham interceded with the Lord for the sinful people of Sodom and Gomorrah so that some might be spared, the Lord found no righteous person in the city according to His own standard. He showed grace to a few, relatives of Abraham, but not to Lot’s wife, who looked back and perished. Scripture says that Lot himself is called “righteous” because God justified him by grace.

There is only one thing God accepts: faith as the only means of justification before Him, as seen with Abraham, to whom faith was credited as righteousness. Abraham walked by faith alone, faith that marked a new beginning in men’s relationship with God. God speaks, and men responds, not out of fear or obligation, but out of love and conviction.

When later God gave the Law to Moses, another mediator between God and His people, it was to set rules governing their relationship with Him and their moral life with one another. God knew that men could never keep it perfectly, and that it would remain limited, temporary, and impossible to follow without failure.

For if even one commandment was broken, the whole Law was broken, and a sin was committed against God. The Law revealed the death caused by sin and placed a limit men could not cross.

Paul explains to the Galatians that before faith in Christ came, we were kept under the Law, confined until freedom was revealed. The Law was never meant to save; its purpose was to expose our sin and show our deep need for grace.

The Law also shows that sin separates us from God and leaves us under judgment. 

Paul compares the Law to a “guardian” or “tutor,” a temporary guide leading us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith and released from its condemnation.

No one on earth can claim to be righteous or good before God, before His purity, holiness, and glory, or save themselves through any works.

God, in His love and mercy, continually called His people through the prophets to return to His ways, but they turned away and chose to disobey. Step by step, God revealed His plan of redemption through servants such as Isaiah, who announced the coming solution.

God would establish a new covenant, not based on laws and temporary sacrifices, but through His Chosen Servant, the One who would restore a spiritual, righteous, true, and eternal relationship between God and men, for the Jews and for all nations, even to the islands.

Read (Isaiah 42:1–9)

”Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice. He will not grow faint or be discouraged till he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his law. Thus says God, the LORD, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people on it and spirit to those who walk in it: “I am the LORD; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness. I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols. Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I now declare; before they spring forth I tell you of them.”

The Chosen Servant Has Come!

This Chosen Servant sent by God has come, Immanuel, which means “God with us.” The Word of God became flesh and made God known to men. Scripture says: “No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has made Him known.” (John 1:18)

The One who stands between God and men, expected by the Jews and revealed to all nations. This righteous, perfect, and eternal work was established by God Himself when He came to redeem us from our sins and bring us back to Himself, since men, in sin, could not come near to God or cleanse its own conscience.

The Mediator, Christ Jesus did not come to cancel the promise made to Abraham or to change God’s plan, but rather, in this role, to complete the perfect and final work of redemption for men by shedding His precious blood on the cross, fully satisfying the justice and righteous judgment of God.

When Jesus died on the cross, the veil that separated the people from God’s presence in the Holy of Holies, where the Ark of the Covenant stood, was torn, opening access to the Father for all who place their faith in Him alone: the Lord of lords, the King of kings, the Name above every name on earth and in heaven.

Our Mediator

Through His earthly ministry, Jesus Christ fully completed His mission as Messiah and King for the Jews, and as our Great High Priest, offering a perfect and eternal sacrifice. After His resurrection, God gave Him full authority and opened the way to eternal salvation for all who believe in Him, repent of their sins, and are saved by God’s grace, giving us direct access to God the Father through His Spirit.

The Bible says «Therefore Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, now that He has died to redeem them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. » He. 9:15

Conclusion

Our supreme Mediator remains the same today, as He has for more than two thousand years: our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, seated at the right hand of the Father, interceding for us, His Church, as our divine Advocate.

God never contradicts Himself and knows exactly what He is doing for His creation. He unfolds a perfect plan of redemption for men, from Genesis to Revelation, across history and through the ages.

The promise given to Abraham (Genesis 12:1–3; Galatians 3:8)
Its confirmation to Moses through the Law (Exodus 19:5–6; Deuteronomy 5)
Its fulfillment in Jesus Christ (Luke 24:44–47; Revelation 21:1–7)

All for the glory of God alone.