Christ Our Mediator

posted in: My Blog 0

“Christ’ representative on earth is the Holy Spirit”

Jesus made this clear to His disciples a few short hours before Gethsemane:

“And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.” (John 14:16, 17).

Jesus confirms here that He is that Spirit, the one who reveals the truth about God.

Further more,

“But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” (John 14:26).

And to make sure that the point was clear:

“But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:” (John 15:26).

Jesus further said:

“Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you.” (John 16:13-15)

Christ has made every provision for us to be strong. He has given us His Holy Spirit, whose office it is to bring to our remembrance all the promises that Christ has made, that we may have peace and a sweet sense of forgiveness. If we will but keep our eyes fixed on the Saviour, and trust in His power, we shall be filled with a sense of security; for the righteousness of Christ will become our righteousness.

It is therefore the Holy Spirit which represents God to man, and man to God; and as disciples, we speak directly to God through Jesus Christ, who is the “only” mediator between God and man.

 

So who is the Holy Spirit, it is the spirit of Jesus Christ, for He said

“I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.” John 14:18
“My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate (paraklētos G3875) with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:” 1 John 2:1

The term “paraklētos G3875”, is a term which is used just four times in the New Testament, it is used only by John, and it is translated as “Comforter.”

John, the one who wrote Jesus’ discourse in John 14-16, the only disciple who used the term “paraklētos”,

plainly identified who this comforter is. He said “we have a paraklētos with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous”

 

And John is not the only one who plainly identified the comforter, or the spirit of truth as Jesus Christ, the apostle Paul did as well.

Notice the following:

“But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.” I Corinthians 8:6

After stating there is one Lord, Jesus Christ, Notice who he identifies the Lord to be:

“Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” 2 Corinthians 3:17

“The Lord is that Spirit!” Who is the Lord in this text?

Once more: “But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him” 1 Corinthians 8:6

In other words, when Paul says “the Lord is that Spirit”, he actually means “Jesus is that Spirit”. Thus, when we receive the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, we are actually receiving the Spirit or life of Jesus Christ.

Notice Jesus’ words: “And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit” Luke 23:46.

As a result of Christ’s finished work, what can the Father do with the Spirit of His Son?

“And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father” Galatians 4:6.

The purpose of God has always been, and will always be: “In Christ all creation is blessed.” When man departed from God through sin, God’s love and purpose for man did not change. He would still bless man in the same way, hence the incarnation, death and resurrection of Jesus.

The life and death of Christ was to provide a way to bring man back to the purpose of God. It would provide a way for man to receive blessings through Him.

In order for all this to happen, Christ the promised Seed, the Divine-Human Seed, must dwell in fallen man. The Bible says “In Him was life and the life was the light of men” ( John 1:4).

In Christ is life, and we need to receive His life otherwise we have no life. Jesus said “because I live, ye shall live also” ( John 14:19).

When He lives in us, we live His life. This is the only life acceptable to God.

Your life and my life will never be acceptable in God’s sight.

He does not modify my life, or patch it up.

God wants to give me a new life, the very own life of His Son Jesus.

 

That is the only way that man can be restored to the purpose of God.

 

“We need the power of Christ brought to bear upon our hearts by the Spirit of Christ within us. When Christ was on the earth, he was yet at an immeasurable distance from his disciples. By the gift of the Holy Spirit this distance is annihilated. He comes nearer to his people now than when he washed their feet. He comes into their hearts, and takes possession of their wills, their understandings, their energies.”

 

“Christ is the present Saviour of all men. He is the “Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” John says, “If any man sin, we have an Advocate [or Comforter] with the Father, ; and He is the propitiation [sacrifice] for our sins.” 1 John 2:1, 2. Him “God hath set forth to be a propitiation [sacrifice] through faith in His blood.” Rom. 3:24. His blood is now shed for us; He is now lifted up for us. The knowledge that the cross is set up in every heart, that He is crucified for us, makes a delight of the crosses which come to us, all the burdens to be born, all the habits to be given up, which are as taking our life, because they are our life. The knowledge that now Christ is crucified for us, that now are we crucified with Him, not in fancy but in fact, makes the presence of the cross a joy to us, for there we find Christ, and are brought into fellowship with His death, and live with Him. Being reconciled by His blood, we know we shall be saved by His life. To take up the cross is to take Him. To deny self is to own Him.” “The Cross of Christ” E.J. Waggoner.

 

 

The promised presence of Christ

“Jesus read the future of his disciples. He saw one brought to the scaffold, one to the cross, one to exile among the lonely rocks of the sea, others to persecution and death. He encouraged them with the promise that in every trial he would be with them. That promise has lost none of its force. The Lord knows all about his faithful servants who for his sake are lying in prison or, who are banished to lonely islands. He comforts them with his own presence. When for the truth’s sake the believer stands at the bar of unrighteous tribunals, Christ stands by his side. All the reproaches that fall upon him, fall upon Christ. Christ is condemned over again in the person of his disciple. When one is incarcerated in prison walls, Christ ravishes the heart with his love. When one suffers death for his sake, Christ says, ‘I am he that lives, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore…. and have the keys of hell and of death.’ The life that is sacrificed for me is preserved unto eternal glory. At all times and in all places, in all sorrows and in all afflictions, when the outlook seems dark and the future perplexing, and we feel helpless and alone, the Comforter will be sent in answer to the prayer of faith. Circumstances may separate us from every earthly friend; but no circumstance, no distance, can separate us from the heavenly Comforter. Wherever we are, wherever we may go, he is always at our right hand to support, sustain, uphold, and cheer.”-The Desire of Ages, 799, 800.

 

Quotes and references from

Monotheism-Imad Awde: Click to download

The Seed and the Everlasting Gospel-Imad Awde: Click to download

The Doctrine of Christ-William Prescott: Click to download

Leave a Reply