by Dr. Ken Matto

 

(1 Tim 2:5 KJV) For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

 

A few days ago I won a two month battle with AT&T. They charged me for 3 collect calls from Sierra Leone in Africa totaling $37.02. They claim infallibility of their operators that they would not have charged me if no one was home to answer the phone. One of the days on which one of the calls came was August 8 at 9:27 AM. At that time I was in the Olav B. Olson Auditorium at Tuscarora Inn awaiting Dr. Otero to take the Podium and give another great teaching.

 

Now I had called AT&T directly about these calls several times and their glib answer all three times was that AT&T does not credit long distance collect calls since a code could be uttered by the caller or receiver and therefore a free call would take place. Now I had told them I was refusing to pay for the calls since I had evidence I was not home when these calls came in. They didn’t care, they wanted me to pay for their 3 mistakes. So they told me they were noting it on my account that I refused to pay.

 

I then got off the phone with them and called Verizon which is my local carrier and told them why the $37.02 would be consistently showing up on my bill. I told her of my plight with AT&T and she told me that she could do nothing about removing the charges. She told me that AT&T could hand it over to a collection agency and maybe my credit would be ruined. I told her fine and I would litigate since I had evidentiary information on the side of my innocence. The rep. then suggested to me to stand by and she would call AT&T and she explained it to the rep. at AT&T. The Verizon rep. then conference called all 3 of us and the woman at AT&T acceded to the fact I was innocent and removed the charges.

 

I sat here and asked what is the spiritual lesson here? Then the obvious answer came that I won my case by means of a mediatrix. When I went directly to AT&T I was unable to plead my case with satisfaction. It is like many in the world today who believe they can go directly to God without the mediatory life of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Scriptures teach very clearly on this subject. (1 John 2:23 KJV) Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: (but) he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also. Those in false religions and churches who deny that Christ is God and His office of mediator and believe they can bypass Christ will not be able to plead their case before God successfully. One can only come into the presence of a Holy God through the Lord Jesus Christ and if you deny Him, you have no advocate to plead your case. (1 John 2:1 KJV) My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: Those who choose to go directly to the Father will find they will go directly to Hell. To bypass the Lord Jesus Christ is to bypass the essence of God’s salvation plan. It is to ignore His sufferings and agony for His elect. Those religions and false churches which reduce the Lord Jesus Christ to a mere prophet are sentencing their people to Hell. Only God Himself can be a mediator of the New Covenant and for His people. (Heb 12:24 KJV) And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

 

So let us discover some principles which teach us how marvelous it is to have the Lord Jesus Christ as our mediator.

 

 

Our Mediator:

 

1) helps in the area we are the weakest - (Rom 8:26 KJV) Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

 

2) destroyed our sins - (Isa 43:25 KJV) I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.

 

3) gave HIMSELF for our sins - (Heb 9:26 KJV) For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

 

4) empowers us - (John 15:5 KJV) I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

 

5) gave us peace with God - (Rom 5:1 KJV) Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: When I went directly to AT&T, there was enmity between us but when the mediator stepped in, there is now peace. It is the same situation when a person tries to go directly to God without the Lord Jesus Christ, the enmity will still exist but when a saved person goes through the Lord Jesus Christ, peace will ensue.

 

I realize that this week’s Zion’s Gate is not brimming with Scripture as other weeks but I wanted to remind us that the office of mediator which the Lord Jesus Christ holds is a very strategic part of not only His ministry in Heaven but ours here on earth. Sometimes this part of the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ is neglected or taken for granted. It is incumbent upon the believer that we consider every aspect of the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ, after all, He is doing it for our benefit. Till we meet at Jesus’ feet!  (10/15/00)

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