Now, let's turn back to 1 Timothy
chapter 2. Now, my subject in my text is
verse 5. I want you to look at that very
carefully for just a moment. I feel that this is one of those
high point scriptures. This is one of those scriptures
that ought to be looked into and studied, meditated upon and
committed to memory. It's one of those verses that
rivals Genesis 3.15. I'll put enmity between thee
and the woman, thy seed and her seed. It's one of those scriptures
that with Isaiah 7.14, Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and
bring forth a son, and I shall call his name Immanuel, God with
us." It's one of those scriptures that ought to be alongside, for
by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves.
It's the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast.
This is a scripture that brings to a head the Apostle's gospel,
the Apostle's message. In verse 5 of 1 Timothy 2, ìFor
there is one God, and there is one Mediator between that one
God and men, the man Christ Jesus.î Now then, I realize before I
speak on, you see, I think like you do. And I know what you're
thinking. That may amaze you, but I really
do. I really do. Before I speak from this verse,
my text, I've got to go back and comment on the preceding
verse. Verse 4, "...who will have all men to be saved, and
come to knowledge of the truth." Satan is a sly old gentleman.
He's a subtle, crafty old beast and a man of war. And he will
divert our attention. Unfortunately, verse 4 is more
familiar to the religious world than verse 5. I guarantee you
I guarantee you, it's been a greater battlefield and battleground.
You know why? Because our man's inclination
is to freewillism, to his own glory, and Satan's influence
is to twist the scriptures and rest the scriptures to our destruction. So this has been a battlefield.
And before I can, I was sitting down couple of days ago preparing
and thinking about a message on this one mediator between
God and men, the way of redemption, the way of life, the way of salvation,
the way to God, the way to prayer, the way to blessings, the way
to mercy. And then I said, well, now what scripture shall I read?
Well, I'll read the preceding scripture, the setting in which
it's found. And as I read that, I thought,
they're not going to hear until I deal with that verse. They're
not going to hear about verse 5. Because everywhere you go
and try to contend for the eternal grace of God, that's why the
first scriptures a man brings up, well, God will have all men
to be saved. God will have all men to be saved. All right, let's
read again a few of these verses. Now, verse 1, I exhort therefore
that first of all supplications, prayers, intercession, and giving
of thanks be made for all men. For all men. All right, now let's
read verse 4. who will have all men to be saved,
and come unto the knowledge of the truth." Now, verse 5, for
there's one God and one mediator between God, and you've got to
make that all men, all men, the man Christ Jesus. Verse 6, "...who
gave himself a ransom for all men, to be testified in due time."
Now, if you make these scriptures All men, to mean all men without
exception. Now, stay with me. If this means
all men without exception, if the Apostle Paul is talking about
we are to pray for all men without exception, and that God will
have all men without exception to be saved, and Christ is a
mediator for all men without exception, and he died and gave
his life for ransom for all men without exception, you've got
some problems. If that means all men without
exception, you've got some difficulties you can't handle. Now, I'll tell
you what's on my mind. Here's the first difficulty.
If the Church is commanded to pray for all men, to actually,
earnestly, before God, pray for all men without question, without
exception, then our Lord Jesus Christ didn't do it. Turn to
John 17.9. then our Lord Jesus Christ did
not do what the church is commanded to do. If we're commanded to
pray for all men, all men without exception, in an honest, sincere
prayer, then Christ didn't do it. In John 17, verse 9, he emphatically
says, I pray for them, I pray not for the world. I pray not
for the world, I pray for them which thou hast given me, they
are thine." Now Christ, that's our Lord's praise. Now back to
the text. The Apostle Paul himself didn't
do it. The Apostle Paul himself in verse
20 of the first chapter of I Timothy, just above that, Two men, Hymenaeus
and Alexander, Paul didn't pray for them. Not only did he not
pray for them, he committed them to Satan. In that correct sense,
he said, I've committed these men to Satan. The Apostle John
didn't do it. He talked about the sin unto
death in 1 John 5, and he said, I do not say that you should
pray for it. Now, here's the second difficulty
you have. If these scriptures mean all
men without exception, here's the second difficulty you have
in verse 4. God will have all men without
exception to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the
truth. Then, if that be so, the eternal, all-wise God wills what
will not be done. God Almighty is willing something
that shall not be done. Is that possible? That the will
of God shall not be done when we're told by our Master to pray,
thy will be done? Let's turn to two or three scriptures
in Ephesians chapter 1. I'm trying to help you. And this
generation needs all the help it can get because we're too
busy to read the Word. We're too busy to study. We're
too busy to look into the scriptures. We're too busy to think. We've
got verse itis. We just say, well, this is what
the Bible says, you know, and we don't take the time to see
who's speaking, to whom he's speaking, that of which he's
speaking, and compare scripture with scripture. You see, no scripture
is of any private interpretation. You can't interpret any verse
in the light of itself. It's interpreted in the light
of the rest of the Word of God. What does God say to begin with?
Remember the Law of First Mention. Now, you remember the law of
first mention. However a scripture, however a truth, or however a
subject is dealt with first in the Word of God, that's generally
what it means all the way through. You know the first mention of
grace? Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord, and it means
that all the way through. It means if grace is found, God
gave it, and that person found it, he didn't merit it. Now,
watch Ephesians 1. Ephesians 1, verse 11, "...in
whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated
according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after
the counsel of his own will." That won't fit I Timothy 2.4.
God works all things after the counsel of his own will, and
yet he wills all men without exception to be saved, and those
men aren't saved. Then God didn't work it out according
to his will. His will is frustrated, defeated,
disappointed. Here's another scripture, Isaiah.
Isaiah 46. Turn over here. Compare scripture
with scripture. Isaiah chapter 46. And we'll help you if you can
be helped. Isaiah 46, listen to this, verse 11. Isaiah 46. Let's read verse 9 through 11.
Isaiah 46, 9 through 11. Remember the former things of
old, for I am God, there's none else. I am God, there's none
like me. I declare the end from the beginning,
and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying,
My counsel shall stand, I will do all my pleasure." Hold it!
Hold it, Paul, you're in conflict with Isaiah. You're saying over
here God wills all men to be saved, and Isaiah said if God
willed it, it'll be done. So you're in trouble. Now, we're
the ones in trouble. We've misread Paul. That's what
we've done. Read the next verse. I call a
ravenous bird from the east, the man that executes my counsel
from a far country, I've spoken it, I'll bring it to pass, I've
purposed it, I'll do it, God said. That's Paul's God, too. Well, let's try Daniel. Let's
see what Daniel says. See what Daniel says. Now, the
Scripture is not in conflict, the Scripture is in total agreement.
in Daniel 4, verse 35. And God taught this man this
scripture here and this truth in a very traumatic fashion,
this man Nebuchadnezzar. And here's what he said, Daniel
4, 35. All the inhabitants of the earth
are reputed as nothing. And God doeth according to his
will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the
earth, and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest
thou?" In the light of those scriptures, he works all things
after the counsel of his own will. He said, I've spoken it,
I'll do it. My counsel shall stand, none
shall disappoint it. Now, read 1 Timothy 2, verse
4, "...who will have all men without exception to be saved,
and come to knowledge of the truth." That is totally inconsistent. You've got a difficulty, you've
got problems with a God, as you say, and this is what they do.
They say, well, that's the God of the Old Testament. This is
Jesus. Well, you've got worse problems
then. You've made God different, the Son and the Father in conflict. Here's another problem you have
with verse 5. There's one God and mediator
between God and all men without exception, the man Christ Jesus.
You've got a high priest representing everybody and all whom he represents
have to be accepted. They come in him into the Holy
of Holies. When his blood is on the mercy
seat, their blood is on the mercy seat. Look at verse 6. "...who
gave himself a ransom for all." What's a ransom? Well, a ransom
redeems. If Christ provided and paid a
ransom for all men without exception, is that ransom going to be honored?
You say, yes, then all men without exception will be saved. Oh,
no, no, some won't be saved. Then that ransom was not honored,
it was not accomplished, and its intention failed. We're loaded with all kind of
problems if you make that Scripture to mean all men without exception.
Now, let me tell you what it does mean. Let's go back to 1
Timothy 2. What this scripture is saying,
and you listen to me, it's all sorts of means. That's exactly
what it's saying. Now read it that way. Chapter
2, verse 1 of 1 Timothy. I exhort therefore, but first
of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, giving of thanks
be made for all sorts of means, not only for believers, but for
unbelievers. Not only for those in the congregation,
but for those in the White House, those in positions of authority
and power, all sorts of men. You see, it's almost the inclination
of a believer to pray only for his local circle, local family,
and local friends in our immediate circle. He said, even verse 2,
for kings. The early church prayed for Nero
and Herod? Prayed for men like that? Yes.
Prayed for kings. Prayed for those in authority,
in place of prominence. Prayed for them that we may live
a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. The
heart of the king is in the hands of the Lord's attorney, it whethers
whoever he will. Let's pray for people, all sorts of people.
This is good and acceptable in sight of God our Savior, who
will have all sorts of men to be saved. All sorts of men. God saves Pharisees, he saves
harlots, he saves thieves, he saves drunkards, he saves all
sorts of men. And to come to the knowledge
of the truth, there is one God and one Mediator between God
and men. Any man who saved Christ is the
only Mediator, and that's Christ Jesus, and he gave himself a
ransom for all sorts of people. Not the Jew only, but the Gentile,
not the black, but the white. You see what he's saying? It
has to be that way. Now, let's look at it that way, with those
problems I presented a while ago. The Church is to pray for
all sorts of men. It's even to pray for a Pharisee
like Saul of Tarsus. That's right, a Pharisee like
Saul. They're even to pray for a king
like Nero, who put God's people in prison. They're to even pray
for a slave like Onesimus. You've got a slave in your home,
pray for him. God's able to save him, that's
what he's saying. Pray for a harlot like Rahab.
Pray for a thief on the cross. Who'd ever thought to pray for
that fellow hanging on that cross next to Christ? But he said,
pray for him, for that's well-pleasing to our Father. For the Lord God
will have all sorts of men to be saved. His grace is sufficient. He loves sinners. He died for
the ungodly. God's able to save a king. He's
able to save a general. He's able to save A thief is
able to save anyone, all sorts of people. Queen Victoria, I
read a long time ago, was a believer. She said she was a believer.
She loved the gospel. And she said, I'm thankful that
the Lord said, she said, I'm thankful for the letter Eon.
Eon. Because it says, not many mighty,
not many noble. It doesn't say not any. M-A-N-Y. It doesn't say not any noble,
not any mighty, but not many. But God's able to save them.
That's what this means. And Christ gave himself a ransom
for all sorts of means. One time, John Newton was sitting
at his desk, the great hymn writer and preacher. And William J. came in. William J. was also
as influential and renowned as John Newton. They were good friends.
He came in to visit with him, and he said, Brother Newton,
he said, have you heard that so-and-so down in County Bath
has been converted? And Newton said, no, I hadn't
heard that, but I rejoice. And William J. said, well, he
said, I'll tell you, that man was That man was a terrible man,
and God has saved him. He said, I reckon that I'll never
despair of anyone now since God saved that man. And there was
a silence, and then Mr. Newton said, Brother Jay, he
said, I've never despaired of anyone since God saved me. So, my friends, I'm not trying
to twist the scriptures. I'm not trying to rest the scriptures
to mine and your destruction, but I'm simply saying that in
these verses here, all men can't mean all men without exception.
It presents too many difficulties, just too many. It destroys too
much Scripture. It destroys the very will and
character and glory of God. It destroys the very efficacy
and sufficiency of the righteousness of Christ. It does away with
the ransom of the Redeemer. It does away with our hope. I
can't have, if God Almighty made Christ a high priest and mediator
on a ransom for all men without exception, and men still die
and go to hell for whom Christ died, I've got troubles. I've
got troubles I can't solve because he's my only hope. He's my only
hope. And that's exactly what that
means. Now let's go to verse 5, and I hope that's helpful
to you. For there is one God and one
Mediator between God and me and the man Christ Jesus. Now let
me handle this as truthfully and as interestingly as I can.
What is, first point, what is a Mediator? A Mediator. What is a Mediator? Well, a Mediator
is, listen to me, it is a fit and acceptable person who stands
between two parties Here are two parties, whatever they are,
if they're two countries or two organizations or two people who
are having difficulty trying to solve a problem, or whether
it's two people in court, one suing the other. A mediator is
a fit and acceptable person who stands between two parties that
are at odds and that have differences which can't be settled by them.
Can't be settled. And he's there to make peace,
he's there to settle the differences, he's there to make peace between
the two parties. Now usually, listen to me, a
mediator usually is selected by both sides. Usually the mediator
has to be a fit and proper acceptable person to both sides because
both people are involved. But in the case of God and men,
watch it now, we don't have any bargaining power. We don't have
a side even. It's talking about God's side
and man's side. We ain't got a side, if you'll
pardon the language. You see, God is all right and
we're all wrong. God is all light and we're all
darkness. God is all truth and we're all lies. God is all holiness
and we're all sinfulness. His side is just and right. Ours
is all wrong, so it's up to him to choose the mediator. I don't
have any say-so in it. That's just so. Turn to Hebrews
2. To emphasize that, I'll show
you a scripture. Hebrews 2. In the case of the
angels, the angels sinned first. I know a lot of people don't
know that, but it's so. The angels were created and the
angels fell, according to the scripture, about a third of the
heavenly host. It says in verse 16, they lost
their bargaining power, they lost their rights. It's like
a man who's committed a murder, and he's arrested and tried and
put in prison, and he starts talking about his rights. He
doesn't have any rights. He's forfeited his rights. He
doesn't have any rights at all. He's forfeited them. He lost
his voting rights and everything. And he's a prisoner of the law.
And a prisoner, they tell him where to sleep. They tell him
where to work. They tell him what to do. They
tell him when he can get out. And that's the way we are. We're
shut up to the mercy of God. We're in the clutches of the
law of God. We're in the clutches of the
justice of God. We've got no, well, I want justice.
You'll get it. Be still. God will do right. You'll do right. You're going
to get justice. You don't want it, but you're going to get it.
In Hebrews 2.16, it says, "...for verily he took not on him the
nature of angels." But the seahorse, he took on him the seat of Abraham.
He didn't even establish a mediator between the angels and God. He
didn't even give a mediator. They just left alone. So we're
shut up to the help and mercy of God in this mediator business
that the trouble between God and men is of our making, not
His. You see, usually when two parties
are at odds, there's odds on both sides and reason for odds.
But in the case of our trouble with God, it's all our fault.
He's holy and just and righteous and pure, and we are evil and
sinful. So we need an advocate, a mediator
who can please God, whether he pleases us or not. We sing a song, I'm satisfied
with Jesus, I'm satisfied with Jesus. That's not the question.
Is God satisfied with Jesus? Now that's the question, that
justice and holiness of God must be satisfied, the law of God
must be, it can't be compromised. The mediator, now listen to me,
the mediator is not to talk peace, nor to talk terms of peace, the
mediator is to accomplish peace. See what I'm saying? He's not
to talk peace. Down here, two people get at
odds and some mediator gets in there and talks and talks and
talks. Not the Lord Jesus Christ. He
does. He accomplishes. The terms of
peace have always been the same. Do this and live. fulfilled the
justice and holiness and righteousness of God. And when our Mediator
designated, appointed, ordained, predestinated by God, came down
here to accomplish for us the terms of peace, he had laid on
him a responsibility to do what God said do, what God commanded
of me, Christ fulfilled. One thing that ought to make
our hearts rejoice is that God is pleased to even give a Mediator.
Now, this is something else that our generation has a problem
with. They seem to me to imply through
their preaching and writing and so forth that God owes us something,
that God to some extent or in some way is obligated to us.
And I resent that, I reject that. He's not obligated. You know, I hear people say,
Well, God, you believe in election? Well, that's not fair. Now, wait
a minute. Fair? Where does this fair business
come in? The only way you can be unfair to a person is if you
owe them something, if you owe them something. And God doesn't
owe us anything, not a thing in this world. Look at Psalm
130, verse 4, verse 3. If thou, Lord, shouldst mark
iniquities, if you should charge iniquity, O Lord, who shall stand? Certainly not any of us, but
here is the great thing, there is forgiveness with thee, there
is forgiveness, but there is forgiveness. But there is forgiveness. Now, this truth, let it be established
first of all, no need to proceed any further, no need to go any
further unless this is clearly understood, who God is. in his unchangeable, infinite,
everlasting holiness, justice, and righteousness. Who got it?
And who and what we are in our rebellion and sin, God owes us
nothing. He's not obligated to us. When
the angels fell, God just reserved them in everlasting chains of
darkness. Just reserved, awaiting that day of judgment. He did
not provide a mediator. That's not fair. Fairness got
nothing to do with it. When you send a man to prison
for kidnapping a little child, and the judge sentences him to,
and he kidnapped this child and murdered the child, and the judge
says you're sentenced to life, somebody says, that's not fair.
Now, wait a minute. Fair? It's more than fair. If
anything, this side of hell is mercy for such a person. And
God Almighty did not did not take the nature of angel, but
here man fell, and God said, through my love and grace and
mercy, I will establish, I will ordain, I will anoint, I will
appoint a mediator." All right, secondly now, this mediator is
described first of all by his work. There's one God and one
Mediator between God and me and the man Christ Jesus. He's described
by his work, he is a Mediator. Now listen to me, please understand
this. All our hope is in his hands. Redemption, getting me to God,
getting God to accept me, getting God to show favor to me. Acquiring
the mercy of God is not a cooperative effort between me and Jesus Christ.
It's all totally, completely in his hands. That's what I'm
saying. He is the mediator. He is the advocate. The court
is not going to deal with me at all. It's going to deal with
my advocate. The court of God doesn't deal with me at all.
It deals with my mediator. That's exactly right. That's
the reason our Lord Jesus Christ said this. He said, I am the
way, the truth, and the life. I am the door. I am the water
of life. I am the bread of life. And Paul
wrote this, of God he is made unto us wisdom, righteousness,
sanctification, and redemption. And again he wrote, in Christ
dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, and we are
what? Complete in him. That's what
he is the mediator. All our hope, help, strength,
Redemption, sanctification, mercy is totally in his hands. He deals
with God in our place, in our room, and in our stead. And God
deals with him, not with us. He is the priest, you see. It's
just like that priest of old. There was not a cooperative effort
between the priest and the people. It was between God and the priest.
He brought the sacrifice representing the people. That's Christ. Secondly,
he's described by the singularity of his office. There's what?
One Mediator. There's one Mediator. Christ
is not a Savior, he is the Savior. He's not a Mediator, he's the
Mediator. You say that's fanatical and
radical and narrow-minded. Okay, call it what you will,
but there's just one. One mediator. There's none other
name unto heaven given among men whereby we must be. Well,
you Baptists think you're right. No, both Baptists are wrong.
But this Baptist is right. That's just what I'm saying,
this one mediator. I'm just being serious about it. Yes, I know
I'm right. Because I know that's what this
says here. One mediator. Other foundation can no man lay
than that which is laid. That's clear as a bell to me.
He that hath the Son hath life, he that hath not the Son of God
hath not life." If that's narrower, then it's narrower as God. I
can't be any wider than God. You say that's fanatical, then
God's fanatical because that's what he says. Strict? God's strict.
My friends, now listen to me. There was one tabernacle, is
that correct? There was one high priest. There was one day of
atonement. There was one mercy seat and
one ark. And everybody who came to God came that way. And there's
one Redeemer, and that's Christ. He's described by his work, he's
a mediator. He's described by the singularity
of his office, there's one mediator. He's described by his nature,
read it, the man, Christ Jesus. I wish I could make this clear,
like I ought to, the man, Christ Jesus. You see, there are two
parties. and men, God and men. Now, in order to satisfy God's
holiness in our behavior, Christ has to become a man. Because,
you see, God's law and God's justice was demanding upon man
If man's going to enter heaven by his righteousness and works,
he's got to obey the law. If man's going to get by God's
justice and the holy requirements of God's righteousness, he's
got to fulfill the wrath of God. He's got to bear the wrath of
God. So Christ had to become a man. Now, man can't do it.
You see, man can't satisfy what God requires and what the law
and justice demand. But God can satisfy it, but God
can't suffer. So Christ became a man. God became
a man, a man with two natures, the nature of man and the nature
of God. And as God, he infinitely and
absolutely and fully satisfied all that the law required and
justice demanded. You see that? And he's the man,
Christ Jesus. There's a man in glory, a man
born of woman. who grew up in a home, who worked
by the sweat of his brow and the calluses of his hands, who
was tempted in all points, a man fully satisfied, all that God
required. So that I can say, your law,
God, I fulfilled your law in Christ. Your justice, which says
the soul that sinneth must die, I died in Christ, I died on that
cross, man died. And God took that man to heaven. Christ is in heaven, the man,
Christ Jesus. Now, that's as best I can handle
it, but that's what he's saying there, that a man. And then he's
identified or described by his name. He's not just an ordinary
man, not a man like Moses. He's Christ Jesus. And you see,
the word Christ is he's the appointed, anointed God, deity, Christ. He is the Lord's Christ, the
Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus is his human association,
his association with humanity. He is Christ Jesus. Now, there
is one God, unchangeably, infinitely holy, and there's one mediator. described by his office, mediator,
everything in his hand, described not only by his singularity,
one mediator, described by his nature, he's a man, and then
described by his name. He's not just any man, ordinary,
he's the man Christ Jesus. You see that? All right, now
let me point out something here that's vital. Thirdly, how can
I be sure that Jesus of Nazareth, Jesus Christ, is the one Mediator
and truly God's Mediator, God's man, God's appointed Mediator
for us? All right, quickly, three things.
He and no other is revealed by God in the Scriptures as the
Mediator. You know, John sent word to him
and said, Are you he that should come, or do we look for another?
And he properly identified himself as the mediator. The entire book
of Scripture points to him. I want you to turn to I Corinthians
8 with me just a moment. I Corinthians 8. This is so important
right here. How can I be sure? We know there
is one God and one Mediator between God and man, but how can I be
sure that Jesus Christ is that one man, one Mediator? 1 Corinthians 8, 5 and 6. Paul
says, "...though there be that are called gods," see, that's
a little letter there, gods, whether in heaven or on earth,
there are a lot of idols, a lot of heathen gods, "...as there
be gods many, and lords many. 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." That's
what the Scripture teaches all the way through. How can I be
sure he's the one mediator and truly God's man? To him, give
all the Scriptures witness and all the prophets witness. All
the way through, he fulfills every Scripture. Secondly, he
and no other is capable of the work put in his hand. No angel
could accomplish redemption. No man could accomplish redemption.
No seraphim or cherubim could accomplish redemption. There
is none other in heaven, earth, or hell, in all the universe,
in all the universes, wherever they are, only one who can accomplish
what Jesus Christ came to accomplish. He's the only one who can. Look
nowhere else. He's the only one that in the
flesh, God in human flesh, as a man, can do what is required
of man. He's the only one with access.
The only one who ascended to heaven is the only one who came
down from heaven. That's just it. He's the only
one capable of fulfilling. I hear the Jews are looking for
a Messiah. They're wasting their time. If
Christ didn't do it, it can't be done. It can't be done. If Jesus Christ is not the Messiah,
there is none. If Jesus Christ is not the Christ,
there is none, because there is nowhere else to look. You
don't look among the ranks of the angels or the ranks of men.
Or some great leader rises up. Forget it. There is only one
who can fulfill the God-man role, and that's Christ. Then thirdly,
watch this now. He died, but God raised him from
the dead. He is the only one God raised
from the dead. to die no more, to ascend to
glory. And it says that all the way
through the scriptures. Turn to Acts 10. Just look at
this just a moment. What I'm trying to do is help
you have some confidence. You can't find it anywhere else
but in Christ, believe me. I'm trying to preach to you so
that you can live with some kind of hope and die with some kind
of hope. And meet your trials and afflictions with some kind
of hope. You can't find it in the flesh or in the altar of
the church. You've got to find it in Christ
Jesus. There's one God and one Mediator. Acts 10 says this,
beginning with verse 34, Peter opened his mouth and said of
a truth I perceive, God has no respect to a person. In every
nation he that feareth him and worketh righteousness is accepted
of him. Verse 38, God anointed Jesus
of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and power, who went about doing
good and healing all that were oppressed of the devil. God was
with him. Verse 39, we are witnesses of all things he did, both in
the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem, whom they slew and hanged on
a tree. Him God raised up the third day and showed him openly,
not to all the people, but to witnesses chosen before God,
even to us who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the
dead. And he commanded us to preach unto the people, to testify
that it is he which was ordained of God to be the judge of the
quick and the dead, and to him give all the prophets witness
that through his name whosoever believeth in him should receive
remission of sin." God raised him from the dead. I want to show you one other
scripture in John 6, verse 27. The Lord Jesus is speaking here,
John 6, 27, and he says this, and I'll close in a minute, "...labor
not for the meatless perisheth, but for that meat which endureth
to everlasting life, which the Son of Man shall give unto you,
for him hath God the Father sealed." You know what that word, sealed,
means? Him hath God the Father certified,
authorized, and put his seal of endorsement upon him. And
he indicated it clearly. in the fact that he raised him
from the dead. He raised him from the dead.
All right, my last point, I conclude with this. How foolish, and we're foolish
people, I know, but how foolish to despise and reject him who's
the only mediator. How foolish. I just can't comprehend. You know this one God. And you know against him with
sin, you know his law is unchangeable, you know his justice demands
our death, demands our blood, demands condemnation. And he
says as one mediator, how foolish for us to reject him, to ignore
him, to pay no attention to him, to act as if it's not so, to
go about our merry way. Secondly, how foolish to try
to put some other mediator with him. I just feel that the Catholicism
with its worship in St. Jude and praying to the saints
and praying to Mary is utter folly. He says there's one Mediator,
and here I'm going to put one with him or alongside him or
equal with him or even somewhere near him. That's folly, utter
folly. One Mediator, one great high
priest. Call no man master, one is your
master. Call no man father, one is your
father. Be ye not called masters, your
brothers, we're one. Grace is the leveler, brings
the mighty low and the poor up. We're all the same. Christ is
one God and one mediator. And then what a privilege, what
a privilege to have this revealed to us. I could have been, I could
be this morning somewhere over in in one of the heathen countries
dancing around a fire, all painted up, you know, and
not knowing anything about this mediator. I could be, you could
too. We could be in one of those communistic
countries sitting in a jail cell somewhere without a Bible where
Bibles are outlawed. In this country, looking down
at God's Word, which says here to me, there's one God, I know
that, and one mediator between God and me and the man Christ
Jesus. What a privilege, huh? And then, if this be so, and
it is, how secure and safe are those who trust him. Now, I've
taken, I've bundled up, by God's grace, All my life and my possessions
and my ambitions and my hope and all my confidence and sanctification,
redemption, justification, I put all those eggs in one basket
and I hand it to Jesus Christ. I said, there it is. There it
is. You are my one mediator between
me and God. If you fail, I fail. If you fall,
I fall. If you succeed, I succeed. If
you get the glory, I will too. And he's there already seated.
To me, that's salvation. Paul said, I know whom I have
believed, I'm persuaded he's able to keep that, which I've
what? Committed to him. You say, that's a silly illustration.
Oh, no. No, I've committed it to him. Paul said that. Commit
something is to turn it over to them, is to put it in their
hands, is to give it to them, isn't it? Won't you do that?
Huh? It's not doctrine, it's Christ. Well, I want to see who's right.
He's right. That's who's right. Well, I want
to be right. You'll never be right. You'll
never be right. You're going to be wrong somewhere
the rest of your life until you get to glory because we know
in part and we prophesy in part. Well, I want to be sure. You
ain't going to be sure either until you get to glory. Sure
now, infallibly sure. I've got a good hope. I've got
a good hope. But to stand up here and say
I'm as sure for heaven as if I was already there, oh no, you're
not going to get me to talk that way. That's presumption. You
see, I'm going to tell you tonight. Love without fear is presumption. Fear without love is terror.
But we have fear and love. We love God in the fear of the
Lord. And I'm just saying this. I've
committed it to Him because that says right there, one God and
one mediator. You're not going to prove on
Him. You're not going to find another. You're a fool to add
anything to Him. and you're foolish to deny him and reject him and
act like he's not so, God's given you too long now. One warning
is enough for anybody. God doesn't have to say a name
but once. I wish we had longer, but that's it.