Our Need for a Mediator

Introduction

Good afternoon, today we are going to look at our need for a mediator before God. First, what is a mediator?

A mediator is:

A person who intervenes between two parties in conflict to reconcile them and restore peace.

Or,

One who goes between or stands in the middle, often to resolve variance and facilitate reconciliation.

We shall see that we need a mediator before God, because there is a conflict with God and need for reconciliation before God because of our sin.

We are going to start our short study on this today by looking first at Job. Many of you are familiar with the book of Job.

The book of Job is fascinating for many reasons. In it we see a dialog between God and the accuser, Satan. God calls the heavenly host before Him to present themselves and speak on their behalf. God calls up Satan and asks about what he is doing.

Job 1:6–7 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. The Lord said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.”

God then presents Job to Satan as a blameless and righteous man. Satan accuses Job of only being so because of His blessings. First, God allows Satan to take away Job’s children and livestock: his livelihood.

Job 1:8–12 And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.” And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.” So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.

When Job does not turn away from God, Satan is allowed to take Job’s health.

Job 2:2–6 And the Lord said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.” And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil? He still holds fast his integrity, although you incited me against him to destroy him without reason.” Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Skin for skin! All that a man has he will give for his life. But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.” And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your hand; only spare his life.”

Most of the rest of the book of Job is Job and his friends discussing (even arguing!) about the nature of God and His relationship with mankind.

Job and His Mediator

Throughout Job’s discourse to his friends, he frequently wishes for someone to be before God to plead His case. Job understands that he was as God said of himself: blameless and righteous. He does not understand why everything has happened to him. Thus, he hopes for a mediator.

Job 16:18–22 “O earth, cover not my blood, and let my cry find no resting place. Even now, behold, my witness is in heaven, and he who testifies for me is on high. My friends scorn me; my eye pours out tears to God, that he would argue the case of a man with God, as a son of man does with his neighbor. For when a few years have come I shall go the way from which I shall not return.

It is interesting that Job does not presume that he can go to God directly to plead his case. Could not Job, by God’s own words a blameless and upright man, just go to God directly? In fact Job does understand something of God’s character and of himself that we also should understand about God and ourselves:

God Is Holy and We are Sinful

First:

God is perfectly Holy and Righteous

In Psalm 24, David asks:

Psalm 24:3 Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place?

In Isaiah’s vision, the heavenly host declares God’s holiness.

Isaiah 6:3 And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”

God Himself declares:

Isaiah 55:8–9 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Second:

We have Sin that Separates us from God

Psalm 14:3 They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one.

Again, in Isaiah’s vision, Isaiah declares the truth of himself before God:

Isaiah 6:5 And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”

Also in Isaiah:

Isaiah 59:1–2 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.

So, how can we stand before God with our sins? Job knew that he could not. But God does desire a relationship with his creation. So, throughout history He has provided ways for there to be intermediaries or mediators before Him.

OT Mediators

Job was alive before the Old Testament saints. As we have seen, even before God’s revelation of Himself to Abraham and further to the people of Israel, Job understood who God is and his own standing before a Holy God. Now, let’s see how God setup mediators for Himself within the nation of Israel that He set apart for Himself.

Moses

In Exodus, God sets up Moses to be the mediator between Him and the people of Israel.

Exodus 19:1–6 On the third new moon after the people of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. They set out from Rephidim and came into the wilderness of Sinai, and they encamped in the wilderness. There Israel encamped before the mountain, while Moses went up to God. The Lord called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”

Moses is God’s spokesman, acting as a mediator in this sense. Later, only Moses is to go before God to receive the Law. The people of Israel must stay away from Mt. Sinai.

Exodus 19:12–13 And you shall set limits for the people all around, saying, ‘Take care not to go up into the mountain or touch the edge of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall be put to death. No hand shall touch him, but he shall be stoned or shot; whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the trumpet sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.”

When Israel sins by making and worshipping a golden calf, Moses goes before God to intercede for the people.

Exodus 32:30–33 The next day Moses said to the people, “You have sinned a great sin. And now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.” So Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Alas, this people has sinned a great sin. They have made for themselves gods of gold. But now, if you will forgive their sin—but if not, please blot me out of your book that you have written.” But the Lord said to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me, I will blot out of my book.

God never rebuked Moses in what we have read because it was God’s plan for Moses to be a mediator.

Levites and Aaronic Priesthood

Moses could not live forever. So, God would still require mediators to stand between the people of Israel and Himself. God establishes the priesthood of the Levites and Aaronic priesthood who will be the mediators between God and the people of Israel.

Numbers 8:19 And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons from among the people of Israel, to do the service for the people of Israel at the tent of meeting and to make atonement for the people of Israel, that there may be no plague among the people of Israel when the people of Israel come near the sanctuary.”

Only the High Priest could go into the Holy of Holies in the presence of God. He will mediate to atone for Israel’s sin. The veil that existed in the tabernacle and later in the temple was a physical and symbolic barrier separating our Holy God from His people.

Leviticus 16:1–2 The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they drew near before the Lord and died, and the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron your brother not to come at any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat that is on the ark, so that he may not die. For I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat.

NT Mediator: Jesus

The priesthood of the Levites was not the finality of God’s plan. God had something planned that was better, greater, and more perfect. In due time, God gave His Son, Jesus to be the mediator between us and Him. Jesus, through His life, lived perfectly under the Law of Moses, and then through His death on the cross and resurrection provided for us the perfect Mediator.

Jesus: Better than Moses

Jesus is a better mediator than Moses: being God’s Son.

Hebrews 3:1–6 Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, who was faithful to him who appointed him, just as Moses also was faithful in all God’s house. For Jesus has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses—as much more glory as the builder of a house has more honor than the house itself. (For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.) Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later, but Christ is faithful over God’s house as a son. And we are his house, if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.

Jesus: Our Great High Priest

Jesus is our Great High Priest doing what no human Levite could do.

At Jesus’ death on the cross, that same veil or curtain that separated the people from God was torn. Again, a physical and symbolic act that showed such a separation does not exist anymore!

Matthew 27:49–52 But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised,

The veil of the temple was torn. This signified that the ability to approach God, through Jesus, is now available to every person who puts their faith in Him.

Hebrews 9:11–15 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.

It was necessary for Jesus to come to earth and become a human: fully man and fully God. This further shows the perfection of Jesus as our mediator: he can sympathize with us!

Hebrews 4:14–16 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Jesus Himself claimed to be our Mediator

It is not as if this was made up by the apostles, consider how Jesus directs us to pray to the Father.

Matthew 6:8–9 ... Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

But, Jesus also directs us to make requests to the Father in His name. He mediates our prayers to the Father!

John 14:13–14 Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.

And finally, we need no other to mediate between us and God!

1 Timothy 2:5–6 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.