Grosey's Messages

2Timothy 1

1Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, in keeping with the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus, 2To Timothy, my dear son: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

3I thank God, whom I serve, as my ancestors did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. 4Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. 5I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.

6For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. 8So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God. 9He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, 10but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. 11And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. 12That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet this is no cause for shame, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day.

13What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus. 14Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.

A man comes running to the doctor shouting and screaming in pain. "Please doctor you've got to help me. I've been stung by a bee."

"Don't worry;" says the doctor, "I'll put some cream on it.

"You will never find that bee. It must be miles away by now."

"No, you don't understand!" answers the doctor, "I'll put some cream on the place you were stung."

"Oh! It happened in the garden in back of my house."

"No, no, no!" says the doctor getting frustrated, "I mean on which part of your body did that bee sting you."

"On my finger!" screamed the man in pain. "The bee stung me on my finger and it really hurts."

"Which one?" the doctor.

"How am I supposed to know? All bees look the same to me!"

Faith has the same problem. Defining it is so difficult.

There is confusion about faith. Do I have enough faith to be saved? Am I really trusting in Jesus? What about my works? I heard someone say that salvation is using 2 oars, the oar of faith and the oar of works. With just one you go round and round in circles.  That brings in a heresy of salvation by works.

Ephesians 2:8-10 tells us that our salvation is not by any work at all but results in good works. "8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them."

So what is faith? Is it just believing something?

― Lewis Carroll   Through the Looking Glass or down the rabbit hole? "Alice laughed. 'There's no use trying,' she said. 'One can't believe impossible things.'" "I daresay you haven't had much practice,' said the Queen. 'When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast!"

2 Timothy 1:12

    That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet this is no cause for shame, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day.

What is Saving Faith?

Faith of Assent. To Believe You Must Know

"because I know whom I have believed,"

Apostles Creed (around 120 AD)

What must I know and believe?

In essentials, unity; in the nonessentials, liberty; in all things, charity," runs a maxim often attributed to Augustine of Hippo. What, then, are the essentials? What are those doctrinal issues surrounding the person and work of Jesus on which we must agree? Moreover, what is the source of these truths?

"What do the facts say?" And since our most reliable source of information about the person, nature, and work of Jesus is the Bible, the more precise question is, "What does the Bible say?"

 It is impossible to exhaust all of the information in the Bible about the person and work of Jesus. Therefore, we must find a manageable yet comprehensive body of information with which we may equip ourselves to present a concise, biblical, and comprehensive argument. Perhaps the most concise, yet comprehensive presentation of the person and work of Jesus is found in the New Testament preaching on salvation through Christ that is known as the kerygma (or "core content of the gospel").

What is Saving Faith?

Faith of Assent.

    9 who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,10 but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,

WHAT IS SAVING FAITH?

Faith of Assent

'What are your speculations?' they inquired of the great scientist Michael Faraday. 'Speculations?' he asked, in wondering surprise. 'Speculations! I have none! I am resting on certainties. I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day!' And, reveling like a little child in those cloudless simplicities, his great soul passed away.  Faraday was a perpetual mystery. He baffled all his colleagues and companions. Nobody could understand how the most learned man of his time could find in his faith those restful certainties on which he so calmly and securely reposed. They saw him pass from a meeting of the Royal Society to sit at the feet of a certain local preacher who was notorious for his illiteracy; and the spectacle filled them with bewilderment and wonder. Some suggested that he was, in an intellectual sense, living a double life. Tyndall said that, when Faraday opened the door of his oratory, he shut that of his laboratory. He did nothing of the kind. He never closed his eyes to any fragment of truth; he never divided his mind into watertight compartments; he never shrank from the approach of a doubt. He saw life whole. His biography has been written a dozen times; and each writer views it from a new angle. But in one respect they all agree. They agree that Michael Faraday was the most transparently honest soul that the realm of science has ever known. He moved for fifty years amidst the speculations of science whilst, in his soul, the certainties that cannot be shaken were his rock.

No Speculations just convictions!

Persuaded of the truth:

because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced (persuaded)that he is able to guard

How does faith know?

By Scripture (its Prophecies, Power and Practicality)

By the Spirit of God (Applying Promises Personally)

Persuaded of God's Faithfulness and Willingness to keep me.

Knowledge alone is not enough. Personal saving faith involves more than mere knowledge. It is necessary that we have some knowledge of who Christ is and what he has done, for "how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard?" (Rom. 10:14). But knowledge about the facts of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection for us is not enough, for people can know facts but rebel against them or dislike them. For example, Paul tells us that many people know God's laws but dislike them: "Though they know God's decree that those who do such things deserve to die, they not only do them but approve those who practice them" (Rom. 1:32). Even the demons know who God is and know the facts about Jesus' life and saving works, for James says, "You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder" (James 2:19). But that knowledge certainly does not mean that the demons are saved. People can have true knowledge about God, be persuaded of the truthfulness of the gospel, and yet not be saved. Some are hard rejecters of the gospel. Others are those who think they are saved bit have not yet truly had a saving faith in Christ.

WHAT IS SAVING FAITH?

Hebrews 11:6

And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.

Faith is something factual.

Faith is something personal.

WHAT IS SAVING FAITH?

The Faith of Assent

The Faith of Consent

because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day.

what I have committed to Him until that Day.

Packer writes of Faith as response to the Spirit of God's enlightening.

Faith cannot be defined in subjective terms, as a confident and optimistic mind-set, or in passive terms, as acquiescent orthodoxy or confidence in God without commitment to God. Faith is an object-oriented response, shaped by that which is trusted, namely God himself, God's promises, and Jesus Christ, all as set forth in the Scriptures. And faith is a whole-souled response, involving mind, heart, will, and affections. Older Reformed theology analyzed faith as notitia ("knowledge," i.e., acquaintance with the content of the gospel), plus assensus ( "agreement," i.e., recognition that the gospel is true), plus fiducia ( "trust and reliance," i.e., personal dependence on the grace of Father, Son, and Spirit for salvation, with thankful cessation of all attempts to save oneself by establishing one's own righteousness: Rom. 4:5; 10:3). Without fiducia there is no faith, but without notitia and assensus there can be no fiducia (Rom. 10:14). God's gift of faith is a fruit of applicatory illumination by the Holy Spirit, and it ordinarily has in it some measure of conscious assurance through the witnessing of the Spirit (Rom. 8:15- 17). John Owen says: "For there is a faith whereby we are justified, which he who has shall be assuredly saved; which purifies the heart and works by love. And there is a faith or believing, which does nothing of all this; which who has, and has no more, is not justified, nor can be saved…. Thus it is said of Simon the magician, that he "believed," Acts viii.13, when he was in the gall of bitterness and bond of iniquity."

Owen views the conviction of sin as a necessary prerequisite to the exercise of saving faith. That conviction consists in the "opening of the eyes of the sinner, to see the filth and guilt of sin in the sentence and curse of the law applied unto his conscience, Rom vii. 9, 10." This results in the sinner being "sensible of his guilt before God," which is a condition that comes about by the act of sovereign grace. This sense of guilt does not merely consist in the assent (assensus) of the mind because believing is an "act of the heart." If it is "assentia alone," then Owen rejects such a faith. Assenting faith must be coupled with a "fiducial trust in the grace of God by Christ declared in the promises."  While many Reformed theologians spoke of justifying faith involving three elements—knowledge (notitia), assent (assensus), and trust (fiducia)—Owen seems to have placed knowledge and assent together in this context. The reason for that is that in this context he particularly focuses on the saving nature of assent since he is combating the Roman Catholic idea that faith is bare assent.

So there are three aspects to saving faith: there must be knowledge.  There must be assent of the mind. There must be the consent of the heart. Faith not only is the knowledge and assent of the mind that 65% of Australians have towards the Lord Jesus Christ.  It also includes the consent of the heart!! 

Look at how scripture describes that consent:

Knowledge and approval are not enough. Merely knowing the facts and approving of them or agreeing that they are true is not enough. Nicodemus knew that Jesus had come from God, for he said, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do, unless God is with him" (John 3:2). Nicodemus had evaluated the facts of the situation, including Jesus' teaching and his remarkable miracles, and had drawn a correct conclusion from those facts: Jesus was a teacher come from God. But this alone did not mean that Nicodemus had saving faith, for he still had to put his trust in Christ for salvation; he still had to "believe in him." King Agrippa provides another example of knowledge and approval without saving faith. Paul realized that King Agrippa knew and apparently viewed with approval the Jewish Scriptures (what we now call the Old Testament). When Paul was on trial before Agrippa, he said, "King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you believe" (Acts 26:27). Yet Agrippa did not have saving faith, for he said to Paul, "In a short time you think to make me a Christian!" (Acts 26:28).

WHAT IS SAVING FAITH?

The Faith of Assent

The Faith of Consent

The Faith of COMMITTING

what I have committed to Him until that Day.

What Is Saving Faith

Packer "faith is a whole-souled response, involving mind, heart, will, and affections."

faith as notitia ("knowledge,")   +

plus assensus ( "agreement,")   +

plus fiducia ( "personal trust and reliance," )

What Is Saving Faith

It is Coming to Jesus.

           Come unto Me all ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. Matt 11:28

           He who comes to Me I will not cast out. John 6:37

It is Looking to Jesus

           And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. John 3:14–15 14 

Barnes Notes "Thus the direction to look to God for salvation implies a deep conviction of helplessness and of sin; and a deep conviction that he only can save. At the same time it shows the ease of salvation. What is more easy than to look to one for help? What more easy than to cast the eyes toward God the Saviour? What more reasonable than that he should require us to do it? And what more just than that God, if people will not look to him in order that they may be saved, should cast them off forever? Assuredly, if a dying, ruined, and helpless sinner will not do so simple a thing as to look to God for salvation, he ought to be excluded from heaven, and the universe will acquiesce in the decision which consigns him to despair."

Nothing in my hand I bring, Simply to thy cross I cling, Naked come to thee for dress Helpless look to Thee for grace, Foul I to the fountain fly, Wash me Saviour or I die."

True Saving Faith Includes Knowledge, Approval, and Personal Trust

It is Receiving Jesus

     To all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God" John 1:12.

I must Commit to depend on Jesus to save me personally. In addition to knowledge of the facts of the gospel and approval of those facts, in order to be saved, I must decide to depend on Jesus to save me. Saving faith is trust in Jesus Christ as a living person for forgiveness of sins and eternal life with God. The unbeliever comes to Christ seeking to have sin and guilt removed and to enter into a genuine relationship with God that will last forever. Saving faith in Scripture involves this personal trust, trust is often a better word to use in contemporary culture than the word faith or belief. The reason is that we can "believe" something to be true with no personal commitment or dependence involved in it. I can believe that Canberra is the capital of Australia or that 7 times 6 is 42 but have no personal commitment or dependence on anyone when I simply believe those facts. The word faith on the other hand, is sometimes used today to refer to an almost irrational commitment to something in spite of strong evidence to the contrary, a sort of irrational decision to believe something that we are quite sure is not true! (If your favorite football team continues to lose games, someone might encourage you to "have faith" even though all the facts point the opposite direction.) In these two popular senses, belief and faith have a meaning contrary to the biblical sense.

The word trust is closer to the biblical idea, since we are familiar with trusting persons in everyday life. The more we come to know a person, and the more we see in that person a pattern of life that warrants trust, the more we find ourselves able to place trust in him to do what he promises, or to act in ways on which we can rely. This fuller sense of personal trust is indicated in several passages of Scripture in which initial saving faith is spoken of in very personal terms, often using analogies drawn from personal relationships. John says, "To all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God" (John 1:12). Much as we would receive a guest into our homes, John speaks of receiving Christ.

John 3:16 tells us that "whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." Here John uses a surprising phrase when he does not simply say, "whoever believes him" (that is, believes that what he says is true and able to be trusted), but rather, "whoever believes in him."

Jesus speaks of "coming to him" in several places. He says, "All that the Father gives me will come to me; and him who comes to me I will not cast out" (John 6:37). He also says, "If any one thirst, let him come to me and drink" (John 7:37). In a similar way, he says, "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" (Matt. 11:28–30). In these passages we have the idea of coming to Christ and asking for acceptance, for living water to drink, and for rest and instruction. All of these give an intensely personal picture of what is involved in saving faith.

FAITH OF COMMITTING TO JESUS

Dr. Alexander, of Princeton was dying; a friend endeavored to fortify his faith by reciting some of the most familiar passages and promises. Presently he ventured upon the words:

'I know in whom I have believed, and----' But the sick man raised his hand. 'No, no,' exclaimed the dying Principal, 'it is not "I know in whom" but "I know whom"; I cannot have even the little word "in" between me and Christ. I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day!'

John Oxenham has expressed the same thought with an accent and emphasis well worthy of the theme: Not what, but whom, I do believe That in my darkest hour of need
Hath comforts that no mortal creed To mortal man may give. Not what but whom, For Christ is more than all the creeds And his full life of gentle deeds Shall all the creeds outlive. Not what I do believe but whom, Who walks beside me in the gloom
Who shares the burden wearisome; Who all the dim way doth illume And bids me look beyond the tomb The larger life to live. Not what I do believe but whom.       John Oxenham

Have you committed to Jesus?

I cast my whole weight on Him. Have You Called To Jesus? (39)

It is demonstrated by the blind man in Luke 18 crying out "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" 39 But he cried out all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!"

The committing of the heart is described as calling on the Lord Jesus. 

Romans 10:13 for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

It is pictured by Peter as he sinks in the sea and calls to the Lord Jesus walking upon the sea "Lord save me!"

It wasn't the loudness of his cry that saved him, but the direction of his prayer saved him; it was directed to the only One who can save: The Lord Jesus Christ.  Don't direct your prayer to Mary or anyone else! Direct it to the Saviour!

 The consent and committing of the heart, justifying faith, is expressed as "receiving." To as many as received Him to them that believe on His name, He gave the right to become children of God (John 1:12).The consent of the heart faith is expressed by "fleeing for refuge" (Heb. 6:18):

It is Calling on the Lord Jesus to Save You

⁹ that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.¹⁰ For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.¹¹ For the Scripture says, "Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame."¹² For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him.¹³ For "whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved." Romans 9-13

Will you trust the Lord Jesus to save you?

Throw your whole weight upon Him to save you.

From his early boyhood, John Paton wanted to be a missionary. Before studying theology and medicine, Paton served for ten years as a Glasgow City Missionary. After graduation, he was ordained and set sail for the New Hebrides as a Presbyterian missionary. Three months after arriving on the island of Tanna, Paton's young wife died, followed by their five-week-old son. For three more years, Paton labored alone among the hostile islanders, ignoring their threats, seeking to make Christ known to them, before escaping with his life. Later, he returned and spent fifteen years on another island.

Paton was working one day in his home on the translation of John's Gospel—puzzling over John's favorite expression pisteuo eis, to "believe in" or to "trust in" Jesus Christ, a phrase which occurs first in John 1:12. "How can I translate it?" Paton wondered. The islanders were cannibals; nobody trusted anybody else. There was no word for "trust" in their language. His native servant came in. "What am I doing?" Paton asked him. "Sitting at your desk," the man replied. Paton then raised both feet off the floor and sat back on his chair. "What am I doing now?" In reply, Paton's servant used a verb which means "to lean your whole weight upon." That's the phrase Paton used throughout John's Gospel to translate to "believe in."

The greatest 19th-century tightrope walker, Jean Francois Gravelet – alias Charles Blondin – (1824–1897) of France, made the earliest crossing of the Niagara Falls on a 76 mm (3 in) hemp rope 335 m (1,100 ft) long and 47.75 m (160 ft) above the Falls on June 30, 1859.
On his crossing, which he achieved using a long balancing pole, Blondin executed a daring backwards somersault. Thereafter, the French daredevil made each crossing of the Falls in a different manner. He crossed blindfolded; trundling a wheelbarrow; on stilts; in the dark with Roman candles flaring from his pole tips; and sitting down halfway to make an omelet! On Sept 15, 1860, he even made a crossing carrying his manager, Harry Colcord, by pick-a-back. 

He offered to carry someone in a wheel barrow. The crowd said "Yes" but no one came forward to take him and try.

The Lord Jesus says come to me. Will you come to Him today?

Heidelberg Catechism

OUR DELIVERANCE     LORD'S DAY 5

12. Q. Since, according to God's righteous judgment we deserve temporal and eternal punishment,

how can we escape this punishment and be again received into favour?

A. God demands that his justice be satisfied.1

Therefore we must make full payment,

either by ourselves or through another.2

1 Ex 20:5; 23:7; Rom 2:1-11.

2 Is 53:11; Rom 8:3, 4.

13. Q. Can we by ourselves make this payment?

A. Certainly not.

On the contrary, we daily increase our debt.1

1 Ps 130:3; Mt 6:12; Rom 2:4, 5.

14. Q. Can any mere creature pay for us?

A. No.

In the first place,

God will not punish another creature

for the sin which man has committed.1

Furthermore,

no mere creature can sustain

the burden of God's eternal wrath against sin

and deliver others from it.2

1 Ezek 18:4, 20; Heb 2:14-18.

2 Ps 130:3; Nahum 1:6.

15. Q. What kind of mediator and deliverer

must we seek?

A. One who is a true1 and righteous2 man,

and yet more powerful than all creatures;

that is, one who is at the same time true God.3

1 1 Cor 15:21; Heb 2:17.

2 Is 53:9; 2 Cor 5:21; Heb 7:26.

3 Is 7:14; 9:6; Jer 23:6; Jn 1:1; Rom 8:3, 4.

LORD'S DAY 6

16. Q. Why must he be a true and righteous man?

A. He must be a true man

because the justice of God requires

that the same human nature which has sinned

should pay for sin.1

He must be a righteous man

because one who himself is a sinner

cannot pay for others.2

1 Rom 5:12, 15; 1 Cor 15:21; Heb 2:14-16.

2 Heb 7:26, 27; 1 Pet 3:18.

17. Q. Why must he at the same time be true God?

A. He must be true God

so that by the power of his divine nature1

he might bear in his human nature

the burden of God's wrath,2

and might obtain for us

and restore to us

righteousness and life.3

1 Is 9:6.

2 Deut 4:24; Nahum 1:6; Ps 130:3.

3 Is 53:5, 11; Jn 3:16; 2 Cor 5:21.

18. Q. But who is that Mediator

who at the same time is true God

and a true and righteous man?

A. Our Lord Jesus Christ,1

who has become for us wisdom from God – that is,

our righteousness, holiness

and redemption (1 Cor 1:30).

1 Mt 1:21-23; Lk 2:11; 1 Tim 2:5; 3:16.

19. Q. From where do you know this?

A. From the holy gospel,

which God himself first revealed in Paradise.1

Later, he had it proclaimed

by the patriarchs2 and prophets,3

and foreshadowed

by the sacrifices and other ceremonies

of the law.4

Finally, he had it fulfilled

through his only Son.5

1 Gen 3:15.

2 Gen 12:3; 22:18; 49:10.

3 Is 53; Jer 23:5, 6; Mic 7:18-20; Acts 10:43; Heb 1:1.

4 Lev 1-7; Jn 5:46; Heb 10:1-10.

5 Rom 10:4; Gal 4:4, 5; Col 2:17.

1.Job 9 and 1 Timothy 2:1-5   How To Face Your Failures

A friend took Federal government to court for damages that the NSW Government inflicted due to lockdown restrictions! On the basis of the US constitution.  Now that has got to work!

You Need A Mediator

Big Question Why do the righteous suffer?

2.Court Language

contend (Job 9:3; 10:2) = enter into litigation 

answer (9:3, 16) = testify in court

judge (v. 15) = an opponent at law, accuser               

set a time (v. 19) = summon to court

daysman (v. 33) = an umpire, an arbitrator              

reason (13:3) = argue a case

order my cause (v. 18) = prepare my case              

plead (v. 19; 23:6) = dispute in court

hear me (31:35) = give me a legal hearing     

adversary (v. 35) = accuser in court

3.2 Questions "How can I be righteous before God?" (9:1–13)

"How can I meet God in court?" (vv. 14–35)

4.I Need A Mediator
For He is not a man as I am that I may answer Him, That we may go to court together. There is no umpire between us, Who may lay his hand upon us both.

I Need a Mediator Because I have to stand before God

I Need a Mediator Because I have to stand before God and I am not innocent

I Need a Mediator Because I have to stand before God and I am not innocent and Denial won't help

Don't take God to court:

1. God is Incomprehensible  Job 9:3-4

2. God is Invincible Job 9:4

3. God is Invulnerable Job 9:4

4. God is Incredible Job 9:10, 5-10

5. God is Invisible Job 9:11

6. God is Irresistible Job 9:12

Job's Learnt

1. He Could Not Dispute With God  Job 9:14-15

2. He Could Not Make Deals With God Job 9:16

3. He Could Not Direct God  Job 9:18-19 

4. He Could Not Delay God Job 9:25-26

5. He Could Not Live In Denial of God  Job 9:27-28

I NEED A MEDIATOR

32 "For He is not a man as I am that I may answer Him, That we may go to court together. 33 "There is no umpire between us, Who may lay his hand upon us both. 34 "Let Him remove His rod from me,

And let not dread of Him terrify me. 35 "Then I would speak and not fear Him; But I am not like that in myself.

Umpire, Arbitrator (NIV), Daysman, Mediator.

Mediator God/Man! Laying hands on both. Representing both. But you better have a case or you are still up the creek without a paddle!

(Like recent Union organizer trying to find a reason for recent rail bus strikes..umm something about Kia and Hyundai cars?)

If you don't have a case, don't go to court! Or you will be found guilty! We don't have a case! But we do have a Saviour!

5.1 Timothy 2:5-6. "For there is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus; Who gave Himself a ransom for all....

6.A Ransom "The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Mark 10:45).

A Ransom for slaves and hostages. The price paid for release!

7.Anselm of Canterbury: salvation "could not have been done unless man paid what was owing to God for sin. But the debt was so great that, while man alone owed it, only God could pay it, so that the same person must be both man and God. Thus it was necessary for God to take manhood into the unity of his person, so that he who in his own nature ought to pay and could not should be in a person who could."

8.He paid the debt he did not own, I own the debt I could not pay
I needed someone to wash my sins away And now I sing a brand new song, "Amazing grace"
Christ Jesus paid the debt I could never pay

In his autobiographical book "Miracle on the River Kwai" Ernie Gordon recounts how the barbarous treatment by their Japanese captors had caused the behaviour of the prisoners to degenerate. These British prisoners-of-war were starting to be cruel and malicious to each other, but then one afternoon something terrible happened. One of the shovels was discovered to be missing on the work site, and the Japanese officer in charge of the unit was furious. He ordered that the person who stole the shovel to come forward otherwise he would execute every last one of them there and then. It was obvious the Japanese commanding officer meant what he said as he pulled out his pistol.

Unexpectedly, one of the Scottish soldiers stepped forward. The Japanese officer put his gun away, picked up one of the remaining shovels, and beat the man to death with it.

When the violent execution was over, the other prisoners-of-war picked up their friend's body and carried it to their next tool check. They planned to bury their friend's body at the end of the day when they were given permission. As they again counted the tools they discovered that all the shovels were there. A mistake had been made in the previous tool count and actually no shovel had been stolen.

News of the soldier's death travelled rapidly through the whole camp. An innocent man had willingly volunteered to die in order to save others.

The Mediator Must Be Effective!  This Mediator is effective for Paul. So He is effective for you and me!

9.1 Timothy 1:12-16 "I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life."

10 1 Tim 2:1-6 ..prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority,.. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time.

11 Calvin, "the apostle's meaning here is simply that no nation of the earth and no rank of society is excluded from salvation, since God wills to offer the gospel to all without exception."

Feelings come and feelings go, And feelings are deceiving;
My warrant is the Word of God-- Naught else is worth believing.
Though all my heart should feel condemned For want of some sweet token, There is One greater than my heart Whose Word cannot be broken. I'll trust in God's unchanging Word Till soul and body sever,
For, though all things shall pass away, HIS WORD SHALL STAND FOREVER!" ― Martin Luther

Job 9:

1         Then Job answered,

2         "In truth I know that this is so;

           But how can a man be in the right before God?

3         "If one wished to dispute with Him,

           He could not answer Him once in a thousand times.

4         "Wise in heart and mighty in strength,

           Who has defied Him without harm?

5         "It is God who removes the mountains, they know not how,

           When He overturns them in His anger;

6         Who shakes the earth out of its place,

           And its pillars tremble;

7         Who commands the sun not to shine,

           And sets a seal upon the stars;

8         Who alone stretches out the heavens

           And tramples down the waves of the sea;

9         Who makes the Bear, Orion and the Pleiades,

           And the chambers of the south;

10       Who does great things, unfathomable,

           And wondrous works without number.

11       "Were He to pass by me, I would not see Him;

           Were He to move past me, I would not perceive Him.

12       "Were He to snatch away, who could restrain Him?

           Who could say to Him, 'What are You doing?'

13       "God will not turn back His anger;

           Beneath Him crouch the helpers of Rahab.

14       "How then can I answer Him,

           And choose my words before Him?

15       "For though I were right, I could not answer;

           I would have to implore the mercy of my judge.

16       "If I called and He answered me,

           I could not believe that He was listening to my voice.

17       "For He bruises me with a tempest

           And multiplies my wounds without cause.

18       "He will not allow me to get my breath,

           But saturates me with bitterness.

19       "If it is a matter of power, behold, He is the strong one!

           And if it is a matter of justice, who can summon Him?

20       "Though I am righteous, my mouth will condemn me;

           Though I am guiltless, He will declare me guilty.

21       "I am guiltless;

           I do not take notice of myself;

           I despise my life.

22       "It is all one; therefore I say,

           'He destroys the guiltless and the wicked.'

23       "If the scourge kills suddenly,

           He mocks the despair of the innocent.

24       "The earth is given into the hand of the wicked;

           He covers the faces of its judges.

           If it is not He, then who is it?

25       "Now my days are swifter than a runner;

           They flee away, they see no good.

26       "They slip by like reed boats,

           Like an eagle that swoops on its prey.

27       "Though I say, 'I will forget my complaint,

           I will leave off my sad countenance and be cheerful,'

28       I am afraid of all my pains,

           I know that You will not acquit me.

29       "I am accounted wicked,

           Why then should I toil in vain?

30       "If I should wash myself with snow

           And cleanse my hands with lye,

31       Yet You would plunge me into the pit,

           And my own clothes would abhor me.

32       "For He is not a man as I am that I may answer Him,

           That we may go to court together.

33       "There is no umpire between us,

           Who may lay his hand upon us both.

34       "Let Him remove His rod from me,

           And let not dread of Him terrify me.

35       "Then I would speak and not fear Him;

           But I am not like that in myself.

Job 9 and 1 Timothy 2:1-5  When You Face Your Failures  You Discover You Need A Mediator

I have a friend who decided recently to take the Australian Federal Government to court for actions taken by the State Government. He decided to do that on the basis of the American Constitution.  That is going to turn out well right?  Now, there are two great questions in the Book of Job. Question number one is: why do the righteous suffer? And the second is.. can I take God to court?

The image that is uppermost in Job's mind is that of a legal trial. He wants to take God to court and have opportunity to prove his own integrity. A glance at some of the vocabulary indicates this:

contend (Job 9:3; 10:2) = enter into litigation          answer (9:3, 16) = testify in court

judge (v. 15) = an opponent at law, accuser                set a time (v. 19) = summon to court

daysman (v. 33) = an umpire, an arbitrator               reason (13:3) = argue a case

order my cause (v. 18) = prepare my case               plead (v. 19; 23:6) = dispute in court

hear me (31:35) = give me a legal hearing      adversary (v. 35) = accuser in court

In Job 9, Job asks two questions:

"How can I be righteous before God?" (9:1–13)  "How can I meet God in court?" (vv. 14–35)

It shows tremendous insight and thought that Job in the midst of excruciating agony, had thought through some important aspects of his sufferings and the character and nature of God!!

Did you notice how his reasoning worked?   Can I take God to court for harsh treatment?

As Job works through this question it helps to resolve some things in his own mind and heart, and prepares us to understand the gospel all the better.

Can I take God to court?  If I appear with God in Court who is going to win?

His invincible wisdom and power control the earth and the heavens. Would anybody dare go to court with an opponent powerful enough to shake the earth, make the stars, and walk on the waves?  Is it smart to take to court the One Who Himself is the Judge of all humanity?

God is not only invincible, He is also invisible. Job couldn't see God or stop Him to give Him a summons to court. God can do whatever He pleases, and nobody can question Him! Even monsters of the sea ( 9:13 ) have to bow before God's power.

God is Infinite in Nature.  He has been from the beginning and He will still be there when everything is wrapped up at the end. And that means that this life is not all there is. Job was admitting his frustration by the apparent injustice when those who haven't committed the sin sometimes suffer and die through no direct fault of their own. But what if the ultimate resolution to this universal question isn't settled until after death?

And God doesn't necessarily pay up all His bills on our time schedule.

And Job was Sinful. How could he appear in God's court? If God and he compared righteousness, Job will lose every time. He was already guilty.

If I could declare my own innocence, what good would it do?

Though I am righteous, my mouth will condemn me; Though I am guiltless, He will declare me guilty.

I am guiltless; I do not take notice of myself; I despise my life. It is all one; therefore I say,

"He destroys the guiltless and the wicked." If the scourge kills suddenly,

He mocks the despair of the innocent. The earth is given into the hand of the wicked;

He covers the faces of its judges. If it is not He, then who is it? Job 9:20–24

And Job was stupid. How could he stand in God's court? He had no idea what he would say to defend himself.

If I could stand before God, what would I say?  How then can I answer Him, And choose my words before Him? For though I were right, I could not answer; I would have to implore the mercy of my judge. If I called and He answered me, I could not believe that He was listening to my voice, For He bruises me with a tempest And multiplies my wounds without cause. He will not allow me to get my breath, But saturates me with bitterness. If it is a matter of power, behold, He is the strong one! And if it is a matter of justice, who can summon Him? Job 9:14–19

When Job finally did meet God (Job 38–41), the Lord asked him seventy-seven questions! And Job couldn't answer one of them! His only response was to admit his ignorance and shut his mouth in silence.

And Job was mortal. No matter what he was going to die anyway.

Then Job answered, 2 But how can a man be in the right before God?

Message : The question is, "How can mere mortals get right with God?" If we wanted to bring our case before him, what chance would we have? Not one in a thousand!

We come to the end of Job 9 and discover that Job has found an answer, but it would take another 2000 years for that answer to be realized in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Job is asking. "How can I be reconciled with God?" And the answer is Job like anyone and everyone else, needs a Mediator. And that Mediator he needs is the Lord Jesus Christ!

I Need a Mediator Because I have to stand before God

I Need a Mediator Because I have to stand before God and I am not innocent

I Need a Mediator Because I have to stand before God and I am not innocent and Denial won't help

Job asks If I tried to be positive and cheerful, how would that help me?

Now my days are swifter than a runner; They flee away, they see no good.

They slip by like reed boats, Like an eagle that swoops on its prey.

Though I say, "I will forget my complaint, I will leave off my sad countenance and be cheerful,"

I am afraid of all my pains, I know that You will not acquit me.

I am accounted wicked, Why then should I toil in vain?

If I should wash myself with snow And cleanse my hands with lye,

Yet You would plunge me into the pit,  And my own clothes would abhor me.

Job arrives at a major turning point with his fourth question:

Is it possible to have a mediator who could represent my needs before God?

For He is not a man as I am that I may answer Him, That we may go to court together.

There is no umpire between us, Who may lay his hand upon us both.

Let Him remove His rod from me, And let not dread of Him terrify me. Then I would speak and not fear Him; But I am not like that in myself. Job 9:32–35

THE TERM MEDIATOR TELLS US THERE ARE TWO PARTIES WHO NEED TO BE RECONCILED.

THERE WOULD BE NO USE IN A MEDIATOR UNLESS THE TWO PARTIES WERE BOTH WILLING TO BE RECONCILED TO EACH OTHER.

Job longs for an arbitrator who could serve as his go-between, communicating with this mighty and holy God. He's wishing for one who could argue his case. Job would love to present his case in God's court, but he doesn't have a mediator. He is saying, in effect, "I would love to come and stand before the holy Judge, this God of mine, but I can't do it. He's not a man to come to me, and I don't have in myself what it takes to come before Him. I need a mediator, a go-between. Is there an arbitrator available?"

This week we have experienced the Transport Workers Union in conflict with .. everyone. The union stood on one side with the laborers while management was on the other side. There was a list of grievances in between.

"NSW is using Korean made trains.   We should be supporting home industries."

"It may be that being foreign made and  imported some of the trains may be defective?"

After all, Korea makes Kia's and Hyundai's?

Did you notice the difficulty for the union reps to get their stories coordinated?

It is hard to mediate between people when they don't know what their problems are.

If an arbitrator or mediator is hired to come in, they sort of have to know what they are arbitrating about. A Mediator must be neutral, to come in and hear both sides.

If the desire is that some kind of understanding could be reached as the arbitrator could, after hearing both sides, negotiate a settlement and avert a strike.

That's what Job wants. But he doesn't have an arbitrator. He doesn't qualify to stand before God on his own because he isn't Deity; and God is not a man that He can come stand before Job—so he's stuck.

The late G. Campbell Morgan writes:

The cry of Job was born of a double consciousness which at the moment was mastering him; first, that of the appalling greatness and majesty of God; and secondly, that of his own comparative littleness. This was not the question of a man who had dismissed God from his life and from the universe, and was living merely upon the earth level. It was rather the cry of a man who knew God, and was overwhelmed by the sense of His greatness. . . .

Over against that was the sense of his own comparative smallness. He felt he could not get to this God. He was altogether too small. . . .

It is as though Job had said: There is no umpire, there is no arbiter, there is no one who can stand between us, interpreting each to the other; me to God, and God to me. There is no one to lay his hand upon us. . . .

Here then was Job crying out for some one who could stand authoritatively between God and himself, and so create a way of meeting, a possibility of contact.

Man is a sinner. He's a sinner by birth, by nature, by choice, by practice, and by habit. Behavioural psychologists try to explain away sin by saying man is ill not evil, man is sick not sinful, or man is weak not wicked. But that's not what the Bible says. Romans 3:23 states, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." We can try to explain it away by environment or glands, but the Bible clearly calls it sin.

But not only is man sinful; God is holy. If I had to give one word to describe God, contrary to popular opinion, it would not be love; it would be holy. In Job 9:30, Job says, "If I wash myself with snow water, and make my hands never so clean; Yet shalt Thou plunge me in the ditch, and mine own clothes shall abhor me." That is, "God, if I do the very best I can in self reformation, if I get the purest water and scrub myself from head to toe; yet you see me wallowing in the gutter. You see me as I really am."

So how can a holy God and sinful man come together? How can man be just with God? Man cannot lift himself to God because man is sinful, and God will not lower Himself to man because God is holy. Now that's a problem!

Job was saying, "Oh God, You are holy; I am sinful. I need You. God, I can't argue with You. If you bring me into court, I can't answer one of a thousand questions. I'm a sinner. I need somebody to go between. I need somebody to bring me to You. I need somebody who can lay his hands upon us both. I need an arbiter. I need a middleman. I need a daysman. I need a mediator."

"To act as umpire." The "daysman" is the one with authority to set the day when competing parties come together to settle their dispute. In the East, the "daysman" put his hands on the heads of the two disputing parties to remind them that he was the one with the authority to settle the question. Job longed for somebody who could do this for him and God.

Do you know Who he was crying for? Do you know Who he was longing for? 1 Timothy 2:5-6. "For there is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus; Who gave Himself a ransom for all...." Job, centuries before the birth of the Messiah, knew he was in need of a Saviour, a Mediator; and he longed for Jesus.

And since Jesus is both God and man at the same time, He became the Mediator. The God man builds a bridge between God and man, and that bridge is made of the rough hewn timbers of the cross. There is one God and one Mediator between God and men — Himself a Man — the Christ Jesus Who gave Himself a ransom for all. How can man be just with God? His name is Jesus.

Job's words are a fore annoucement of the tremendous words of the apostle Paul about the Lord Jesus Christ.

"There is One Mediator," Paul writes to his younger friend Timothy referring to Him who represents us before God the Father. He is none other than Christ Jesus the Lord.

This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time. 1 Timothy 2:3 –  Paul writes of our mediator, our arbitrator, "there is one mediator between God and men," and He is specifically identified as "the man Christ Jesus." When it comes to eternal life, there are not many mediators. There is only one, Christ Jesus. Don't be afraid to be that specific. Jesus wasn't. During His earthly ministry Jesus spoke of Himself as "the Way, the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me" (John 14:6).

When it comes to the Person of Christ, He is the one and only mediator between God and humanity. He is the one and only Saviour! We find ourselves responding, "Oh, Job, there is a mediator. You just haven't met Him yet."

But even Job recognized that even if he had a mediator, he would still be on the losing end. If all the mediator did was to try to reconcile people to God, he couldn't do it as things stand. The problem isn't on God's side. The problem is on man's side. Man's sinfulness means there is no way we can be reconciled. The Mediator's work would come to nothing. Unless our Mediator brought something to the table. Our Mediator has brought something to the table: The cross of Calvary. There Jesus Christ "gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time" (1 Tim. 2:6).

This is where Paul's argument has been leading all along. The church prays for everyone because there is one God for everyone—a God who wants everyone to be saved—and because there is one mediator for everyone—a mediator who gave himself as a ransom.

The fact that Jesus "gave himself " speaks to the sacrificial nature of his death on the cross. His crucifixion was a voluntary offering, a willing sacrifice. No one took his life from him; he laid it down of his own accord (John 10:18).

He gave himself as a ransom. This expression is a clear echo of Jesus' own statement that the Son of Man had come "the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Mark 10:45). A ransom was the price paid for the release of slaves or captives. Here, then, is the double uniqueness of Jesus Christ, which qualifies him to be the

only mediator. First there is the uniqueness of his divine-human person, and secondly the uniqueness of his substitutionary, redeeming death. The one mediator is the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom.

The fact that Christ did this for others speaks to the substitutionary nature of his death. Jesus died in our place. His blood was the atonement for our sins. The substitutionary nature of Christ's death is clearly taught here and everywhere else in the Scriptures.

The work of Christ on the cross is further described as a "ransom." This rich biblical term refers to the release of a captive by the payment of a price. When Jesus died on the cross, he was making an exchange for sin. It was not a price paid to the devil (as some of the early church fathers taught), but a payment made to satisfy the justice of God. The reason Christ could pay the price for our sins is the reason already mentioned: he is the mediator. He had to be God as well as man in order to pay the ransom. This was perhaps best explained by Anselm of Canterbury, who said that salvation "could not have been done unless man paid what was owing to God for sin. But the debt was so great that, while man alone owed it, only God could pay it, so that the same person must be both man and God. Thus it was necessary for God to take manhood into the unity of his person, so that he who in his own nature ought to pay and could not should be in a person who could." This is what Jesus did when he died on the cross: he paid the price that only man could owe and only God could pay.

He paid the debt he did not own, I own the debt I could not pay
I needed someone to wash my sins away And now I sing a brand new song, "Amazing grace"
Christ Jesus paid the debt I could never pay He paid the debt at Calvary
The various aspects of ransom are helpfully summarized in a sermon by Charles Spurgeon:

When a prisoner has been taken captive, and has been made a slave . . . it has been usual, before he could be set free, that a ransom price should be paid down. Now . . . by the fall of Adam . . . we were by the irreproachable judgment of God given up to the vengeance of the law; we were given into the hands of justice; justice claimed us to be his bond slaves forever, unless we could pay a ransom, whereby our souls could be redeemed. . . . We were . . . "bankrupt debtors"; . . . all we had was sold . . . and we could by no means find a ransom; it was just then that Christ stepped in . . . and, . . . in the stead of all believers, paid the ransom price, that we might in that hour be delivered from the curse of the law and the vengeance of God, and go our way clean, free, justified by his blood.

A MEDIATOR MUST RECONCILE THE TWO OR HE HAS NOT SUCCEEDED.

Our Lord Jesus has broken down the middle wall of partition. He has really reconciled those who stood apart. Christ has done this for so many. "Why should not he do it for me?"

Why should he not end the quarrel between me and God? Why should he not reconcile me to the Father, so that the Father should give me the kiss of peace? He has never failed in a case yet. Some of the very worst cases have been submitted to his umpireship; but he has always succeeded.

He succeeded for Paul.

1 Timothy 1:12-16 "I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life."

And Paul says that what worked for him can work for anybody in any station in life.

1 Tim 2:1-6 prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority,.. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time.

Paul is saying that He can do that for Kings, Emperors, anyone, from any nation, any place, any socio-economic condition, any sinfulness and any addiction can come to Christ and find a mediator who can bring reconciliation.
Jesus Christ is the arbitrator Job was looking for. Because he is the God-man, Jesus bridges the gap between the Creator and the creature. He is fully God. Therefore, he is able to meet God's standards. But as "the man Christ Jesus," to quote what Paul said to Timothy, he is also fully human. Therefore, Jesus is able to meet our obligations.

The reason Jesus is the only mediator is that he is the only one who has both a divine nature and a human nature—not the angels, or Mary, or the saints, or even your favorite local minister, for none of them is divine. If we want to get to God, we have to go through this one divine person. Jesus is the mediator.

Jesus is able to represent and to reconcile both man and God because he has the most intimate sympathy with both parties. As a member of the Trinity, he has communion with the Father and the Spirit. As a member of the human race, he has union with us. Therefore, in the words of John Wesley, he is able to "to reconcile man to God, and to transact the whole affair of our salvation." As the Puritans loved to say, Jesus Christ is able to strike hands on both sides of the covenant of grace.

As Wesley and Whitefield wrote: Hark the Herald Angels Sing.. "God and sinners reconciled!"

There is only one God, one Savior, and one salvation. Yet it is also broadly inclusive. It is just because there is only one God that the unique way of salvation is open to everyone: "Our exclusive faith (there is one God, and no other) leads necessarily to our inclusive mission (the one God wants all men to be saved)."

According to Calvin, "the apostle's meaning here is simply that no nation of the earth and no rank of society is excluded from salvation, since God wills to offer the gospel to all without exception."  Jesus paid a ransom for all kinds of people. He does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, ethnicity, or economic status. As Hendriksen helpfully explains, he did not die "one by one for every member of the entire human race, past, present and future, including Judas and the antichrist." Rather, Christ died for "all men regardless of social, national and racial distinctions." Whatever neighborhood you come from, Christ is the Saviour for you.

Reconciliation, wrought out by Christ, is absolutely perfect. It means eternal life. O my hearer, if Jesus reconciles thee to God now, thou wilt never quarrel with God again, nor God with thee. If the mediator takes away the ground of feud—thy sin and sinfulness—he will take it away for ever. He will cast your iniquities into the depths of the sea, blotting out your sins like a cloud, and like a thick cloud your transgressions. He will make such peace between you and God that he will love you for ever, and you will love him for ever; and nothing shall separate you from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. The union between God and the sinner, reconciled by the blood of Jesus, is closer and stronger than the union between God and unfallen Adam. That was broken by a single

stroke; but if Christ joins you to the Father by his own precious blood, he will keep you there: for who shall separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord?

But what if you don't use this Mediator? What if you say to yourself, "My service to God or my service to my country, my service to my family, makes me good enough"? Then you are living in Denial.

You are rejecting peace when you reject Christ. I am sure that it is so. You are choosing war with the Lord of hosts. Take Job's advice: How can you fight with God? Why should you fight with God? To battle with God is to battle against your own best interests, and to ruin your souls.