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Date: Thu, 1 Jun 1995 09:19:56 +0200
Reply-To: Christian explanation of the Scriptures to Israel
Sender: Christian explanation of the Scriptures to Israel
From: Teus Benschop
Subject: Catechism, 19
To: Multiple recipients of list CHR-EXP
Q. By what means can you escape this punishment, and be again received
into favour?
A. By such a Mediator, who is in one person very God, and a real
righteous man.
We cannot escape our punishment through our own works, because those
works are defiled in itself, and therefore have no value enough to
redeem us. We have need of a Mediator. A common man cannot be our
mediator, for he even cannot pay for himself through his sins, let alone
that he can pay for us. Therefore, to be without sin, He must be God.
Because men sinned, God will punish sin to men. For that reason, our
Mediator must be man; a real, righteous man. This Mediator stands
between God and us. That Mediator, being Himself also God, we see that
we have, on the one side, a Mediator between God and us, and on the
other side, we have to deal with God directly. Through this Mediator, we
can escape this capital punishment, and we are again received into God's
favour.
Q. Who is that Mediator?
A. Our Lord Jesus Christ, who in one person is true God, and a real
righteous man.
When we are very afraid for our coming punishment, we will be very
anxious to know Who that Mediator is. The answer is: that Mediator is
our Lord Jesus Christ. He is in one person both true God, and a real
righteous man. He is God, because He is born of God. He is a man,
because He is born of Mary. He is a righteous man, because He never has
sinned, and has observed all the law and showed all obedience.
- Our Lord Jesus Christ is the true God, for He is the Son of God.
He "shall be called the Son of God." (Luke 1:35)
- Our Lord Jesus Christ is a real man, for He is born of Mary.
And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall
come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow
thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee
shall be called the Son of God. (Luke 1:35)
- Our Lord Jesus Christ is a righteous man, for He is without sin.
When He asked: "Which of you convinceth me of sin?" (John 8:46),
nobody did so, for He was without.
Q. Could not the angels be our mediators?
A. No; for they are neither God nor man.
Though the good angels are without sin, yet they are neither God nor
man. They cannot be our mediators. Calling upon them is in vain, yes, it
is even sin. For one, to do any religious duty, there must be a command
of God. God never commanded us to belief in any angel for our salvation.
Therefore, doing so is doing something without God's will, and is
therefore a sin.
Q. Cannot the saints be our mediators?
A. No; for they themselves have sinned, and have obtained salvation by
no other means, than through this Mediator.
Also the saints cannot be our mediators. They have sinned themselves, so
how could they pay for us? They themselves are saved by the only
Mediator, by Christ. When we use the saints as our examples, let we then
do like they did: they believed in Christ as their Mediator. Calling
upon the name of the saints in not only in vain, but it is a sin. For,
when some expect their salvation, or a part thereof, from the saints,
they in fact despise Jesus as their only Mediator. Calling upon saints
is rejecting God.
Q. Shall all men then be saved by the Mediator, Jesus, as they are all
condemned in Adam?
A. No; but those only who receive him by a true faith; as it is
written, John 3:16: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but
have everlasting life."
We see the difference. All are we condemned in Adam, but only those who
believe in Jesus Christ, by a true faith, will be saved. Jesus does not
pray for the world, but only for those given Him: "I pray for them: I
pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they
are thine." (John 17:9) Many do not believe in the Mediator, in Jesus,
to prove the truth is this saying, that not all are saved. So, what is
there to do for us? Believe in Him, and you will not perish, but have
everlasting life.
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Teus Benschop | t.benschop@pobox.ruu.nl | editor of the list Chr-Exp
"A Christian explanation of the Scriptures to Israel"
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file: /pub/resources/text/ipb-e/cate: cat-019.txt
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