Proposition One.— An adequate interpretation of the expression, " The hour of His judgment is come," which points to the intercessory work of Christ as our High Priest, will involve a study of the Person of the Mediator, who He is, and what preliminary steps were necessary in order that He might be the mediator for man in sin; and also a study of the various phases of His mediatorial work, with special emphasis upon the work which He is now doing. Cf. " Gospel Workers," p. 251.
Note.— The book of Revelation, the last of the inspired writings, assumes that its readers are acquainted with the teaching of the other Scriptures, and often, as in this case, by touching upon a particular phase of a great subject, opens up a large field for review and interpretation in order to obtain a complete understanding of the allusion. To the people of John's time, familiar with the Old Testament, the expression, " The hour of his judgment is come," would at once suggest the day of atonement, but in this time of apostasy and neglect of the Scriptures it requires a fresh study of the mediatorial work of Christ in order to make this clear.
Proposition Two.— The Mediator of the grace of God to men is Jesus Christ. 1 Tim. 2: 5.
Note.— A mediator is "one who is a means of intercourse between two other parties, and through whom action passes from either to other." In this verse emphasis is placed upon the fact that the Mediator is a man, " Himself man." A. R. V.
Proposition Three.—"The man Christ Jesus " is also the Son of God. Heb. 4:14.
Note.—" The person of Christ is the result of the indivisible and abiding union of the divine and human natures. This is perhaps the most wonderful proposition that theology has to affirm: a stumblingblock to the unbeliever, it is a sore offense to a certain philosophy, but the :very rejoicing of the heart to Christian faith." Further, Mrs. White says: " Upon the throne with the eternal, self-existent One, is He who hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows,' who ' was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.' . . . The wounded hands, the pierced side, the marred feet, plead for fallen men, whose redemption was purchased at such infinite cost."—"The Great Controversy," p. 416.
Proposition Four.— As the Son of God, Jesus Christ was the mediator in the original creation. Heb. 1: 1, 2; John 1: 1-3; 1 Cor. 8: 6.
Note.— The fact that Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God (John 8:58; He)). 13:8), and the mediator or cooperating agent in the creation of all material things, furnishes a sure foundation for our confidence in Him as the mediator in the new creation, the mediator of eternal life.
Proposition Five.— Not only was the Son of God the mediator in the creation of all material things, but " in Him " all invisible powers and relations find their origin, " through Him " they have come into existence, and " in Him " they " hold together." Col. 1:16, 17, A. R. V.
Note.— Christ, the Son of God, " is the perfect image, the visible representation, of the unseen God. He is the firstborn, the absolute heir of the Father, begotten before the ages; the Lord of the universe by virtue of primogeniture, and by virtue also of creative agency. For in and through Him the whole world was created, things in heaven and things on earth, things visible to the outward eye, and things cognizhble by the inward perception. His supremacy is absolute and universal. All powers in heaven and earth are subject to Him. This subjection extends even to the most exalted and most potent of angelic beings, whether they be called thrones or dominions or princedoms or powers, or whatever title of dignity men can confer upon them. Yes, He is first and He is last, Through Him, as the mediatorial Word, the universe has been created; and unto Him, as the final goal, it is tending. In Him is no before or after. He is preexistent and self-existent before all the worlds. And in Him as the binding and sustaining power, universal nature coheres and consists." Such is the wondrous being, such is the wondrous position, such is the wondrous power of the Mediator of the grace of God.
Proposition Sin.— The mediatorial work a Christ, the Son of God, in the creation and the maintenance of all things, is inseparably connected with His mediatorial work in behalf of sin and sinners. Heb. 1: 1-3.
Note.— In this passage of Scripture the three phases of the mediatorial work of Christ are clearly set forth. He is the mediator in creation (" through whom also He made the worlds "), in administration (" upholding all things by the word of His power "), and in salvation (" when He made purification of sins "). Furthermore, He is able to fill the office of mediator in salvation because He was the mediator in creation, and is the mediator in upholding all things. The measure of the power available for procuring our salvation is indicated by the power manifested in the original creation, and in maintaining perfect order in that creation.
Proposition Seven.— There is the very closest relation between creation and redemption. Isa. 43: 1.
Note.-- It is no mere chance that the first chapter in the Bible reveals God as the Creator. The Bible is the book of redemption, the book of re-creation, and its goal is a new heaven and a new earth and man renewed in the image of God. The foundation of the gospel of a new creation is laid in the first chapter of Genesis, and this is the reason why such a wide-spread and concerted effort has been made in these last days, under the inspiration of the great enemy of the gospel, to discredit the Biblical account of creation, and to substitute for it an evolutionary philosophy which denies any intervention on the part of a personal God, and relies upon " resident forces " as the sufficient explanation. Those expounders of the Scriptures who surrendered to the demands of a false science concerning creation, really surrendered the claim for the supernatural in the gospel, as is now clearly revealed by the modernistic apostasy.
Proposition Eight.— So close is the relation between creation and redemption that " Jehovah, the Creator of the ends of the earth," is " Jehovah . . . the Creator of Israel." Isa. 40: 28; 43: 15. Cf. Isa. 43.3; 44: 21, 22.
Note.— In chapters forty to sixty-six, inclusive, of the prophecy of Isaiah there are repeated appeals to Jehovah the Creator as the basis of confidence in Him as the Saviour. The consummation of this prophecy is in Isaiah 65: 17 and 66: 22. Cf. 2 Peter 3:13. We should remember that Jehovah of the Old Testament is manifested as Jesus of Nazareth in the New Testament.
Proposition Nine.— In the New Testament the method of redemption is distinctly called a new creation. 2 Cor. 5:16, margin, A. R. V.; Gal. 6: 15, margin, A. R. V. Cf. Eph. 2: 10, 15, A. R. V.; 4:24.
Note.— The prayer of David, after he had committed his great sin, shows that the only method of cleansing the 41 sinful heart is by creating a new heart (Ps. 51: 10), which is in harmony with the promise of " a new heart." Eze. 36: 26. The original creation is described as a birth (Ps. 90:2, margin, A. R. V.), and the new creation, or redemption, is the new birth. John 3: 3, 5. The pain and sorrow which attend the birth of a child under the abnormal conditions caused by sin, are a slight suggestion of the pain and sorrow which have attended the new birth, the new creation, redemption. Cf. Heb. 12: 2; 2:9.
Proposition Ten.— As the Spirit of God co-operated in the original creation (Gen. 1:2), so does the Spirit cooperate in the new creation, or the new birth, and the new life which follows. John 3: 5. Cf. Titus 3:5; 2 Cor. 3: 1-6; Rom. 7: 6, A. R. V.
Note.-- The parallel between the work of the eternal Son and the Spirit in the original creation and in the new creation, is complete. Thus do the things which are made bear testimony to the power and divinity displayed in the gospel of the righteousness of God. Rom. 1:16-20.
Concluding Observations
In this study we have briefly considered the Person of the Mediator and His work in connection with creation. This will serve as an introduction to a further study of His mediatorial work as set forth in the sanctuary and its services, leading up to the distinctive feature of this work which should be emphasized at the present time. The intimate relation between this subject and the two other leading topics of the threefold message, viz., the Sabbath and the second advent, will appear as we proceed. In the meantime, it is well to remember that it was light upon the sanctuary and the Sabbath which guided this movement at its beginning, and which has kept it as a distinct movement daring all the years to the present time. Efforts which have been made in recent years to change the characteristic features of this threefold message have been directed toward a modification of the teaching concerning the mediatorial work of Christ in behalf of sin. The modifications proposed were such as would demand an entirely different interpretation of this threefold message as outlined in Revelation 14: 6-16, and a rejection of the specific interpretation given to us through the spirit of prophecy. We must hold to the foundations of this movement.
One feature of the gospel message which is emphasized in this study is the pre-existence of Christ and the eternity of His being. Here is the sure foundation for the hope of eternal life in Christ. Cf. John 3:16; 1 John 5:11, 12. In this connection, we do well to consider the following instruction: " Do not make prominent those features of the message which are a condemnation of the customs and practices of the people, until they have an opportunity to know that we are believers in Christ, that we believe in His divinity and in His pre-existence."--"Gospel Workers," p. 405.
