How God sees 1.7 billion people

Just a quick post today from a passage in Acts 16:6-10

And they went throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bythnia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us." And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on to Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

Paul and his crew, which included Luke the author of Acts, were desperately looking for somewhere to carry the good news of Jesus Christ.

God wouldn't let them go to Asia or Bythnia. They seemed to be a missionary team without a mission or at least missionaries without a field to work.

Until God spoke to Paul in the form of a vision. The gospel had yet to go to Macedonia. The people there had not heard the message of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.

And yet in the vision Paul received a Macedonian man pleaded with him to come over to Macedonia and help us.

But why would a lost man, who has never even heard the gospel, think to ask a missionary for help? He wouldn't.

What the vision illustrated was God's heart for the Macedonian people. The people weren't asking Paul to go and share the message with them God was asking for them. God knew their spiritual state and that eternity that waited for them.

But God didn't come to Paul with a vision of thunder and lightening saying, "Go to Macedonia or you will be sorry..." He came to him in the form of a lost man begging for the gospel.

Why? The answer is because that is how God sees lost humanity. He sees them begging and pleading for a truth they don't even know to ask for. He isn't listening to their words. He is listening to the cry of their souls. The cries that the people themselves don't hear.

And so we sit on a planet with 1.7 billion people who have no access to the gospel of Jesus Christ and God sees them the same way.

He sees Muslims in Saudi Arabia saying, "Please come over to Saudi Arabia and help us."

He sees Hindus in India saying, "Please come over to India and help us."

He sees Communists in China saying, "Please come over to China and help us."

He sees tribesman in Africa saying, "Please come over to Africa and help us."

Sure, he may not have given us a vision to go like he did with Paul. But he has given us Acts 16 as an indication of his heart for lost people who have no access to the gospel.

Maybe instead of waiting for a "Come over to __________ and help us" vision you and I should be asking for one.

I know I am.

Moab can teach us something about Haiti.

Everyone is talking about the earthquake in Haiti. We are talking about the disaster. We are talking about the relief efforts. We are talking about the fall-out.

And we are talking about the spiritual side of what has taken place. Followers of Jesus are talking about it (many of which are doing more damage than good) but they are by no means alone.

Those who do not accept Jesus as the means to God are talking about as well and they are directing much of what they say towards Christians. They are saying a lot of things but much of them can be reduced to two simple questions:

1) Why did God let this happen?

2) Does God not love the people of Haiti?

Who can blame them? The questions are natural ones to ask and I am sure that many Christians would be lying if they said that they had not wondered the same things themselves.

I am going to attempt to deal with those two questions this morning in this post. I must admit that my efforts to do so are not really motivated by a desire to be "relevant" or to increase my blog "following" (is eleven not a lot?) but simply the outpouring of my time with God this morning.

In my own personal Bible reading (which you may or may not know is the catalyst for this blog) this morning I read Isaiah 16 and it has me marveling and looking to Haiti.

In Isaiah 16, God continues to promise the fall of the arrogant king of Moab. In chapter 15, God promised that because of the king's arrogance Moab would be laid waste and that the people would be devastated.

He predicted the people would wear sackcloth to show their despair and that they would raise a cry of desolation. He promised that the waters would be full of blood as the warring nation He used to bring about their destruction invaded.

In chapter 16, God declares once again that Moab owed its destruction to one thing--

We have heard of the pride of Moab--how prous he is!--of his arrogance, his pride, and his insolence; in his idle boasting he is not right. Therefore let Moab wail for Moab, let everyone wail. (6-7a)

Let me bridge the gap over to what is happening modern-day in Haiti. Moab was destroyed for the arrogance of its king which presumably included arrogance before God.

Haiti was "destroyed" for...okay, I don't really know. No one does. The only thing Moab really teaches us here is that God has reasons for what He does (in the case of Moab) or allows (in the case of Haiti).

Really, I think that anyone who tries to answer Question #1 about Haiti is grasping at straws and quite possibly doing damage to the kingdom of God (here's looking at you Pat).

But what Moab can really teach us about Haiti has to do with Question #2, Does God love the people of Haiti?

At first glance it is tough to see how he could. Many people are dead because of an earthquake and God can stop earthquakes.

Let's go back to Moab for a minute. God claimed responsibility, in advance, for the destruction of that kingdom. He admits, in advance, to causing the people to wail and mourn. He says that because of his judgment the waters will be full of blood.

Did God love the people of Moab?

The answer to that question is a resounding YES. Let me show, from Isaiah 16, three things that prove that God loved the Moabites even as he was destroying their kingdom:

1) God commanded Israel to take care of the fleeing Moabites.

God was sending a warring nation to destroy Moab and war causes refugees. Refugees, by definition, are homeless wanderers who have been displaced by war. (unless of course they form themselves into a chart-topping pop trio, "Killing me softly with his song...")

In verses 3 and 4, God specifically commands the Israelites to keep the Moabites from being refugees by taking them into their own country.

Give counsel; grant justice; make your shade like night at the height of noon; shelter the outcasts; do not reveal the fugitive; let the outcasts of Moab sojourn among them from the destroyer.

He tells Israel to hide them (make your shade like night), shelter them, and refuse to give them up the pursuing nation (do not reveal the fugitive).

Before the attack on Moab even begins God is orchestrating a safe haven among His people for the displaced Moabites.

2) God includes Moabites in his kingdom.

Not only does God command his people to give them refuge but he also says that there will be Moabites in his eternal kingdom.

when the oppressor is no more, and destruction has ceased, and he who tramples underfoot has vanished from the land, then a throne will be established in steadfast love...

God is speaking of the "throne" of the Messiah and that "throne" will be established because of his steadfast love that not only extends to Israel but also the people of Moab.

In other words, God's love for the Moabite people is revealed by his invitation for them to join His kingdom based on simple faith in Jesus Christ.

3) God is sending the Messiah for the Moabites as well.

And who will sit on that throne?

And on it will sit in faithfulness in the tent of David one who judges and seeks justice and is swift to do righteousness.

The Messiah will sit on that throne. He will be the one from the tent of David. He will be the one who judges and seeks justice and is swift to do righteousness.

In other words, God is saying to the Moabites that when Jesus Christ comes (this was written long before Jesus was born) he wouldn't just be coming for Israel he would be coming for Moabites.

Let's review: God, motivated by His love for the Moabites, provides a refuge for them among His people, invites them to join His eternal kingdom, and promises to send them a new ruler His own Son Jesus Christ.

God might have been punishing their kingdom for the sin that indwelt it, but He still loved them.

So what does this mean for Haiti? I don't know if God caused the earthquake in Haiti or if he simply allowed it. I don't know what His reasons were for what happened.

But I do know that God loves the people of Haiti. I know that He invites them to join in his kingdom. I know that He sent a Messiah for them.

Does God love the people of Haiti?

If the Moabites who took his invitation were here right now they would say, "Yes!"

God is >

History has seen a lot of powerful civilizations and rulers come and go.



The Egpytians and Babylonians built massive empires. The Greeks created western civilization and philosophy. The Romans spread their empire across Europe and into Asia. The European countries conquered new worlds.



Pharaohs came and went. Nebuchadnezzar came and went. Alexander the Great lived and died. Ceasar did not last. The Kings and Queens of Europe all eventually died.



We spent yesterday celebrating the life and death of one of America's great people, Martin Luther King Jr.



The point is that civilizations come and go, but only one Ruler and one Kingdom remains forever and that is God and the Kingdom of Heaven.

Listen to how God puts it when speaking to a Babylonian king who opposed him in Isaiah 14

Sheol (death) beneath is stirred up to meet you when you come; it rouses the shades to greet you, all who were leaders of the earth; it raises from their thrones all who were kings of the nations. All of them will answer and say to you: "You too have become weak as we! You have become like us!" Your pomp is brought down to Sheol, the sound of your harps; maggots are laid as a bed beneath you, and worms are your covers. [14:9-11]

God makes three simple points here that I think are grounds for our worship this week:

1) Everyone, including Kings, except for God dies.

Job puts it this way, "He comes out like a flower and withers; he flees like a shadow and continues not."

We are all working underneath a ticking clock that foretells our death. The movers and shakers you see on CNN today will soon be history. Even if they leave an amazing legacy behind all that will be left to remember them is a national holiday. They will be forgotten.

That is why God says to this king, "Death is stirred up to meet you when you come."

The mortality of our leaders is one reason why they don't deserve to be worshipped. They may be smarter than us and deserve to be in a position of leadership over us but at the end of they day they are just like us--human.

But God is the "I AM." He has always been and will always be. We will not attend his funeral or remember only with a day off from school. He is the single constant through the stream of history. He was there when the Babylonians, Greeks, and Romans built there empires and He was there when they fell.

2) All of history's "great" people are lower than God.

I love the imagery Isaiah uses here with all of the rulers eagerly awaiting the death of the Babylonian king so that they can say to him, "You too have become as weak as we! You have become like us!"

The imagery is one of a special room in hell for the "great" leaders of history. And these leaders pass their time in torment by lamenting their fall and remembering their "great" days of being in charge. But they live with one constant thing on their mind--they are not as great as God and their life would have been better spent as a poor beggar who worshipped God than a king who ignord him.

So every time a new ruler shows up to the "party" they take momentary joy, albeit perverse joy, in the reality that they were not the only ones to crumble. They say, "You thought you were great like me, but you are nothing. You were just as foolish. You ignored him as well. You are, like me, an eternal nobody."

3) Eternity only respects the fame of one--God.

On earth we separate ourselves into classes and social groups. We start country clubs and exclusive neighborhoods. We give out awards and fame.

But we do that because as humans we are prone to thinking that what we experience in our lifetimes is all that exists. We delude ourselves into thinking that our "important" people are the most "important" people and we treat them accordingly.

But eternity sees with a different perspective. It is the aerial shot of history that affords eternity the ability to distinguish between genuine greatness and momentary brilliance and this perspective leads to the praise of only One as truly great--God.

This is the point that God makes to this Babylonian king when he says, "Your pomp is brought down to Sheol (death), the soudn of your harps; maggots are laid as a bed beneath you, and worms are your covers.

Congratulations ruler! You have now entered eternity so check you "pomp" at the door and allow us to exchange it for a bed of maggots and some worm covers on your behalf.

It does not matter how much fame, money, or power history's "great" people possessed on Earth in eternity and that is why only God is respected there. God's greatness doesn't fade because it is not made of material things. It is made of immortal things like his eternal goodness and power.

So, stop this morning and take a minute to praise the God who alone is great in eternity and remember next time you turn on the television and see a little hero "worship" going on that there is only one who is truly worthy of worship in the eyes of eternity.

God is truly > than ______.

Jesus the "storyteller" is a myth.

Aesop. Shakespeare. Edgar Allen Poe. Hemingway. Dostoevsky. Dr. Seuss.

What do these names have in common?

They were storytellers. They wrote great stories (who says "Cat in the Hat" doesn't compare with "Crime and Punishment?") and they used those stories to make points.

Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet to illustrate the power of love and the destructiveness of hatred. Dostoevsky wrote to convey the depravity of the human soul. Dr. Seuss wrote so that you and I could learn to read. Poe wrote to scare the crap out of us.

If you listen to most modern day preachers, commentators, or religious writers the name of Jesus Christ deserves to be on that list. They love to reference the "stories" of Jesus.

By "stories," of course, they are referencing the parables of Jesus.

They tell us that he told stories to get his message across in a relevant way. They tell us he told stories because he was a visual person. They tell us he told stories so that the simplest people could understand. They tell us he told stories to model the kind of preaching and teaching he wanted his followers to do.

One website that serves as a story database for pastors even uses this tag line to pimp their own stories, "Jesus told stories so why shouldn't we?"

But Jesus was not a storyteller. He was not an Aesop. He was not a Hemingway. He was not (shocker) a Poe.

Jesus did not tell "stories" he told parables. I know at this point you might feel the need to roll your eyes and say, "What's the difference?" But there is a difference and it is much more important than what we call Jesus' tales.

In fact, if you read the Gospels and come away thinking Jesus was a "storyteller" then I would go so far as to say you are missing a very powerful truth that would bless your life.

Let's look at Matthew 13:10-13

Then the disciples came and said to him, "Why do you speak to them in parables? And he answered them, "To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but form the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.

The disciples wanted to know why Jesus always spoke in parables. It is clear that they thought the parables were more like riddles than stories because on multiple occasions they had to ask Jesus something like, "What the heck are you talking about?" (see Matthew 13:26-43 and Luke 8:9-15)

And Jesus gave them a simple answer. I speak in riddles because I don't want everyone to understand what I am saying. He tells the disciples that it has been given to you to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven but to them it has not been given.

He says that he speaks in parables because seeing they do not see and hearing they do not hear nor do they understand. If you read through that reasoning you might be tempted to say that Jesus is saying he speaks in parables because the people are stupid and they can't see, hear, or understand otherwise, but if you read Luke's account of this conversation in Luke 8 it becomes a little clearer.

To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God but for others they are in parables, so that seeing they may not see and hearing they may not understand.

Luke records Jesus saying "so that" instead of "because" and that pretty much clears it up.

Jesus spoke in riddles because he was speaking to a targeted group and not speaking to a targeted group.

This whole thing reminds a lot of what Paul said in 2 Corinthians 2:15-16

We are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life.

Paul knew he, like Jesus, spoke to two groups every time he preached the gospel: those to whom the secrets had been revealed and those to whom they had not. Some had "ears to hear" and "eyes to see" and to others the gospel served only as an aroma of death to death.

What is my point?

Simple. If you are reading my blog and you are a follower of Jesus Christ then realize this simple biblical reality: you are only a follower of Christ because you have been given the secrets of God. You only hear and see the kingdom of God because it has been given to you to do both.

Have you stopped to thank God for the grace He has shown you in revealing his message to you?

Have you stopped to thank God for the fact that you are not one of the ones to whom the gospel has been hidden?

If not then do it now. What a gracious God!

No such thing as "quiet" worship...

What do you think of when you think of worship?

If you have attended more than one modern church service you probably think of music. Somehow, the church has created a recipe for worship that reads something like this: two guitars, bass, drums, three singers, and a "trendy" worship leader. Rinse and repeat weekly.

But the Bible has a much larger picture of what it means to "worship." And the truth is I could never sum up the whole picture of "worship" in one blog post. I do however want to point out two things I have been reminded of personally about worship from my reading in Isaiah 12 this morning.

Isaiah 12 is a prophetic chapter detailing the response of those who are rescued by the Redeemer that God has been promising.

Naturally, the chapter includes a lot of worship "language." Let me show you what I mean.

The redeemed will respond to the salvation they found in Jesus with praise:

You will say in that day: "I will give thanks to you, O Lord, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, that you might comfort me." (12:1)

They will respond to God's graciousness found in relationship:

Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation. (12:2)

God promises that they will with joy draw water from the wells of salvation (12:3).

But here is where it gets interesting. The worship of the redeemed will include two other things:

1) First, their worship will be inseparably linked to evangelism.

God says, And you will say in that day: Give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted. (12:4)

He further predicts they will say, "Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously; let this be known in all the earth." (12:5)

He says that they will "shout" and "sing." (12:6)

The point is that they will not be content to simply keep their worship "private" or "personal." They will seek to let other in on the story of Jesus. They will make known his deeds, proclaim his name exalted, and let this be known.

2) Second, their worship will be inseparably linked to GLOBAL evangelism.

They won't be content to just share with those in their immediate proximity. They will seek to make known his deeds among the peopleS (emphasis added) and let this be made known in all the earth. They won't whisper but they will shout and sing.

What is my point? Simply this: Worship correctly understood is the joyful carrying of Jesus' message to the ends of the earth. It is done by the redeemed of Jesus who cannot find happiness apart from shouting and singing the praises of their Saviour.

You and I aren't great worshippers because we play an instrument, attend a service, raise our hands, shut our eyes, or sing loudly.

We worship, correctly and biblically, as we joyfully carry the good news of Jesus.

There is no such thing as "quiet" worship because worship includes the sharing of the gospel message.

So, ask yourself this (and believe me I have been asking myself): Are you a worshipper?

This is supposed to be easy?

One of the hardest parts of my job, if not the hardest part, is seeing someone who I had seen going through a period of spiritual growth start to slip away.

It happens every semester. Someone who the Lord seemed to be doing something incredible in stops attending services or seems unattached when present.

When I am aware of these situations, I pursue the person and ask them why their attitude towards Jesus and the Gospel is undergoing such a dramatic change.

They often reply with the same answer, "It is just too hard."

They give me stories of family members, friends, classmates, and/or coworkers who rejected their attempts to talk about Jesus and even began harassing them for their faith.

They talk about those rejections led them to doubt whether or not God is with them and whether or not their faith is genuine.

They share how that doubt paralyzed their Bible study and prayer life and left them without the feeling of intimacy with Jesus they once enjoyed.

And then they describe how that lack of intimacy has resulted in their inability to overcome their internal struggle with sin and how things they had once put behind them as a part of their "old" life are now resurfacing as more and more attractive.

And every time I hear that progression or story it breaks my heart. It is difficult to hear and it is no less difficult when I see the story occurring in the lives of other ELEMENT attenders who have yet to have that conversation with me.

Which leads me to the subject of today's posting. What the heck did Jesus mean in Matthew 11:28-30?

You might be familiar with the verses, they are pretty commonly quoted, but in light of my experience I think they deserve a re-examination of sorts. Here they are:

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.

The first part isn't difficult to understand. Jesus is simply saying, "All of you who are feeling bogged down with life and sin come to me and I will help you."

If you are reading this as a Christ-follower then you probably don't have any problem identifying with that statement. You can point back to a time, before your relationship with Christ began, where you felt bogged down with life and sin. You felt hopeless and helpless and those feelings drove you to check out (or reengage) the message of Jesus.

But what about what Jesus says next? He tells prospective believers to take on my yoke because it is a place of rest and it is easy and light.

Restful? Easy? Light?

Did Jesus ever go home and try and share the gospel with lost family members?

Did Jesus ever have a non-believer poke holes in what he believed or ask him quesitons he couldn't answer?

Did Jesus ever have the Bible feel stale or prayer feel pointless?

Did Jesus ever struggle with sin that was just so tempting?

Those things are not restful. They are not easy. They are not light.

So, what did Jesus mean? What do these words have to communicate to those who find themselves in the downward progression I described earlier?

The answer is that these verses contain the secret of grace.

God doesn't ask us to live the Christian life on our own. He doesn't use phrases like "suck it up" or "gut it out." He doesn't say "pick up your yolk and make it happen."

He tells us to bring all of our baggage, including our need to "make it happen", and lay it down at the feet of Jesus and pick up Jesus' yoke.

A yoke is not made for one. It is made for two oxen to pull together. Jesus isn't inviting us to "yoke-swap" (SPOILER ALERT: NEW FOX REALITY SERIES "YOKE SWAP" COMING SOON). He is inviting us to join him or partner with him through life.

But Jesus isn't just any kind of ox. He is a stud. He pulls the yoke single-handily and he doesn't need our help. He just wants us to yield to his studliness.

In other words, it isn't that Jesus is calling us to do easy things. He calls us to do difficult things like: sharing our faith, overcoming our fears and doubts, maintaining a devotional life, and defeating sin. But he calls us to difficult things by simply relying on Him.

He is saying, "Hey, look it is going to be difficult but if you will let me I will take the reigns of this yoke (you won't have to keep doing it on your own) and I will make this happen."

In essence that is the gospel, a bunch of former rebels throwing down their heavy loads and saying, "I can't do it on my own Jesus. I need you to take over."

So, what is the problem with those on the downward progression? Why aren't they experiencing this yoke-swap effect?

Usually, it is because somewhere along the way they stopped letting Jesus pull the yoke and they started carrying it themselves. And when they met resistance or difficulty they felt that Jesus wasn't there to help them out and that's because HE WASN'T!

They had long since kicked him out.

The answer for them and for you to avoid their fate is to continually (daily) set the controls of your life (your yoke) at the feet of Jesus and say, "I know following you isn't easy, but I want you to help me do it."

See if that doesn't make you feel a little "lighter."

Jesus Christ, Official Arbiter for Humanity

The story of Job centers around a wager between God and Satan over whether or not Job loved and served God for who he is or for all the things that God gave him.

Satan's theory is that Job, like any human, loves anyone who gives him presents and so Job loved God fiercely because God consistently blessed Job with great gifts.

God responds that Job loves him for him (is this sounding like an episode of Gossip Girl?) and that even if Satan took away all of God's gifts to him Job would still love God.

Satan double-dog dares God to prove it and we are off on a 40+ chapter adventure to discover who is right.

So, Satan takes away all of the blessings in Job's life. He kills his children. He destroys his possessions. He ruins his business. He takes away his health. He strains his marriage.

After all this happens, some of Job's closest friends show up to have an "intervention." They are convinced that God is punishing Job for some unconfessed sin because, in their minds, God always blesses the righteous (with stuff) and always punishes the wicked (by taking their stuff).

Job, however, knows that he hasn't done anything wrong. He knows that he still loves God and obeys God. He knows that he has not blamed God or cursed God.

But Job makes a point in chapter 9 that has me very thankful for Jesus Christ.

What do you do when there is a dispute, in this case whether or not Job "deserves" all that is happening to him, between you and God?

God, as it turns out, is really hard to "dispute" with. Let me walk you through Job's words in Job 9 as he makes the point that humans have no recourse when their relationship with God goes bad.

Truly, I know that it is so: But how can a man be in the right before God? If one wishes to contend with him, one could not answer him once in a thousand times. (v. 2-3)

Job's point is simple--God is God and what in the world do I have to say before God? Do I really think I could win an argument? Do I really think that he would accept any excuses or reasons?

Job then runs down a list of the reason's why he is not able to speak before God--

He is wise in heart and mighty in strength--who has hardened himself against him and succeeded? (v.4)

Job cites God's control over nature: he removes mountains and overturns them in his anger, shakes the earth out of its place, commands the sun, seals up the stars, stretched out the heavens, trampled the waves of the sea, and made the Bear and Orion (constellations).

Job cites God's supernatural nature: does great things beyond searching out, marvelous things beyond number, he passes by me and I see him not, he moves on but I do not perceive him, and he snatches away, who can turn him back?

Job cites the inability of humanity to prevent God from executing judgment:

Who will say to him, 'What are you doing?' (v. 12b)

God will not turn back his anger. (v. 13)

How then can I answer him? (v. 14)

If I summoned him and he answered me, I would not believe that he was listening to my voice. (v. 16)

If it is a contest of strength, behold, he is mighty! If it is a matter of justice, who can summon him? (v. 19)

Finally Job sums it up in one single sentence:

For he is not a man, as I am, that I might answer him. (v. 32)

So, what was Job to do? There was obviously, in his mind, conflict between he and God but how could he handle it? How do you reconcile yourself to God?

And that brings me to the modern day relevance of this passage.

All of us are born into "conflict" with God. We are born sinners. We manifest our sinful tendencies in daily and systematic rebellion against God's kingdom and commands.

We set up other "gods" and chase after them as though they were the true God. We ignore his rightful claim of authority in our lives.

But we, like Job, are powerless to remedy that situation. What would we do? Would we run to God and offer him some lame excuse? Would we go to him and show him how it was really his fault? Would we expect him to just look the other way?

And the despair of that situation leads Job to long for someone to stand between him and God and do the work of reconciliation:

There is no arbiter between us, who might lay his hand on us both. (v. 33)

Who could Job go to for help? His friends? His wife? They were human like him and as such utterly incapable of speaking with God and solving Job's problem.

Who can we go to? A preacher? Our parents? Our friends? Our professor? They were born sinners just like us. They are powerless before God just like us.

And that is what brings me (finally) to the powerful conclusion of this passage.

Jesus Christ is the arbiter between us and God. He is the one who is both God (and so can speak before God the Father) and human (and so is moved to speak on our behalf). He is the one who lays his hand on us both (cross visual anyone?) and reconciles us.

He is the one who speaks on behalf of those who trust him for salvation to God the Father. He is the one who speaks on behalf of God to those who trust him.

Were you born a sinner? Do you need reconciliation with God? Do you enjoy reconciliation with God? If so, then look or thank Jesus Christ your arbiter.