The Man Christ Jesus
When we study Scripture, we’re not only learning about how we should act as Christians, but also how we should think. We are always learning more about God as well as the world around us.
Learning how to think well about God and others is important as we seek to live faithfully according to God’s Word. Scripture guides and orients our thinking towards God’s thoughts about us and the world.
It is common in culture to believe that all religions and paths of life lead to the same place. But, we must go to Scripture to assess all truth that we hear.
In 1 Timothy 2:5, Paul tells Timothy that there is only one mediator between God and mankind. That means that there is only one access point to beginning a relationship with God and being connected to Him. The one mediator is Jesus.
Because Jesus is the only one who is both God and man, He is the only one who can make a way for us back to God. Thus, not all religions lead to God, but only one with Jesus as the center of it all.
It is Jesus who makes the whole plan of God possible. Without Him, we are left without a mediator to bring us back to God. As Christians, we are entrusted with this truth. It is this truth that changes our lives forever.
A Way in the Wilderness
Have you noticed that sometimes life feels like a desert? In moments of pain and anxiety, it may seem like there’s no way out. All we see is an endless wasteland.
The people of Israel faced their worst “desert” when Babylon destroyed Jerusalem and took its inhabitants captive. Far from home, they lived for decades under oppression. In moments of anguish and despair, they remembered the prophet’s words: “A voice of one calling: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way for the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God” (NIV).
In the ancient Near East, a king’s subjects would “prepare a way” by going ahead of him when he returned to his city. His return implied abundance and protection. The author uses this image to announce a way out of the desert; make a path for the King of Kings, trusting that he will arrive to lead everyone home.
The prophet’s confidence finds a basis in God’s history. God freed Israel from brutal slavery—with ...