After Adam led the whole human race into the plague of sin, God provided a way for him to be saved. The Bible records the first gospel preached by God to man (“protoevangelion”) in Genesis 3:15. This way, through the seed of a woman, points to the promised Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. And God made His covenant with His people throughout Old Testament history. This is the promise God made with them and it was finally fulfilled when Christ was born in a little town called Bethlehem in 5 BC. This was 4,000 years after it was first prophesied. Today, it has been more than 2,000 years since Christ was born, died, and rose again from the dead bodily. And today, it is still the same old gospel by which sinful man can be saved.

Jesus Christ is the Mediator between God and man (1 Tim 2:5). On the basis of His sacrifice, He brings God and man together. His redemptive work is twofold: active obedience and passive obedience. The active obedience of Christ means that Christ, when He lived on earth, fulfilled all the demands of the law of God which sinful man failed to meet. He did so perfectly, fulfilling every jot and tittle of the law. The passive obedience of Christ means that Christ propitiates the just displeasure of God by expiating the guilt of sin. He was the “Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Thus, with His perfect righteousness clothed upon sinful men, they were made acceptable in the eyes of God.

John 3:17 proves the work of Christ in the purest sense to reconcile sinful man to God: "For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved ." But did the Bible teach that Christ is the only Mediator? Or are there more than one Mediator? 1 Timothy 2:5 clearly teaches that there is only one Mediator, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. However the Roman Catholic Church sees otherwise. They believe in the virgin Mary as their mediatrix. They also acknowledge the saints to be redeemers in a certain manner and hold that they not only pray for our salvation, but also obtain it for us by their own merits. Hence according to them, Christ is not the only Mediator, Mary and other saints are included as well. This is unbiblical and has robbed God of the glory that belongs to the God-Man Jesus Christ alone. Christ is the One who was crucified on the cross to atone for man's sins. Only in Him can salvation be found. Mary and other saints (like us) received salvation from Christ. They cannot even save themselves, lest alone save others. Truly Acts 4:12 says, "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."

Only Jesus saves! And we need His perfect righteousness in order to be saved. Isaiah 61:10 clearly reveals the need to put on God's perfect righteousness: "I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels." Only when sinners put on the perfect righteousness of Christ are they then accepted and approved in the eyes of God. Therefore, in order to be reconciled to God, the only way is to trust in the only Mediator, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Many are perishing without Him. Let us preach Him for He alone saves. May God help us. Amen.