5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.” (1 Timothy 2:5–6 (ESV)
As previously noted, the Lord takes delight in the sinner’s salvation from the penalty, power and eventual presence of sin (I Tim. 2:4). This salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in the person and work of Jesus Christ alone (Rom. 3:21-26; Eph. 2:1-9).
The Scriptures do not advocate a syncretistic salvation. Syncretism is reconciling or fusing differing systems of beliefs, philosophies, or religions. The perspective is that all roads, or in this case religions, ultimately lead to God. An individual once said to me, “There are many roads which take you into a major city or town. Therefore, many different religions take you into the presence of God. You decide which road is preferable.”
The Bible makes no such syncretic claim. Rather, biblical Christianity teaches exclusivity. In brief, this exclusivity pertains to the Scriptures being the only Word of God, the God of the Scriptures being the only One, True God, and Jesus Christ being the only Savior of sinners (Isaiah 44:6-8; 45:5-7; John 14:1-6; Acts 4:12; 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21). Jesus compared salvation to a narrow gate where the way is hard and those who find it are few (Matt. 6:13-14).
The Apostle Paul reiterated this exclusive truth claim when he wrote, “For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,” The word one (εἷς; heis) means “single,” “once-for-all,” “unique” or “only,” or “unitary,” “unanimous,” or “one of two or many,” or “only one.”[1] When Paul wrote there is one God and one mediator, he meant only one. The word mediator (μεσίτης; mesites) means one who reconciles two enemies (Gal 3:19, 20; Heb 8:6; 9:15; 12:24)[2].
“A mediator is a go-between. He is one who stands between two or more persons or groups who are in a dispute and tries to reconcile them,” explains Dr. R. C. Sproul. “In biblical terms, human beings are described as being at enmity against God. We rebel, revolt, and refuse to obey the law of God. As a result, God’s wrath is upon us. For this catastrophic situation to be changed or redeemed, it is necessary that we become reconciled to God.”
The biblical reason for the exclusivity of the salvation of sinners in the person and work of Jesus Christ is also answered in today’s featured text. Paul wrote, “who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.”
The phrase who gave himself (ὁ δοὺς ἑαυτὸν; ho dous heauton) emphatically states Jesus Christ willingly, historically, and redemptively accomplished something by His substitutionary death and bodily resurrection; a ransom.
A ransom (ἀντίλυτρον; antilytron) means to liberate or free. It is the means or instrument by which release or deliverance is made possible.[3] The instrument for the sinners’ ransom was Jesus Christ’s penal, substitutionary atonement. The result of this ransom was the sinner’s deliverance from the penalty, power and eventual presence of sin. All types of sinners are in view. The testimony (μαρτύριον; martyrion), witness of this truth occurred at God’s proper time (Gal. 4:1-4).
Paul used the seemingly insignificant word for (ὑπὲρ; hyper) in vs. 6. He wrote, who gave himself as a ransom for all.” The Greek word hyper, pronounced hoopair, means on behalf of or in exchange for. Christ’s death was on behalf of, and in the place of all kinds of sinnners.
Rev. Nicholas T. Batzig, senior pastor of Church Creek Presbyterian in Charleston, S.C. writes, “When I was in seminary, I had a professor who would tell the students that the most important parts of speech when studying the Old Testament in Hebrew and the New Testament in Greek are the pronouns, conjunctions, and prepositions. The doctrine of the substitutionary atonement is seen most clearly in the Scriptural use of the prepositions associated with the death of Christ. For instance, in Galatians 2:20, the Apostle Paul says, “The Son of God . . . loved me and gave Himself for me.” When Jesus teaches His disciples about His forthcoming death, He says, “The Son of Man did come not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).
Geerhardus Johannes Vos (March 14, 1862 – August 13, 1949) was a Dutch-American Calvinist theologian and one of the most distinguished representatives of the Princeton Theology. He is sometimes called the father of Reformed Biblical Theology. He explains the importance of understanding these prepositions.
“Besides ὑπέρ, ἀντί also appears, which always means “in the place of” (Matt. 20:28; Mark 10:45). Obviously, ἀντί in no way excludes ὑπέρ. That Christ gave Himself as a substitute for His own is not only well understandable along with the fact that He gave Himself for their benefit but also directly includes the latter consideration . . . in more than one place ὑπέρ itself has the full force of ἀντί (cf. 2 Cor. 5:20–21; Philem. 13; 2 Cor. 5:14). Here, too, we again have the same result: What Christ did as priest, He did as the substitutionary Surety of believers and, precisely for that reason, did before God and not toward man.”
“By His death on the cross, Christ paid the price necessary to free His people from their sins (Matt. 20:28; Mark 10:45; Titus 2:14; I Peter 1:18-19). This is the centerpiece of His work as the one mediator (vs. 5),” states Dr. Sproul.
“Verses 5–6 may represent a fragment of a familiar confession of the first century. In any case, Paul cited these unquestioned truths of the gospel: (1) There is only one God. (2) There is only one way for men to approach Him—through the Man who was God in the flesh, Christ Jesus. (3) This Jesus gave Himself up to die on the cross as a ransom (antilytron; cf. lytron, “ransom” for a slave or prisoner, in Matt. 20:28; Mark 10:45) for the human race. (Cf. the chart, “New Testament Words for Redemption,” at Mark 10:45.) This act is a clear testimony, offered at just the right time (Gal. 4:4–5; Heb. 1:1–2), of God’s desire to save all (kinds of) men (cf. Titus 1:3).[4]
In Christ alone, who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save
‘Til on that cross, as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin, on Him, was laid
Here, in the death of Christ, I live. – Keith & Kristyn Getty
May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here. Have a blessed day in the Lord.
Soli deo Gloria!
[1] Ethelbert Stauffer, “Εἷς,” in Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, ed. Gerhard Kittel, Geoffrey W. Bromiley, and Gerhard Friedrich (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1964–), 434.
[2] James Swanson, Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains: Greek (New Testament) (Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997).
[3] Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996), 487.
[4] A. Duane Litfin, “1 Timothy,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 734.
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