The Three Representatives

The system of having representatives to represent a group of individuals or institutions in legislative bodies or board of directors to ensure that the demands and needs of a body of individuals or institutions that are being represented are met, is an idea that was not originally conceived by man, but it is actually borrowed from the system that had already been put in place by God in heaven. Though this may not seem obvious to a vast majority, there is ample evidence to support this claim, especially in light of the gospel of salvation.

The angel Lucifer is the first case in point. When this angel was created by God, he held a position of trust and he was privileged to be in the very presence of God. What was the reason behind these special privileges he enjoyed? He was created to be a representative of the vast angelic host. As a mark of the special position that he once held, he was covered by a vast array of precious stones and ornaments. The prophet Ezekiel gave the following description concerning this creature.

“… Thus saith the LORD God; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy taberts and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou was created. Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou was created till, iniquity was found in thee.” (Ezekiel 28:12-15)

The fact that Lucifer is also described as the “anointed cherub”, bears witness to the fact that he was created to be the representative of the angels. This goes in line with the Levitical law which demands that the one who stood before the presence of God as one who represented Israel in the second chamber of the temple where the ark of the covenant was housed, had to be anointed into the office of the high priest. In other words, Lucifer was anointed as the representative of all the angelic beings and therefore held a position higher than any angel God had ever created. This being said, it is imperatively clear that Adam, being the first human God ever created and holding the position as the father of humanity, was the first being to represent humanity before its Creator in the heavenly courts above. Adam also held the position as the king and ruler of this world. With it, the position as the representative of the human race was also tied.

As a result of the defeat he secured in the hands of Lucifer, Adam lost his position as the king and representative of the human race. From then on, no place was found for him and the entire human race in heaven. (A special exception was made for Moses, Elijah and Enoch who were then translated to heaven on probationary circumstances.) A similar outcome was witnessed in the experience of Lucifer after he fell into sin. Notice how Isaiah describes the account of Lucifer’s exit from heaven.

“How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which dist weaken the nations!” (Isaiah 14:12)

But after defeating Adam in the garden of Eden, Lucifer now sat on the “throne” that was once occupied by the first man and earned him the right to be the world’s representative in heaven. This paved the way for Lucifer to prolong his life and gave him the right to once again enter the heavenly courts from where he was initially ousted, thus making him the second representative of the human race. It is here that we see the greatness of God’s character. God could have easily abused His position as the Potentate of the universe and heaven’s doors would have remained shut preventing Satan and his angels to come in again. Instead He accepted and respected the new position now held by the arch deceiver and He gave Lucifer the right of access to the place where the throne of God is located. This depicts that the Father is a great and loving God who exercises justice with all fairness. It is for this very reason that we see Satan appearing in heaven accusing Job before God and also accusing that God was showering His blessings on Job and his family arbitrarily.

“Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came along with them. And the LORD said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect man and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? Hast Thou not made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.” (Job 1:6-10)

As long as Satan sat on the throne of Adam, humanity was in a state of utter hopelessness because what it needed was a representative who would mediate on its behalf. But with the arch deceiver as its representative, the sins of humanity were laid bare before the throne of God and there was no way for God or His Son to cover the nakedness of humanity caused by sin and the lack of a mediator. In keeping with this truth, Satan was aptly tagged as “the accuser of our brethren” who accused “them before our God day and night” (Revelation 12:10).

But things would never stay the same. Finally, change came, and with it a glimmer of hope for mankind when, for the first time after the fall, there stood a Man who legitimately overcame sin; and in so doing, He wrested from the hands of Satan the throne that once was occupied by a man thereby making Him the third and the last Representative. This Man is none other than Jesus, the last Adam. Though change came for humanity, the rules of a changeless God did not undergo any change. After suffering defeat in the hands of Christ, time had come that Satan had to once again abandon the heavenly courts, and this time it was for good. Fuelled by pride and a heart that is unwilling to accept defeat, the Devil and his angels did not give up their place in heaven without a fight. Thus, war broke out in heaven after the world’s Redeemer ascended to the throne of God to receive from His Father the kingdom of heaven and established the same here on earth, in the hearts of His followers.

“And there was war in heaven: Michael and His angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not; neither was there place found anymore in heaven. And the dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ: for the accuser of our bretheren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the world of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto death.” (Revelation 12:7-11)

This account in the book of Revelation actually took place after Christ’s ascension as opposed to the idea that this refers to the first time Satan and his angels were cast out of heaven. The words, “Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God,” and “they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb,” clearly support what I am saying because salvation could not have been possible before the death and resurrection of Jesus. Further, the kingdom of God came or was established on the day of Pentecost – the same day Christ was glorified by the Father.

Now with Christ as our representative, the days of being accused before God is a thing of the past. Now we have a man who stands between us and God as a mediator to mediate on our behalf.

“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ.” (1 Timothy 2:5)

But what does this mean for us? Now that we have Christ to represent us before the throne of God, it is humanity that presents our case before the Almighty God. But our cases are not presented to condemn us but that we, through the mediatorial work of Christ, may be shielded by His life. Besides, there is no better representative of man other than man. For this cause, Paul admonishes the believers to come boldly before God.

“Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:14-16)

But here’s another side to this story. While, on the one hand, it is true that change has come as a result of what the Son of God had done and continues to do for us, on the other hand, there is a major section of human society that will never be fully benefited from these changes. The problem lies not with Christ nor with the plan of salvation. But the problem is the same old problem of unbelief. Instead of seeing and believing that the work of salvation is complete, this section of society has chosen to believe the falsehood propagated by the accuser and cast their lot with him. In so doing, many today live as though there is no mediator between God and men. These people constantly strife for the mastery over their will, not realising that they only have to believe and surrender their will to Christ. Blinded by mistrust, they hold the law above the Lawgiver, working the works of the law because they think that salvation depends on their ability to observe the law. Some even go to the extent of observing feasts days and calling God by a certain name. In fact, the list goes on. But after all the struggle they go through each day to “please” God, they never come to the place where they can confidently say that God is pleased and that their place in heaven is secured. So, they wake up every morning and start the process all over again not knowing when it will end.

It is here that the last Adam stands out as a precious gift that God has ever given to mankind. God has invited all and sundry to be part of the new race founded by Christ by being born again into His life. Only those who are in this life are covered by the righteous life of the Saviour. For those who inadvertently choose to remain outside of this life, “God winked at; but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent.” (Acts 17:30). But for those who, out of unbelief, purposely choose not to partake of the life of the last Adam, put themselves in a precarious situation where neither God nor Christ can help them. Such individuals are left without a representative and a mediator to stand before God. By casting their lot with the Devil, they have chosen him as their representative. By now we know what kind of a representative the Devil has proven himself to be. Besides, the Devil himself is in a situation where he needs someone like Christ to be his representative. Devoid of such a figure, Satan and his cohorts of angels and men are left to reap the consequences of the choices they have made.

In light of these things, I implore our readers to shed unbelief and be united to the life of Him who had overcome sin that you may be found worthy before the God of the universe.

“Seek the LORD while He may be found, call ye upon Him while He is near.” (Isaiah 55:6)

“Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of Him in peace, without spot, and blameless.” (2 Peter 3:14)

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