Thanksgiving, Part 2: Jesus, Divine Mediator

In Part 1 [Click HERE.], we highlighted the amazing life of Squanto, the Native American of the Patuxent tribe who resided in what is now Massachusetts.  God providentially prepared Squanto with knowledge of European culture and character qualities that suited him to become a mediator between his native people and the Pilgrims who were hoping to settle around Plymouth Rock. 

God used Squanto’s mediation to literally save the lives of the Pilgrims.  However, as amazing as Squanto’s life was, based on accounts of Governor William Bradford and others, his mediation was limited in scope and lasting effects.  What follows are marks of a good mediator.  Using each of these marks, we will compare the mediation of Squanto with the superior mediation of Jesus Christ.  Each of the five marks of an effective mediator is written to provide a daily meditation leading up to Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving Meditations:  Squanto and Jesus Christ
The declaration Scripture in 1 Timothy 2: 5-6a, that there is “one Mediator…the Man Christ Jesus,” is supported by dozens of other Scriptures affirming that God’s Messiah was fully human and fully God.  But how can we wrap our finite minds around the claim in John 1: 14 that “the Word [Jesus Christ] became flesh and dwelt among us…?”  

To begin to appreciate how Christ, the perfect God-man, became Mediator to reconcile sinful mankind with a holy God, let us return to our account of Squanto who, by God’s providence demonstrate at least five marks of an effective human mediator for the Pilgrims.  Each of the marks include Scriptures and commentary suitable for a daily meditation leading up to Thanksgiving.  Please allow each Scripture to stimulate further study—and to stir reverent worship and adoration for Christ, our divine Mediator:

1) Knowledge of the Language and Cultures
Long before the Pilgrims desperately needed help, God was preparing Squanto to be their mediator.  By the time the Pilgrims needed Squanto’s mediation, he had become equipped with knowledge of the language and culture of both Native Americans and of the Pilgrims.  On a much grander scale, God planned and sent His Son, Jesus Christ as divine Mediator between a Holy God and sinful man:

And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. – John 1: 14

But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.  -- Isaiah 53:  5

God made Him [Jesus] who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.  -- 2 Corinthians 5: 21

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.  -- John 14:6

Other Scriptures:   John 3: 16-17; Hebrews 2:14: 1 Peter 3: 18
Application: Do you believe Jesus IS God in human flesh?  Why is the incarnation of Jesus Christ [the Word made flesh] so essential to His role as Mediator between God and mankind? 

2) Vision of a “Higher Purpose”
Squanto’s international experience, delivery from bondage, experience of human kindness by people of God, and his opportunity to learn the English language and culture must certainly have transformed him.  What’s more, he was invited to experience Christian worship and to learn from God’s Word.  It is likely that he grasped a sense of the larger purpose to which God (or the “Great Spirit”) had called him.  The same was true of Jesus Christ:

God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power.  – Hebrews 1: 1-3a

But when the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive our adoption as sons.  - Galatians 4: 4-5

Jesus, from the Cross:  Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? No, it is for this purpose that I have come to this hour.  Father, glorify Your name!”  -- John 12:27-28

Other Scriptures:  Isaiah 50: 5-7; Hebrews 5: 8-9
Application:  Do you believe God is a God of purpose?  Have you discovered His purpose(s) for your life?  What are ways we can identify God’s purposes for us?

3) Showed Empathy and Compassion
Like the patriarch Joseph in the Old Testament, Squanto was forcibly torn away from his own people and culture, and made to live and labor in a strange, far away land.  This traumatic experience happened twice; and each time, Squanto was set free by the kindness of people of faith in God.  Perhaps God used these experiences to help Squanto become a compassionate mediator.  The following Scriptures describe the preparation of Jesus as a compassionate Mediator:

[He] emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in human likeness.  And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross.  – Philippians 2: 7-8

When Jesus went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and He felt compassion for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd….  – Mark 6: 34a

For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.  – Hebrews 2: 18

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who was tempted in every way that we are, yet was without sin.  Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.  – Hebrews 4: 15-16

Other Scripture:  Hebrews 5: 2
Application:  How have experiences of pain and suffering in your life helped you to become more compassionate toward others?  How have these experiences drawn you closer to Christ?

4) Builds Trust Between Adversaries
By definition, a mediator must stand between adversaries and encourage each side to fully trust him or her.  Very likely, the knowledge and experiences that Squanto gained through both harsh and affirming treatment had shaped him in character as one who could be trusted by both sides that he was seeking to reconcile.  The following Scriptures address the trustworthiness of God and His Son, our Mediator:

Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not come under judgment. Indeed, he has crossed over from death to life. - John 5:24

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.  Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.  For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. – Romans 5: 8-10

Other Scripture:  Jeremiah 31: 33-34; Colossians 1: 13-14
Application:   Have you come to the point in your life where you can trust that Jesus Christ is the only way to receive forgiveness and salvation from your sin through “justification by faith” in Him?  If so, on what does your faith rest?  If not, what will it take?

5) Provides for The Future
Squanto not only mediated for peace between his own people and the Pilgrims, but he showed the Pilgrims how to grow crops and obtain fish from the ocean.  Providentially, God had expanded Squanto’s horizon both in space and time so that he could envision a coexistence of two very different cultures there in what is now Massachusetts.  God’s “vision” is infinitely greater based on His knowledge, omnipresence, and omnipotence.  Most of all is God’s great covenant love which redeems all who believe in Christ, our Mediator and makes them one with Him forever.

Who is there to condemn us?  For Christ Jesus, who died, and more than that was raised to life, is at the right hand of God—and He is interceding for us.  -- Romans 8:34

For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all His fullness to dwell in Him [Christ], and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through the blood of His cross.  Once you were alienated from God and were hostile in your minds, engaging in evil deeds.  But now He has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy, unblemished, and blameless in His presence… -- Colossians 1: 19-22

‘For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.  – Jeremiah 29: 11

Other Scripture:  Romans 8: 1; Romans 8: 28; 2 Corinthians 4: 17-18
Application:  We have examined five marks of a mediator evident in the life of Squanto and which point us to the work of Christ, our divine Mediator.  While we hope the comparisons have been helpful, there remains some glaring differences between Squanto, a “human mediator,” and Christ, our divine Mediator.  What differences can you identify?  What is the significance to you personally of the differences?

Christ:  More Than a Human Mediator
Unlike Squanto, Jesus Christ is divine, fully God and fully man.  What’s more, Christ’s mediation between a holy God and sinful man required His willing sacrifice as “the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world (John 1: 29).”

Whereas, some human mediators may die to bring reconciliation, it was preordained that Christ would die for our sin, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit… (1 Peter 3: 18).  Because of His great love for mankind, God gave His greatest gift, His much beloved Son, to take our punishment and die in our place for our sin—specifically, to satisfy God’s holy wrath (propitiation; 1 John 2: 2) and to carry away our sin and related guilt (expiation; Hebrews 1: 3; 1 John 1: 7).  When Christ rose from death to eternal life, He demonstrates His Father’s acceptance of His sacrifice.  Romans 5 provides a wonderful summary:

For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.  – Romans 5: 6-11

Mediation: “Place of One”
Michael A. Zeytoonian, Founder and Director of Dispute Resolution Counsel, LLC,  is a lawyer, mediator and ombudsman.  He describes the goal of successful mediation as follows:
“There is this ‘place of one’ in every dispute and it offers the most complete resolution. It is different for each team of rivals and each situation.  In order to fulfill the law, the Mediator’s higher purpose is to transform the minds of the two sides, so that they can go beyond just settling, to find, or perhaps rediscover, their “place of one.”  [Read more HERE.]

Those who belong to Christ have been united with Him into a “place of one” through the abiding Holy Spirit who reminds us through His Word (emphasis added):  For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.  There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3: 27-28).

Now “clothed with Christ” who is our Great High Priest, we are sustained by His intercession at God’s holy throne on our behalf when we fall short of the mark (sin) and confess our sin.  Take time to reflect on God’s Gift of salvation and provision of forgiveness (1 John 1: 8-9).  

How about You?  Have you accepted God’s Gift of salvation by faith?  If so, do you regularly respond to His welcome at the throne of grace for regular cleansing from sin?  And remember, if you have been reconciled, you have also been called to be an “ambassador of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5: 20).  If you have questions, feel free to use the “Comment” link below or write to us at silviusj@gmail.com.

Helpful Resources:
“Steps to Peace with God” Click HERE.
“Have You Made the Discovery of the Spirit-Filled Life?”  Cru Publication.  Click HERE.
Oikonomia blog, August 25, 2025.  “Winsome Witness 2.  Being Salt in Controversy.  Click HERE.

Thanksgiving, Part 1: Squanto, a Human Mediator

This month, Jeff Bezos's space firm Blue Origin launched a pair of NASA spacecraft on a mission to Mars.  The firm hopes this mission will be a giant step toward landing humans on the “red planet.”

Imagine if you are among the first humans to set foot on Martian soil.  Within the hour, you are stunned to see another human being approaching you.  He looks human but appears to have an other-world ethnicity.  Then, to your amazement, he smiles reluctantly and greets you in your own language.  Sound far-fetched?  Certainly!  But it is not unlike the experience of the Pilgrims who met Native Americans when they arrived at Plymouth Rock, having sailed 3,000 miles from Europe, in 1621. 

“An Instrument Sent of God”
After their grueling ocean voyage, the Pilgrims set foot on North American soil, not knowing what to expect or whether they would survive.  To their surprise, their party met another human being who differed only in ethnicity and who greeted them in the English language!  They would come to know their English-speaking friend as Tisquantum, or “Squanto,” a member of the Patuxent tribe of the Wampanoag confederation.

Our tradition of celebrating Thanksgiving, often with a lavish abundance of food and comfort, is rooted in a history in which a widespread loss of human lives was averted by the providential hand of God.  Only 53 Pilgrims had survived their treacherous voyage across the Atlantic.  They faced harsh weather and limited food, and many of them died.  But providentially, those who reached Plymouth Rock were saved because of the kindness of Squanto.  

Squanto graciously assisted the Pilgrims as an interpreter to establish communication and peace with the Wampanoag’s including its chief, Massasoit.  Then, Squanto and his tribesmen assisted the Pilgrims in hunting game from the forest, obtaining seafood from the Atlantic, and growing corn and other crops.  It is truly a marvelous show of God’s providential care that Squanto had been equipped at just the right time to serve as a mediator to forge peaceful relationships between people of two very different cultures.
 

A mediator is a neutral third party who stands between two individuals or groups that are at odds in order to assist in bringing conflict resolution and a mutually acceptable settlement.  Squanto’s mediation of peaceful relations between the Native American majority and the European Pilgrim minority was certainly a cause for thankfulness on that first Thanksgiving.  But the backstory which centers on Squanto’s life is even more amazing.

Squanto explained how he had been captured by English sailors and taken to Europe (circa. 1614) where he and other captured Native Americans were taught to speak English as preparation for them to be guides for explorers of the North American frontier.  Here Squanto lived with John Slaney, a Christian merchant.  Squanto learned English, worked for Slaney, and worshiped with English Christians where he must have been regularly exposed to Christian teaching.  According to a more complete account of Squanto’s life (See HERE), he was captured a second time and transported to Europe.  But this time, he was providentially purchased from the slave auction block and set free by brothers of a local monastery.

As a free man who may or may not have ever professed faith in Christ, Squanto eventually returned again to his North American homeland where he became an instrument of God’s saving grace as a mediator between the Pilgrims and the Native Americans.  Governor William Bradford recognized Squanto’s miraculous role and later wrote that he was “a special instrument sent of God for their good.”  For additional details on the spiritual context of how God worked among the lives of the Pilgrims, see our 2024 Oikonomia from which part of the above content was taken [Click HERE].

The way in which God prepared and used Squanto to foster peace between Native Americans and Europeans and save the Pilgrims from starvation  and death illustrates what is required of a

successful mediator.  Here are a few character traits and abilities Squanto possessed as a mediator:

1)  Knowledge of Language and Cultures
2)  Vision of a “Higher Purpose”
3)  Showed Empathy and Compassion
4)  Built the Trust of Both Adversaries
5)  Provided for Their Future

Other Human Mediators
Since the time of Squanto, other men and women of character have served as human mediators.  Benjamin Franklin served as a diplomatic mediator between America and Europe during the crucial period of the birth of the United States.  Fast forward to the 1950’s, we were intrigued by the name, Dag Hammerskjold, a man of deep faith in God whose quiet diplomacy provided mediation during the early years of the United Nations. 

Among U.S. presidents, Theodore Roosevelt is regarded as “one of the most influential international mediators” (ChatGPT).  More recently, Presidents Jimmy Carter and Donald Trump have been instrumental in promoting Arab-Israeli peace.  President Carter negotiated peace between Israel and Egypt in the 1970’s.  President Trump continues to expand the Middle East peace efforts which he began in his first term through the Abraham Accord.

Among professing Christians is David Augsburger, an American Mennonite pastor known for his cross-cultural counseling and conflict mediation; and Gary R. Collins, former President of the American Assn. of Christian Counselors, well known for his pioneering approach to Christian counseling.  Corrie ten Boom of Dutch descent mediated for reconciliation between victims and their former German persecutors who served under the Third Reich.  Mother Teresa who served in India and Albania is recognized as a “mediator of personal and community conflict through humanitarian service (ChatGPT).”

Readers who conduct their own internet searches will turn up names of other men and women who have served as human mediators.  But all human mediators have one thing in common: they are humans who are imperfect and the durability of their accomplishments last only as long as other fallen humans agree to honor their treaties and agreements.   Perfect, lasting mediation requires a Mediator infinitely superior to any human being.  That Person is the perfect God-Man, Jesus Christ.

One True Mediator
Overshadowing imperfect human mediation is the infinitely greater mediation inaugurated and sustained through the life, death, resurrection, and intercession of God’s Messiah, Jesus Christ.  In 1 Timothy 2: 5-6a (NLT), we read

For, there is one God and one Mediator
who can reconcile God and humanity
—the man Christ Jesus.
He gave His life
to purchase freedom for everyone.

The Book of Genesis reveals our need for a “Mediator between God and man.” Early in the Creation narrative, we learn that the first man and woman walked and talked with God in the Garden of Eden.  Imagine that!  No blemish existed between them and God to interrupt their perfect fellowship with God—that is, until sin entered, causing Adam and Eve to hide from each other (Genesis 3: 7) and from God (v. 8-10).  Sin corrupted their minds and created feelings of shame, doubt, suspicion, fear, and alienation from each other and from God.

Every human being is made to worship and enjoy God as the central purpose of being (Ecclesiastes 12: 13).  Although God’s once-perfect image bearers forfeited their fellowship with God, they did not lose their nature as God’s image bearers (Genesis 1: 27).  Worse than that, under sin’s curse and without God, all mankind is pronounced “dead in [our] trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2: 1).  As such, we are spiritually separated from God who is Holy and cannot be in fellowship with sinful mankind. 

Being “dead in our sin” and possessing corrupt minds (Romans 1: 28), we became like blind people walking in darkness.  Yet, pathetically, God’s once-perfect image bearers still seek Him, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and exist… (Acts 17: 27b-28a).  The Apostle Paul spoke these words to Greek philosophers in Athens while standing with them in the midst of many stone images of pagan gods from whom they were seeking to gain justification and merit.  They listened to Paul as he elegantly described the One true God, Jehovah, the One in whom all men and women “live and move” and owe their very existence:

“Being then the children of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and thought of man. Therefore, having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead (Acts 17: 29-31.”

These words stunned the Greek philosophers.  Pause a moment and meditate on them.  Some wanted to hear more (v. 32).  Could it be that this “UNKNOWN GOD” (v. 23) who was not represented among their pagan images was the One true God for whom their souls had longed?  Was it possible that this “Unknown God” would call them to give an account of their lives “in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed as judge”— shockingly, a Man whom this God had raised from the dead!?  The answers to these questions are all YES!  This is the “Man” whom Paul would later declare as the one Mediator also between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all…(1 Timothy 2: 5-6a).

In “Thanksgiving, Part 2: Jesus, Divine Mediator,” we compare the human mediation of Squanto with the divine mediation of Jesus Christ. Specifically, we will cite five marks of an effective mediator, each with Scriptures and commentary suitable for a daily meditation leading up to Thanksgiving.  [Click HERE for Part 2.]