Every team has arbiters or umpires or referees to enforce the rules of the game and to spot violations. In most individual sports, however, the participants are supposed to be self disciplined and to play according to a code of honor. Golfers keep their own score as to the number of strokes per hole. But where multiple players are involved disputes can arise between teams. It is the function of the officials to rule on these disputes, and when they do so, there must be no argument even though their decision may be wrong or questionable. Each sport has its own requirements for such referees according to the areas of concern; tennis has referees for each side line, one for the net, and one at each baseline to detect out-of-bound balls and net balls; football requires referees for the line and in each backfield; baseball requires an umpire behind the plate to judge on balls and strikes, and an umpire for each base. Generally the decision of the official is final and cannot be changed, but the National Football League has recently initiated the option of a recall. If the coach of a team disagrees with the call, he can request an examination of the video record. The official looks at the tape, and may decide to keep the decision as called or to reverse it. If he decides against the request, that team suffers an official time-out. Since they are only allowed three time-outs per half, this would be a serious penalty, and coaches are afraid to take frivolous chances of being overruled.
The legal profession also has its arbiters called judges. These judges interpret the law, judge as to the guilt or innocence according to the evidence, and issue sentences. In the case of a jury trialthe judge acts rather like a referee to be sure that the rules are followed by lawyers and to instruct juries as to their duties. It is his job to see that the accused defendant gets a fair trial. The problem is that judges are human and subject to being swayed by public opinion and by their own biases. Many decisions seem unfair and actually the sentences imposed do not seem to fit the crime. Either they are too severe or not severe enough. To allow for the possibility of an unfair or illegal verdict, a system of appeal courts has been established. These are available on a regional basis as federal appeals courts, and each state has a supreme court of appeal. The last and highest appeals court is the U.S. Supreme Court.
As a part of the plan of salvation a heavenly court has been established, and God Himself will be the judge and also the arbiter.
We have all been judged guilty before the Law of Liberty guilty of high treason and rebellion. So, actually this heavenly court is the final court of appeals or the heavenly supreme court. The dispute is between our advocate, Jesus Christ, and the opposing lawyer, Satan. Each is claiming justice, and each has witnesses to either justify or condemn. "For there is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time" (I Tim. 2:5,6). We can be sure that He is unbiased and His judgment is true and just.
Thus the God/man Christ Jesus is perfectly able to bridge the chasm between God and man. "He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them" (Heb. 7:25); In the game of life He is "the divine Umpire."
