Redeemed

Redemption is the act of God whereby He purchases wayward sinners from the slave market of sin and brings them back into His loving sheepfold. The purchase price was the life of His only begotten Son. Peter wrote, “you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ” (1 Pet 1:18-19). When we come to Jesus Christ by faith, we find in Him “we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses” (Eph 1:7). All of this is “according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us” (Eph 1:8), “a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus” (Rom 3:24).

  • We are redeemed from something—the curse and condemnation of the Law. “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us–for it is written, ‘CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE’” (Gal 3:13). “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom 8:1).
  • We are redeemed to something—God’s kingdom and God’s family. “He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Col 1:13-14).For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him” (Rom 8:15-17).
  • We are redeemed by something—a price, the blood of Jesus. “[B]eing justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus” (Rom 3:24). Salvation is free to us, but it was not free to God. It cost Him the life of His Son. It was accomplished “not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption” (Heb 9:12).

Now we belong to God. We are His property. More than that, we are now His beloved children who have been chosen, adopted, and blessed beyond measure. Redeemed, how we love to proclaim it!

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