Day 75: We Are Redeemed by Jesus’ Blood
We have been “purchased” by God at the price of Jesus’ blood. This is an unfamiliar concept for most of us. However, because of this redemption we have been set free from our slavery to sin and the Devil. These blessings come to us IN Christ, through faith.
WORDwork:
Ephesians 1:7
In Him (in Christ) we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which He lavished upon us…
In verse 7, what do we have in Christ?
Could you define redemption in your own words?
Through what means does this redemption come to us?
What is this blessing linked with in the same verse?
Why does God “lavish” this rich blessing upon us?
Redemption is paying a price to claim something.
Yesterday we heard that we have been “justified through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” In our Ephesians passage we hear that we have redemption through Christ’s blood, which is the forgiveness of our sins. Justification, redemption, forgiveness are all interrelated ideas. The central truth that binds them all together is the redemption that Christ provides through His blood, death which we discussed in the first sessions of this study.
The concept of redemption is very important in God’s work of salvation. In its broadest sense, redemption is made up of two interrelated ideas 1) paying a price to claim something (or reclaim something that was lost) and 2) setting something/someone free by a payment. Look at a couple of passages which illustrate these ideas:
1 Corinthians 6:20
For you were bought at a price.
Therefore glorify God with your body.
In this passage we see that we have been “bought with a price” which means that we have been “purchased” by God with Jesus’ blood. How should we respond to this? We should glorify God with our bodies. Now look at the other aspect of redemption, being set free:
Redemption sets us free.
Titus 2:14
He gave himself for us to set us free (redeem us) from every kind of lawlessness and to purify for himself a people who are truly his, who are eager to do good.
The idea present in Ephesians 1:7 focuses on this second nuance. The word used here speaks not only to the payment of the price, but more importantly to the effect of the payment: being reclaimed as God’s own possession so that God can set us free!!! Through the payment of Christ’s own blood, God the Father has purchased you for Himself!!! And as we have already seen, He has sealed you with the Holy Spirit to ensure that you arrive at your final eternal destination – at home with your Heavenly Father (remember Ephesians 1:13-14).
Christ has paid His own life in order to reclaim us for the Father. The blood of Jesus is the price that our Heavenly Father paid to reclaim us as His children and to set us free from our slavery to sin, death and corruption that we were born into in Adam. Consider the following ways in which we have been set free in Christ:
- We have been set free from the burden and debt of our sins (Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 1:1).
- We have been set free from the tyranny of the Devil.
Hebrews 2:14-15
Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, he likewise shared in their humanity, so that through death he could destroy the one who holds the power of death (that is, the devil), 15 and set free those who were held in slavery all their lives by their fear of death.
(We will return to this passage a little later.)
We have been set free from the burden of external law as a means of maintaining our relationship with God.
Galatians 5:1
For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke of slavery.
Romans 8:2
For the law of the life-giving Spirit in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.
The benefits of this redemption are made real to us right now, in the here and now. But our redemption will also be made complete in the resurrection. We have been spiritually set free, but God will also set our physical bodies free from their corruption and brokenness in the future:
Romans 8:23 …we also, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we eagerly await our adoption, the redemption of our bodies.
Notice that here Paul describes our completion/perfection in two ways: 1) it is the completion of our adoption process, which is 2) the redemption (the reclaiming) of our physical bodies. Although we have been adopted by God and redeemed through Jesus blood, these great blessings will be made perfectly complete in the future when we see Him face to face. Now, in the present, we only enjoy a taste these blessings!
Think about all the ways that Jesus has set us free. Were there any new things that you learned today? Pray that Father God would reveal practical ways for you to live out your freedom in ways that are pleasing to Him.
*You can find a complete list of all the MilktoMeat readings here.
