Redemption

It seems a rather strange word to use for the topic of relationship with God and salvation, but actually redemption is an important word which helps define what relationship with God is all about.  For without redemption there would be no salvation.

Webster’s 1828 Dictionary defines redemption this way:

In theology, the purchase of God's favor by the death and sufferings of Christ; the ransom or deliverance of sinners from the bondage of sin and the penalties of God's violated law by the atonement of Christ.

Redemption is the purchase of God’s favor.  This is something we could never offer God, but His favor is something that only He could give, and God extended that favor to us through His Son Jesus.

Ephesians 1:7-10 (NKJV)

⁷ In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace ⁸ which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, ⁹ having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, ¹⁰ that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him.

What is the mystery of God’s will?  He said it was made known to us..what is it?  In essence it is this:  We are spiritually dead because of human nature and sin. We inherited the sin of Adam which separated us from the presence of God.  There needed to be a new Adam (or a second Adam) to right the wrongs of the first Adam.  A second Adam able to purchase God’s favor and bestow God’s unconditional love.  This was the gift that was offered to us through Jesus, that we once again have God’s favor. But this time it is different because it is the power of Christ working in us to make us alive and become more like the image of God we were destined to be.

Romans 1:16-18 (NKJV)

¹⁶ For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. ¹⁷ For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”

Redemption is the end result of the act of Christ dying on the cross and triumphing over sin and death.  God does not any longer have an issue with sin, for we are redeemed.  We tend to keep confessing sin and keep feeling guilt over our failures, (that is our fallen human nature) we do this when we not standing in the finished work of Christ.

Romans 14:22-23 (NKJV)

²² Do you have faith? Have it to yourself before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves. ²³ But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin.

Scripture also reveals that sin isn't only doing things that are wrong, but it’s not doing the things that we know are right.

James 4:17 (NKJV)

¹⁷ Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.

*By these definitions, we all sin through the weakness of our flesh. It’s impossible to keep every sin confessed. Even if it were possible, that puts the burden of salvation on our backs. There wouldn't be any peace or rest in our relationship with the Lord if that’s the way it worked.  (see: Romans 5:1.)

Most people, including Christians, see the forgiveness of sins as something that God can do, and continues to do, but not as something He has completed. From that comes the false concept that we must constantly confess our sins, which makes and keeps us sin conscious.

The New Testament presents the forgiveness of sins as something that is already accomplished and that the net effect of this redemption is that we are not even to be conscious of sin.

Hebrews 10:1-2 (NKJV)

¹ For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. ² For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins.

When did Jesus die and shed His blood for our sins? About 2,000 years ago. He will never die again (see: Romans 6:9-10). He dealt with the sins of the whole human race one time, for all time (see: Hebrews. 9:25-28 and 10:10-14). Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins is already an accomplished work.

We don’t have to ask Jesus to forgive our sins; He’s already done it. Paul didn't tell the Philippian jailer to ask Jesus to forgive him; Paul told him to believe on what Jesus had already done and he would be saved (see: Acts 16:31). We confess the Lord Jesus, not our sins, to receive this gift of salvation (see: Romans. 10:9).

Does that mean everyone in the whole world is saved? Certainly not. We have to receive forgiveness by faith (see: Acts 26:18). The Lord has already forgiven everyone’s sins (see: 1 John 2:2). That’s grace. But we have to put faith in what God has already accomplished by grace to be saved (see: Ephesians. 2:8).

Therefore, it’s not a person’s many sins that sends them to hell; sin has already been paid for and forgiven. It’s the singular sin of not believing on Jesus that sends a person to hell. It’s their failure to receive what Jesus did for them that puts them into that place of eternal torment.

John 16:7-9 (NKJV)

⁷ Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. ⁸ And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: ⁹ of sin, because they do not believe in Me;

The singular sin the Holy Spirit reproves us of is the sin of not believing on Jesus. That’s it. That’s not to say that the Holy Spirit will not show us that things we do are wrong. But He uses them to illustrate that we don’t believe on Jesus. The Holy Spirit is not nailing us every time we sin; He loves us back into faith and trust in Jesus. That’s the whole issue with God.

What difference does it make in our lives if we receive forgiveness as something that has already been accomplished or not? There is a huge difference! It gives us security and peace, knowing that God isn't mad at us and won’t be mad at us. Our sins are already forgiven—and not just the past sins we committed before we were born again. All of our sins—past, present, and even future ones—are already forgiven.

Someone will say, “How can God forgive our sins before we commit them?” Well, you better pray that He can do that, because Jesus only died for our sins once; 2,000 years ago; before you committed any sin. If He can’t forgive sins before you commit them, then you can’t be saved.

Hebrews 10:10-14 (NKJV)

¹⁰ By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. ¹¹ And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. ¹² But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, ¹³ from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. ¹⁴ For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified.

We have received eternal, not momentary, redemption (see: Hebrews. 9:12). One sacrifice was made for all sin forever, and we have been perfected forever. How can we read these scriptures and come to any other conclusion than that every sin—past, present, and future—was forgiven and our redemption is eternal?

If you have received the sacrifice of Jesus for your sins by faith, then your spirit is perfect! (see: Hebrews. 12:23) Your spirit has been born again. A million years from now, your spirit will be identical to what it is right now, and it is identical to Jesus (see: 1 Cor. 6:17 and 1 John 4:17). One-third of your redemption is now complete.

So, am I making light of sin or saying sin doesn't matter? Not at all! Sin is a terrible thing, and it’s an inroad for Satan into your life (see: Romans. 6:16). I hate sin! I value the blood and the atonement of Jesus above sin. His sacrifice was infinitely greater than all the past, present, and future transgressions of the entire human race. Jesus overpaid the debt we owed.

You might argue, “But what about 1 John 1:9?”

1 John 1:9 (NKJV)

⁹ If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

We don’t have to confess sin in order to be saved, to retain, or to maintain our salvation. If that was so, every person who came forward for salvation would have to be killed like a sacrificial lamb. That would be the only way they would ever get to heaven for that would be the only time they could be truly clean. We need to confess it, not for the purpose of becoming born again, but because our flesh gets defiled. That gives Satan an inroad or legal right to function in our flesh (see: Romans 6:16).

Confessing we have sinned means we are coming back into agreement with God and out of agreement with Satan. That stops Satan from dominating us through that sin and draws the forgiveness and purity, which is already in our born-again spirits, out into our flesh.

Our born-again spirits are already eternally redeemed (see: Hebrews 9:12). The other two-thirds, your soul and body, have also been purchased by His blood, but their redemption has not yet taken place. However, God has made provision for this as well.

Romans 8:23 (NKJV)

²³ Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.

...and also this passage in Ephesians:

Ephesians 1:13-14 (NKJV)

¹³ In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, ¹⁴ who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.

When redemption is complete in spirit, soul, and body, we will know Him as we are known (see: 1 Corinthians. 13:12). But until then, we can experience a renewed mind through His Word. And although we are waiting for the redemption of our bodies, we can receive healing while we live in our mortal bodies. God has made provision for both the soul and the body even though their redemption has not yet been manifested.

Unfortunately, most Christians are not taking advantage of these provisions. They have not had their minds renewed, and they still don’t understand that we are also redeemed from the curse of the Law (see: Galatians 3:13). The average New Testament believer is still trying to get God to respond to them based on their performance. Why? Because they don’t know that the performance covenant of the Old Testament Law is over. We are now under the New Testament ministry of grace and faith (see: 2 Corinthians 3:7-8).

The Law was given to convict people of their self-righteousness so they could see their need for a savior. Praise God, we are now no longer under the Law. 1 Timothy 1:9 says “that the Law is not made for a righteous man...” And who is righteous? Any person who is born again (see: 2 Corinthians. 5:21).

Hebrews 7:12 & 18 (NKJV)

¹² For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law…

¹⁸ For on the one hand there is an annulling of the former commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness,

What a radical statement! An annulling! The word annulling literally means cancellation, to make null and void. The Old Testament Law has been nullified, canceled, done away with. The Law was weak and unprofitable. It was only a stop-gap measure until Jesus came. (see: Galatians 3:23-25).

Ephesians 1:3-6 (NKJV)

³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, ⁴ just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, ⁵ having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,⁶ to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.

In the Greek, the word “has” is an aortas tense, which means it is a done deal—it’s an accomplished fact. So how blessed are all spiritual blessings? Verse 6 says that we have been accepted in the beloved. Really, that is a super understatement. The Greek word that is used for “accepted” is only used twice in the New Testament. The other place is in Luke 1 where the Angel Gabriel appeared unto Mary.
 

Luke 1:28 (NKJV)
²⁸ And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”

The Greek word for "highly favored" is the only other time that this word was used.  When it says that we are accepted in the beloved, it is saying He has made us highly favored.  Mary hasn't got anything on any born-again believer.  Every one of us are accepted, chosen, and highly favored.  It's all part of redemption.

Understanding redemption, the complete forgiveness of your sins, is foundational to understanding the New Covenant and how God deals with you today.  If you are born again and still asking questions like these:  "Can I lose my salvation?" "If I die with unconfessed sin, will I go to heaven?" or "Does God answer the prayers of someone who still sins?"  Then you do not understand redemption.

Redemption is very practical, and your understanding of it will determine what you are able to receive from God, not just in eternity, but here and now.*

May you know the fullness of God's redemption in Christ.

God is good all the time—all the time God is good!

Stephen Barnett

Redeemed

Words and Music by Benji Cowart and Mike Weaver

Seems like all I could see was the struggle

Haunted by ghosts that lived in my past

Bound up in shackles of all my failures

Wondering how long is this gonna last

Then You look at this prisoner and say to me

“Son, stop fighting a fight that's already been won”

(Chorus)

I am redeemed

You set me free

So I'll shake off these heavy chains

And wipe away every stain

Now I'm not who I used to be

I am redeemed

I am redeemed

All my life I have been called unworthy

Named by the voice of my shame and regret

But when I hear You whisper, “Child lift up your head”

I remember oh God, You're not done with me yet

Chorus

I don't have to be

The old man inside of me

'Cause his day is long dead and gone

Because I've got a new name

A new life I'm not the same

And a hope that will carry me home

                                    Chorus (X2)

2012 Word Music, LLC/Howiecowie Publishing/Weave Country  All rights administered by Word Music, LLC  All Rights Reserved.

*Thank you to Andrew Womack for his article “Redemption” and for his insights into the topic of redemption.

The song and lyrics above are copyrighted by the respective artists and are presented here for educational purposes only and not for profit.