March 31 Redeemed

Ephesians 1:7-8 In him 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 all wisdom and insight
 
JESUS has risen! He is alive. Now what do you do? Let’s pause and consider, “We have redemption through his blood”. You know that, right? Joyfully, there are numerous songs celebrating this wondrous truth. For example, there is Fanny Crosby’s 1862 hymn “I am redeemed, O praise the Lord!” and we can go to today’s Big Daddy Weave loving rendition of “Redeemed” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzGAYNKDyIU)
    See the wonder of redemption. “Redeemed” means “to exchange”. Redeemed, you are no longer a sinner in God’s sight. Oh no, you haven’t become perfect in the flesh. But you have become perfect in Christ because the perfect, sinless Jesus exchanged his perfection for your sin!
    Paul summarizes God’s loving, wondrous exchange in 2 Corinthians 5:21 “For our sake the Father made the Son to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”  I refer you to that remarkable chapter in its entirety. Take some time to read it, so you may do so in reverence and joy. Pray the Holy Spirit will pour over you the wonder of God’s redeeming gift that you and I do not deserve. 
    Living in Jesus’ resurrection, you can surely, humbly, joyfully and lovingly tell the world, “I am redeemed.” Speak it in awe. Remember that the holy Son of God took his perfection to the cross. He poured out his holiness to all who would believe in him. In him, each Christian, one who confesses his sins and confesses Christ, became sinless. In exchange, Jesus gathered the Christ-believer’s sins to himself. The debt-free Christ took on the full burden of your debts – your sins – against the holy God.
    The Old Testament law gives us a physical picture of this exchange. In God’s law, to redeem land was to remove any debt against it, so it could remain in the family. This redemption of land could only occur through a close relative exchanging his money for the debt. See Ruth, for example, where Boaz, Naomi’s kinsman, reddems her property to her and marries Ruth. Boaz is an example of Christ, a kinsman redeemer who paid the debt for Naomi’s land.
    Yes, your eternal redeemer is your brother, Christ Jesus. He has paid all of your debt against the Father, so you can be in the family of God. In the name of the Father and the power of the Spirit, welcome to God’s etrnal Land of the Living!
    In conclusion, see how Paul describes our redemption. It is the Father’s riches, his lavish grace offering to you. In his grace, the Father pours new life into you. His wisdom and his knowledge washes over us as a cleansing, pure shower of fresh water!
    Again, what do you do with Jesus’ resurrection? You shout to the world, “I am redeemed!” And you let the world know why you love your Lord, Savior and Brother Jesus so very much.
 
Prayer: Thank you, Father, Son and Spirit that I can say, “I am redeemed!” I pray for my friends and relatives who cannot say that today. Move into their lives, Spirit, that they may know Jesus’ knowledge and wisdom for their eternal souls. Amen.