Titus 2:14
This is another post, in my series on the atonement of Jesus. Here is the definition of the atonement, I created, for this series of posts. The atonement is; “God killed His perfect Son to save hate-filled rebels from the wrath they deserved from Him”. Today we are going to think about an important part of the atonement, the portion of the atonement where Christ redeems a people for Himself.
Redemption is a marketplace term. To redeem something is to buy it at a store, market, or stand selling product. Redemption in the most basic sense is to buy and sell goods. But we do not think of going to the grocery store and redeeming our grocery. That is becasue redemption also includes something that is in bondage or owned by a master. Redemption was a word created to use in the slave market. When the word was originally used it referred to a slave being bought at a slave market, a prisoner being bought back from prison, or an individual being freed from the bondage they sold themselves into. To redeem someone, is to buy the person from bondage and take them home as the buyer's new possessions. This picture gives us the point of Jesus redeeming a people for Himself.
James Montgomery Boice defines redemption as, "deliverance from the bondage of sin by Jesus, at the cost of His life, becasue He loved us". The Bible is ripe with images of redemption. It begins with Abraham and Melchizedek. It continues to God redeeming His people from slavery in Egypt. Boaz and Ruth include images of redemption through the "kinsmen-redeemer". Hosea is commanded to redeem his prostitute wife, after she sells herself. Jesus talks about redeeming a people, as His people. Lastly, as our verse above shows, Paul teaches about Jesus redeeming a people for Himself. Redemption is an image from the beginning of the Bible all the way to the end.
Here is the reality of Jesus redeeming a people for Himself. People are in bondage. The people Jesus buys or delivers, are stuck in slavery to something. As previous post have discussed, humanity is in bondage to sin. Sin, the spiritual deadness of humanity, hold humanity in bondage and slavery to themselves. This means, humanity contribute nothing to their deliverance. Humans are stuck in bondage, cannot buy themselves out, and have nothing to aid in their deliverance (except the reason they need delivering; sin). Jesus redemption cost humans nothing.
Next, when we think about redemption, we need to understand it cost Jesus his life as the payment. Jesus payment to redeem His people, was to go to the Cross, take their sin upon Himself, and pay their payment for sin. The central theme of the cross is Jesus paying a price for a people. The payment for sin is either paid on the cross by Jesus or it is paid in Hell for eternity. Jesus delivered and redeemed a people by paying the penalty and payment for the sin, His people have committed. This means at the heart of Jesus redemption is the picture of deliverance.
Lastly, when the Bible speaks about Jesus redeeming a people for Himself, many times it uses the word ransom. Jesus became a ransom for His people. Jesus became a deliver for those he bought out of slavery. Jesus, through His atonement, became a redeemer for those He paid the price for. And this nature about Jesus needs to be driven home.
Jesus is our Savior. Jesus is our deliverer. Jesus is our ransom. Jesus is our redeemer. And these facts are the central feature of Jesus. These truths is what makes us worship Jesus. These titles of Jesus is why we love Jesus. These truths of Jesus is why we have salvation. No other part of Jesus matters or can even compare to to the fact Jesus is the Redeemer for His people. Do not fall trap to the lie of the Devil in Jesus as a good example or a good teacher. Jesus is the Redeemer of His people and to keep this as the focus is to exalt Christ where He must be.
Redemption is the action Jesus does to the elect. Jesus ransoms a people to Himself. Yes, Jesus propitiates the Father and the Father justifies the elect. But it is Jesus who redeems a people to Himself. As Paul makes clear in Titus, Jesus delivers His people, for Himself, from all of the lawlessness and sin they are in bondage to. But after Jesus redeems a people, the people are not free to do whatever they want. Just as the picture of redemption makes clear, Jesus redeems a people for Himself. The redeemed people are now slaves to Jesus, owned by Jesus, to do good works. This means, good works prove to others, Jesus has redeemed the person from the slave market of sin and bought them for Himself as His possessions.
What do our good works or lack of good works say about us?
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