Our Beliefs: Redemption
What immediately comes to your mind when you attempt to think about the word “redemption”? Well, if you are looking at it from a Christian perspective, you will probably, like I did, think immediately of how Jesus paid the price, through the shedding of His blood to pay the ransom price for our sins and has rescued us from the dominion of sin and death. Jesus is our redeemer.
From a non-Christian perspective, you might think of “redemption” as something you do when you buy something back that you have pawned at the pawn shop. You can also have redeemable shares on the stock market. Or it could be to succeed or do something good after one has failed or done something bad. They can redeem themselves for yesterday’s loss by winning today’s game.
A few years ago, I spent a couple of weeks in Mumbai helping recovering drug addicts. One evening, I was at a chapel service for “working girls” and the church was packed, and all these young women were fervently praising and worshipping God. I was totally shocked to realise that immediately after the service they would have to return to the horrors of prostitution and slavery. Virtually all the girls were slaves of various mafia gangs. I was told that it used to be possible to pay about $3,000 to buy a lady back from these gangs, in effect, redeeming them from their life of slavery. Tragically, the mafia gang lords decided against doing this anymore because it was not really worth their while. My point in sharing this, is that for me, the word “redemption” meant a way of being released from slavery.
But now, I would like us to make a paradigm shift, to put on a different set of glasses and take a good, long look at the whole issue of “Redemption” from a biblical perspective.
The thread that weaves its way through all the pages of the bible, is the subject of redemption; the redemption history of mankind and the world we live in. You cannot have a need for redemption without first suffering some sort of loss; things have “gone south”. In the first three chapters of the bible, in Genesis, we read about the wonderful creation, but we also discover “The Fall” and why we need redemption. The last three chapters of the bible, in the book of Revelation, we discover a wonderful re-creation and also the full redemption is achieved.
Maybe we should just pause and reflect for a moment on the amazing significance of the fact that the bible has such a clear beginning, end and a common thread that runs throughout. Firstly, let us remind ourselves that the bible is in fact a collection of books, 66 in all; written by 40 different authors over approximately 1,500 years. The authors come from a variety of backgrounds and geographic locations and yet these 66 books fit together seamlessly. The chances of this happening by accident are ridiculous and in fact it points only to the one sensible conclusion and that is that God Himself is behind it all.
The redemption the believer receives because of new birth and salvation goes so much further than just being rescued from the penalty, power and eventually the presence of sin. To begin to comprehend the magnitude of our redemption, we need to just spend a few moments to look at something that Lord introduced for His people Israel that reveals God’s total love and commitment. If we then apply this principle from mankind’s first fall as recoded in Genesis chapter 3 and look to see how it all ends in the last 3 chapters of Revelation, we will see unfolding before our eyes, how complete a redemption has been wrought for us. So, let’s now look at this principle and then, as it were, change our glasses and see the unfolding of history through a totally different and amazing lens that puts everything into amazing clarity and focus.
In the various laws in the first 5 books of our bible (the Pentateuch), we read about a person called the “kinsmen redeemer”. This person had to be a close relative. The role of the kinsmen redeemer was:
1. To redeem a relative who had sold himself into slavery.
(Leviticus 25:47-54)
2. To appear in a lawsuit as a helper for a relative.
(Proverbs 23:11, Jeremiah 50:34, Psalm 119:154)
3. To redeem property that was given up by a poor relative.
(Leviticus 25:25)
4. To avenge the blood of a murdered relative.
(Numbers 35:19, Deuteronomy 19:11-12)
A beautiful example of a kinsmen-redeemer at work can be seen in the book of Ruth. Here we see the story of two, penniless ladies. Naomi returns to her hometown, with her daughter-in-law, Ruth. Both of them having lost their husbands, which in those days meant they had to endure difficult times. Ruth goes to a field owned by a relative named Boaz. She picks some of the ‘leftovers’ from the harvest and is noticed by Boaz who becomes her kinsmen-redeemer. Naomi had been forced to sell her inherited land from her deceased husband, Elimelek. But Boaz agrees to buy this so that she can keep her inheritance. He also marries Naomi and together they have a child called Obed who became the grandfather of David, the forefather of Jesus.
Now, it wasn’t just a person who could become a kinsmen-redeemer. You see that all of Israel were brought up with the knowledge and understanding that, ultimately, it is God Himself who is the utmost kinsmen-redeemer. (Isaiah 63:16, Isaiah 47:4)
God redeemed His people out of slavery. (Exodus 6:6; 15:13. Isaiah 52:3; 9)
Israel had a deep understanding that God, their kinsmen-redeemer, would ultimately completely redeem His people and one day He would stand here on the earth. The wonderful lyrics from Handel’s Messiah sing out the incredible statement made by Job:
“I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth.” Job 19:25 (NIV).
It must also be said that in the Old Testament, the word for redemption didn’t always carry the idea of a “kinsmen-redeemer”; it could just literally mean ransom, rescue, deliver. (Psalm 111:9, Psalm 130:7, Exodus 34:20). But, when you consider the whole meaning of our English word redemption in the Hebrew language, it gives us a complete and all-encompassing meaning of true redemption.
So, bearing this definition in mind, let’s go back to the book of Genesis and take a look at the fall, at what happened to the human race and at the resulting circumstances that have put us all in need of redemption.
In my introduction, I mentioned my experience of seeing some of the women who had been sold into a life of slavery in Mumbai, India. Many of these girls had been lured into captivity by false promises and deception. Taken from parents and family, a long way from their homes. The villains behind it were the Mafia lords. In Genesis, we read how mankind was deceived and the villain was the serpent, the devil. When Eve (and also Adam, because he was there with her) was taken in by the deception and went on to disobey God, there were some terrible consequences:
1. They became slaves of sin and under the rule of Satan.
Mankind lost their innocence and no longer enjoyed fellowship with God (Genesis 3:7-13). They went from having close communion and access to God to be cast out as slaves. A sin nature has been transferred to every human being since then (Romans 5:12, Psalm 51-5). You only have to move onto chapter 4 of Genesis to see the very first murder (Cain & Abel). Mankind cannot help themselves; sinning is part of their nature. No matter how hard a person might try, they cannot obtain sinless perfection; they are slaves to sin and must suffer the consequences (Romans 6:23).
For whatever reason, maybe to show mankind what it is really like to not to choose to live under His authority, God has given the devil a degree of authority on this earth (Luke 4:6, John 14:30, 1 John 5:19, Ephesians 2:1-2, 2 Corinthians 4:4,). We can see from Job that Satan is under God’s authority because he had to get God’s permission before doing anything to harm Job (Job 1:12). We can also see that God has the ultimate authority over the devil because Jesus and the disciples were able to cast demons out and had full authority over them (Matthew 10:8, Luke 10:17).
Slavery is synonymous with hard work and ever since the fall, the earth has been under a curse and it must be by the sweat of his brow that man must work for a living (Genesis 3:17-19).
2. Mankind became lawbreakers and as such will be judged and punished.
The bible says “Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.” (1 John 3:4).
Adam & Eve disobeyed God and ever since, we continually break all of God’s laws.
If I go out today and drive my car over the speed limit and get caught, I know that I will get some sort of fine, a punishment, because I have broken the law. If I cannot pay the fine, because I do not have the means, I also become a debtor as well as a law breaker.
Well, we have all broken God’s law and because the fine that we now owe God is way too much for anyone to be able to pay, we are His debtors. We have now also become God’s enemies (Romans 5:10).
3. We have lost our inherited property.
We have been evicted, no longer able to live in a paradise that was created for us (Genesis 3:23).
Our physical bodies are meant to be temples; a building an edifice for the indwelling Spirit of God (1 Corinthians 6:19). Ever since the fall of mankind, our physical bodies are subject to decay and death when we lose our physical bodies which return to the dust from which they came from (Romans 8:22-24, Genesis 3:19).
4. Since the fall we are living under the sentence of death (Romans 5:18) Satan has been is in the business of stealing, killing and destroying us. (John 8:44)
Now, for the Good News! Jesus is our kinsmen redeemer; He is the one who can rescue, save us and fully redeem us. That is why we are able to sing “halleluiah, what a saviour!” and “Our redeemer lives!”
Firstly, let’s look at how exactly Jesus perfectly fulfils the role of our kinsmen redeemer.
1. To redeem a relative who had sold himself into slavery.
(Leviticus 25:47-54)
Jesus is the Son of Man. (Matthew 18:11). Jesus shared our humanity when being God he took on human form, was born and lived amongst us. (John 1:14). Jesus became the second Adam. (1 Corinthians 15:22,45).
Jesus has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:13-1)
Jesus sets us free! (John 8:36)
2. To appear in a lawsuit as a helper for a relative.
(Proverbs 23:11, Jeremiah 50:34, Psalm 119:154)
Romans 3:22-24 (Living Bible
But now God has shown us a different way to heaven, not by “being good enough” and trying to keep his laws, but by a new way (though not new, really, for the Scriptures told about it long ago). Now God says he will accept and acquit us – declare us “not guilty” if we trust Jesus Christ to take away our sins. And we all can be saved in this same way, by coming to Christ, no matter who we are or what we have been like. Yes, all have sinned, all fall short of God’s glorious ideal; yet now God declares us “not guilty” of offending him if we trust in Jesus Christ, who in his kindness freely takes away our sins.
Jesus redeemed us from the curse of the law. Galatians 3:13
3. To redeem property that was given up by a poor relative.
(Leviticus 25:25)
There are two meanings that I see in this.
Firstly, when I think of property, I think of a dwelling place such as a house on a given piece of land that the person has the right to live in. After the fall of Adam, mankind was literally evicted from heaven. However, through faith in what Jesus has done for us, our redeemer, we now have the promise of dwelling in heaven with Him. Not only that, but He is also preparing a place (mansions) for us. John 3:5 & John 14:1-4.
Secondly, our bodies are described as a temple which were meant to be a dwelling place for the Holy Spirit. Jesus made a way for those who believe to receive the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:38).
Also, to with our physical bodies, which house our souls and spirits, currently our bodies are subject to decay and death and one day will go back to dust from whence we came from. However, the redemption that Jesus provides for means that one day we will receive new immortal bodies! Our physical bodies will one day experience full redemption.
“And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.” Romans 8:23 (ESV)
4. To avenge the blood of a murdered relative.
(Numbers 35:19, Deuteronomy 19:11-12)
And finally, the kinsmen redeemer will reap vengeance.
This comes right back to the promise that God made, immediately after the fall of man to the serpent (Satan).
“…And I will put enmity between the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head and you will strike his heel.”
Satan, struck at the heel of Jesus by thinking that the crucifixion would be the end of Jesus and God’s plan. However, Jesus rose again and by his death and resurrection, broke the power of Satan and will one day bind and then cast Satan and all his angels into the lake of fire; thus avenging all the havoc that Satan has reeked onto humanity and God’s people. (Revelation 20:1-4, 7-10).
Finally, if all these four points were not enough to prove what a wonderful way to show how Jesus fulfils everything to be our kinsmen redeemer, let us go back to the story from the book of Ruth. In this story it is Boaz who is the kinsmen redeemer who tops it all off by marrying Ruth.
Well, Jesus evens fulfils this end of the story. For, all that believe in Jesus we are called “the bride of Christ” not only redeemed but betrothed and we eagerly await our coming bridegroom and consummation. Hopefully, I will see you all at the marriage supper of the lamb!
Postscript.
There are so many other references to Jesus being our redeemer, but I didn’t feel it was helpful for this isn’t meant to be an exhaustive article about redemption; rather it focuses purposefully on the theme of kinsmen redeemer.
Next up should be the subject of Adoption which is another amazing benefit of our salvation through Jesus.
