Cross My Heart: Meditations for Holy Week Tuesday: Redemption

Reading: Romans 3:24-25

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”

There’s little more precious in life than freedom. Those who’ve endured enslaving power that trapped, threatened, violated, and sought to destroy them can never forget the moment of their liberation.

When my brother was in the Navy, he traveled through Belgium on a short break with a few friends. While walking through some woods, they were met by an elderly French-speaking woman who kept greeting them as Liberators, repeatedly calling out to them “Liberte!” and inviting them to her home so she could offer them lunch. She’d endured the savage Nazi occupation of her homeland and never forgot either the pain and loss she’d suffered or the joy of being freed from that terror. She also never forgot the men who paid the price to free her.

When the Bible talks about our liberation from the power of sin and death, our Exodus from the slavery of our fall into sin, and the bitter consequences that belong to us and the entire creation as a result, it describes it as our redemption. What does it mean to be redeemed?

At its core, "redemption" signifies a liberation from bondage or captivity through the payment of a price. In ancient times, this often referred to the act of buying back a relative's freedom from slavery. The biblical narrative expands this concept to a spiritual plane, presenting sin as an enslaving power from which humanity desperately needs deliverance.

The Redeemer-Kinsman

The Old Testament introduces the idea of a kinsman-redeemer through the law of Levirate marriage and in the story of Ruth and Boaz. This figure was responsible for protecting the interests of needy relatives, including buying back property that had been sold or marrying a widow to preserve her deceased husband's lineage (Leviticus 25:25, Ruth 4). The kinsman-redeemer thus becomes a powerful symbol of salvation and provision within the community. This was normally the special calling of the first-born son. He was to rescue his hostage siblings, even going to a far country to find them and bring them safely home.

Christ our Redeemer

Romans 3:24-25 brings this imagery into sharp focus, presenting Jesus Christ as the ultimate Redeemer who pays the highest price for our liberation from the slavery of sin: we “are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith." This passage encapsulates the essence of the gospel—redemption and justification are not achieved by human effort but gifts received by God's intervening, liberating grace secured by the sacrificial love of Jesus. He is the elder brother who comes to the distant country of our rebellion to rescue us, paying the price to liberate us and bring us home.

Redemption and Liberation from Slavery

Sin is an enslaving power. It isn’t simply what we’ve done or failed to do in violation of God’s Law, but a pervasive, enslaving spiritual force that holds humanity in its sway. Sin prevents us from living in the freedom for which we were created. This slavery is vividly seen in the helplessness and despair that sin engenders. But the narrative doesn't end there; it points to the hope of liberation through a Redeemer who pays the ransom to set us free.

The Price of Redemption

The price paid for our redemption is nothing less than the life of Jesus Himself, God's only Son. Unlike earthly redeemers who might pay with silver or gold, Christ's sacrifice involves the shedding of His blood—a testament to the profound love of God for His creation. This act of atonement is not merely a transaction, but an act of deliverance-creating warfare that opens the gates of darkness to recover us from hell. It is an invitation into a restored relationship with God, where sin's power is broken, and a new identity as God's children is granted us as members of his family.

Living in the Reality of Redemption

Understanding our redemption should fundamentally transform how we live. It calls us out of a life marked by sin and slavery and into a life of freedom and purpose. As recipients of this unmerited favor, we are motivated not by obligation but by gratitude to live in a way that honors our Redeemer. This includes pursuing holiness, seeking justice, and loving others with the same unconditional love we have received.

Redemption is accomplished once and for all by Christ on the cross, but it is perpetually applied to us through the power and grace of the Holy Spirit. Redemption isn’t just an historical event but an ongoing reality in the life of a believer. By the Spirit applying to us personally what Christ accomplished at the cross historically, we are continually being transformed into the likeness of Christ. This journey involves daily dying to sin and rising to new life in the power of the Spirit—a dynamic experience of learning to live in the good of what God says we already are - his beloved children.

The Call of the Redeemed

As those who have been purchased out of slavery, we are called to live as ambassadors of redemption, extending the hope and freedom we have found in Christ to others. Like the Belgian woman crying out in joy about her own liberation, we can shout for joy over Christ’s victory on our behalf. In that gratitutde, we can keep talling the story of freedom through the Gospel, and offer our lives as compelling evidence of the transformative power of the gospel, asking others to join us at the Feast of Redemption.

My friend, meditatae today on the great price paid by Christ to free us from the power, penalty, pollution, and - ultimately - the presene of sin. Considering him, our great Elder Brother who came to redeem us, can awaken in us yet deeper gratitude for the magnitude of God's love and the breadth of His grace. Through the Redeemer-Kinsman, Jesus Christ, we find not only liberation from sin but also our adoption into a family of God, the restoration of our true identity as God’s people, and the promise of eternal life. This is the glorious reality of redemption, a gift that calls us to respond with faith, love, and a lifelong pursuit of the One who has set us free.