WEBVTT 00:00:00.840 --> 00:00:07.160 All right, turn with me in your Bible to Ephesians, Ephesians chapter 1, page 976, if you're 00:00:07.160 --> 00:00:08.240 looking in one of the pew Bibles. 00:00:09.460 --> 00:00:13.359 And as you're turning there, just two brief announcements I forgot to say earlier that 00:00:13.359 --> 00:00:16.580 you could have put in the baskets, but I failed to mention this. 00:00:16.920 --> 00:00:21.160 If you're a woman, there's a women's event coming up in two weeks, and if you can RSVP, 00:00:21.219 --> 00:00:21.859 that would be great. 00:00:22.300 --> 00:00:28.580 And you can just fill out this insert in the bulletin and leave it at the front or leave 00:00:28.579 --> 00:00:31.039 at the end of your pew at the end, and we can collect those. 00:00:31.239 --> 00:00:37.099 And if you are looking for a place to serve and just help out in the church somehow, there's 00:00:37.099 --> 00:00:41.920 a list of some easy ways to plug in, and you can check one of those and put your name at 00:00:41.920 --> 00:00:43.960 the bottom, and we can follow up with you with more information. 00:00:44.140 --> 00:00:47.159 So if you've been coming here for a little while and you're thinking, man, I'd just like 00:00:47.159 --> 00:00:50.820 to do something, but I don't know what I can do, take a look at this list, see if there's 00:00:50.820 --> 00:00:55.560 something that you think fits you, and you can give it to myself at the end. 00:00:55.560 --> 00:01:02.020 All right, Ephesians 1, we are looking tonight at verses 7 to 10, but I'm going to read the 00:01:02.020 --> 00:01:04.420 whole paragraph, which is verse 3 to 10. 00:01:05.200 --> 00:01:06.359 So let's read together. 00:01:07.359 --> 00:01:13.240 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with 00:01:13.240 --> 00:01:19.680 every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation 00:01:19.680 --> 00:01:22.920 of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. 00:01:22.920 --> 00:01:28.540 In love, he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the 00:01:28.540 --> 00:01:33.540 purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the 00:01:33.540 --> 00:01:33.879 beloved. 00:01:34.700 --> 00:01:40.200 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according 00:01:40.200 --> 00:01:46.320 to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us in all wisdom and insight, making known 00:01:46.320 --> 00:01:51.799 to us the mystery of his will according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as 00:01:51.799 --> 00:01:58.420 a plan for the fullness of time to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things 00:01:58.420 --> 00:01:59.319 on earth. 00:02:00.539 --> 00:02:07.799 Well, I think many of us, perhaps all of us, want to be free in some way or other. 00:02:10.939 --> 00:02:12.439 What do we want to be free from? 00:02:12.439 --> 00:02:19.759 We want to be free from rejection, free from loneliness, free from meaninglessness, free 00:02:19.759 --> 00:02:23.759 from oppression, perhaps free from pain. 00:02:24.699 --> 00:02:27.340 There's a lot of things that we long to be free from. 00:02:27.419 --> 00:02:34.300 Maybe it's a job that you just hate, but it's the only way you can make your life work right 00:02:34.300 --> 00:02:39.880 now and you long for freedom from an oppressive boss and annoying co-workers. 00:02:41.260 --> 00:02:43.600 Maybe it's some other kind of freedom. 00:02:44.340 --> 00:02:48.939 Freedom from all the requirements that other people are piling on top of you. 00:02:49.600 --> 00:02:53.120 And just freedom to be able to do what you want and have some free time. 00:02:53.800 --> 00:02:57.680 We all want freedom in some way or other. 00:02:57.680 --> 00:03:02.240 And some of those kinds of freedom, when you get them, some of them are more lasting and 00:03:02.240 --> 00:03:03.500 satisfying than others. 00:03:04.159 --> 00:03:11.080 But these verses we're looking at tonight are really about the freedom that Jesus Christ 00:03:11.080 --> 00:03:17.260 offers to us and that if we have believed in him, the freedom that we have in him. 00:03:19.860 --> 00:03:26.300 Which, according to the Bible, is a kind of freedom that is more, it goes deeper than 00:03:26.300 --> 00:03:29.460 anything else and it's more lasting than any other kind of freedom. 00:03:29.980 --> 00:03:36.360 So we're looking at verse 7 to 10, but it's in the middle of this long paragraph that actually 00:03:36.360 --> 00:03:38.140 goes from verse 3 to verse 14. 00:03:38.280 --> 00:03:43.720 It's actually one long sentence in the Greek, which is what the New Testament was written 00:03:43.720 --> 00:03:44.040 in. 00:03:44.720 --> 00:03:52.280 And so it's sort of a whole long prayer of praise, right? 00:03:52.340 --> 00:03:54.680 It talks about, verse 3 tells us what it's talking about. 00:03:54.680 --> 00:03:59.740 It's how God the Father has blessed us in Jesus Christ with every spiritual blessing. 00:03:59.939 --> 00:04:04.540 And the whole paragraph is about all the spiritual blessings that we have in Jesus Christ. 00:04:07.099 --> 00:04:14.400 So tonight we're going to focus on the middle chunk, 7 through 10, which focuses on this word 00:04:14.400 --> 00:04:14.879 redemption. 00:04:15.920 --> 00:04:19.480 And that word redemption, we're going to dig into that. 00:04:19.480 --> 00:04:25.220 But that's basically a word that points to the freedom that we have in Jesus Christ. 00:04:25.620 --> 00:04:33.560 So tonight I want to look at four truths about redemption in Christ, the freedom we have in 00:04:33.560 --> 00:04:33.860 Christ. 00:04:34.460 --> 00:04:39.700 So, number one, redemption means we have been liberated. 00:04:39.699 --> 00:04:47.199 All right, now the word redemption or redeem, the most common meaning in the ancient world 00:04:47.199 --> 00:04:55.579 was when someone was delivered or released or set free from slavery or bonded or debt of 00:04:55.579 --> 00:04:56.300 some kind. 00:04:57.300 --> 00:05:00.800 So saying I'm redeemed means I'm free. 00:05:01.139 --> 00:05:05.019 I'm no longer enslaved to what I used to be enslaved to. 00:05:05.019 --> 00:05:10.680 Now, you might say, well, okay, well, what is this saying we're actually free from? 00:05:11.099 --> 00:05:12.139 That's an important question. 00:05:12.740 --> 00:05:17.919 And verse 7, we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses. 00:05:17.959 --> 00:05:21.099 So it's saying we're free from our trespasses. 00:05:21.219 --> 00:05:22.919 Now you think, well, what's a trespass, right? 00:05:23.099 --> 00:05:25.579 Most of us, we think of trespassing, right? 00:05:25.620 --> 00:05:30.419 There's a sign, you know, there's a sign on somebody's property that says, no trespassing, 00:05:30.539 --> 00:05:32.180 police take notice, right? 00:05:32.180 --> 00:05:37.540 So we think of trespassing as sort of crossing a boundary we shouldn't cross or going on somebody 00:05:37.540 --> 00:05:40.900 else's property and taking advantage of it when they don't want us there. 00:05:42.920 --> 00:05:47.579 But I think the bigger meaning, right, that's how we use trespass today in sort of a legal 00:05:47.579 --> 00:05:47.939 sense. 00:05:48.000 --> 00:05:54.180 But the bigger meaning of trespass is basically acting like we own what belongs to somebody 00:05:54.180 --> 00:05:54.680 else. 00:05:57.360 --> 00:06:00.840 Or deviating from the way of truth and righteousness. 00:06:00.839 --> 00:06:06.919 And the Bible says we have all trespassed against God. 00:06:07.000 --> 00:06:13.279 We've all gone off his way of truth and righteousness and crossed boundaries that we shouldn't cross 00:06:13.279 --> 00:06:20.339 and acted like we own things that actually belong to God alone. 00:06:20.439 --> 00:06:22.359 I mean, what happened in the Garden of Eden, right? 00:06:22.399 --> 00:06:26.899 What happened in the Garden of Eden sort of set the stage for the rest of human history, 00:06:27.120 --> 00:06:27.839 right? 00:06:27.839 --> 00:06:28.199 Right? 00:06:29.399 --> 00:06:30.779 What did Adam and Eve do in the beginning? 00:06:30.919 --> 00:06:32.459 Well, God set up a boundary. 00:06:32.599 --> 00:06:35.259 God gave them a great big garden, said, you eat any tree you want. 00:06:35.879 --> 00:06:38.779 Eat any of the fruit from any tree you want, except there's one boundary. 00:06:38.959 --> 00:06:41.859 There's this tree called the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 00:06:42.519 --> 00:06:44.919 And that's my tree, not your tree. 00:06:45.500 --> 00:06:49.899 It's the tree that reminds you that I'm the one who draws the boundaries between good and 00:06:49.899 --> 00:06:50.159 evil. 00:06:50.160 --> 00:06:53.180 And so they heard that. 00:06:53.880 --> 00:07:03.180 And then one day they follow the deception of the serpent and decided, no, we should be 00:07:03.180 --> 00:07:04.420 able to eat of this tree too. 00:07:05.400 --> 00:07:07.460 Why do we have to stay within God's boundaries? 00:07:07.459 --> 00:07:11.979 So they take it, right? 00:07:12.599 --> 00:07:17.500 They acted like they own the garden when in reality they were only the caretakers of it. 00:07:17.539 --> 00:07:18.560 They were the managers of it. 00:07:18.620 --> 00:07:21.560 They could benefit from all kinds of things within it. 00:07:22.419 --> 00:07:24.299 But they had forgotten who they were. 00:07:24.300 --> 00:07:33.240 They were acting like they had made themselves when God had made them, right? 00:07:33.300 --> 00:07:41.160 And don't we do the same thing, right, and follow in their path when we violate God's 00:07:41.160 --> 00:07:48.639 laws, when we indulge our lustful fantasies or our greedy desires, when we twist the truth 00:07:48.639 --> 00:07:52.660 and cover up our flaws instead of being open and truthful about them? 00:07:52.660 --> 00:07:58.180 Or when we put ourselves at the center of the universe and think that the world revolves 00:07:58.180 --> 00:07:58.840 around me? 00:07:59.380 --> 00:08:00.700 Of course, we wouldn't say that, right? 00:08:00.740 --> 00:08:02.700 That sounds really arrogant and egotistical to say that. 00:08:02.720 --> 00:08:04.540 But how much, how often do we act like that? 00:08:05.600 --> 00:08:05.960 Right? 00:08:06.000 --> 00:08:07.000 You get caught in traffic. 00:08:07.320 --> 00:08:09.240 I mean, road rage, right? 00:08:09.860 --> 00:08:13.720 When you get caught in traffic, isn't that a reminder that the world doesn't revolve around 00:08:13.720 --> 00:08:14.080 you? 00:08:15.260 --> 00:08:17.420 And what do most of us do when we get caught in traffic? 00:08:17.540 --> 00:08:18.320 We get mad. 00:08:19.500 --> 00:08:21.020 We get mad at those other drivers. 00:08:22.660 --> 00:08:24.620 Because they're hindering us from getting where we want to go. 00:08:26.420 --> 00:08:29.060 I mean, this is a very simple, you know, this is a trivial example. 00:08:29.340 --> 00:08:33.700 But, right, when somebody, or when you have to wait in a long line at the supermarket. 00:08:33.820 --> 00:08:36.759 If you go to Stop and Shop on Whaley Avenue, right? 00:08:37.820 --> 00:08:41.720 And you're waiting in line and there's only two registers open. 00:08:42.560 --> 00:08:44.980 And you're in the line with four people instead of six people. 00:08:44.980 --> 00:08:48.980 And then, whatever, somebody gets a price wrong. 00:08:49.180 --> 00:08:52.100 And the whole thing takes 20 minutes, right? 00:08:52.539 --> 00:09:00.960 Like, we easily get mad when something reminds us that the world doesn't revolve around us. 00:09:00.960 --> 00:09:04.960 Right? 00:09:06.180 --> 00:09:11.060 We have this sort of default or tendency to think of ourselves as the center of the universe instead of God. 00:09:11.120 --> 00:09:17.660 And the Bible says that is an attitude that results in trespassing, if you want to put it that way. 00:09:17.659 --> 00:09:22.279 And the Bible says our trespassing has consequences. 00:09:22.480 --> 00:09:22.879 We're guilty. 00:09:23.039 --> 00:09:24.139 We've broken God's law. 00:09:24.279 --> 00:09:26.360 We're no longer in right relationship with God. 00:09:26.459 --> 00:09:27.519 We're under his judgment. 00:09:29.039 --> 00:09:31.659 And we have a record stacked against us. 00:09:31.740 --> 00:09:37.480 But what this verse says is that in Jesus Christ, we have the forgiveness of our trespasses. 00:09:38.439 --> 00:09:41.199 That word forgiveness is a word that means release. 00:09:41.200 --> 00:09:48.920 It means sending it away or taking something away or removing things or letting go of things. 00:09:49.500 --> 00:09:50.060 Right? 00:09:50.100 --> 00:09:57.360 It means in Jesus Christ, our trespasses, every one of those ways that we have violated God's law, 00:09:57.540 --> 00:10:02.740 the guilt that we have accumulated throughout our whole life, and even in the future, 00:10:03.340 --> 00:10:05.180 has been taken away. 00:10:06.540 --> 00:10:08.640 And it doesn't stand against us anymore. 00:10:08.639 --> 00:10:11.659 That we have the forgiveness. 00:10:12.019 --> 00:10:17.500 Our trespasses can be sent away because Jesus Christ has taken them away. 00:10:17.799 --> 00:10:19.659 As far as the east is from the west. 00:10:21.240 --> 00:10:22.759 Our debt is paid in full. 00:10:22.860 --> 00:10:23.740 Our guilt is removed. 00:10:23.860 --> 00:10:25.360 Our condemnation is taken away. 00:10:27.039 --> 00:10:31.419 That's the kind of freedom the Bible says you can have in Jesus Christ. 00:10:32.559 --> 00:10:35.939 And if you've believed in him as your Lord and Savior, that's true. 00:10:36.139 --> 00:10:37.259 That's what he's done for you. 00:10:37.259 --> 00:10:39.779 He's taken away your trespasses. 00:10:42.919 --> 00:10:46.159 And that is a liberating message. 00:10:47.539 --> 00:10:57.200 John Stott told the story of a British psychiatrist who was the director of a large mental institution in the UK many years ago. 00:10:57.200 --> 00:11:04.860 And he said at one point, he said, I could release half my patients tomorrow if they could be assured of forgiveness. 00:11:06.200 --> 00:11:07.560 That they could be forgiven. 00:11:07.720 --> 00:11:10.660 That they were forgiven for all the things they had done. 00:11:11.960 --> 00:11:13.000 He said guilt. 00:11:14.920 --> 00:11:17.440 Man, I mean guilt can drive you crazy. 00:11:17.440 --> 00:11:19.640 It really can. 00:11:21.740 --> 00:11:28.180 And I'm not just talking about people who, you know, I'm not just talking about if you're diagnosed with a mental illness. 00:11:28.340 --> 00:11:31.040 But guilt can eat you up on the inside. 00:11:33.080 --> 00:11:35.860 You can be very functional on the outside. 00:11:35.860 --> 00:11:42.480 But having the weight of guilt and self-hatred and condemnation. 00:11:43.080 --> 00:11:44.700 I mean guilt can lead to despair. 00:11:45.639 --> 00:11:46.899 Self-sabotaging. 00:11:48.960 --> 00:11:49.460 Restlessness. 00:11:50.019 --> 00:11:50.700 Defensiveness. 00:11:51.039 --> 00:11:51.840 Blaming others. 00:11:51.840 --> 00:11:59.180 Don't all those things come often from a sense of unresolved guilt. 00:12:00.580 --> 00:12:05.320 But the Bible says in Jesus Christ, you can have freedom from that guilt. 00:12:06.600 --> 00:12:08.360 Your trespasses have been taken away. 00:12:09.080 --> 00:12:09.580 You're free. 00:12:11.600 --> 00:12:13.680 Paul said in Acts chapter 13, he says, 00:12:13.680 --> 00:12:18.700 Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus, the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. 00:12:18.700 --> 00:12:22.300 Through him, everyone who believes is set free from every sin. 00:12:23.100 --> 00:12:28.240 A justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses or anywhere else. 00:12:29.140 --> 00:12:32.960 See, every human being, every one of us needs forgiveness from God. 00:12:34.259 --> 00:12:35.900 None of us can obtain it on our own. 00:12:37.160 --> 00:12:40.080 But in Christ, there's forgiveness of sins and freedom from guilt. 00:12:41.759 --> 00:12:45.020 And Paul says we have this forgiveness of sins. 00:12:45.019 --> 00:12:49.860 If you read that verse 7, in him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses. 00:12:49.919 --> 00:12:53.039 He doesn't say you might have this later on. 00:12:55.000 --> 00:12:56.460 He says, no, you have it. 00:12:56.579 --> 00:12:57.519 You possess it. 00:12:57.699 --> 00:12:59.259 You can hold on to it. 00:12:59.539 --> 00:13:00.480 It's yours. 00:13:01.939 --> 00:13:03.360 Now, in the present, 00:13:04.960 --> 00:13:07.199 you can know that freedom. 00:13:07.500 --> 00:13:09.819 The freedom of forgiveness. 00:13:09.820 --> 00:13:12.480 So, that's the first point. 00:13:13.160 --> 00:13:15.980 Redemption means we're free because we're forgiven. 00:13:17.480 --> 00:13:18.760 Second point about redemption. 00:13:18.980 --> 00:13:22.220 Redemption means our freedom, our forgiveness, had a price. 00:13:24.100 --> 00:13:30.180 There's no such thing as redemption or forgiveness without any cost. 00:13:30.179 --> 00:13:41.519 You know, in the ancient world, if you were buying somebody out of slavery, you had to pay a ransom price to their owner to set them free. 00:13:43.259 --> 00:13:43.620 Right? 00:13:43.739 --> 00:13:45.479 Or, I mean, today, different example. 00:13:45.620 --> 00:13:52.739 But if somebody's arrested and thrown in jail, but they haven't been sentenced yet, what does the court usually do or the judge usually do? 00:13:52.779 --> 00:13:53.519 They set a bond. 00:13:53.519 --> 00:13:53.919 Okay? 00:13:55.620 --> 00:14:01.480 And if you want to bond the person out, you have to go to the clerk of the court or the bail bondsman. 00:14:02.720 --> 00:14:04.139 We won't deal with bail bondsman tonight. 00:14:04.620 --> 00:14:09.319 If you want to bond the person out, you've got to go to the clerk of the court and pay that bond. 00:14:09.659 --> 00:14:12.460 There's no way you can bond them out without presenting the money. 00:14:15.120 --> 00:14:15.519 All right? 00:14:15.559 --> 00:14:16.240 There's a price. 00:14:18.220 --> 00:14:20.779 Or, personal level, if somebody is in debt to you. 00:14:21.480 --> 00:14:21.840 Right? 00:14:21.840 --> 00:14:23.220 You loan somebody money. 00:14:23.440 --> 00:14:24.500 They said, I'll pay you back. 00:14:25.660 --> 00:14:31.420 If you cancel or forgive that debt, that means you lost that money. 00:14:31.820 --> 00:14:33.480 You're absorbing the cost. 00:14:34.560 --> 00:14:36.540 Or if somebody wrongs you. 00:14:37.440 --> 00:14:39.040 And I don't mean something trivial. 00:14:40.680 --> 00:14:45.100 But if somebody really does something that really hurts you. 00:14:46.240 --> 00:14:48.879 Maybe they harmed your reputation. 00:14:48.879 --> 00:14:55.600 Maybe they did something that was really offensive to you. 00:14:56.500 --> 00:15:00.080 And if they come to you and say, I'm really sorry. 00:15:03.279 --> 00:15:05.039 I want your forgiveness. 00:15:07.700 --> 00:15:11.559 You know, there's still a cost to extend forgiveness. 00:15:11.559 --> 00:15:15.839 And to accept someone's repentance. 00:15:16.059 --> 00:15:17.839 Someone's expression of sorrow. 00:15:17.839 --> 00:15:18.559 Because you know what? 00:15:18.679 --> 00:15:20.159 They still gossiped about you. 00:15:20.219 --> 00:15:22.059 And your reputation still got harmed. 00:15:22.299 --> 00:15:24.379 And they might not be able to fix all that. 00:15:27.619 --> 00:15:27.979 Right? 00:15:28.559 --> 00:15:30.939 Once the words come out of your mouth, words have come out of your mouth. 00:15:31.319 --> 00:15:32.439 And you can say you're sorry. 00:15:32.500 --> 00:15:34.019 But that doesn't take back the words. 00:15:34.019 --> 00:15:36.860 And so forgiveness always has a cost. 00:15:36.960 --> 00:15:38.399 Maybe it's a financial cost. 00:15:38.500 --> 00:15:39.059 Forgiving a debt. 00:15:39.120 --> 00:15:40.500 Maybe it's an emotional cost. 00:15:42.899 --> 00:15:45.439 Accepting someone who says, I'm sorry. 00:15:45.519 --> 00:15:46.179 I wronged you. 00:15:46.699 --> 00:15:47.480 Will you forgive me? 00:15:47.539 --> 00:15:49.100 Can we be reconciled? 00:15:50.199 --> 00:15:51.860 And saying yes to that has a cost. 00:15:52.319 --> 00:15:54.919 Forgiveness or redemption, it always has a cost. 00:15:54.919 --> 00:15:58.879 There's no situation where it has no cost. 00:16:01.159 --> 00:16:04.639 And the Bible says there was a cost to our redemption. 00:16:05.059 --> 00:16:05.879 Our forgiveness. 00:16:06.500 --> 00:16:10.199 It came through his blood. 00:16:11.639 --> 00:16:14.399 Through the blood of Jesus that he shed on the cross. 00:16:16.620 --> 00:16:20.039 Jesus took our sin in his own body. 00:16:20.539 --> 00:16:24.879 He received the judgment of death and condemnation that we deserve. 00:16:25.740 --> 00:16:28.599 He paid the price so that we could go free. 00:16:29.699 --> 00:16:31.039 So that we could be forgiven. 00:16:31.839 --> 00:16:34.159 He was forsaken so that we could be forgiven. 00:16:35.779 --> 00:16:39.399 Paul says in 1 Corinthians, you are bought with a price. 00:16:43.219 --> 00:16:44.240 That's the second point. 00:16:45.439 --> 00:16:45.759 All right? 00:16:45.759 --> 00:16:47.360 We're free because we're forgiven. 00:16:48.240 --> 00:16:49.740 But our freedom had a price. 00:16:50.719 --> 00:16:52.980 Third point, our freedom has a purpose. 00:16:52.980 --> 00:16:57.820 In 1 Corinthians, Paul says you were bought with a price. 00:16:59.039 --> 00:17:03.720 And then he goes on to say, therefore, glorify God in your body. 00:17:05.339 --> 00:17:05.500 Okay? 00:17:05.539 --> 00:17:09.519 Redemption doesn't just mean being caught loose and left alone. 00:17:09.519 --> 00:17:10.519 Okay? 00:17:11.519 --> 00:17:16.599 If you're redeemed, you now belong to the one who redeemed you. 00:17:17.740 --> 00:17:21.339 And you belong to that person not as a slave or as a hired worker. 00:17:22.180 --> 00:17:22.700 Right? 00:17:22.700 --> 00:17:26.440 Not in a relationship of mere obligation and authority. 00:17:27.319 --> 00:17:29.700 But you belong to them as a family member. 00:17:31.100 --> 00:17:34.380 You're bound to your redeemer in steadfast love. 00:17:34.940 --> 00:17:38.180 This is sort of the biblical picture of what redemption looks like. 00:17:38.180 --> 00:17:42.880 So, in the Old Testament, the word redemption was used for a variety of things. 00:17:42.920 --> 00:17:50.720 Not just buying someone out of slavery, but someone who personally intervened to rescue someone in trouble. 00:17:50.720 --> 00:17:59.220 And to sort of come alongside them and say, I'm not just going to give you a little help once or even twice. 00:17:59.440 --> 00:18:03.380 But I'm going to sort of link myself to you. 00:18:03.779 --> 00:18:06.680 And I'm going to say, your problem is going to become my problem. 00:18:07.680 --> 00:18:09.700 And I'm going to walk with you through this. 00:18:10.700 --> 00:18:12.539 And I'm going to be with you. 00:18:13.259 --> 00:18:14.500 And I'm going to... 00:18:14.500 --> 00:18:17.700 And if you're in trouble, I'm going to do all that I can to get you out of trouble. 00:18:18.880 --> 00:18:23.420 So, some examples of what redeemers did in the Old Testament. 00:18:24.579 --> 00:18:25.660 One description says this. 00:18:25.700 --> 00:18:28.359 A redeemer was a member of the clan who rescued someone. 00:18:28.500 --> 00:18:30.299 Another member who had fallen on hard times. 00:18:30.359 --> 00:18:32.180 So, a redeemer could restore property. 00:18:32.299 --> 00:18:35.420 They could buy back property that had been sold to pay a debt. 00:18:37.940 --> 00:18:44.160 That would have given someone an opportunity to sort of start up to work again. 00:18:44.500 --> 00:18:46.420 To have some land to cultivate. 00:18:47.240 --> 00:18:49.680 They could assist in a lawsuit. 00:18:49.960 --> 00:18:52.480 They could ensure that justice is served for a relative. 00:18:53.180 --> 00:18:55.359 As well as purchase a relative out of slavery. 00:18:56.079 --> 00:18:59.660 There's a variety of things and some other things that a redeemer would do. 00:19:00.460 --> 00:19:03.539 And that's a concept that you'll find in the Old Testament. 00:19:04.140 --> 00:19:06.279 You don't find it elsewhere in the ancient world. 00:19:06.279 --> 00:19:07.440 This idea of a redeemer. 00:19:08.079 --> 00:19:10.079 Someone who sort of personally steps in. 00:19:10.079 --> 00:19:14.599 And binds themselves to you in a sort of covenant love way. 00:19:15.419 --> 00:19:16.799 And rescues you from trouble. 00:19:17.000 --> 00:19:19.460 It's a uniquely biblical concept. 00:19:19.659 --> 00:19:23.359 It wasn't a concept that you can find in any other ancient societies. 00:19:23.359 --> 00:19:30.479 But again, the point of being a redeemer is that you aren't just saying, I'll give you a little help. 00:19:30.519 --> 00:19:31.579 But I'll keep my distance. 00:19:31.779 --> 00:19:34.159 You're saying, you're mine and I'm yours. 00:19:35.299 --> 00:19:35.779 And I'm going to. 00:19:36.079 --> 00:19:40.899 And so, one example of this is Boaz. 00:19:41.899 --> 00:19:43.359 If you read the book of Ruth. 00:19:44.399 --> 00:19:46.379 Boaz is what was called a kinsman redeemer. 00:19:46.379 --> 00:19:47.779 He was a close relative. 00:19:48.039 --> 00:19:49.379 And he redeemed Ruth. 00:19:50.339 --> 00:19:50.439 Right? 00:19:50.440 --> 00:19:52.420 Which means, and what did they do? 00:19:52.480 --> 00:19:53.120 They got married. 00:19:54.299 --> 00:19:54.500 Right? 00:19:54.840 --> 00:19:58.240 So, Boaz entered into this close relationship with Ruth. 00:20:00.120 --> 00:20:04.759 And enabled her to be able to carry on her family line. 00:20:05.420 --> 00:20:07.980 But he gave himself to her in steadfast love. 00:20:08.820 --> 00:20:10.019 And so, this is the picture. 00:20:10.559 --> 00:20:10.759 Right? 00:20:10.820 --> 00:20:12.680 This is what God has done for us in Christ. 00:20:12.840 --> 00:20:18.740 He hasn't just, you know, when we think of freedom, sometimes we think, all right, I'm free from something else. 00:20:18.860 --> 00:20:20.380 And then I can do whatever I want. 00:20:20.440 --> 00:20:23.860 But that's not the kind of freedom Christ has given us. 00:20:23.920 --> 00:20:31.900 He's given us freedom from our trespasses so that we now belong to him and that he loves us and will never leave us. 00:20:33.360 --> 00:20:37.220 He says, I'll take you for my people and I will be your God. 00:20:38.120 --> 00:20:39.799 And we see this in these verses. 00:20:40.500 --> 00:20:40.680 Right? 00:20:41.240 --> 00:20:42.200 Verse 7 and 8. 00:20:42.200 --> 00:20:47.220 We have redemption, forgiveness, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us. 00:20:47.259 --> 00:20:50.100 That means God has given us more than we need. 00:20:50.740 --> 00:20:52.160 More than we would have expected. 00:20:52.920 --> 00:20:55.500 He's lavished his love and redemption on us. 00:20:55.539 --> 00:20:58.580 He's brought us in so that now we belong to him. 00:20:59.259 --> 00:21:00.460 We're part of his family. 00:21:00.460 --> 00:21:03.740 And he's never going to leave us or forsake us. 00:21:05.259 --> 00:21:08.279 So that's the purpose of our freedom, to belong to Jesus. 00:21:09.299 --> 00:21:11.160 We're free because we're forgiven. 00:21:11.440 --> 00:21:12.559 Our freedom had a price. 00:21:13.279 --> 00:21:15.620 The blood of Christ shed on the cross. 00:21:16.019 --> 00:21:19.299 Our freedom has a purpose so that we belong to him. 00:21:19.299 --> 00:21:24.440 And finally, fourth, our freedom will have a glorious future. 00:21:25.299 --> 00:21:28.779 Look at the second half of our passage, starting in the middle of verse 8. 00:21:31.799 --> 00:21:36.700 You know, the first half sort of focuses on our personal redemption and forgiveness. 00:21:36.899 --> 00:21:39.240 The second half widens out. 00:21:39.720 --> 00:21:43.639 He says, in all wisdom and insight, making known to us the mystery of his will, 00:21:43.740 --> 00:21:48.059 according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, 00:21:48.059 --> 00:21:50.359 to unite all things in him. 00:21:52.240 --> 00:21:52.759 Right? 00:21:52.819 --> 00:21:56.539 You have all these words about God's will, God's purpose, God's plan for the future, 00:21:56.740 --> 00:22:00.399 not just for us personally, individually, but for all things, 00:22:00.460 --> 00:22:02.720 things in heaven and things on earth. 00:22:04.599 --> 00:22:07.919 God's plan is to unite all things in Christ. 00:22:08.019 --> 00:22:12.919 Now, that word in verse 10 translated unite means to gather together 00:22:12.919 --> 00:22:16.940 under some unifying principle or person. 00:22:18.059 --> 00:22:20.960 Or to sum up under one head. 00:22:21.940 --> 00:22:25.000 There's one other place in the New Testament the same word is used. 00:22:25.119 --> 00:22:29.859 It's Romans 13, 9, where it says the law is summed up in one statement. 00:22:30.059 --> 00:22:31.419 Love your neighbor as yourself. 00:22:31.500 --> 00:22:33.940 In other words, all the principles in the law 00:22:33.940 --> 00:22:39.559 fit under this one unifying principle of love your neighbor as yourself. 00:22:39.740 --> 00:22:41.039 And all the specific laws, 00:22:41.720 --> 00:22:43.960 they're all just expressions of that general principle. 00:22:43.960 --> 00:22:44.880 Right? 00:22:44.960 --> 00:22:46.480 They're all under that head. 00:22:47.340 --> 00:22:50.880 And Paul's saying God's ultimate purpose is that all things, 00:22:50.960 --> 00:22:52.340 things in heaven and things on earth, 00:22:52.420 --> 00:22:56.840 be put in proper order under the headship of Jesus the Messiah. 00:22:56.839 --> 00:23:01.000 And God has set forth that purpose. 00:23:01.119 --> 00:23:05.059 He's publicly displayed that purpose by sending Jesus into the world, 00:23:05.139 --> 00:23:07.339 by redeeming us, forgiving our trespasses, 00:23:07.699 --> 00:23:09.659 making us his own people who belong to him. 00:23:10.019 --> 00:23:12.759 God is giving us a glimpse of what he intends to do 00:23:12.759 --> 00:23:15.500 for all of creation in the future. 00:23:15.500 --> 00:23:19.500 Now, this is something we look forward to, right? 00:23:19.519 --> 00:23:24.819 When we talk about all things being gathered together under Christ, 00:23:25.279 --> 00:23:28.240 the renewal of all things or the new heavens and the new earth, right? 00:23:28.259 --> 00:23:33.720 When God will renew his creation and everyone who belongs to Jesus, 00:23:34.240 --> 00:23:37.160 who believes in Jesus will be part of that. 00:23:39.460 --> 00:23:43.559 And, you know, this is something I think is hard for us to imagine, right? 00:23:43.559 --> 00:23:47.019 Because we can look back and we can talk about what Christ did 00:23:47.019 --> 00:23:48.879 in shedding his blood for us on the cross. 00:23:49.039 --> 00:23:50.299 And that's a great mystery. 00:23:51.139 --> 00:23:56.000 And it's profound and deep, but it's happened, right? 00:23:56.099 --> 00:23:58.139 And we can look back at it and think, wow. 00:23:59.579 --> 00:24:02.399 You know, in the Old Testament, when people are looking forward to the Messiah, 00:24:02.659 --> 00:24:04.039 they never could have expected, 00:24:04.859 --> 00:24:07.619 they never could have imagined exactly how it all turned out, 00:24:07.679 --> 00:24:08.619 but now we can see it. 00:24:08.619 --> 00:24:17.000 But now we're still looking forward to what God promises here in verse 9 and 10. 00:24:17.479 --> 00:24:24.559 His plan for the fullness of time to unite things in heaven and things on earth under Christ. 00:24:26.059 --> 00:24:27.779 Now, what does that look like, right? 00:24:27.799 --> 00:24:30.059 We haven't seen it yet, so it's hard for us to describe. 00:24:30.219 --> 00:24:31.279 It's hard for us to imagine. 00:24:31.279 --> 00:24:40.160 But I think we see some glimpses in Scripture of what this will be like, okay? 00:24:40.980 --> 00:24:43.460 So let me give a few examples. 00:24:44.920 --> 00:24:53.740 One, it's going to be, in some ways, a renewal of the life that Adam and Eve had in the Garden of Eden, right? 00:24:53.740 --> 00:24:56.279 If you look at Genesis 1 and 2, right? 00:24:56.380 --> 00:25:02.980 God rules over everything, and God put Adam and Eve in the Garden to rule over the world under him. 00:25:04.559 --> 00:25:12.480 And Psalm 8 says, you have placed all things under his feet, referring to humanity, right? 00:25:12.519 --> 00:25:18.220 And there was unity in the Garden, there was order, and everything was under the Lordship of God. 00:25:18.519 --> 00:25:20.099 But then what happened, right? 00:25:20.099 --> 00:25:24.699 After Adam and Eve trespassed against God's command, everything falls apart. 00:25:25.039 --> 00:25:27.379 So what do we see in the next chapters of Genesis, right? 00:25:27.439 --> 00:25:31.279 We see, first, we see their relationship with God is broken. 00:25:32.319 --> 00:25:34.500 And people hide from God in sin and shame. 00:25:35.599 --> 00:25:38.839 Then we see the relationship between husband and wife is broken down. 00:25:39.619 --> 00:25:40.519 Adam blames Eve. 00:25:40.980 --> 00:25:41.799 Eve blames the serpent. 00:25:42.240 --> 00:25:43.419 Neither of them take responsibility. 00:25:44.719 --> 00:25:48.439 Then we see the relationship between brothers in the same family that breaks down. 00:25:48.439 --> 00:25:49.480 Cain kills Abel. 00:25:50.099 --> 00:25:51.059 Out of envy. 00:25:52.500 --> 00:25:56.759 We see fruitful labor becomes painful toil, right? 00:25:56.819 --> 00:25:57.959 With thorns and thistles. 00:25:59.259 --> 00:26:01.779 Later on in the book of Genesis, we see the Tower of Babel. 00:26:01.859 --> 00:26:05.039 We see a whole city that's corrupted by pride and idolatry. 00:26:05.519 --> 00:26:09.299 And so what you see after the falls, you see everything breaking down. 00:26:11.399 --> 00:26:13.639 But then what do you see when Jesus Christ comes? 00:26:13.640 --> 00:26:18.160 You see God starting to put things back together again. 00:26:18.480 --> 00:26:20.140 The way they were meant to be. 00:26:21.820 --> 00:26:22.380 Right? 00:26:23.800 --> 00:26:27.440 Foundationally, putting, reconciling us with God. 00:26:27.440 --> 00:26:31.059 That's the foundation of it all. 00:26:31.059 --> 00:26:31.500 Right? 00:26:32.220 --> 00:26:34.340 That through Christ we can be reconciled with God. 00:26:35.160 --> 00:26:37.720 And forgiven and reconciled with Him. 00:26:38.920 --> 00:26:40.380 But then what do we also see, right? 00:26:40.519 --> 00:26:41.680 God doesn't stop there. 00:26:42.240 --> 00:26:43.180 He goes on. 00:26:43.900 --> 00:26:46.019 He reconciles people to each other. 00:26:47.940 --> 00:26:48.340 Right? 00:26:48.720 --> 00:26:51.539 And talks about, we'll get to this in chapter 2 in Ephesians. 00:26:51.539 --> 00:26:56.720 Talks about the Gentiles and the Jews who had been at enmity with each other. 00:26:56.879 --> 00:26:57.000 Right? 00:26:57.159 --> 00:26:59.579 Ethnic groups that had been at odds with each other. 00:26:59.680 --> 00:27:01.839 There was a lot of tensions between them. 00:27:02.200 --> 00:27:06.460 And Paul says, in the church, God is bringing people together. 00:27:06.759 --> 00:27:10.339 Gentiles and Jews under Jesus Christ to be reconciled in Him. 00:27:13.339 --> 00:27:14.259 What else do we see? 00:27:14.299 --> 00:27:18.319 We see God working to restore right relationships between men and women. 00:27:19.819 --> 00:27:20.259 Right? 00:27:20.259 --> 00:27:23.779 Just, I mean, that broke down pretty quick after the fall. 00:27:24.460 --> 00:27:31.079 But we see God is intentionally working to restore right relationships between men and women. 00:27:31.519 --> 00:27:41.119 And, I mean, the reality is every good Christian marriage is a witness to God reconciling people 00:27:41.119 --> 00:27:45.420 who are divided, naturally divided by sin. 00:27:45.940 --> 00:27:46.539 Right? 00:27:46.539 --> 00:27:47.539 And selfishness. 00:27:48.220 --> 00:27:52.759 And showing a little glimpse of what He's going to do with all creation in the future. 00:27:56.599 --> 00:27:57.000 Right? 00:27:57.059 --> 00:27:59.339 God, our work can be redeemed. 00:28:00.639 --> 00:28:00.799 Right? 00:28:00.859 --> 00:28:04.039 God says, I've prepared good works in advance for you to do. 00:28:04.879 --> 00:28:08.779 Not work in order to justify yourself and make a name for yourself. 00:28:08.779 --> 00:28:12.399 But I've prepared good works for you to do as my people. 00:28:15.299 --> 00:28:15.700 Right? 00:28:15.740 --> 00:28:22.220 So, all these things, God is putting back together what had fallen apart after the fall. 00:28:22.220 --> 00:28:27.740 And I think that's sort of what Paul's talking about when he talks about all things being united in Christ. 00:28:27.860 --> 00:28:29.299 Things in heaven and things on earth. 00:28:29.940 --> 00:28:34.819 Is God beginning to, is, is, is, this is what God is beginning to do. 00:28:35.440 --> 00:28:35.839 Right? 00:28:35.900 --> 00:28:39.019 This is what we are called to be as the church. 00:28:39.420 --> 00:28:39.819 Right? 00:28:39.900 --> 00:28:41.539 A sign of what God's going to do in the future. 00:28:41.539 --> 00:28:51.440 But he says, one day, all creation will be set free from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. 00:28:52.960 --> 00:28:54.299 Now, what does this mean for us? 00:28:54.299 --> 00:29:06.740 Well, it means that being redeemed, being a Christian, being forgiven, it doesn't just mean, okay, I'm forgiven. 00:29:06.879 --> 00:29:07.720 I prayed the prayer. 00:29:08.579 --> 00:29:09.899 I've been there, done that. 00:29:09.980 --> 00:29:10.579 Now I'm good. 00:29:10.859 --> 00:29:12.539 I know I'm going to heaven when I die. 00:29:12.960 --> 00:29:14.940 Now I'll live the rest of my life however I want. 00:29:15.159 --> 00:29:18.839 And, you know, maybe if I feel motivated, I'll try to obey. 00:29:19.819 --> 00:29:21.460 And, you know, serve God. 00:29:21.460 --> 00:29:30.460 But, you know, I've got my life insurance, I've got my eternal life insurance policy, and that's what redemption is. 00:29:30.519 --> 00:29:30.819 No. 00:29:32.220 --> 00:29:33.640 That's not what it is at all. 00:29:34.600 --> 00:29:39.779 Paul says redemption is the beginning of something that's going to continue into all eternity. 00:29:39.779 --> 00:29:50.100 When you're forgiven of your trespasses, it's the beginning of God making you part of all things being united under Christ. 00:29:51.460 --> 00:30:04.140 And he's showing, he's calling us to be a picture or a signpost of what God is going to do in the future when he makes new heavens and a new earth. 00:30:04.360 --> 00:30:04.860 Right? 00:30:04.940 --> 00:30:10.640 When all things will be gathered together under the authority and the lordship of Jesus Christ. 00:30:10.640 --> 00:30:16.060 And he wants our lives and our community to be a little picture of that. 00:30:17.300 --> 00:30:18.720 Of his redeeming work. 00:30:20.200 --> 00:30:22.259 So what does a redeemed life look like? 00:30:22.259 --> 00:30:31.319 Well, looks like our lives that maybe are often driven by fear and anxiety. 00:30:32.119 --> 00:30:33.879 Isn't that what drives a lot of our activity? 00:30:34.960 --> 00:30:38.960 Our lives being brought into peace and order under Jesus Christ. 00:30:39.000 --> 00:30:41.759 With him being present and abiding with us. 00:30:43.839 --> 00:30:45.259 It looks like our bodies. 00:30:45.259 --> 00:30:46.599 All right? 00:30:46.640 --> 00:30:48.599 What's the first part of creation you're called to rule over? 00:30:48.720 --> 00:30:50.279 Your very own physical body. 00:30:51.019 --> 00:30:51.200 Okay? 00:30:51.240 --> 00:30:54.119 That's what you're primarily responsible for offering to God. 00:30:54.700 --> 00:30:56.000 And ruling over rightly. 00:30:57.259 --> 00:30:57.640 All right? 00:30:57.879 --> 00:30:59.519 So redemption looks like our bodies. 00:30:59.519 --> 00:31:04.319 Instead of being ruled by selfish desires or our fickle passions. 00:31:05.000 --> 00:31:07.799 Being ruled by the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within us. 00:31:07.799 --> 00:31:11.940 When we say, I will not seek to indulge my fleshly passions. 00:31:11.940 --> 00:31:17.639 But I will seek to use my body as an offering of worship to God. 00:31:17.879 --> 00:31:19.740 And as a way I can bless other people. 00:31:20.980 --> 00:31:22.259 It looks like our possessions. 00:31:23.659 --> 00:31:23.819 Right? 00:31:23.819 --> 00:31:31.359 Don't we often look to gain our stuff as a means to bolster our image? 00:31:34.079 --> 00:31:37.779 And when we're redeemed by Jesus Christ, we start to use our possessions differently. 00:31:38.779 --> 00:31:46.159 We start to use our possessions as a means of showing hospitality or showing mercy to other people. 00:31:47.539 --> 00:31:48.579 Or relationships. 00:31:50.019 --> 00:31:50.200 Right? 00:31:50.200 --> 00:31:53.879 Don't we often struggle with relationships that are filled with conflict? 00:31:54.079 --> 00:31:55.139 Or even bitterness? 00:31:55.480 --> 00:31:56.259 Or unforgiveness? 00:31:56.500 --> 00:31:58.200 Or deception? 00:31:58.440 --> 00:31:58.919 Or hiding? 00:31:59.619 --> 00:32:00.319 Or pretending? 00:32:01.659 --> 00:32:06.859 And those relationships starting to be healed and made right through repentance and forgiveness. 00:32:06.859 --> 00:32:08.339 And speaking the truth in love. 00:32:08.659 --> 00:32:11.219 All those are little pictures of what redemption. 00:32:11.979 --> 00:32:13.959 That means the freedom we have in Christ. 00:32:15.359 --> 00:32:15.819 Right? 00:32:15.879 --> 00:32:19.339 Which is a signpost of the freedom that all creation will one day have. 00:32:19.339 --> 00:32:23.139 Being brought under the lordship of Christ. 00:32:24.139 --> 00:32:25.599 So that's the message we have tonight. 00:32:26.439 --> 00:32:27.839 In Christ, we're free. 00:32:28.199 --> 00:32:30.740 Because we're forgiven of our trespasses. 00:32:31.559 --> 00:32:36.119 The greatest, most lasting, deepest kind of freedom that you can ever have. 00:32:36.119 --> 00:32:38.259 Our freedom had a price. 00:32:39.039 --> 00:32:41.019 The blood of Jesus Christ, God's son. 00:32:41.099 --> 00:32:41.979 Our freedom has a purpose. 00:32:42.119 --> 00:32:43.559 We belong to him now and forever. 00:32:43.919 --> 00:32:45.000 And our freedom has a future. 00:32:46.439 --> 00:32:50.779 That it's a picture of what will happen when Jesus Christ comes. 00:32:50.779 --> 00:32:54.379 To judge the world and to renew his creation. 00:32:55.759 --> 00:32:58.920 And in the new heavens and new earth, all things will be under his authority. 00:33:00.559 --> 00:33:03.899 Let me close with a quote from an early Christian writer named Irenaeus. 00:33:05.660 --> 00:33:11.119 Who spent a lot of time reflecting on these ideas we've just talked about tonight. 00:33:11.220 --> 00:33:11.559 He says, 00:33:11.559 --> 00:33:17.579 Christ began afresh the long line of human beings and furnished us with salvation. 00:33:18.279 --> 00:33:24.000 So that what we had lost in Adam, namely to be according to the image and likeness of God, 00:33:24.079 --> 00:33:25.960 we might recover in Christ Jesus. 00:33:25.960 --> 00:33:28.879 He has therefore summed up all things. 00:33:29.419 --> 00:33:32.179 Waging war against our enemy, Satan. 00:33:32.339 --> 00:33:37.159 And crushing him who had at the beginning led us away captives in Adam. 00:33:37.160 --> 00:33:41.720 As our species went down to death through a vanquished man. 00:33:41.960 --> 00:33:45.480 So we may ascend to life again through a victorious one. 00:33:46.060 --> 00:33:49.120 And as through a man, through Adam, death was victorious against us. 00:33:49.180 --> 00:33:53.960 So again by a man, by Jesus Christ, we may be victorious even against death. 00:33:54.720 --> 00:33:55.279 Let's pray. 00:33:59.240 --> 00:34:04.320 Lord Jesus, we thank you for the redemption that you purchased for us. 00:34:04.319 --> 00:34:07.720 And that you apply to our lives by the power of the Holy Spirit. 00:34:08.440 --> 00:34:10.860 Lord, we pray that we would walk in this freedom. 00:34:11.000 --> 00:34:18.799 We pray that we would come to you and receive this freedom if we haven't yet done that. 00:34:19.559 --> 00:34:22.920 But we pray, Lord, for those of us who have received you. 00:34:23.779 --> 00:34:25.799 Received your death on the cross in our place. 00:34:26.559 --> 00:34:28.179 Lord, that we would walk in that freedom. 00:34:28.319 --> 00:34:31.980 That we would not walk in bondage when we really have been set free. 00:34:31.980 --> 00:34:38.480 That we would not act like we have shackles around our legs when you have broken them off of us. 00:34:38.599 --> 00:34:41.579 Lord, that we would walk in the freedom that you have purchased for us. 00:34:42.460 --> 00:34:48.699 And Lord, that we pray that our lives and our church would be, more and more, 00:34:48.800 --> 00:34:51.639 would be a signpost of what you are going to do in the future. 00:34:53.139 --> 00:34:56.139 To bring all things under the headship of Jesus Christ. 00:34:56.760 --> 00:34:58.820 Lord, may that be true for us. 00:34:58.820 --> 00:35:03.100 Lord, we need your Holy Spirit so that that would be a reality in our lives more and more. 00:35:04.000 --> 00:35:05.460 We pray these things in Jesus' name. 00:35:05.539 --> 00:35:05.720 Amen.