Reflect

Do you understand why you need a redeemer? 

Have you received Christ as your redeemer by faith?

The Truth

What I am about to say is definitely not popular. No one really wants to hear it. In fact, many people, including some who call themselves Christians, have completely thrown out this central Christian doctrine.

But I am going to tell you anyway because I believe it to be true, I care about the truth, and I care about you! I always tell my kids, “If we love someone, we tell them the truth. Even if it’s hard to say and even if it’s hard to hear.”

So, here it goes. You need a redeemer because you are a sinner. And so am I! In today’s verses, the apostle Paul made it clear that all of us have sinned and fall short of God’s holy standard. “None is righteous, no, not one.” (Romans 3:10). That’s bad news.

What We Deserve

Even worse news is that according to the law, we deserve the death sentence. Paul wrote in (Romans 6:23) that “the wages of sin is death.” Our sin has separated us from God and put us at odds with Him. We may think that we could work hard enough to make things right in His eyes or make it up to Him, but we can’t. If we put our faith in our good works, we are cursed (Galatians 3:10-11). We can’t perfectly keep God’s commandments and we can’t “make it up” once we’ve blown it. Without Christ, we are in bondage to sin and doomed to death. We are in eternal trouble, big time!

In the Bible, we see the concept of redemption over and over again. A redeemer is someone who is able to “buy back” or pay a ransom price for someone else. The Old Testament story of Ruth and Naomi gives us a good example of redemption. They were in trouble because they were destitute widows with no husbands left to protect or provide them. Additionally, Naomi’s late husband, Elimelech’s, family line was going to die out and his land wasn’t going to stay in the family inheritance.

Boaz is a kinsman-redeemer because he was family and he promised to “buy back” the land of Elimelech so that it would stay in the family. He also promised to marry Ruth, Elimelech’s daughter-in-law, providing financial security for the widows and providing the hope of a grandchild for Elimelech and Naomi to keep the line intact. Ruth and Naomi were set free from a life of poverty and the family name and estate were salvaged. Boaz stepped in with a plan to save the day!

The Good News

Now, we may not be physically destitute, but without Christ, we are spiritually bankrupt with no hope of digging ourselves out of trouble on our own. We need the Redeemer to pay our ransom and buy us back.

Here’s the good news! In Christ, “we have redemption and the forgiveness of sins” (Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 1:14). How did He accomplish this for us? Peter told us: “you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from our forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of lamb without blemish or spot” (1 Peter 1:18-19).

These verses confirm that we are redeemed, not with money, but with the blood of Christ. And receiving this redemption is a free gift of God that we accept in faith. We can’t work to earn it but we can repent of our sins and accept Christ’s work on the cross on our behalf. Like Boaz offered to pay the price that Naomi and Ruth could not pay, Jesus paid the price that we could not pay. If you haven’t accepted Christ as your Redeemer, what are you waiting for? He’s waiting to set you free!

Used with permission from Nat Crawford, Back to the Bible, Originally published June 23, 2023 by author: Shannon Lenz