Redeem:
To save or to rescue

In a sense…redeem them, like Christ did with me.

The materials I use for things I create come from trash piles, old rotting away homes and barns, or others unwanted scraps.  In doing this I redeem them…save them…rescue them…from ultimately being completely destroyed in the incinerator at the dump.

This is a lot like what takes place in the life of the person who recognizes who they are in their sin.

Romans 3:23 says, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”  We all are…in our sin…old, broken, useless.  Apart from Jesus Christ, the Bible tells us that, “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.” (Isaiah 64:6)

Now let me introduce you to two of my favorite words in Scripture…”But God”

John 3:16 - “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

Jesus Christ died in our place when He was crucified on the cross. We deserved to be the ones placed on that cross to die because we are the ones who live sinful lives. But Christ took the punishment on Himself in our place—He substituted Himself for us and took what we rightly deserved. “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Ephesians 1:7 - “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace…” God, through Jesus Christ, in His love and mercy, and desire to redeem us for Himself, sent us His Son…to save us…rescue us from ultimately being destroyed in the incinerator of Hell.

In this awesome process of redemption, God saves us and He transforms us!

2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “…if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” God makes us something new, useful, and treasured

Romans 10:9-10 says, “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

As saved…rescued…redeemed people, we get to live in what Ephesians 2:10 says, “…We are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

If you would like to know more about how to be redeemed, more than making something for you, I’d love to grab a cup of coffee and talk to you about this Good News of Redemption. Call/text me at (757) 277-4379 or email me at jwalton0806@gmail.com.