Wednesday, December 2, 2015

Keep CHRIST in Christmas:  chRist – Redemption for His People 

God had created mankind and as such we were His possession.   But then the first man and woman chose to disobey God and their disobedience caused separation between them and God – what we know as sin.   A perfect and holy God could not allow imperfection and sin in His presence and mankind, now in a state of sin, could not survive in God’s presence, much like a piece of wood does not survive in a fire – it’s consumed.   So God chose to send His Son Jesus to this world.   And with God being His Father, Jesus was born into this world without original sin (for more on this see Romans 5:6-21).  And unlike any of us, Jesus never sinned.   As such only Jesus was uniquely qualified to offer His life as payment not for His own sin, but for ours.  And by that He made it possible for God to Redeem  / Bring us back to Himself because the price of separation would be paid when Jesus gave up His life on the cross. 

When Zacharias was asked what the name of his son should be, he wrote on a tablet, “His name is John,” and immediately, after nine long months of silence, he was filled with the Holy Spirit and had a great deal to say.  He begins with this proclamation in Luke 1:68,

“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited us and accomplished redemption for His people,”


If you take the time to read the Romans 5 passage, you’ll find another word used that’s closely related to redemption – Reconciliation.   God made it possible for us to be reconciled to Him.

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