Articles
Redeemed
We sing a song with this verse:
Redeemed—how I love to proclaim it!
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed through His infinite mercy,
His child, and forever, I am.
If something is redeemed it changes hands. It was in the possession of someone, but now it is in the possession of someone else. In the Old Testament, God’s people were in Egypt. It appears as though they are the possession of Pharaoh. And yet, they are redeemed.
In Exodus 6:6, God tells Moses, “Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment.’” Later in Exodus, and throughout Deuteronomy, the people will be referred to as God’s “possession” (Exodus 19:6; Deuteronomy 7:6; 14:2; 26:18). The word possession in these verses can also mean treasure. The people are God’s treasure. Put another way, God treasured His people.
God views the people as His treasured possession. Therefore, He redeems his treasure. He leads them out of Egypt. This Old Testament foundation is built upon in the New Testament. We, too, like the people of Israel, have been in captivity. We have been slaves to sin. Jesus’ death is a ransom intended to liberate us and set us free (Mark 10:45).
1 Peter 1:18 says that we were not redeemed with things like silver and gold. Rather, we were redeemed with something far more valuable—the precious blood of Christ. The letter of 1 Peter goes on to use language which echoes that which was used of Israel, making us realize that those who follow Jesus are now the people of God. We are “a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9).
Redeemed—how I love to proclaim it!
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed through His infinite mercy,
His child, and forever, I am.
