REDEMPTION IS ALL ABOUT JESUS

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“If a fellow Hebrew, a man or a woman, sells himself to you and serves you six years, in the seventh year, you must let him go free. And when you release him, do not send him away empty-handed. Supply him liberally from your flock, your threshing floor, and your winepress. Give to him as the Lord your God has blessed you. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you. That is why I give you this command today.”

“But if your servant says to you, ‘I do not want to leave you,’ because he loves you and your family and is well off with you, then take an awl and push it through his ear lobe into the door, and he will become your servant for life. Do the same for your maidservant.”

“Do not consider it a hardship to set your servant free, because his service to you these six years has been worth twice as much as that of a hired hand. And the Lord your God will bless you in everything you do.”

Deuteronomy 15:12-18

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

As we saw in yesterday’s message from the opening verses of Deuteronomy, chapter 15, Moses gave the Israelites directives from God regarding the cancellation of debts at the end of every seven years (v.1). Those verses discussed debt relief in monetary terms but as we see in today’s scripture passage, the commands were expanded to include people as well. This is because people in biblical times would sell themselves to people they owed money to when they had no other means to pay.

The scriptures tell us that any Hebrew man or woman who sold themselves and served for six years was to be set free by the person they had been indebted to, not released empty-handed but rather supplied with things to meet their needs whether from the flock, threshing floor, and winepress. The Israelite slave owner was to give to the freed man or woman in accordance with the way the Lord had blessed them and not consider it a hardship for as they gave, they were to remember the enslavement of their ancestors in Egypt and the redemption God provided then, a redemption they were now expected to pay forward with their own servants. Additionally, God made sure his people were provided for before they began they journey to the Promised Land and indeed the Egyptians gave the Israelites a bounty when they departed. God didn’t leave His people empty-handed and He expected the Israelites to do the same to their brothers and sisters who had sold themselves into slavery.

You know, this matter of being released from slavery and redeemed is the central theme of this message, one we should keep at the center of our hearts and minds every single day. Here’s a scripture passage to support us as we do:

Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.” John 8:34

“Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?” Romans 6:16

“But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:22-23

"For He (God) has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” Colossians 1:13-14

“…all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:23-24

“…if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” John 8:36

Friends, the scriptures make it clear that true redemption comes from God through His Son Jesus. Salvation comes through belief in Him and Him alone and as Christians, we are required to proclaim this truth by our Savior. You will remember these words which we know as the Great Commission:

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20

Jesus makes it clear here that He walks alongside us and will do so until the “very end of the age” as we go out into a world where people are enslaved by sin, seeking to help them find their liberation through the One (Jesus) who can set them free. He has blessed us with this redemption and now we get to share this good news with others, something that should be a main priority every day of our lives.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.