July 4th.

When you hear that date, what comes to mind? We may think about fireworks and cookouts… ballgames and parades… In our country, July 4th is the day we celebrate our independence and the formation of this country. Did you know that July 4th is not only our country’s Independence Day?

In December 1941, the war reached the shores of the Philippines. Up until that time, the Philippines had been a close ally of ours. We were working to help them to be able to defend themselves. Before preparations were completed, the Japanese struck and destroyed many of our facilities. FDR ordered troops from there to Australia to regroup with a promise to redeem Philippine freedom. For three years, the Philippines were under Japanese rule.

General MacArthur returned with troops in October 1944 to make good on the promise made earlier. About a year later, Japan retreated from the Philippines, but the war had left the country in shambles. Assistance was brought in and on July 4, 1946, would become an independent country.^[1] http://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/july-4-1946-philippines-independence

As we hear this story from recent history, the beautiful picture of redemption is illustrated for us. It seems like a movie that someone would see where everything worked out in the end. We like those kinds of stories. The truth is that there was a lot of work that took place to make this story happen. There are also more gruesome details that go along with it.

This illustration brings us to the next identity marker of a Christ-follower that is found in Ephesians 1:7-10.

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he richly poured out on us with all wisdom and understanding. He made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he purposed in Christ as a plan for the right time – to bring everything together in Christ, both things in heaven and things on earth in him.

Ephesians 1:7-10 (CSB)

We are redeemed

The identity marker that we see from today’s Scripture is that we are redeemed.

Redemption is such a rich and precious topic. The word Paul uses in verse 7 (redemption) is a term that is associated with the release and freedom of a former slave. When this term was used in the first century – whether in the Bible or a secular sense – people had a picture of a freed slave in their minds.

We may not feel like slaves because we see ourselves walking around and having the freedom to make decisions on our own. We live in the land of the free. The Bible tells us though that we are certainly slaves to something.

Don’t you know that if you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of that one you obey – either of sin leading to death or of obedience leading to righteousness?

Romans 6:16 (CSB)

We are either a slave to our sin or a slave to righteousness through Jesus Christ. There is no neutral ground. As Paul writes about this redemption that we have when we trust in Christ, he shares with us three important factors of this redemption.

Redemption is through Jesus’ sacrifice

In verse 7, Paul says that we have redemption through His blood. This is talking about the sacrifice that Jesus made on our behalf when He went to the cross.

This rescuing that we needed to take place could not have come in just any manner. It had to be the holiest and perfect sacrifice. Hebrews 9:22 tells us that without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness for sin. Jesus gave that sacrifice. He was the only One who could have done so.

There are so many people trying to make their way to God. The main problem with that is the fact that we are broken and enslaved to our sin. This means that we cannot do it for ourselves. We will fall short every time.

But when any sinner trusts in Jesus’ perfect sacrifice, he or she has found what Jesus called the way.

Redemption brings forgiveness

The next phrase that Paul uses talks about what this redemption brought to us: forgiveness. It is not just any kind of forgiveness, but the forgiveness of our trespasses.

Trespass is a word used throughout the Bible to refer to our sin. We have seen signs that say, “NO TRESPASSING!” We get what trespassing means, don’t we? It is the deliberate stepping over a line.

While some of the sins in our lives are done without us recognizing them, many of the sins in our lives are our deliberate stepping over the line that God has drawn in the sand. We know that they are wrong and choose to participate anyway. It is those types of sins that often bring the most shame and guilt to our lives.

The beautiful thing that we see in the verses we are focusing on today is that the redemption that comes through Jesus brings forgiveness for the ways we have stepped over the line intentionally. This forgiveness doesn’t just deal with the wrong, but it also deals with the guilt and shame that come with it.

Redemption flows from God’s grace

As Paul shares in verses 7-8, this redemption flows from the riches of God’s grace. This redemption comes to us because God chose for it to. It was not because we did something right. It was completely because of His love for what He had created in mankind.

In verse 8, Paul shares that this gift of redemption flows from God’s grace with intention. He said that God pours it out on all who trust in Him “with all wisdom and understanding.” These are important phrases. “Wisdom” here refers to the capacity to understand and act wisely. God holds all true wisdom. He didn’t pour out His grace without first knowing how much it was needed and what it would do. God knew and intended for this grace to deliver us and change us into what He desires.

“Understanding” is a term that has the idea of being wise as a result of insight. It is almost repeating what is first mentioned through the term “wisdom.” Do you remember what I’ve said before about the Bible repeating something? It is like highlighting, underlining, bolding, and drawing arrows towards it. It is a literary device of emphasis.

God doesn’t want us to think that this was an after-thought. Before the foundations of the world, He knew that we would fall from Him. He knew that we would be hopeless unless He stepped in and did something on our behalf. He purposefully showed us grace by sending His one and only Son to bring redemption to those of us who were enslaved to our sin. Any person who turns from his or her sin and trusts in Jesus gets to experience the freedom of this redemption.

Mystery of His Will

Before we wrap up, I would like to talk about something that we see in verses 9-10. In these verses, Paul talks about the mystery of God’s will. Some of you may be thinking that God’s will is always a mystery to me. There are certain things in this life that we will never know. There is a part of some of us that don’t like that. We like to be “in the know” about everything. The truth is that there are some things that our minds cannot possibly fathom. We are finite beings with finite minds. When it comes to God’s will, we are talking about an infinite God and His will. We are not on that level.

In verse 9 though, Paul shares that He made known to us “the mystery of His will.” This is not talking about those things that we could never understand fully. This is talking about God’s plan of redemption. The saints of the Old Testament did not understand fully about Jesus. They never got to see or hear Him like those in the first century did. God’s full plan of redemption was a mystery to them, but it was revealed completely when Jesus came to earth as a man.

This redemption that comes through Christ is the work of God rescuing what was lost to sin. That includes you and me, but that also is about breaking all of the curses that sin brought that are recorded in Genesis 3. God is bringing everything together as it should be, and it is happening through Jesus.

Conclusion

Can you see the beauty of this thing we call redemption? This is one of the greatest identity markers of a Christ-follower. We have been redeemed! We have been rescued from the bondage of our sins and given a new life in Christ for all of eternity. God didn’t just throw it all away when it broke. He planned from the beginning to set a plan that would bring full restoration.

Can you sing with the saints throughout the ages, “Redeemed, how I long to proclaim it! Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb; Redeemed through His infinite mercy, His child, and forever I am!” If you’ve turned from your sin by faith to Jesus, this is our song! Let us not just sing it, but let us live in the truth of it each day!