Wednesday, March 2, 2022

Redeemed from the Curse: Redeemed from Spiritual Death

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Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” Galatians 3:13 BSB 

 We've begun a series studying our Redemption from the Curse of the Law. We have seen just what this curse entails. The curse is threefold; poverty, sickness, and spiritual death. 

 We've seen that we have been redeemed from poverty and lack. God's great Love for us includes increase, provision, supply, and sufficiency. Tradition has forgotten that God is the Almighty, the All-Sufficient One. They have fought for so long to exclude any provision for this life from the Gospel presentation and benefits of salvation. 

 I acknowledge that there have been excesses surrounding prosperity. Sadly, it's our default setting as people to gravitate towards extremes on either side of truth. Brother Kenneth E. Hagin did a masterful job in his book The Midas Touch of addressing these excesses while still upholding Biblical truth concerning prosperity. 

 Balancing truth doesn't mean we look to opposite extremes. We don't balance Faith with unbelief, we don't balance healing with sickness, and we don't balance Grace with Law. In addressing prosperity and provision, we also don't create a new gospel, the "suffering gospel", where agony, anguish, and affliction bring better acceptance with God. A Gospel where trauma and tragedy are what prove our true devotion, our worth, our value, and our sincere commitment to God. That is a works gospel, our worth and value and acceptance come from Jesus' suffering not our own. 

 Redemption is the Good News. It's the glad tidings of all Jesus died for and arose to ensure we'd receive. Sure, there are excesses but don't throw the truth away because of error. Look at how David saw our Good God. Look at how Moses saw God. Look at Jesus in His earthly ministry. He fed the multitudes, He paid off debts through miraculous means, He brought financial increase to Peter through a boat sinking catch. God is a God of abundance, don't allow unbelieving believers to rob this aspect of redemption from you. 

 Let's look at the next aspect of Redemption. Jesus has redeemed us from spiritual death. What is spiritual death? Death in our minds means to cease to exist. That is man's definition of death, that is not God's. 

 Death in the Bible simply means separation. What about physical death then? When we don't understand man is a tri-part being we don't understand spiritual truths. When a person dies their spirit separates from the natural body. They don't cease to exist. They are still in existence in one of two places. If they rejected Grace they are in Hell. If they received Christ they are in Heaven.

 Let's see this curse in Scripture;

but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.” Genesis 2:17 MEV

 We know from Scripture that when Adam and Eve ate of the tree they continued living for many many years. Did God miss it? Was He mistaken? No, when they ate they tasted and partook of spiritual death. Mankind from that point on are born spiritually separated from God. 

 What people misunderstand about redemption is that they only see God forgiving our sins because of the Cross. Yet if all God did was forgive sins we'd still be lost and on our way to eternity in Hell. We needed to be regenerated. To be made a new creation. 

 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly I say to you, unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3 MEV

 Through God's great work of Redemption Christ paid the price whereby all can receive new life spiritually. Christ bought us back from death, separation, and the kingdom of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of light. The moment one simply believes, they are instantly given new life, a recreated spirit, forgiven forever, and placed in the Family of God, the kingdom of light never to be lost again.

 Because of the redemption from spiritual death, the believer in Christ shall never be separated from God. Religion teaches that when we sin or blow it we are out of fellowship with God. That somehow our sin has made us distant from our Heavenly Father. Thanks be to God that is an untruth, and this precious work of redemption ensures we will never be apart from God, no matter what. 

 If we are redeemed from something we never need to fear that something again. We are redeemed from spiritual death. Therefore we who have believed are secure forever. How can the redeemed partake of spiritual death again? To say we can be lost again after believing is to say this redemptive work was insufficient and faulty and didn't fully pay the price for all eternity. In Christ, we are forever secure because of this powerful and precious gift of redemption.

 In summation, rejoice we have a Good God who is bigger than our situation and circumstance. He is greater than anything we are facing and will always be there for us, He will never let us down. God has perfectly purchased our redemption because of His great Love and Grace. We are redeemed. We shall never be lost or separated from God again. He is with us always. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so! 

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net