I Was Redeemed
(Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:14)

Did Paul write the Ephesian epistle (letter) to believers or to unbelievers (see Ephesians 1:1)?  _____________________________________What did these people have according to Ephesians 1:7? __________________________________(just one word is sufficient). Was the Colossian Epistle also written to believers (see Colossians 1:2)? ___________ In verse 14, what is the one word that describes what these people had? __________________________ According to these verses (Eph. 1:7 and Col. 1:14), if you are a believer in Christ, then what do you have? _________________________ True or False:  _____________ Every believer has been redeemed.  Read Romans 3:24. Our redemption is ______ Christ Jesus. Likewise we read in 1 Corinthians 1:30, "But of him are ye ____ Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and_______________________."  In Christ we have redemption! Those who are outside of Christ do not have ________________________________ .

The Redemption of Israel (Exodus 14)

As we study the nation Israel we will see a picture of redemption that will help us to better understand our redemption in Christ. In Genesis 15:12-14 God told Abram (Abraham) that his seed (descendants) would be slaves in a foreign nation for how many years? ____________ In verse 14, did the Lord promise to deliver the people from this bondage? _______ Read Exodus 1:8-14. Did God’s Word (Genesis 15:13) come to pass? _______ Which nation made slaves of the children of Israel? _________________ [Note: "the children of Israel" means all the descendants of Jacob whose name was changed to "Israel". See Genesis 32:27-28.] Did the children of Israel enjoy this slavery (Exodus 1:14)? ___________ Did the LORD know about their situation (Exodus 2:23-25)? ______ Did the LORD promise to redeem them and deliver them from their cruel slavery? (Exodus 6:6) __________Did the LORD keep this promise? ___________(You can read about God’s great work of redemption and deliverance in Exodus 14--the crossing of the Red Sea!).

Read the following verses and answer the questions.

1. Deuteronomy 7:8. Who redeemed the nation Israel? _______________________ Did this redemption involve a mighty act of God?  _______ Were the children of Israel delivered from the Egyptian slavery? ________.
    
2. Deuteronomy 9:26. Who is the Great Redeemer? ________________ Did Israel’s redemption require a mighty act of God? __________ Do you think the children of Israel could have redeemed themselves? _________.
    
3. Deuteronomy 13:5. Who is the Mighty Redeemer? _____________________ Were the children of Israel set free from bondage?_________
    
4. Deuteronomy 15:15. Who redeemed Israel? __________________________What was it that the children of Israel were never to forget? ______________________________________________________________________.
    
5. Deuteronomy 24:18. What were the two things that the children of Israel were to remember? 1)________________________________________________ 2)________________________________________________
    
6. 2 Samuel 7:23-24. Who redeemed the nation Israel? _________________ From what nation was Israel redeemed?  ____________________ In verse 23 we learn that God redeemed Israel because He wanted them to be "a people to _______________________." Israel was no longer under the ownership of the Egyptians. Who was their new owner?_____________________
    
7. 1 Chronicles 17:21-22. Who is the Mighty Redeemer? ____________________ What nation did He redeem? ____________________ From what nation was Israel delivered? ____________________ Because Israel was redeemed they now belonged to ________________. For how long would they belong to this Person (v.22)? _________________________
    
8. Micah 6:4. From what land did the LORD redeem Israel? _____________________________ Did He rescue them from slavery? ______________________

In studying these 8 passages we have learned the following facts about Israel’s redemption:

FACT NUMBER 1--Israel’s Redeemer was ________________________________ .

FACT NUMBER 2--Before the children of Israel were redeemed they were________________ in the land of Egypt.

FACT NUMBER 3--Israel’s redemption involved a mighty ____________of God.

FACT NUMBER 4--After the children of Israel were redeemed, they forever belonged to ___________.

We will now discover that these same four facts are true concerning the believer’s redemption in Christ. These four facts may be classified as follows: 1) THE GREAT REDEEMER;   2) THE TERRIBLE SLAVERY;  3) THE MIGHTY ACT;    4) THE NEW OWNER.

The Redemption of the Believer (Ephesians 1:7)

1) The Great Redeemer

Who obtained eternal redemption for us (Hebrews 9:11-12)? _________________________ Who has redeemed us to God (Revelation 5:8—9)? _____________________ (Note: for the identity of "the Lamb" see 1 Peter 1:18-19).   Who has redeemed us from the curse of the law (Galatians 3:13)? ________________ Whom did God send forth to redeem us (Galatians 4: 4-5)? _______________________ Who is able to make us free (John 8:36)? _______________________________ Who gave Himself for us that He might redeem us from all iniquity (Titus 2:13-14)? ___________________________________________ THEREFORE, who is our GREAT REDEEMER? _______________________________________________

2) The Terrible Slavery

A true disciple of Christ must do what (John 8:31)?________________________________ What is it that makes a person free (John 8:32)? _____________________What is the truth 1) according to John 17:17?  _______________________________ 2) according to John 14:6? _________________________. In John 8:33, did the Jews think that they were slaves? ____________In verse 34 the Lord Jesus said that everyone who commits (does, practices) sin is the _____________________ (slave) of sin. Thus, these Jews who thought they were free were really slaves of ____________.Who is the only Person who can redeem us from the bondage of sin (verse 36)?____________________ According to Romans 6:17, before we were saved we were the_________________ (slaves) of _______________ .

In Galatians 3:13, what has Christ redeemed us from? ________________________________ The curse of the law is found in Galatians 3:10. Is it possible for a person who is a slave of sin to obey all things which are in the book of the law? ________  Is it possible for a person who is in the bondage of sin to keep the 10 commandments perfectly? _________ The holy demands of the law are as follows: "If you do all that the law says, then you will live! If you fail to obey all that the law says, then you will die!" Because we are slaves to sin it is impossible for us to keep the law perfectly and thus we are under the curse of death! And yet, we have a GREAT REDEEMER who took the curse of death upon Himself so that we might live (Galatians 3:13)!

3) The Mighty Act

Redemption requires a great and mighty act of God. This great work of God is described in 1 Peter 1:18-19. What were we redeemed with? ____________________________________________ In Ephesians 1:7 we learn that we have redemption through H______    B _______________.  In Revelation 5:9 we learn that Christ has redeemed us to God by His ____________________. The "blood" of Christ reminds us of the great sacrifice that took place on Calvary’s cross when the Lord Jesus died for the sins of the world (see John 1:29; 1 Timothy 2:6 and 1 John 2:2). We are redeemed from the slavery of sin because of the mighty work our Saviour accomplished on the cross! All of the animal sacrifices in the Old Testament were merely reminders that someday there would be the final and perfect sacrifice of the Lamb of God, our Lord Jesus Christ (read Hebrews 9:12-14 and 10:3-12). All of these animal sacrifices pointed to (and foreshadowed) the perfect sacrifice that would someday be made on Calvary’s cross. It was there that the mighty work of redemption took place as the Lord Jesus died for our sins! Christ paid for our redemption with His own precious blood.

4) The New Owner

In Revelation 5:9 we discover that Christ has redeemed us to _____________. Therefore we now belong to _________. In Titus 2:14 we learn that Christ has _______________________ us from all ________________________________ and has purified us unto _____________________, a peculiar people [Note: "peculiar people" should be translated "a people of His own."]   Read Romans 6:22. Now that we are redeemed, we have been made free from ____________ and we have become __________________ (slaves) to __________ . What a wonderful slavery! According to Hebrews 9:12, how long will our wonderful redemption last? _____________________ (compare 1 Chronicles 17:21-22--"forever").

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!

I think of my blessed Redeemer,
I think of Him all the day long;
I sing, for I cannot be silent!
His love is the theme of my song!

                             --Fanny J. Crosby

The following chart will compare the redemption of Israel with the redemption of the believer in Christ:

What does Redemption mean to ME?

1. I now belong to the Lord Jesus Christ! In 1 Corinthians 6:20 I discover that Christ owns me completely and totally because He _________________ me! Therefore, to whom does my money belong? ______________________________________ To whom do my possessions belong? (car, house, clothes, etc.)? ______________________________ To whom does my body belong? ____________________________ To whom does my time belong? ____________________________
    
2. Read 1 Corinthians 6:20. Because I am bought with a price (1 Peter 1:18-19) and because Christ has redeemed me unto Himself, what is my supreme duty? ____________________________________________________________________________
    
3. Because I am redeemed, I am now a love-slave of the Lord Jesus Christ! Read Jude 1. Jude calls himself the ________________ (slave) of ______________     ________________. [See also Titus 1:1; James 1:1 and 2 Peter 1:1. In each of these verses the word "servant" means "slave."]
   
   When you were redeemed you were SET FREE but you also became A SLAVE!  And what a wonderful SLAVERY this is!  I was bought by blood and now I’m bound by love! No man is totally free. A person is either a slave of sin or a slave of Christ! What kind of a slave would you rather be?___________________________________________ According to Ephesians 6:5 and Colossians 3:22, what is the number one responsibility of slaves to their masters? ________________________________(compare also 1 Peter 2:18). Who is your Master and Lord?_________________________________ What then is your responsibility towards Him? ___________________________________
    
4. Read Romans 6:22. Because I am redeemed I am ____________ from ___________. The moment we were saved we were freed from the power of sin in our lives. No longer do we need to be slaves to sin. We are now free to serve Christ and to live lives that are holy! Does this mean that the Christian is sinless (read 1 John 1:8-10)? ___________
   
   Here is an illustration: Before we were saved we were all in the prison-house (jail) of sin. There was no way to escape. The prison doors were locked shut! We lived in continual and constant sin! It was impossible for us to please God (see Romans 8:7-8 and Hebrews 11:6)! The moment we were saved the prison doors flew open! We were set free! Joyfully we passed through the jail doors into liberty! We could now live a life pleasing to Christ, having our fruit unto __________________________ and the end everlasting life (Romans 6:22). However, the prison doors remain open and it’s possible for us to walk back into jail! How foolish it is to walk back into bondage, especially in light of all that Christ has done to set us free! And yet, when we yield our members as instruments of _________________________ to SIN (Romans 6:13) we find ourselves right back in jail! The doors are still open and yet we have chosen to remain in the bondage of sin. And yet, we soon learn to_________________ our sins (1 John 1:9) and go through the jail doors into freedom once again. The mature believer is the person who spends most of his time out of jail! Someday the Lord Jesus will come again, and at that time our redemption will be complete. At that time the jail doors will be closed, never to be opened again! We will be on the outside of the prison and it will be impossible for us to return again to bondage. Not only will we be free from the power of sin, but we will be free from the very presence of sin in our lives!

When our redemption is completed, then we will be truly SINLESS--it will be impossible for us to sin! Here are some verses that tell us about this final and complete redemption: Luke 21:28; Ephesians 1:14 and 4:30; Romans 8:23.

The following hymn was written by Charles Wesley and well illustrates our redemption in Christ (being set free from the dungeon house of sin):

"Long my imprisoned spirit lay
fastbound in sin and nature’s night;
Thine eye diffused a quick’ning ray,
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free!
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee!

Amazing love! How can it be
That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me!"

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