Sunday, June 6, 2010

Ephesians 1:7

In Him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace......

> In him - Remain; Stay; to abide; greek word meno
John uses meno frequently to describe the perseverence of believers in their relation to Christ, that is, to "remain" or "abide" in him (John 15:4-10, 16; 1John 2:6, 10).
> Redemption - Redeem; exagorazo
Jesus accomplished spiritual redemption for us through his death on the cross. Christ's purpose in entering the world at just the right time was to redeem those who were enslaved to sin and the curse of the law (Galatians 4:4-5). How did he do this? By suffering the death of a curse. In other words, the sinless, uncursed Christ suffered an accursed death (Deut 21:23) so that he could remove God's curse from us.
> Blood - Important element in covenant contexts. When Moses sprinkles blood on the Israelites, he declares, "This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you" (Exodus 24:8). During the Last Supper, Jesus uses this precise expression when describing the bread and wine as his body and blood (Matthew 26:28; Zechariah 9:11).
> Central to NT teaching on the sacraficial death of Christ is the fact that for the believer, it results in the following:
1. Justification - We have been justified by his blood (Rom 5:9).
2. Redemption - We have redemption through his blood (Eph 1:7).
3. Reconciliation - Making peace through his blood (Col 1:20).
4. Forgiveness - Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (Heb 9:22).
5. Holiness - Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood (Heb 13:12).
6. Purification - The blood of Jesus.....purifies us from all sin (1John 1:7).
7. Freedom from sin - To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood (Rev 1:5).
8. Bought and paid - Jesus purchased men for God by his blood (Rev 5:9).
> Grace - Charis; grace, favor
The acceptance of and goodness toward those who cannot earn or do not deserve such gain. The gospel of Jesus Christ can rightfully be called "the word of his grace" (Acts 14:3; 20:32). In the NT, God's grace manifests itself most clearly in the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ (Rom 3:24-26; Heb 2:9). Grace literally means the undeserved love and salvation God gives to each of us. The redemption of sinners through the blood sacrifice of Jesus is brought forth by God's grace, in that "while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Rom 5:8b).