Colossians 1.13-14
“He has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”
Despite the tragedy of the Fall, God had a plan to reclaim his creation, re-establish his kingdom, and restore life as he intended it. He sent Jesus into the broken world and into the midst of the broken people in order to redeem us from sin and restore the moral, functional, and relational dimensions of the Imago Dei that was lost at the Fall.
The great message of Jesus is that he came to redeem us from sin, reconcile us to God, and restore the image of God in us so that we can once again fulfill the Prime Directive to have dominion on planet earth in a manner worthy of the character and kingdom of God. Let me state it another way: Jesus came to restore in us the life that we lost at the Fall.
Jesus came to re-make us into the people that God created us to be in the first place. Jesus came to restore the image of God in us, and to re-establish his rule in us and through us so that we can once again fulfill our purpose as stewards and agents of God’s kingdom.
When we repent of our sin and receive forgiveness in Christ, we are regenerated. That means we are moved from a condition of death to a condition of new life. In Christ, we get back the life that was lost in Genesis 3. Through Jesus Christ life is brought back into focus.
“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” (John 5.24)
This means the new life in Christ is actually a lost life that is restored. Life was given at Creation; life was lost at the Fall; and life is restored through redemption in Christ. Indeed, the New Testament uses several words for “redemption,” and they all mean some form of “buying back.
Agorazo and exagorazo means “to buy, to buy out, especially of purchasing a slave with a view to freedom.”
“Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed (agorazo) people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.” (Revelation 5.9)
Lutroo means “to set free by paying a ransom, to rescue.” Another form of this verb in the New Testament (apolutrosis) means “to buy back that which was previously forfeited.”
“ … waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem (lutroo) us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.” (Titus 2.13-14)
Keep in mind the critical message here is that in Christ we not only receive the blessings of the kingdom, we also receive the responsibility of being stewards of the kingdom. Remember: salvation is essential, but it isn’t the goal. Salvation is the means by which we are reconciled and re-connected to God so that we can fulfill the purpose for which we were created: to be bearers of God’s image and agents of God’s kingdom on earth.
Trust God and fulfill the purpose for which he created and redeemed you.
