Understanding Our True Identity in Jesus Christ
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I truly believe that most Christians do not know who they are in Jesus Christ.
The power of knowing who we are in Jesus Christ is so incredible that if we were to even so much as begin to have a revelation of this truth, it would completely alter how we view God, how we view our relationship with God, and how we live our daily lives.
Gaining an understanding of our identity in Christ goes far beyond declaring that we are a child of God.
Before we can gain an understanding of who we are in Christ, we must first realize who we were before Christ and why true salvation is so important for every human being on planet earth.
You see, it’s not enough to repeat a prayer with a preacher after a Sunday sermon.
It’s certainly not enough to simply raise your hand while everyone’s head is bowed and eyes are closed, to “invite Jesus in your heart”.
True salvation begins with a clear understanding of our own destitute state and inability to help ourselves at all.
Understanding Our True Identity in Jesus Christ
When we realize just how helpless we truly are to change our human condition, even one iota, and when we gain a revelation of what the word redemption really means, it forever alters how we live our Christian life.
As we wrap up our study in the book of Ruth this week with Good Morning Girls, we delve into what a Kinsman Redeemer is, and how Jesus is our Kinsman Redeemer.
This concept of redemption is seen all throughout the Bible, and in the New Testament we find three Greek words for redemption that will completely blow you away!
Are you ready?
1. Every human is worse than destitute
I think that most Western cultures have no concept of what this means.
We can all point to a quintessential “Rags to Riches” story; someone who was dirt poor and who, through hard work and dedication, altered his destiny.
But there is no Rags to Riches in Christianity. Not without Jesus Christ.
There is no one in all of history who has managed to change his eternal destiny through hard work and dedication.
And here’s why: There is no starting point from which we can change our eternal destiny. There is no ground floor.
As sinners, our starting point is a debt that we can’t possibly begin to pay back in our lifetime. Our hard work and dedication wouldn’t even begin to get us out of debt with God, much less alter our eternal destination!
Our only hope is for someone to come along and buy us out of our situation, because nothing else can possibly save us.
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2. Christ As Our Kinsman Redeemer
As we learned this week in our Ruth study, there were 6 requirements that a kinsman redeemer had to fulfill, and the first one was that he had to be a close blood relative.
“For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren,” Hebrews 2:11
In the New Testament we see several references to Jesus being our brother.
This truth doesn’t diminish His deity, nor does it enhance our human nature. There is still a distinct difference between Jesus (fully God and fully man) and us, who are fallen creatures in need of a Savior.
Jesus fulfilled this very important requirement for our redemption!
A redemption that required Him to willingly shed His own blood, as the only person who was completely without sin, in order to pay full price for the debt we owe to God.
This was the price of redemption.
Perfect blood.
3. Three Greek Words for Redemption
I want to start off by saying that I learned this from the blog Foundational, by Dr. Hackett (who is also my dad). He has a great post on this: 1 Powerful Way to Avoid Spiritual Apostasy.
Paul talked extensively about our redemption and the importance of our redemption.
There are three Greek words that translate as redeemed in the English language.
Lutroo means to be redeemed by paying the price or paying the ransom.
“Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.” Titus 2:14
Agorazoo means someone goes the market place to buy a slave (most often translated as “bought” or “buy”)
“And they sang a new song, saying: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain,
And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation'” Revelation 5:9
Exagorazoo is someone going to the slave market to buy a slave and that slave will never go back to slavery again.
“To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” Galatians 4:5
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Dr. Hackett powerfully illustrates in his post on spiritual apostasy in this quote below:
Jesus Christ, conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, came to the slave market, planet earth, and Lucifer’s kingdom. He came for one supreme purpose; “As many as believed on Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His Name.” (John 1:12).
In another article How to Live As a New Creation he boldly states:
Every born again child of God has been delivered from slavery and entered into the life of the redeemed. The blood of Jesus Christ has paid the ransom price for your freedom (Greek word: “lutroo”Titus 2:14). The ransom Jesus paid has purchased you from slavery (Greek word “exagorazo” Galations 3:13; 4:5).
When He brought you from the slave market to His home, He did not make you a slave in His household but an adopted son or daughter with the full privilege of inheritance.
This is our identity!
This is who we are!
We are more than just a child of God, we are a redeemed child of God with all the rights and privileges of our new heritage!
Not because we earned it or deserve it. Not because we were naturally born into it. But because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and the abundant grace of God!
We owe everything to Christ and His sacrifice for us.
Without Jesus Christ, we would have no hope in this life at all. Our future would be an eternity of torment in hell. There is no way we could ever alter our eternal condition or destination!
But Jesus came, He bought us out of the slave market of sin, and then He chose to make us an adopted son and daughter of His household!
So much more than we deserve!
But that is our God! That is His grace! That is His kindness and love to us!
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