SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON 05 October 18, 2009

Who do you say that I am?
Redeemer/Savior
Theme Verse: "Who do you say that I am?" Matthew 16:15
Readings: Matthew 20:28, Romans 8: 1-4, Romans 3:23-26
Optional: Revelation 5:1-14
Memory Verse: "For I know that my Redeemer lives, and he shall stand at last upon the earth, and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God. I myself shall see him and not as a stranger."* Job 19:25-27 (Pre-K to grade 3)
      What do we mean by the words "redeem", "redemption", "ransom"?
      1. We have a "Redemption Center" down the street from the church. When you bought sodas, you had to pay a deposit on the bottle which you can redeem (get back) when you turn in the empty bottles.
      2. The pirates off the coast of East Africa keep capturing ships and holding them for ransom. In order to set the captive ships and people free and get them back the owners have to pay a huge ransom (millions of dollars) in order to ransom/redeem them.
      3. In the Old Testament your relatives were supposed to ransom/redeem/buy back a relative who had sold himself or family into slavery for debt or who had had to sell family land. In the story of Ruth, Naomi tells Ruth that Boaz was a "kinsman-redeemer". Later he bought back the land that Naomi was having to sell and married Ruth to maintain the family line.
      4. In the Old Testament, God says to the Exiles-"For the LORD will ransom Jacob and redeem them from the hands of those stronger than they." (Jeremiah 31:11)
      5. In Exodus 6:6 when the Israelites were still slaves in Egypt, God told Moses, "I will redeem you with an outstretched arm…I will take you as my own people." The story of the Exodus is history. It is also metaphor or picture of what God would do later in Jesus death and resurrection.
      6. A story from Dave Carlson: a boy made a wonderful, carved toy boat that he lost at the beach. He looked and looked but he couldn't find it. Several months later he was walking by a pawn shop and saw his boat in the window. He went in and told the owner, That's my boat! The owner of the pawn shop said, well maybe, but if you want it back you will have to buy it back--and he did. Think about it. God made us and we wandered away from him and got lost in sin, far away from God. God sent his Son, his own Word-made-man to earth to pay the ransom for us from the slavery of sin so we could be adopted as his sons and daughters.
      How is this related to last week's name for Jesus as the "Lamb of God"? In Matthew 20:28 Jesus tells his disciples, "the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many". Hebrews (7:27) says, "He (Jesus) sacrificed for their sins, once for all, when he offered himself."
      Why do we need redeeming??? Paul tells us in Romans 3:23-26, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified (set right) freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood." "Grace" is God's free mercy to those who don't deserve it- but it wasn't free for him! We are not able to ransom/rescue ourselves from sin--only God can do that--and he did it in Jesus by his death on the cross and resurrection. Because God is both just and holy he had to deal with sin. Because he is merciful and loved his rebellious creatures, he paid the ransom from sin and death himself in his Son Jesus. (Remember Jesus and his Father are one.) "God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16). God paid the ransom but we have to accept and choose it for it to be effective for us.
      We need redeeming/rescuing/saving because the human beings that God made "and it was good" but they rebelled against God in order to go their own way. The result is that the whole human race and world is infected with sin. We inherit both a damaged likeness to God and a fallen, sinful human nature. God knew this would happen so he had a plan to rescue and restore those who were willing to be rescued. Isaiah 53:6 says simply, "We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way, and the LORD (the I AM, the Father) has laid on him the iniquity of us all." Paul echoes this in Romans 3 that we just looked at.
      Paul in Romans 8(1-5, 14) talks about Christ "setting us free" from slavery to sin. Christ has "set me free from the law of sin and death." The Law showed people what was sinful but it couldn't set them free. God did in Christ what the Law could not do. God also set us free to live a life controlled by His Spirit. Then Paul talks about what we SET our minds on. Is it the desires of our sinful nature or do we "set our minds" of what the Spirit of God requires? Our choices matter. God gave us the freedom and ability to choose but when we keep choosing the wrong things it gets harder and harder to choose the right. That's why we need God's help.
      "Those who are led by the Spirit of God are the sons (children) of God" (vs.14) God wants to adopt us but we must choose to accept the ransom Jesus paid for by repenting (turning away) from our own way and asking for his free gift of salvation, and power, trusting and following him.
      Revelation 5:1-14 has some of the songs of joyous praise and thankfulness that those God has redeemed are singing to him and about him. Praise and thankfulness is the appropriate response to all that Jesus has done and what he will yet do when he comes next time--in glory. We see a glimpse of Jesus in heaven--on the throne, both as the Lion of Judah (King of Kings and the one who rules and judges) and the Lamb, who still bears the marks of his sacrifice for us. The Bible talks about "the honor DUE to his name"
      Have you accepted Jesus gift to you? He gave his life for you and me, have you taken your life back? How are you giving him thanks and showing gratitude to him? Let's reflect on the songs of praise they sing to him in Heaven and see what we can learn from them.

"'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) A word received: I have redeemed you by my blood shed for you on the cross. "Without shedding of blood there is no remission." (Hebrews 9:22b) I paid the price for your sins by my blood. There is no other price sufficient to cover your sins.

"'And have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth.'" (Revelation 5:10) A word received: I have called you to be a holy nation, a people I have marked out as my own, a royal priesthood, beloved by me.

"'Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honor and glory and blessing!'" (Revelation 5:12) A word received: Look to me for a model of righteousness; look to me for guidance in the storm. Look to me: I was slain and behold, I live.

"'Blessing and honor and glory and power be to him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever!'" (Revelation 5:13) A word received: Come to me, worship me. Join the throng around the throne who sing praises to my name.

Note* In Job 19:27 the word "another" can be translated "stranger".