Redeemed and Reconciled

I was talking to a couple of ladies this morning about the relationship between Christmas and Easter. In the midst of this conversation two words came up - two of my favorite words - "redeemed" and "reconciled". 

 

We understand that Jesus came from heaven - that He was sent - to redeem all of humankind from the penelty of sin - that is death. We also understand that Jesus gave up His life on a Roman cross so that our sin debt would be paid. Furthermore, we understand that Jesus arose from the dead - that He arose from the tomb - so that we could be eternally reconciled with God our Father. 

This afternoon I was reminded of one of my favorite passages of Scripture - a passage I think of often around Easter but rarely around Christmas. And yet, without the gift of Jesus at Christmas we cannot celebrate the gift of Christ at Easter. 

Romans 5:6-11; You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Relational Break

I was reading in Genesis 3 this morning and I began to think of the effects of our sinful acts. Of course there are the effects of our sin that are far-reaching, but the immediate effect is a relational break.

Look at the immediate effect of Adam and Eve's sin (vs. 7-8);

Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden.

this is the first relational break that our sin brings about - a relational break between us and God. This break is a wedge that has been driven between God and mankind since the first sin and it still exists today.

Yet, God in His grace, invites us into His presence (vs. 9-11);

But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”

We are invited to draw close to God, however sin drives us further and further away from His presence. And still, even in the midst of our sin, God calls us back to Himself. In love and grace, God gives us the opportunity to confess our sin to Him and to be reconciled.

However, what we see is more evidence of the relational break that sin brings about (vs. 12);

The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”

This relational break, this distance that sin puts between us and God - this distance that sin puts between us and the ones we love - it does not have to exist.

God, in His infinite love and grace sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to pay our sin debt and we no longer have to bear the shame, the guilt, and the pain of our sinful actions.

In the garden God shed blood to cover the shame of Adam and Eve in the Garden (vs. 21);

The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.

In much the same way Christ Jesus shed His blood on the cross to cover the shame of all of mankind (Isaiah 53:5);

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.

Let us no longer be separated from God and one another. Christ has paid the price and made communion available to all.