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This morning we're going to continue our study in the book of Blood Work. It's a book written by Anthony Carter and we've got this in the bookstore if you don't have it. We have been going through this now for the last 11 weeks and today we're going to be covering chapter 11 which is called Ransomed by the Blood. If you haven't read the book yet, I would encourage you to do so. It concisely addresses many facets of the gospel and salvation with a simplicity and a thoroughness that's easy for a new believer or even a young person to follow along. So I've really appreciated the way Mr. Carter has laid out the book and it's worth the read. So last week we saw where Pastor Fry helped us to understand the beautiful doctrine of election and how it was in love that God elected his people and for his own pleasure. Oh, that was Danny. Sorry, I thought that was Pastor Aaron. There is some overlap from chapter to chapter, and so some of the things I'm going to say maybe were said recently, but that's okay. We need to hear them often. So the outline for today, again, we're going to be looking at ransom by the blood, and we're going to be looking at the definition, what it means and its use. We're going to be looking at the need. Why the need for a ransom? And then number three, our response. How should we respond to being ransomed? If you would pray with me, ask the Lord's blessing on our time. Father, we come to you as children to a father. Recognizing God that it is through the blood of Jesus Christ. That enables us. To call you father. To come to you as sons and daughters. I pray Lord that. You would help us. To. Understand your word. God that the. information that's presented this morning, the teaching, that you would help it, Lord, to be understood, that you would help me to clearly communicate, God, that I'd be led by your spirit, and Father, that you would help the recipients, that you would cause it to penetrate to the heart, And. Do a work. I pray, Lord, that it would bear fruit in our lives and it would not be one more thing that we've heard or a new idea that we understand, but rather that all. Theology would promote a doxology. That it would change the way we live. And how we think. and climax, Lord, in joy in our relationship with you. I pray, Father, that you would be helping us each where we are as we're distant this morning, not by choice, but through your doing, Lord. And we pray that you would minister to your people where we are. It's in your son's name that I come to you. Amen. Okay, so again, ransom by the blood, that's what we're gonna be studying, and we'll start out with the definition, what it means and its use. I always like to start with a definition because the more and more I attempt to communicate with people, especially in theological ways, the more I find that words are assumed to be understood, but used differently. And so I think that it's very helpful for us to orient ourselves to the meaning of the words, especially when what we're learning centers around that word. And so this morning we're looking at this word ransom. So there's a few definitions here, and I've picked several. They're all from the same source, but there are nuances to the word, and I think that the nuances are beneficial to getting a fuller picture and appreciation of how this relates to us and the Lord. So the first one, this is from Webster's, I'm fond of the 1812 version and so here in his third definition here it says, in law a sum paid for the pardon of some great offense and the discharge of the offender or a fine paid in lieu of corporal punishment. In Scripture, the price paid for a forfeited life or for delivery or release from capital punishment. And we're going to see that both of these apply to us in particular. We have an example here in Exodus 21 30. Then he shall give for the ransom of his life whatever is laid upon him. That was in the noun form, and now we're looking at it in the verb form, to redeem from captivity or the possession of an enemy by paying a price deemed equivalent. And again, in scripture, to redeem from the bondage of sin and from the punishment to which sinners are subjected by the divine law. In Isaiah 35.10, the use of the word is there. The ransomed of the Lord shall return. And then again in Hosea 13, it means to rescue or to deliver. And that passage of scripture is, I shall ransom them from the power of Sheol. I shall ransom them. I shall redeem them from death. Oh, death, where are your plagues? Oh, Sheol, where is your sting? Compassion is hidden from my eyes. Now, from Vine's expository dictionary, we see the Greek meaning of the text, or of the word. I think the Latin translation is lutron. And if you read Greek, you can explain that to me. I have no idea how to pronounce that. But it literally means a loosing. And it occurs frequently in the Septuagint, where it is always used to signify equivalence. Thus it is used, of the word ransom, for a ransom for a life, such as in Exodus 21, verse 30, of the redemption price of a slave in Leviticus 19, 20, of land, you can ransom land, Leviticus 25, verse 24, and of the price of a captive in Isaiah 45, 13. Now depending on the prepositions that are associated with it, the word can take on some different nuances. The first one being vicarious. It can take on a vicarious nature, a substitution in the place of another, as in a vicarious sacrifice. We see that in Matthew 20, verse 28, and Mark 10, verse 45. They're both almost the same and they read, even as the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve. and to give his life as a ransom for many. And then we see it in a different way in 1 Timothy 2 verse 6. For there is one God and there is one mediator between God and men, the man, Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all. In this passage, it's being used with the nuance of on behalf of. It's being done on behalf of someone else. And these nuances seem slight, but they become important when you begin dealing with heresies and looking at, for example, there is a heresy out there that says that all people are saved whether they know it or not. that what Christ has done on the cross is applied to everyone because it said he died who gave himself a ransom for all. And so this verse is twisted there and the word all is applied indiscriminately. Whereas scripture is dogmatic about the fact that salvation is for those who have believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, which results in a changed life, repentance, and the bearing of good fruit. And so there is this heresy that exists and so these nuances become useful and very important in those conversations. So we've looked at the definition, what it means and its use. The second thing we're gonna look at is the need. Why the need for a ransom? Well, because we are slaves to sin, that's why. Throughout this book, the author has in nearly every chapter attempted to drive this point home. He's communicated this depravity that we deal with, that we are plagued with as a result of sin, and there's a reason for this. There's a reason for this constant, and we're gonna see this a little bit later in my lesson, how we're going to remember, but I have a painting in my home And it's based on an analogy from a brother, Paul Washer, and my wife painted it. She was very moved by this analogy, and she painted it, and it hangs at the forefront of our home. Every time we go through the hallway to the bedrooms, we pass it. We go to the bathrooms, we pass it. And this painting is a picture of stars. And the stars are contrasted, they're brilliant gold and yellows, and they're contrasted with a pitch black background. And then, as you move from the top to the bottom of the painting, you go in from space into the horizon, and it gets lighter and lighter, and as that gradient shifts, you no longer see those stars, but she painted them there. If you get really close to the painting, you can see them, but they're hard to see. And the idea behind the painting is that we most clearly see the beauty and the gravity of Christ's sacrifice and what God has done for us as it is contrasted with What we were and his wrath towards us as our bleak depravity is understood, the brilliant stars that are the mercies of God and the beauties of Christ, they begin to shine in a way that you could not otherwise see. My father-in-law is an astronomy, astronomer, and loves to look at the stars and send us pictures. And he made a trip eight hours west to the border of Mexico and Texas. I forget the name of the park right offhand. But he went out there because it's considered one of the best spots in the U.S. for looking at the stars because there's no light pollution. There's all these restrictions and regulations on being able to use headlights or flashlights. He said you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. but the stars, he said that he had never seen them so vivid and beautiful. And that's, again, what we're doing this morning, looking at, first off, that we're slaves to sin, and also for those who haven't been with us in each section. In chapter six of the London Baptist Confession of Faith, 1689, which is the confession that we use, It reads that, although God created man upright and perfect and gave him a righteous law, which had been unto life had he kept it, and threatened death upon the breach thereof, yet he did not long abide in this honor. Continuing in paragraph two, our first parents by this sin fell from their original righteousness and communion with God and we in them were by death came upon all, all becoming dead in sin. I want you to get this, and wholly defiled in all the faculties and parts of soul and body. Now, to some, if you've not heard that before, it may sound a bit exaggerated. Are we really wholly defiled in all the faculties and parts of soul and body? Yes, actually. This is an accurate summary of what the Scriptures teach. We consider this from Genesis 6-5. The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. It's in Genesis 6-5. And we don't see a change in the New Testament. In Titus 1 verse 15 it reads, to the pure all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure. But both their minds and their consciences are defiled." Talking there about the unbelieving, those who are not in Christ. Continuing in verse 16, they profess to know God but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work. It's a little shocking to think that we are detestable before God. And that becomes even more so as then we began to study of how he came to us while we were yet enemies and bestowed his love upon us. In the book of Romans chapter 6 we read that We were once slaves of sin. Romans 6 verse 17 through 18. But thanks be to God that you who were once slaves to sin. It's not that we sinned because we wanted to. We had no choice but sin. We did want to. We did pursue it and we loved it. but that was our nature. We sinned because we were sinners, not the other way around. As a tree bears fruit after its nature, so we sin after our nature. And if you are not a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, this is still your situation. You are still a slave to sin. You are still in that position. And this verse is particularly poignant in the study that we're doing which is on this word of ransom. We're talking about being ransomed and here we see that we were slaves of sin. That was one of our definitions that it was a ransom for a prisoner or rather a payment for a prisoner. The second reason that we need a ransom is because justice must be served. God can not simply forgive us or overlook our sin because we ask him to. A payment must be made. Now, before anyone accuses me of heresy, let's look at the scriptures and let me explain what I mean. Because God is just, he must punish the sinner. In Hebrews 9 verse 22 we see, All through the book of Leviticus we read about all sorts of purification practices and atonements for sin by the use of blood of different animals. Here in Leviticus 17 verse 11, for the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life. You see, God cannot simply ignore, overlook, or put away our sins. A payment must be paid because God is just. I had a conversation recently with an Iraqi man. He grew up in Baghdad and he later moved into Europe and now has a company there. He's a very generous man. He's very kind. He's a good leader and he's the owner of a large company. He has many employees under him. He's a powerful man. And I had the privilege of having dinner with him and having a conversation about the Lord and his thoughts on God and his relationship with the Lord. And I would label him a humanist. He's not a Christian. And it's interesting because he was raised with a Muslim culture, in a Muslim culture, and has been taught the things of Islam. But then he's been in Europe now for about 40 years. been in churches and relationships with Catholics and so he's got this mixture, this blend of things and this was his position here that God simply forgave you if you were sorry and It was we were going through this and I was I was laboring to explain to him, but but God is. Powerful and great and almighty and. And he began to tell me of his view of God's greatness. And I was actually very convicted hearing of his position and as he spoke of the grandeur of the Lord. And I said, but if you believe that, surely, surely a payment must be made to him. Surely we're guilty before them. What do you do with that? And he, He kept trying to talk around this issue, but kept pressing it home. Nothing has been done to absolve you with this great judge. How then are you free of the penalty of your sins? And he was unable to reply to that. And this is a common position, that if I simply ask God to forgive me, he will. But there is no forgiveness apart from the shedding of blood. In Hebrews 9, 23 through 28. Thus it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ has entered not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. But as it is, he, Christ, has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. In our natural state and prior to believing on the Lord Jesus, we are slaves to sin, but Christ came to set the captives free and has ransomed us with the payment of his own blood. 1 Peter 1, 18 through 19. picks up, knowing that you were ransomed from the feudal ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ. The author said this in his book, the blood of Christ was used for currency and it is the only kind traded in heaven. We were set free with the most precious currency of all, the blood of Christ. This is the hope that we have. This is the contrast to our depraved state that now we have hope. Now we have been ransomed in the Lord Christ. So we've looked at the definition, what it means and its use. We've looked at the need. Why the need for a ransom? And now, our response. How should we respond to being ransomed? Well, the author calls this blood-bought motivation for holy living. I like that phrase. A blood-bought motivation for holy living. Pursue holiness not out of a begrudging obligation. We don't come to church in an effort to attain something in our status with the Lord. But rather our motivation for holy living and worship and service is out of gratitude. Because of this ransom that was paid on our behalf. So, we're going to look at what we were ransomed from and what we're ransomed for. So, Romans 5 verses 9 and 10, we were ransomed from the wrath of God. That's what we were under. Romans 10, being an enemy of God. We were ransomed from the wages of sin, which is death, Romans 6.23. And we were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, 1 Peter 1, verses 18 and 19. And lastly, we were ransomed from the vanity of life. Philippians 3, verse 8, Paul says, Now, this word rubbish here is significant. It's not a word that we use much. It's interesting, I go to Europe and that's a word they use very frequently. You hear it referred to all the time, but you don't hear it often here in the U.S. In the Greek, this word, it literally means dung or sewage, refuse. And here Paul is saying, right after he's gone through and listed all of these things that he has or has attained, which are considered valuable in his culture and time, the prestige of his position, he now says, those things are his refuse. They're his sewage to me, they matter not. And this is consistent with what we see from the book of Ecclesiastes, where the author there says, vanity of vanities, all is vanity. What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun? And that is a good summation of our proceedings before Christ, we're chasing after vanity, trying to establish significance in things that cannot give us true significance or hope. This quote from the author, from the book, it says, in Christ we are ransomed from that futile, vain living that was ours from birth that had been accumulating ever since. Page 104. And so this is what we've been ransomed for, we just talked about what we were ransomed from, this is what we're ransomed for, 1 Peter 2, 9. But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. In 1 Peter 1, verses 14 through 16. Ephesians 2, verse 10. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Here we've seen that we were ransomed for being in his marvelous light. I love that the author used that word, marvelous light. It's a delightful word. that we were ransomed for holy conduct. We were ransomed for good works. We were not ransomed from death and wrath and sin merely that we could go and live however we pleased, continuing to indulge ourselves in the vanities of life or in the passivity of biding our time and doing nothing. We were called to something and we've been ransomed for something. And this is an application for us. How are we responding to the ransom that's been paid on our behalf? Well, we there was a. There was a recent experience that I had when I was traveling again. It was the same trip recently, right before the coronavirus. And I was in the Netherlands and I went out to a restaurant for dinners. A local merchant had recommended it. And it had been a long day of traveling and I was very tired and jet lagged. And so I had asked around and this merchant said, you know, you should go to this restaurant. It's a nice Italian restaurant, they've got good food, you'll like it. So I had gotten a couple of hours of sleep in the hotel room and then I walked almost a mile to this restaurant, because everyone walks in there. I sat down and the menu was in German and Dutch and Italian, but not English. So the waitress comes, and she's Italian and speaks German, Dutch, and Italian, but not English. So through a strained conversation, we navigate the menu here, and she said, you know, this particular pasta dish is our specialty, and you'll like it, and it's got a really nice sauce, and at least that's what I understood from the conversation. I said, okay, fine, you know, it's a little expensive. It's about 20, between 20 and $25, but okay, you know, that's what you recommend, and I don't know what else is on the menu, so fine. And so I ordered it, and I start, you know, I start to wait. And there's only one other table in the restaurant, and so I think, well, you know, surely it's not going to take too long, you know. And I wait. Wait and wait. 45 minutes pass and I ask the waitress, is it almost ready? She said, oh yes, yes, it's almost ready. By this time it's almost 9.30 at night. So I said, okay, about 15 more minutes and it arrives. She's got this big bowl and she sets it down and there's about a handful of spaghetti noodles in it. And I thought, maybe there's more, you know, that she is coming. She couldn't carry it all at one time. So I asked her, you know, is there more? No. This is it. Okay. Well, there's not much, but, you know, maybe it's the flavor's amazing. And so I started looking around, and there's nothing in it. You know, it's just wet noodles. And I'm, well, what is this? Well, this is the special sauce. Okay. So I start eating it, and it was as if they had kind of been rinsed. in a watery sauce, and it did taste, you know, okay, but again, it was, you know, a handful of noodles, and so I was pretty disappointed and hungry after I was done on my mile walk back. And I began to reflect on, you know, why am I frustrated about this experience? And as I thought about it, it wasn't that it was, a small amount of food or the taste of the food, it was that I had spent so much effort to get there, I had waited an hour for it and then I had spent $25 on it. You see, the price that was paid was disproportionate to what I had received. I think that this is helpful for us to really be considering the ransom that's been paid on our behalf. What is the price that's been paid for us? And what's the return that we're giving back? not in an effort to earn or to gain or to pay back. As Paul said in Romans, who is given a gift to the Lord that he should be repaid? None of us are, in a sense, giving back anything, but we are called to something and we are his possession. There's a passage that talks about us being his trophy of Christ. And so, is the payment that's been paid on your behalf commiserate with the return, the way that you are responding. It's out of this recognition of what God has done for us that we should be filled with delight to respond as the psalmist in chapter 119. The aim of that story was not to guilt you into doing something, but rather a sober reminder that something has been done, the greatest thing has been done on your behalf, in hopes that that would motivate you, that you would delight in the Lord. In Psalm 119, the psalmist says, in the way of your testimonies I delight, as much as in all riches. I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight in your statutes. I will not forget your word. Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it. In Romans 12, verses 1 and 2, I appeal to you therefore. Therefore what? What is it therefore? Because of the first 11 chapters where Paul has labored to explain to us what God has done through Christ on our behalf. Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to him, which is your spiritual worship. What acceptable sacrifice are you offering up? I'd like to close with this. Lamentations 3, verses 21 through 24. But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope. The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, says my soul. Therefore, I will hope in him. And that's my prayer for you this morning. As we've looked at the definition of what it means, of what ransom means, it is a price paid on behalf of another or to set free a prisoner or captive. We've looked at the need for the ransom because we were slaves to sin and justice must be met. And then thirdly, we looked at how we ought to respond, that we have been ransomed from something and to something. May the Lord bless you and keep you. Thank you, amen.