Christ the Redeemer is the grand theme of the Bible, with Jesus Christ being the ultimate Redeemer capable of accomplishing our redemption. The sermon traces this theme through Scripture, beginning with Jacob's first recorded mention of redemption in Genesis 48, Job's declaration of his living Redeemer in Job 19, and New Testament passages in Romans 3 and Ephesians 1. It explains that through the fall, humanity lost power, possessions, privilege, and position, which only an all-powerful Redeemer could restore. The sermon illustrates Christ as the Redeemer through Old Testament figures like Boaz, who prefigured Christ's kinsman-redeemer role, and highlights Christ's personal redemption of power, possession, privilege, and position as depicted in the Gospels. Ultimately, redemption involves being purchased, taken out of the market, and set free, with Christ's precious blood being the price paid, offering salvation and freedom from sin.
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Now, as we continue in our studies, Christ, the theme of all the Scriptures, our subject title for today is Christ the Redeemer. Redemption is the grand theme of the Bible. The Lord Jesus Christ is the great Redeemer with the ability to accomplish our redemption. Let me introduce our study by reading some verses from the word of God. Commencing in the book of Genesis chapter forty-eight, it's the picture of that old man, Jacob, lying in bed, and his son Joseph comes before him with his two boys.
And verse fifteen says, chapter forty-eight of the book of Genesis, verse fifteen, and he, that is Jacob, Blessed Joseph and said, God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long and to this day, the angel which redeemed me from all evil. Bless the lads. Let my name be named on them, the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac, and let them grow into a multitude. in the midst of the earth. Jacob then is the first person recorded in the Bible who spoke about being redeemed.
And his name is associated with this great truth in a number of places in the writings of the prophets. Now let me read a few other verses now from the book of Job chapter The Book of Job chapter nineteen, verse twenty-five. For I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. And though after my skin one's destroyed his body, yet in my flesh shall I see God, whom I shall see for myself, mine eyes shall behold none another, though my reins be consumed within me.
And so, with a great amount of faith, here is a man who can speak regarding the Redeemer. Now let us come over to the New Testament and read some verses there. Romans chapter three, verse twenty four, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Then when we turn to the Epistle to the Ephesians, chapter one and verse seven, it says, In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of His grace.
Now the reading of these Scriptures should be sufficient to impress upon all our hearts and minds that redemption is a great truth in the Holy Scriptures. I have been pointing out that when you examine the person of Christ throughout the Scriptures, we have Christ in prefigure in the historical books, Christ in pre-vision in the poetical books, Christ in prediction in the prophetical books. You have Christ in person when you come to the New Testament, and Christ in presentation when you come to the last book of the Bible.
Now with that in mind, let me remind you now, in studying the great truth of redemption and directing your thoughts to the Redeemer himself, we will understand the need for redemption if we realize what man lost through the fall and cannot restore by his own efforts. Of course. I take it that every listener today agrees with the fact that man is a fallen creature. If you don't, my friend, then you haven't studied the Bible correctly, and you haven't studied a human history.
It is obvious that man is a fallen creature. He is not what he originally was. He is not what God would like him to be, and he certainly is not what he could be. Through the fall, Adam lost power. You'll see, prior to the fall, Adam was in a place of dominion, that is, in a place where he could exercise power. But through the fall, he lost that place of dominion. He lost power. He also lost possessions.
Prior to the fall, Adam was in that delightful residence known as the Garden of Eden, the place that God prepared for him, the place where God placed him. But when he fell, he lost that possession and was turned out of the garden. He also lost a place of privilege. While he was in that place, it was a place of privilege, of dignified fellowship with God. God communed with him in the garden in the cool of the day.
But through his fall he lost that privilege. He ran, in fact, and hid himself from the very presence of God. He also lost his position Adam forfeited the position of sonship. Now, if he has lost power, possessions, privilege and position, only an all-powerful Redeemer could restore that which was lost, now it is perfectly true that mankind has been struggling, fighting, exercising himself all throughout human history in order to regain these things in some measure but each generation has failed man has tried everything he can possibly try but he cannot restore these things again I emphasize only an all-powerful Redeemer could restore that which was lost.
Now we have the Redeemer prefigured in the Old Testament in that historical book known as the Book of Ruth. There you find the Redeemer in prefigure under the name of a man called Boaz. He was the Kinsman Redeemer. When you come to the Scriptures I read to you from the book of Job, which is taken from one of the political books, there we have the Redeemer in Prevision. When you come to the prophecy of Isaiah, there you find the Redeemer in Prediction.
When you come to the New Testament, You have the Redeemer in person, and there is presented to us redemption in principle, that is, the principle of redemption, what is involved in it. Then we have the proclamation of redemption, as I read to you from Romans chapter three and also Ephesians chapter one. Then if we had continued, we could have read two verses from the first epistle of Peter, and there you would have learned something concerning the price of redemption. Now looking back again at the Old Testament, here we have the Redeemer in pre-figure.
First of all, we are introduced to this man called Boaz, who is the kinsman. Now because he was a kinsman, that gave him the right to redeem. According to the law of redemption, the redeemer must be a kinsman. That means he must be related to the one who is being redeemed. Now, if you care to take that thought and bring it over into the New Testament, then we'll learn something concerning Christ, our Redeemer.
Have you ever thought, by the way, speaking of Christ the Redeemer, the hymn-writer must have grasped something concerning Christ the Redeemer when he wrote, My Redeemer, oh, what beauties in that lovely name appear! None but Jesus in his glories shall the honour title wear? My Redeemer! My Redeemer, thou hast my salvation wrought. When in heaven I see thy glory, when before thy throne I bow, perfected I shall be like thee, fully thy redemption know.
My Redeemer, my Redeemer, then shall hear me shout his praise. The writer of these words at least had grasped the truth that Christ is our great redeemer, but he is prefigured by Boaz. Boaz had the right to redeem because he was a kinsman. Before the Lord Jesus Christ could be our redeemer, it was essential for him to leave the splendors of the glory and to veil his deity in humanity and become a man.
If he was going to redeem men who had sinned, then he must himself be a kinsman. He must come down and be found in passion as a man, and be a member of that race he was about to redeem. Just as Boaz could claim the right to redeem, because he was a kinsman of Ruth and a kinsman of of the man who had married Ruth and had died. It was his estate that Boaz was about to redeem, and redeeming the estate he had also to take Ruth to be his wife.
The Lord Jesus Christ came down. He didn't come down as an angel. He laid hold upon the seed of Abraham. He was found as a man. Who is he in yonder stall, at whose feet the shepherds fall? Tis the Lord, oh wondrous story, tis the Lord the King of glory. That's him, but he became a man. He was our kinsman, and gave him the right to redeem. But while a man may have the right to redeem, he must have the resources that are required.
and Boaz was a rich relative. Besides having the legal right, the Redeemer must also be in possession of sufficient resources to pay the price of redemption. Now Boaz had that, and the Lord Jesus Christ, he also was able to pay redemption's price. We'll find that when we come to look at Ephesians chapter one. But whether one has the right to redeem and the resources that are required, there's something else. He must have the resolve. And we see the resolve of the Redeemer, for Boas decided to legalize the matter.
Having the right and the resources, the Redeemer must also have this resolve to carry out the contract to a satisfactory conclusion. Bo has had that, and therefore he prefigures the Lord Jesus Christ. He also was our kinsman. No other could our place have taken. Highest of the high, though he, there on the cross despised, forsaken, was one of the Godhead, three. He became a man. He had the resources, and he also had the resolve.
Having loved His own, which were in the world, He loved them to the very uttermost. And so, since redemption was carried out by Boas, the kinsman redeemer, we also see that Christ, our kinsman, carried forth his resolve right to a satisfactory conclusion. When we turn to the poetical book of Job... In this section of the Bible it is the expression of faith by those who look forward to the completion of their redemption and seeing their Redeemer.
And this man expressed his faith like this. He says, I know that my Redeemer liveth. Now there's a lot of people in the world today who will accept the fact that there was a man called Jesus Christ, who died on a cross on Calvary. They'll admit that as a historical fact. They may even go further than that and admit that they believe the historical record that he was buried in Joseph's tomb. But when they're faced with this issue as, where is he today? Is he alive?
Or did his body crumble to dust? in Joseph's tomb. Look, here was a man who in pre-vision looked forward, and he said, I know that my Redeemer liveth. You see, when you come to the last book of the Bible, he declares this to John, I am he that liveth and became dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. He lives in the power of of an indissoluble life. And Job, in pre-vision says, I know that my Redeemer liveth. He is the confidence of faith, knowing that we have a living Redeemer.
But when we go back again and read in the Old Testament, in the book of the Psalms, chapter forty-nine, verse fifteen, God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave. Here is the comfort of faith. Now that links itself with a New Testament principle. Just as Christ has been raised again from the dead, so also they that are His at His coming. What a comfort this is to those that know the Redeemer, that even if the time comes when we've got to bid farewell to the things of this world, and we take the immortal flight into the regions of the great beyond, and the body is laid to rest in Mother Earth.
Here is the great comfort of faith. God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave. Yes, there will be a resurrection. We'll be taken home again to be forever with the Lord, the comfort of faith. But when we look at the book of Proverbs, Chapter twenty-three, verse eleven, there we read these words. Their Redeemer is mighty. He shall plead their cause. Here is the commitment of faith. You commit your whole cause into the hands of your Redeemer. So when we think of Job passing through all his trials and troubles, I know that my Redeemer liveth.
The psalmist said, God will redeem my soul. And then the writer of the Proverbs, who was Solomon, their redeemer is mighty. He shall plead their cause. When you turn to the other books called the prophetical books, you have the redeemer in prediction. In Isaiah chapter forty-four, verse twenty-four, thus saith the Lord, thy redeemer. Redeemer. Isaiah chapter fifty nine verse twenty. The Redeemer shall come to Zion. Isaiah sixty three verse four.
The year of my redeemed is come. So whether you look again at the historical books, the poetical books, or the prophetical books, Christ is presented to us in that form. in prefigure, in prevision, and in prediction as the Redeemer. Now when you turn to the New Testament, remember when the Son of God clothed His deity in humanity, this was God's answer to the problem of redemption. Not that redemption posed any problem to God, but it did set a non-answerable problem before sinful man.
Man was unable to restore that which had been lost through the fall. But our great redeemer has come, and the great redeemer has been able to restore that which was lost. In the Gospel, according to Matthew, he is presented as the sovereign king, and as such he redeems all power. For in resurrection power, he says, All power is given unto me in heaven and on earth. He redeems all power, that which Adam had lost. In the Gospel, according to Mark, he is the rightful heir, and he redeems the possession.
He is the heir of all things. They said, Here is the heir. Come, let us kill him and seize upon the inheritance. But no, it's his inheritance. He redeems the possession. It's his by right of creation to begin with, and it's his by right of redemption. He is the heir of all things. When you come to the Gospel according to Luke, and you read down through chapter twenty-four, the great chapter again of the resurrection, he is the kinsman, and he redeems the privilege. The privilege of being reconciled brought back into a true relationship with God the Father.
When you come to the Gospel according to John, he's presented as the eternal Son. He redeems the position and he gives to us the power to become or the right to become the sons of God. That which was lost by Adam has been restored by our great Redeemer. He redeems the power. He redeems the possession. He redeems the privilege. He redeems the position. He is the Redeemer. But now if you go down through the New Testament, you study a little of the principle of redemption. In the New Testament this redemption is set forth by the use of various words with varying meanings.
First of all, meaning to purchase in the market. If you were to read down through Romans chapter seven and you come to verse fourteen, you learn that the sinner has been sold under sin. He's in the slave market of sin. He needs to be redeemed. Now if we're sold under sin, we can become the subjects of redemption. We can be bought out of the slave market of sin. But it means more than to purchase in the market. There is a meaning which conveys this thought, to purchase and take out of the market.
That suggests sanctification of separation, setting forth the sanctification of the redeemed one. So we have been purchased, first of all, in the market. Then we have been brought out of the market. But a man may purchase a slave in the market. bring him out of that market but still retain him as a slave. But our Lord is no slave trader and is no slave owner. He has brought us into the sphere of perfect freedom. Redemption brings us from condemnation to freedom, from slavery to sonship, and constitutes us joint heirs.
So he has purchased us in the slave market, He has taken us out of the slave market, set us apart, and He has set us loose or set us free by paying the price. Christ, our Redeemer. When we look again at Romans chapter three, verse twenty four, and Ephesians one seven, the verses I read to you to begin with, we find there that the redemptive work of the Lord Jesus has satisfied every claim, every claim that the throne of God had made has been met.
This work originating with God and culminating in the justification of the believer finds its fruit in the grace of God, but is proclaimed as the message of the gospel which is the power of God unto salvation. Now it's in him we have redemption. Remember, there's no redemption in any other. There's no salvation in any other. Christ is the only Redeemer. Christ has paid redemption's price. When we come to Peter's first epistle, we learn this, that we have been redeemed, not with some corruptible things such as silver and gold, but with the precious blood of Christ.
There's the price of redemption. This plan was set by God. Without the shedding of blood, there could be no remission. The price was paid by Christ. The practical result is seen in the changed lives of the believers. Oh, my friend, no doubt, you've thought of that when you've heard people sing, redeemed how I love to proclaim it, redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, redeemed through His infinite mercy, His child and forever... I am, redeemed and so happy in Jesus. No language my rapture can tell. I know that the light of his presence with me doth continually dwell.