Beloved friends, we greet you in the precious name of the Lord Jesus once again and give you an earnest welcome to spend a few minutes in meditation upon the precious and the eternal Word of God. Our present theme of study is the glory of the cross and the key words for this special theme have been taken from Galatians chapter six and verse fourteen Where the beloved Apostle Paul has written, God forbid that I should glory save only in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. We have already covered distinct blessings that are received by a sinner who places his and her faith in that great sacrifices of all the ages, the atoning death of the Son of God upon the cross. the forgiveness of sins. Second, the justification or the removing of condemnation that sin has brought. And in our preceding message, and today we touch upon the wonderful blessing of redemption or deliverance from the bondage of sin. This is our special study. Let me add a word of explanation at this point regarding these different aspects Our blessing which we receive through the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. All these aspects of blessing have been accomplished by the death and the work of Christ upon the cross. And they are very intimately connected with one another. You cannot have one without the other. And though we must not divide one from the other, they should be clearly distinguished from each other. Now we have considered two facts relative to the truth or that aspect of redemption or it could be called deliverance. First, we have seen the need for redemption. From the Word of God we have learned that all the human race has become slaves to sin and have been held down by the bondage and the tyranny of sin. My beloved friend, have you never felt the need? of being delivered or redeemed from the bondage, the tyranny, the burden of your sins? Did not Paul once write, and I quote his words, Romans seven and verse twenty-four, O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from this body of death? Beloved, do you happen to be that, wretched and miserable? For you well may be, if you're under the power and the authority, and you're a slave to sin. And we also have learned the meaning of redemption. It is to be delivered, to be liberated, to be set free, and to be rescued from sin's bondage, just as the children of Israel were delivered by God from Egyptian bondage and tyranny long ago. And it is only by and through the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ that a sinner can find his or her deliverance? The Lord Jesus Christ is the world's great redeemer, the world's great deliverer. Please let me quote a verse which the Apostle Paul wrote, proving that by his death upon the cross, Christ is the Redeemer. I quote from Galatians chapter three, verse thirteen, Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the Lord. being made a curse for us. For it is written, Cursed is everyone that hangeth upon a tree. Now, my beloved friend, was not the Lord Jesus nailed to that tree upon Calvary in order to save you and deliver you and to deliver me? Now let me bring a precious verse to your attention concerning that in Christ alone we find the work of redemption. and I quote from the word of God in Ephesians chapter one, verse seven, which declares that God's son himself is our Redeemer, as Paul refers to him as God's beloved. The apostle writes in Ephesians one and verse seven these words, in whom, that is in Christ, we have redemption by his blood, the forgiveness of sin, according to the riches of his grace, Now, will you please know, from this very verse very carefully as we consider it, there are four great facts that we can learn for our blessing in regard to redemption. First, let me suggest, the place of redemption, where is it? For if you are seeking redemption, if you are seeking deliverance from your great load of sin, where should you go? And seek it. Please note the verse very carefully. The place to find redemption or deliverance is a living, loving, blessed, glorious person. Tis not in the church. Tis not the preacher. Tis not the priest. It is Christ. In him we have redemption. Now my beloved friend, I challenge you. Have you ever come to Christ? God's well, beloved Son, may I beg with you, cease from looking in any other direction. If necessary, get down on your knees. Come to Him, and as you come to Him in sincerity with your heart, wherever you are, come to Him for your salvation and redemption and your deliverance from sin's power, from its penalty. Now consider next. within our text. Why is redemption in Christ? The next words tell us the power of redemption. It is through His blood. Redemption or deliverance by blood is like a red cord running through the Bible from Genesis right through to the end of the Bible, the book of the Revelation. From the Garden of Eden to the Garden of Paradise in heaven above. where even their saints shall sing to the Lamb of God, thou hast redeemed us to God by thy blood. And the theme of redemption by blood is within the pages of the Word of God from the beginning to the end. But may I raise the question now? Where did Christ shed his precious blood? Do you know? It was on the cross. That was the altar of sacrifice. And is it not, as we read in the word of God, that it is the blood of Jesus Christ, his Son, that cleanseth us from all sin? First John chapter one and verse seven. Were not the children of Israel in the land of Egypt delivered from death and from judgment when the angel of death passed over the whole land? Were they not delivered when the blood of the Pasha lamb was upon the doorpost of their homes and upon the lintel above? God said, when I see the blood, I will pass over you. The blood of Christ, my beloved friend, alone is your shelter for your soul and for mine. Have you placed by faith the blood of Christ over your soul before God? If you never have, do it now and be saved. Now we have a third fact in our text, the proof of redemption. It is given in the verse. What is the proof? Well, it's the forgiveness of sins. For when God forgives us our sins, we are redeemed. He has delivered us from the penalty, the burden, the curse of our sins. And He delivers us from the bondage of it, its authority and its power under Satan. Christ suffered death. Listen to these words as I quote them. They're taken from Hebrews chapter two, verse fourteen. Christ suffered death in order that through death he might destroy him that had the power or the authority of the death that is the devil, and deliver them, who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject of bondage. Hebrews chapter two, verse fourteen and fifteen. My beloved friend, I raise the question, if you're not saved, you need redemption. Are your sins forgiven? Are you delivered from the penalty of your sin and the power? Now consider the fourth fact in our text of Ephesians one in verse seven. There is not only the place of redemption in Christ, there is not only the power of it through his blood, there is not only the result and the proof of it, the forgiveness of sins, but all the plenitude, the free grace of God, The plentiousness of redemption is according to the riches, not the poverty, the riches, the overabundance of His grace. Now why does God do all this? Are we worthy? Absolutely not. It's all of grace. For we are saved by grace through faith, that not of yourselves it is the gift of God, not of works lest any man should boast. And me I say, God has enough grace to save and deliver through Christ the greatest sinner on the earth. Have you never read, I'm sure you may have even sung the words of the dear old hymn. Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now unfound, was blind, but now I see. Ah, beloved, let me say this. You may be vile. You may confess yourself, as one dear man came to me and said, I'm the most miserable man in this city. Well, I said, praise the Lord. I'm glad to meet you. For he knew the misery of sin, and he longed to be delivered. And you may be in that case. But oh, the joy of knowing the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ is so great. There's plenty of it. You may be the worst in the world. You may not be, but I tell you what, whether you are or whether you are not, you need the grace of God to save you. However, there is one more thought we'd like to mention about redemption. You find it in Romans eight, verses twenty-one through twenty-three. It concerns the future aspect of redemption, not the redemption of the soul, but it is called in verse twenty-three of Romans eight, the redemption of our body. Oh, my beloved, let me state, praise God, the completeness of redemption will take place when our Lord Jesus Christ shall come again, and he will change these bodies of the believer and give them a new body. For we look for the Savior to come, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will change our body of humiliation, that he may be fashioned like unto his own glorious body. Philippians three, verse twenty and twenty-one. Please let me say, my beloved friend, listen carefully. God's redemption will save you through Christ and his death on the cross from the penalty of sin, from the power of sin. And thank God it promises to deliver you from the presence of it. And there I said lovingly and earnestly, what a joy it's going to be when I get out of this world of sin and have a new body like unto his. Oh, my friend, can you sing, redeemed, how I love to proclaim it, redeemed by the blood of the land. Father, bless thy word and save some sinners. In Jesus' name, amen.