One of Jesus’ purposes in descending to earth was to redeem His people. In Heaven, a new song of worship will be sung praising the Son of God’s sacrificial actions for His people.

Redemption is the act of gaining possession of something in exchange for payment of a debt. Jesus, God the Son, suffered the penalty of the sins of all mankind on the Cross so that those who believe in Him would be reunited with God the Father. Many describe this redemption as the Divine Exchange.

This is the gospel in its simplicity: Jesus takes everything that I am, just as I am, while I receive everything that He is. Jesus’ death in exchange for my life. Everyone must make a choice to either accept or reject Jesus as Savior. There is no middle ground – the middle ground belongs to the enemy.

For believers, reconciliation with God through Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection is our ultimate gift. But through Jesus’ redemption we gain so much more. Whenever believers reflect upon the gift of salvation, we should also reflect on the marvelous freedoms we have in Jesus.

Jesus’ redemption grants us freedom from the guilt, condemnation, and shame of our sin.

Jesus has seized our sin and taken it upon Himself. All sins – past, present, and future. We are made new creations on our day of salvation. God only sees the righteousness of Jesus in us. Once the Divine Exchange is made, it is an eternal security. Jesus will never repossess His gift of salvation, nor should we repossess the guilt and shame of sin for which Jesus has already suffered dearly.

Jesus’ redemption grants us freedom from seeking to earn God’s favor.

Jesus’ redemption, along with our faith in Him, is a gift of God. There is nothing we can do to earn God’s righteousness or forgiveness. Our salvation is not tied to our behavior, attitude, or compliance with religious rules or traditions. We surrender ourselves to Jesus just as we are and allow the Holy Spirit to transform us from the inside out.     

Jesus’ redemption grants us freedom from seeking approval and acceptance from people.

The gospel of Jesus breaks our addiction to people. When we drown ourselves in Jesus Christ our life, strength, and confidence will only be found in Him. Our hearts must be so full of Jesus that there is no room for anyone to take His place.

Jesus’ redemption grants us freedom from fear, worry, and anxiety. 

Grounding our lives in Jesus’ truths in His Word gives us the confidence to trust God’s will and control of our lives. We can surrender our desire to know all the details and possible outcome, because we trust God who is in control of our world.

Jesus’ redemption grants us freedom to forgive, love our enemies, and bless those who persecute us.

We don’t have to be the judge of those who hurt us, because we trust that God is fair, righteous, and loves us dearly. When faced with sins against us, we remember Jesus’ brutal suffering on the Cross for every sin ever committed so that all, even our enemies, might be saved. Our forgiveness and love just may be the light God will use to draw them nearer to Him.

Jesus’ redemption grants us freedom to fail and still know we are loved deeply.   

Our failure does not sever our relationship with God, nor does it rescind our salvation. God chose us from the beginning of eternity to be His, knowing our frailties and limitations.  Because of God’s great love for us, He can use all that we are and all that we aren’t for His glory.

Jesus’ redemption grants us freedom to live a life of hope and love.

Even though our world, our culture, our economy, and people change… our God doesn’t. We can have hope in Him even in the midst of chaos and crisis. This world is not our home, so our hope cannot be entangled in it. We live in the eternal hope of a life spent in Heaven, free of pain, sadness, chaos, and sin.

The Christmas season is a reminder of our most wonderful and ultimate gift from Heaven, Jesus Christ.  May our gifts to Jesus Christ this season be ones in which we represent Him well, giving Him our devotion, our time, our desire to know Him more through His Word, and our willingness to show His love and compassion to those who may never reciprocate it.

What does Jesus’ redemption mean for you? What freedom of redemption do you need to embrace and walk in this Christmas season? How can we pray for you as you reflect on God’s gift of redemption through Jesus Christ? 

Peace and grace to you,

Terria serves on the LGG encourager and social media teams. She lives in Virginia with her husband. She is a proud mother of two beautiful girls in college. Her passionate goal is to ignite and empower a generation of millennial women to grab hold of God’s truth and cling to it.  She can be tracked down hard at work in busy hospitals listening to patients’ stories, while sharing the lessons and love that God has poured out in her life. Despite the sometimes chaotic circumstances of Terria’s life, God always shows Himself strong and loving.

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You can find our God With Us Study Journal on Amazon here!

Angela Perritt

Angela Perritt is the founder and director of LoveGodGreatly.com, a nonprofit online Bible study ministry reaching thousands of women in over two hundred countries around the world with God’s Word through their translated Bible studies. She and her husband live in Dallas, Texas with their three daughters. Angela is passionate about God’s Word and believes one woman in God’s Word can change a family, community and ultimately a nation. Her greatest joy is to encourage her children and others to love God greatly with their lives one day at a time. You can connect with her on Instagram.