Not only were we delivered, or saved, but God then transferred us, or moved us from there, to His glorious kingdom. Imagine a family whose modest 1,200 square foot house caught fire. For whatever reason, they were unable to get themselves out of there in time, and were doomed to die. But then, a brave firefighter moves in, finds them, and brings them out, setting them on the lawn away from the blaze.
Once the fire is out, the firefighters pack up and go, leaving the family outside on the lawn. That’s not the way it’s done, but even if it were, we would say the firefighters were wonderful for saving those lives.
But suppose they brought the family out of their little house and said, “Look, your home’s gone and can’t be rebuilt. But we have a beautiful 3,000 square foot home across town that’s just been built. It has all the latest appliances, technology, gizmos and gadgets that everybody wants. It’s bought and paid for, but just sitting there empty. We’ll take you there tonight so you can get cleaned up and get some rest. Sometime in the next few days we’ll meet with you to sign the papers so you can take full ownership.”
Well, that’s what God did for us! He not only delivered us, but He transferred us! He took us from the kingdom, where the wicked ruler kept us in a state where sinning was the easiest and best way. Because God let His son, Jesus, die on the cross for our sins, the debt of those sins has been paid. God can look us in the eye and say, “The damage has been taken care of, the bill’s paid in full, now come over here and live with me.”