Are you saved or are you redeemed?
Good morning. The question for today is, “Is there a difference between being saved and being redeemed? “ The answer is yes, and no. Let’s look at this for a bit. Being saved is one thing, most of us proclaim to be saved but being redeemed is something else, to an extent. Being redeemed is one who Father has personally touched and impacted their life. Let’s look at Luke 15:11-32 to get an idea of what redemption is.
Luke 15:11-32
“11Jesus continued: "There was a man who had two sons. 12The younger one said to his father, ’Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. 13"Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. 17"When he came to his senses, he said, ’How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.’ 20So he got up and went to his father. "But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. 21"The son said to him, ’Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22"But the father said to his servants, ’Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate. 25"Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27’Your brother has come,’ he replied, ’and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ 28"The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29But he answered his father, ’Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’ 31" ’My son,’ the father said, ’you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ " NIV
Question both were brothers one stayed with the father while one lived a life of sin. When the son came back they still had the same father so why did the father act the way he did? Both were his sons. The son who left and sinned was made aware of the sin he was in and when he seeked his father he was humbled at the state he was in and didn’t expect his father to forgive him. When his father did forgive him he redeemed him of his transgressions and welcomed him back into the family. This is the difference between being redeemed and being saved. Both sons were saved in that they were with the father although one left and became lost he was found again while the other didn’t stray from the teachings of his father and stayed on the path that was set out before him. He hadn’t done much in straying away from his father there for he needed not to be redeemed of much.
One way of looking at this is if one were to go out and commit very little sin in life I mean very little stuff like tell a white lie, or cheat a little on their taxes, or curse only when mad, these are all little sins in our mind that we don’t put in the same category as child molesters, rapist, murders, CEO’s of big companies, credit card collectors that call you at all hours of the night and so on. I mean in many our eyes many of the former can’t make it to heaven; their sin is to great to even be thought of as going to the same heaven as many of us. Am I ringing some bells yet? If you were one who sinned little then when you come to Jesus you will be forgiven of little, you will be forgiven but the one who has sinned much will be forgiven much and with greater effect, that is redemption. He has been to a much darker place and is thrust into a light that is overwhelming unlike many who have been raised in the church, been around the church all their life and just go along with the flow. They have heard about the light and seen it in others so they know what it is but one who has never been in it or around it, man that is something awesome.
Those that have been forgiven of much have been redeemed of much, usually they are the ones with the greatest testimony of how they came to know and live for Jesus. The Grace of God is felt with passion and vigor to warn / tell others about what the Lord has done in them. All of the early church was based on this testimony of others that spread the word of Jesus and today that is what we are to do. The testimony He has given us is to be used by each and every one of us to go out and tell the world what God, Father, Abba has done in your life so that others may hear and believe.
Being redeemed and being saved, many get these two confused. If you are saved then you become a new creature in Christ, you are born again into a sinless creature born out of the Spirit of God, you are no longer born out of the flesh of your mother and father but you are a new, spiritual creature born from The Holy Spirit of God (John 3:5-8 Jesus answered, ”I tell you the truth, no one can enter the Kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6, Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7, You should not be surprised by my saying , You must be born again . 8, The wind blows wherever it pleases . You hear it’s sound, but you can’t tell were it comes from or were it’s going. So it with everyone born of the Spirit “) One born without sin. Now if you are a new creature then things have changed, you have changed but if you continue to do the things you used to, as if nothing has happened, then you need to ask yourself was I born again? Was I changed? Was I saved? Is there a difference to you now as to what you were before? Did you really take the Word of God into your heart and let it transform you into this new creature, son /daughter of God? Many go to the alter but few take the Word, the Living Word of God and let it transform them, let The Holy Spirit change them into what God has in mind for them. Many today make the showing of change but are not changed, many call themselves a Christian but few truly are deserving of that title.
Why would a new creature, newly born, continue to do something the old one did? When a baby is born it knows nothing about it’s parents, nothing about their past, nothing about it’s surrounding. Rich, poor, sick, healthy, starving, plenty of food, the baby knows nothing other than it have just been born and is needing to be nurtured, needing to be cared for, needing to learn about what it is to do. This is a new creature the same as when you become saved and redeemed. You are forgiven of all your past no matter how good or bad it was. Now if you’re still in the same surroundings and doing what you did before then how do you know anything happened?
If you are saved and continue to live in sin then you are crucifying Christ all over again, your salvation is meaningless to you. When one is redeemed of much the impact is felt and rocked the person to his core. It is like something is literally ripped from you, not taken or passed but ripped, nothing can explain the feeling of when you are redeemed of much, you want to yell on top of the roof tops “ God is my Lord, Jesus is my savior, the blood of The Lamb has saved me from the death and given me life, Praise God “ You will change You will not be the same. You will detest sin, all sin. Now whether you are redeemed of many or few sins, sin is sin. None is greater than any other, redemption is still redemption whether it’s for a hundred or a thousand you are still redeemed. The one with a few sins should have just as much impact as the one with many. So why didn’t it rock you to the core?
Why didn’t it want you to change your life right then and there? Why? Well ask yourself what was I saved of? What was I saved from? Was it for a little white lie or a life of drug addiction? Was it for a few dirty thoughts or a lot of infidelities on your spouse? All sin is detestable to God your one or your many. They are also forgiven by God when you come to Jesus and ask for his hand to save you and let Him into your heart and live in your heat. You were born again when you were saved and forgiven when you were redeemed. Now for Father it meant very much to have you as His son/daughter. It meant enough for Him to let His son die on a cross for your sins against Him, to give you a gift of repentance, forgiveness, and redemption. The question is how much did it mean to you? Was your sin worth Jesus being mocked in the streets, was it worth Him being whipped repeatedly, was your sin worth it to you for just one of the thorns on the crown on His head, or was your forgiveness worth it all including Him being nailed to that cross with both hands outstretched and both feet nail together. What was Jesus worth to you? What is Jesus and the salvation of His blood worth to you? How much does your forgiveness mean to you?
If you have been thinking this over, think of this, you were redeemed because someone thought enough of you that no matter what sin or sins you had done against Him and his Father, He loved you enough to take your place in death so you may have life with Him and His family later. That is being redeemed. That is being saved. You can’t have one with out the other. You are saved from the death to come and you are redeemed of your sins and are not only forgiven but given a place as a heir to the kingdom of God as a brother and sister of Jesus. He is our savior, our Brother, our Lord. He is the one reason I am here, now, and the reason you are here. If you are saved, praise God, if you are redeemed, then praise God, if you are not I invite you to the family. The family that will want you no matter who you are or what you’ve done for your sins are no different than anyone else. All are forgiven when they come to Christ.
May your day be blessed?
