Redemption, Sin and The Cross
By Chaplain (Captain) Steve Satterfield, US Army
29 August 2010, Prussman Chapel, Ft. Carson, CO
13 Sept 2010, Air Force Academy, CO
I lived at the infamous Abu Ghraib prison for two months AFTER all the bad things happened. There were about 100 Airmen working for about 25 Soldiers. My Executive Officer asked “Why does the Air Force always ask why?” I responded, “Because they think for a living, we just react, sir.” We learned from each other that year.
I lived at the new prison named Cropper for about two months. I am sure the Air Force were thinking the same thing I was. Why didn’t the officer in charge of designing the facility put the restrooms inside our building, instead of us having to go to another building to use them? This became painfully evident when we were locked down in our building due to an inmate riot. Our Commander threatened the Military Police Commander that he was about to excuse himself outside if we weren’t released!
I visited the Bucca prison in Southern Iraq, and our Army Commander sometimes took off her jacket since it was warm. Her Air Force team messed with her by switching the US Army nametape with a US Air Force one, & waited to see how long it would take to notice.
The Provincial Reconstruction Team Commander, Lt Col Grometer, put up a banner on the Army run Forward Operating Base that said “Army Strong, Air Force Smart”. (find picture?) Healthy competition can be a good thing in today’s military.
REDEMPTION
Psalms 49:8 For the redemption of his soul is costly, And he should cease trying forever--
Psalms 111:9 - He has sent redemption to His people; He has ordained His covenant
forever; Holy and awesome is His name.
Psalms 130:7 -O Israel, hope in the LORD; For with the LORD there is lovingkindness,
And with Him is abundant redemption.
Isaiah 63:4 - For the day of vengeance was in My heart, And My year of redemption has come.
Luke 1:68 - "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited us and
accomplished redemption for His people,
Luke 2:38 - At that very moment she came up and began giving thanks to God, and
continued to speak of Him to all those who were looking for the
redemption of Jerusalem.
Luke 21:28 - "But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up
your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."
Romans 3:24 - being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is
in Christ Jesus;
Romans 8:23 - And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of
the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly
for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body.
1 Corinthians 1:30 - But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption,
Ephesians 1:7 - In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our
trespasses, according to the riches of His grace
Ephesians 1:14 - who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the
redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory.
Ephesians 4:30 - Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the
day of redemption.
Colossians 1:14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Hebrews 9:12 - and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own
blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal
redemption.
Hebrews 9:15 - For this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant, so that, since a
death has taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that
were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called
may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance
SIN–
Exodus 20 – The Ten Commandments, not suggestions.
Isaiah 53: 5 But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed. This verse uses other words for sin. By Christ’s stripes we are healed Mentally, Emotionally, Physically & Spiritually. Billy Graham quoted it and people were healed.
Matthew 12:31 - "Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven.” This is a strong verse.
Matthew 18:21 - Then Peter came and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" x 7, or infinitely
Matthew 18: 15 "If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. It’s important for us to be discreet.
Mark 3:29 - but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin" This is Mark’s view on this, the 2nd author in the Bible.
Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans Road)
5: 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Jesus showed His all-encompassing love by dying for us.
6: 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Our salvation cost Jesus His life.
8: 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. The Holy Spirit gives us new life. Find song?
THE CROSS – Wimber, the founder of the Vineyard, said there is a lack of teaching on it.
The cross is mentioned 92 times in the Bible. Numbers 21: 8, 9 may be an early reference to it: “Then the LORD said to Moses, "Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a standard; and it shall come about, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, he will live." 9 And Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived.” I have heard it said that the bronze serpent on a stick would look like a cross, being a prophetic type of how Christ causes us to live when we look at Him as Lord and Savior. Here is Matt’s view:
Matthew 10:38 - "And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. “ This is a strong statement of Christ’s to do what He did.
Matthew 16: 24 “Take up (your) cross and follow Me.” This is similar to Matthew 11: 28, 29 “Come unto Me, all you who labor and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.” TAKE 6 VIDEO
Matthew 27:32 - As they were coming out, they found a man of Cyrene named Simon, whom they pressed into service to bear His cross. Show Passion scene?
Matthew 27:40 - and saying, "You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross." They did not realize He was referring to Himself, not the literal temple.
Matthew 27:42 - "He saved others; He cannot save Himself. He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him. If only they knew . . .
“Bearing one’s cross & taking up Jesus’ yoke are complementary; we learn from Him how to remain obedient to God in a disobedient world . . . If (we) affirm the crucified Christ in (our) life-style, (we) will be affirmed”. Matthew commentary, Dr. Doug Hare (PTS), p.196
Galatians 3: 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us--for it is written, "CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE"
The Old Testament curses (in Deuteronomy 28, etc.) were broken on Christ’s cross.
Arthur Blessit literally took a wooden cross as big as himself around the world as a physical reminder / prophetic sign of what Christ did for us.
Even www.pbs.org recognizes about the cross that “crucifixion was a very slow and agonizing form of death. It's not from bleeding. It's not from the wounds themselves that the death occurs. It's rather a suffocation because one can't hold oneself up enough to breathe properly, and so over time really it's really the exposure to the elements and the gradual loss of breath that produces death. It's an agonizing death at that.”
One thing I learned from www.alphausa.org is that when we wear a cross on our neck, it is similar to us wearing an execution chair on our neck today. Chaplain (Major Retired) Bill Fox told me when he was in Operation Desert Storm in Saudi Arabia, he was not able to wear a cross on his hat or chest. I’m glad that the nine years I’ve been an Army chaplain I’ve been able to wear them. When I arrived in Jalalabad, Afghanistan a year+ ago, I was told that the cross was removed on top of our chapel since they were concerned about rocket attacks. Instead, I had my blue chaplain flag flying outside my door, which has a white cross on it. On Easter I risked putting up the cross with a purple cloth on it representing Christ’s royalty, then took it down. We didn’t have any issues in the almost 100% Muslim country with it. If the military ever decides to remove the cross from my uniform or my services, I may have to leave it.
“We can’t repent without the cross. We can only apologize. Mark Driscoll”
Our sin caused Christ to have to go to the cross. Because He died and rose again, our sins are forgiven. We’ve been redeemed.
At the Cross
(by Randy and Terry Butler)
I know a place, a wonderful place
Where accused and condemned
Find mercy and grace
Where the wrongs we have done
And the wrongs done to us
Were nailed there with Him
There on the cross
At the cross (at the cross)
He died for our sin
At the cross (at the cross)
He gave us life again
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