All of humanity, whether we identify as Christians or not, has received the gift of redemption that has been given freely by God. But what is redemption in the Bible? Why is redemption important? How should we respond as recipients of God’s redemption?
What is Redemption in the Bible?
Table of Contents
If you’ve just become a Christian, or even if you’ve been a Christian for a long time you may be asking yourself what is redemption?
The Oxford Dictionary defines redemption as:
- the action of saving or being saved from sin, error, or evil.
- the action of regaining or gaining possession of something in exchange for payment, or clearing a debt.
The concept of redemption in the Bible combines these two ideas. When humanity sinned by eating the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, there was a price to be paid for their disobedience. The penalty for sin is death (Romans 6:23). But God had a plan in place to redeem humanity.
Redemption in the Bible refers to the act that saved humanity from our sins and regained for us what we had lost.
What is the difference between redemption and salvation?
The difference between salvation and redemption is sometimes not clear.
Salvation means we have been delivered from sin and its consequences. We are no longer slaves to the things that separate us from God, instead, Jesus has paid the price for our sins and has cleared a path where we can follow Him and live a life that is free from sin through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Read: What is Salvation?
Redemption has an element of salvation but with the added benefit that what has been lost was restored.
Why is redemption so important?
The redemption that we received from Jesus repaired our relationship with God. It gives us access to the eternal life that would have been ours had it not been for the interruption of sin.
Through redemption, the marred image of our Creator is perfected in Christ and we can once again call ourselves children of God (1 John 3:1).
Redemption is being reclaimed. In other words, we were redeemed in God’s eyes and can once again claim what had been given to us.
Examples of Redemption in the Bible
The Bible is a story of redemption. The authors, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, show us a picture of humanity. We are given a snapshot of the perfect Creation and the beautiful Garden of Eden. Perfection is marred when evil enters the world and for a moment it seems as if all would be lost.
But then redemption happens.
The book of Ruth has one of the greatest redemption stories in the Bible. When Naomi left Bethlehem, she was married to Elimelech. They had two sons: Marlon and Killion. But when she returned, all had been lost. Her husband and both sons had died. One of her daughters-in-law had left her and gone back to her own people.
The way things worked in Israel at the time, all the property owned by Naomi’s husband Elimelech would have been transferred to the nearest male relative since none of Elimelech’s sons were alive to inherit.
But then Boaz.
Boaz was willing to marry Mahlon’s widow, Ruth, and restore the property that had been lost to Naomi.
Another great example of redemption in the Bible is that of Manasseh, Hezekiah’s son. The Bible tells us that Manasseh was one of the evilest kings in the history of Judah. He caused the people to commit more sins than the nations that God had driven out of the land of Canaan (2 Kings 21:9).
The Bible Bible had this to say about Manasseh,
Moreover, Manasseh also shed so much innocent blood that he filled Jerusalem from end to end—besides the sin that he had caused Judah to commit, so that they did evil in the eyes of the LORD (2 Kings 21:16 NIV).
Because of the abominations that he had done in Judah, God allowed the Assyria army to invade Judah. Manasseh was taken away as a prisoner to Babylon. But just when you think that’s the end of Manasseh’s story, you read these words,
In his distress he sought the favor of the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his ancestors. And when he prayed to him, the LORD was moved by his entreaty and listened to his plea; so he brought him back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD is God (2 Chronicles 33:12-13 NIV).
God redeemed Mannaseh and restored his kingdom. Isn’t that an amazing story of the power of redemption?
Dangerous Amish Showdown Review
In Dangerous Amish Showdown, we see a fictional depiction of the power of redemption. Redemption changes our lives.
Mason had walked away from his Amish faith as a young man after a series of events that caused him to question his belief in God. As an adult, he became a ranger and dedicated his life to protecting the witnesses placed in his care. But the more he lived that life, the more he believed he didn’t deserve redemption.
When his latest case takes him back to Amish country, Mason struggles with the regrets of the past and what he needs to accomplish.
It was clear from the beginning that Mason and his partner Erik loved the little girl they had sworn to protect and would do anything to see her safe.
The drama started on page one and almost didn’t let up. It was clear from the beginning that Mason and his partner Erik loved the little girl they had sworn to protect and would do anything to see her safe.
Dangerous Amish Showdown was an intense look at what could happen if the forces of darkness focused all their efforts for use on a single target.
Know God: our perception of God affects the way we relate to Him. If we think He’s harsh and unkind, we’ll respond to Him with anger and turn away from Him. But if we understand that He’s a loving Father, we learn to turn to Him instead of away.
The characters in Dangerous Amish Showdown had experienced some hard things. Willa chose to believe God was good even when she didn’t understand Him while Mason chose to turn away from Him in anger.
Both characters had to realize that even when the things that happen don’t seem to make sense, God is good. It’s His character and He cannot change it.
Know yourself: why do we do the things we do? Sometimes we lie to ourselves and it causes a world of hurt as we do things we wouldn’t normally have done. This was Mason’s experience and he had to get to a place where he could admit to what he wanted so he could live his best life.
Run your race: Willa had experienced so many hard things that she held herself back from what she really wanted. What if the thing she feared most happened to her? As she and Mason found out, the future is not promised to anyone and the best thing we can do is live each day that was given trusting God to take care of the future.
I admired the bravery of the characters as they stood up against what seemed like insurmountable obstacles. Though there was a lot of drama, there were also sweet moments that showed Willa reconnecting with her childhood friend and everyone bonding with the little girl and uniting to protect her.
Readers will be reminded that we are not beyond redemption. God is willing to forgive us if we’d only stop running from Him and seek forgiveness.
I received an advanced reader’s copy from the publisher through Celebrate Lit; a positive review was not required. Purchase Dangerous Amish Showdown on Amazon | Harlequin
About Dangerous Amish Showdown
Under siege in Amish country…
She must fight for their lives.
Gunshots shatter Willa Lambright’s placid Montana evening—and that’s before she discovers on-the-run lawman Mason Shetler on her doorstep. Willa hadn’t glimpsed her childhood friend since he’d turned his back on Amish country years before.
Now the US marshal’s returned with an injured partner, a young witness he must protect at all costs…and vicious Mafia agents dead set on making sure none of them survive.
About Mary Alford
USA TODAY bestselling author Mary Alford lives in Texas with her husband, two spoiled cats, and a sweet rescue dog named Cody. Connect with Mary at maryalford.net.
Giveaway
To celebrate her tour, Mary is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon gift card and a copy of the book.
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway. Click the link below to enter.
https://promosimple.com/ps/11b56/dangerous-amish-showdown-celebration-tour-giveaway
Blog Stops
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, September 22
Maureen’s Musings, September 22
Hebrews 12 Endurance, September 23
The Avid Reader, September 23
Genesis 5020, September 23
Texas Book-aholic, September 24
Vicarious Living, September 24
Inklings and notions, September 25
Blossoms and Blessings, September 25
Betti Mace, September 26
For Him and My Family, September 26
Lighthouse Academy Blog, September 27 (Guest Review from Marilyn Ridgway)
deb’s Book Review, September 27
Older & Smarter?, September 28
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, September 28
Bizwings Blog, September 28
For the Love of Literature, September 28
Locks, Hooks and Books, September 29
Living the Good Life, September 29
Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, September 30
Gina Holder, Author and Blogger, September 30 (Author Interview)
She Lives To Read, October 1
Bigreadersite, October 1
Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, October 2
A Modern Day Fairy Tale, October 2
Musings of a Sassy Bookish Mama, October 3
Happily Managing a Household of Boys, October 3
Mary Hake, October 3
The Meanderings of a Bookworm, October 4
Simple Harvest Reads, October 4 (Guest Review from Donna Cline)
Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, October 5
HookMeInABook, October 5
The Purpose of Redemption
Redemption sets us free. It releases us from paying the debt for our sins and uses us access to a new life. As we embrace the redemption that we receive through Christ, we are welcomed into the family of God and reap the benefits as sons and daughters of the Most High God.
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