Our journey of exploring the names of Christ brings us today to “Ransom.” Jesus is the ransom paid to release you and me from captivity. We can no longer be held by the captor’s chains because Jesus’ life was given in our place. The iron chains of sin—selfishness, self-righteousness, hatred, self-indulgence, lies—are released because the debt is paid. That the debt was paid by the One we rejected is another awesome facet of this amazing story. The magnitude of the Ransom price paid to release a soul reveals the worth of every individual to God. It exceeds my understanding but oh, how it excites my spirit!
Our human nature is to value ourselves above others. Even when we recognize that self-promotion is the path to emptiness and death, we all too often choose that road. We demand consideration from others expecting them to give us grace and mercy when we err or fail. Yet we resist giving the same to others. We resent, and usually refuse, to sacrifice what we see as our ‘rights’ for anyone—even those whom we ‘love.’ Jesus Christ, God Himself, came to show us God’s way, the right way. Jesus came to serve us, the rebellious and undeserving. He came as the Ransom which would purchase our freedom from the emptiness and death we chose!
We don’t mean to choose death; we have an intrinsic love of life. We are captivated by real-world rescues. Whether it is miners trapped in the dangerous dark depths or a pet floundering in torrential flood waters, our hearts soar when a life is preserved. That deep love is placed there by God Himself; our Ransom is rooted in that love. He desires for our hearts to soar at His Rescue and for our hearts to overflow with a passion for others to know the same! Choosing to live His way gives life—to us and to others. Who will you be a ransom for today that they might see the love of God and know the value He places upon them?
Our human nature is to value ourselves above others. Even when we recognize that self-promotion is the path to emptiness and death, we all too often choose that road. We demand consideration from others expecting them to give us grace and mercy when we err or fail. Yet we resist giving the same to others. We resent, and usually refuse, to sacrifice what we see as our ‘rights’ for anyone—even those whom we ‘love.’ Jesus Christ, God Himself, came to show us God’s way, the right way. Jesus came to serve us, the rebellious and undeserving. He came as the Ransom which would purchase our freedom from the emptiness and death we chose!
We don’t mean to choose death; we have an intrinsic love of life. We are captivated by real-world rescues. Whether it is miners trapped in the dangerous dark depths or a pet floundering in torrential flood waters, our hearts soar when a life is preserved. That deep love is placed there by God Himself; our Ransom is rooted in that love. He desires for our hearts to soar at His Rescue and for our hearts to overflow with a passion for others to know the same! Choosing to live His way gives life—to us and to others. Who will you be a ransom for today that they might see the love of God and know the value He places upon them?
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