Redemption

"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." ~Romans 8:1-4

Cornelius Plantinga writes about redemption in the fourth chapter of his book Engaging God's World. I really enjoyed his introduction into this topic in which he showed from the Scriptures that Adam and Eve's eyes were opened to their nakedness and they felt shame at being exposed before God. They knew that they were sinful, fallen, and corrupt. But then we have a stark contrast to that fall into shame and misery, God makes clothes for Adam and Eve to cover up their nakedness. In Plantinga's words, "Genesis 3 tells us of God's curse on a fallen creation, but in this one verse it also tells us that God cloaks human beings with mercy in a world grown chilly from their own sin." What I wish Plantinga would have mentioned is the fact that God made those cloaks from the skins of animals, and so we have a picture that the sin of the "seed of the woman" would be covered, but blood must be shed in order for that covering to be accomplished. This is the cross! Already in the very beginning of the Bible we have a stark picture of salvation by means of an innocent one, who had nothing to do with sin Himself, but died that the sins of others might be covered.

Plantinga goes on to show throughout the Old Testament how God established His covenant, and in spite of God standing firm on His promise, the people of God continued to fail, falling into sin and idolatry again, and again, and again. This shows how wicked we are by nature; God gives us His promise and is faithful to that promise, but we, just like the Israelites of old, continue to rebel against Him in favor of the death and destruction of sin. Here we can look back at that first picture in Genesis 3. God established His covenant in Genesis 3:15 with the promise of "the seed of the woman," and God shows Adam and Eve that they will be covered from their nakedness by the death of an innocent one that would come from their seed. This promise and picture which God shows to the first man and woman, and then reiterates throughout the entire Old Testament, is made clear and manifest in its fulfillment, Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ redeems us from our sins. We are free form the bondage of sin, free to love God in our hearts even though our flesh cries for us to follow after death; and this grace which we are given through the cross is sufficient for the salvation of all of God's elect children. What a magnificent and wonderful truth!