.jpg)
Trinity Community Church
Trinity Community Church
In Christ - Living in the Grace of Redemption
Kelly Kinder opens Ephesians 1:7–8 to show that redemption is not an abstract doctrine but a present reality that changes everything. Continuing the In Christ series, he unpacks Paul’s words: “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace.” Kelly explains that “we have” literally reads “we are having,” meaning redemption isn’t merely a future hope—it is our ongoing possession right now.
With clear, memorable language, Kelly defines biblical redemption as deliverance by the payment of a price. He traces its rich storyline across Scripture and highlights two key New Testament terms: agorazo (to buy out of the marketplace) and lutroo/apolutrosis (to pay a price to free someone from bondage). A striking West African picture—“God took our heads out”—captures the drama of Christ removing the iron collar of slavery. This costly freedom was bought not with silver or gold, but with “the precious blood of Christ” (1 Peter 1:18–19).
Kelly then shows how redemption secures complete forgiveness: God removes our sins as far as east is from west, casts them into the depths of the sea, and remembers them no more. This is not forgiveness dispensed by an eyedropper; it flows “according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us.” Like Niagara Falls, God’s grace thunders with superabundance, drowning out accusation and shame. Along with forgiveness, redemption brings “all wisdom and insight” (Eph. 1:8), a Spirit-given discernment that helps believers navigate life (1 Cor. 2:10; Col. 2:3; 1 Cor. 1:30).
Moving from blessing to application, Kelly confronts the identity lies that keep many Christians living beneath their inheritance—feelings of worthlessness, rejection, and “not-enough-ism.” In Christ, there is no condemnation (Rom. 8:1); divine favor is restored—God is for us (Rom. 8:31–32); guilt is removed and consciences are cleansed; punishment fell on Jesus, though the Father lovingly disciplines His children; and real joy is possible because we are completely accepted. Through union with Christ we are complete (Col. 2:10), and His divine power has already granted everything we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3).
If you’re ready to exchange accusation for assurance, and striving for settled joy, Kelly Kinder invites you to live in the grace of redemption today. Watch and take hold of what is already yours In Christ: freedom, forgiveness, wisdom, and the confident identity of one who has been bought at the highest price.
We are Trinity Community Church in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Subscribe to our Podcast & YouTube channel to find past sermons, classes, interviews, and more!
Find us on Facebook & Instagram
Would you open your Bible? This morning, we're going to continue on in our study of Ephesians in a book that is just, or letter, that is just really fabulous, and we're in a series called In Christ, in Christ, and all these speak of this, and what we really have and as you're turning to Ephesians 1, or you can watch it appear on the screen is what is, I would say, really profound theology. It's theology in the clouds, if you will, and it's being brought down to our place by Paul here, and what it does? It gives us a perspective, really, of the. It's almost like a cosmic view of God's purpose and plan for our lives past, present, future and so this is wonderful stuff, and the truths that you find here, if you can grab a hold of them, they will literally transform how you walk out your Christian life, and it really the sense of this. I'm always living in defeat. If you can grab hold of these truths, you can live above the defeat, and the enemy wants to take you down, as we've kind of heard this morning, though, in our study this morning, I have so much anticipation for what God wants to show us today, and I hope you do too.
Kelly Kinder:Before we get into our message, though I want to give you some more of a I guess what you call a preview and a review, because we looked a little bit at it last time. But, going forward, we're kind of walking through this really slowly and it's going to go on into the next year and so I want to kind of give you sort of a big picture view of the book again. So I'll give you just three words here and you can write these down and kind of remember them. Give you just three words here and you can write these down and to kind of remember them Sit, walk, stand, sit, walk, stand, Sit is chapters one through three, walk is four and five and chapter six is stand. And so you know, I got this from a book I read years ago on the book of Ephesians, by a young Christian commentator or Christian watchman, and it's always kind of stuck with me and I just every time I read this book I think of that sit, walk, stand. It will help you. So now we're just in chapter one and, as I say, we're going slow. We'll be looking at verses seven and eight today, if you want to go there, and you might think, wow, just two verses, just two verses. That's a lot less than we normally do, but there's just so much meat here and we want to get every bite of it and that's why we're going through through it slow.
Kelly Kinder:This chapter one verse, verses three through 14, is actually one single long, complex sentence in the Greek and it's almost like Paul is. He's piling up phrase upon phrase. It's almost like he can't get the words out fast enough on the page to tell you about what God has done in Christ. And what has God done in Christ? Well, verse three tells us he has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, and we're going to find out more about that in chapter two. But so far what God and this is kind of looking back at a little bit of review what God has done for us from eternity past we talked about that. He's chosen us and he's adopted us. Now, in 7 and 8, we move from the past to the present.
Kelly Kinder:Just two verses on this grand theme of redemption. Redemption In verse 7 and 8, let's just read it together. It says in him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses according, we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us in all wisdom and insight. Let's pray, father. We're so grateful for your word and I just ask you, holy Spirit, would you just open our understanding to your word this morning, lord, that we would grasp and grab hold of everything that we see that you want us to understand, that we would walk the walk, Not just talk the talk, lord, but walk the walk that you called us to, and that you would make us more today, like Jesus, and we ask for that in Jesus' name, amen.
Kelly Kinder:So when you hear the word redemption, what do you think of?
Kelly Kinder:What comes to mind?
Kelly Kinder:Think about that just a second.
Kelly Kinder:What comes to mind when you hear the word redemption?
Kelly Kinder:Just a second. What comes to mind when you hear the word redemption? John Schwant, who was president of Redemption Seminary which is kind of ironic, it's the same name of what we're talking about here. He observed the word redemption stirs something in us, even in everyday life. It's a term that pulls at the heart, used to describe comebacks, homecomings and stories where things are finally set right. We cheer when our team redeems a season. It's even sweeter when we experience it ourselves, when what was lost is recovered, what was broken is restored, and when justice or vindication. Isn't that true? So, as Christians, we know, the greatest story that we've ever heard is the story, the biblical story, of redemption, what Christ has done for us.
Kelly Kinder:Paul says it like this in 2 Corinthians 8, 9. He says, for you know the grace of our Lord, jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor so that you, by his poverty, might become rich. How many of us would do that? How many of us would become poor so that somebody else could become rich? I would venture to guess nobody would raise their hand. Entered, I guess nobody would raise their hand.
Kelly Kinder:The truth I want you to grab hold of this morning is that God's extravagant gift of redemption proves and reveals what he thinks about you. God's extravagant gift of redemption proves and reveals what he thinks of you. So, with that in mind, let's see what God has to say to us this morning, to teach us, and we're going to look at this in two ways. It's just two simple ideas, main ideas First, the blessing of our redemption and then second by the way, I guess, more of application the power of our redemption. First, let's look at the blessing of our redemption. He says here the first thing I want you to see is that redemption is our priceless possession, and that's found in verse seven. He says there in him we have redemption through his blood. Redemption is our priceless possession and and you know, we probably heard this term redemption tossed around a lot, but maybe we've never really stopped and said to ourselves what does that really mean? What does that word redemption mean? So this is really important for us to know, because redemption is the primary biblical theme that runs all the way through the scriptures, from beginning to end.
Kelly Kinder:For example, in Genesis we see redemption occurs at time that that very first sin in Genesis, when God tells the serpent I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed. He shall bruise your head and you shall bruise his heel, genesis 3.15. And that word there, the seed, is more than just general mankind. It's more than mankind in general. It speaks of a person who will come and defeat our enemy, a single person. It's in the singular. Satan is going to be defeated and God will restore all that was lost through sin through this person. And this is a remarkable verse because it's even called the proto-evangelium of the gospel the first gospel, because it is even called the proto-evangelium of the gospel the first gospel because it is the Bible's first prediction of a savior. Even from the beginning, god was thinking about you and me. By the time we come to the rest of the Bible, it's just kind of as we go through it.
Kelly Kinder:The Bible is really all about this unfolding drama of redemption. Some people have called it the scarlet thread of redemption, and the primary example that maybe sticks out from all of these that you'll find is this story we call the Exodus, the Exodus story, where God's people were redeemed or bought or brought out of slavery from Egypt from those who were over them by the time we get to the book of Revelation. I'll just fast forward to the end. For us, john, in the Revelation, this redemption theme, it culminates in a new song Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth. Revelation 5, 9 and 10. Well, let me just kind of give you this is redemption. Let me give you kind of the core idea here, because redemption is. There's just so much in the Bible. We could talk about Grand theme, but let me just give you the core ideas.
Kelly Kinder:Simple definition, if you will Redemption is simply deliverance by the payment of a price, deliverance by the payment of a price. A lot of that comes out of the Old Testament and we could spend a lot of time there. But there's really two New Testament words from the Greek language that speak of redemption. The first of these is a word, agorazo, we find in the scriptures. You've heard somebody who is fearful of public places. That's called agoraphobia. It has that word agora, marketplace. It means marketplace. So agorazo means to buy out of the marketplace. Sometimes it's got a little word in front of it, x, meaning out of, so it's buying out of. You go to the marketplace, you find something you like, you want to buy, you buy it, you bring it home and it's yours because you bought it. That's agorazo.
Kelly Kinder:There's another word, lutrao or apolotrosis, and that word for redemption means to pay a price to free someone from bondage. To pay a price to free someone from bondage, and in that day it was used for people who were actually prisoners of war, and they would use that word to basically pay someone to let that person go, to release them, to free them. It also was used in the terms of someone that were like 50 million slaves in the ancient world and it was really rare to have someone come and buy your freedom. In fact, if they had the money they could buy their own freedom. But this word here, lutrao, is a word that means not only to free prisoners of war but free slaves from their bondage, and so we kind of get this idea in the back of our mind that we're going to talk about a little bit today.
Kelly Kinder:You know, a missionary in West Africa years ago was trying to really kind of explain to the people he was working with this the meaning of the word redeem. And so when he was talking to the person that was in the Bambara language and so he asked his African assistant, he said in his native tongue how do you say you know redeem in your language? And the guy said well, we say it kind of like this that God took our heads out. God took our heads out. He said I don't get it. What are you talking about? God took your heads out. He said well, god took our heads out. He said I don't get it. What are you talking about? God took your heads out. He said well, he told them many years ago and when the slave traders had come to Africa, some of his ancestors, who had been captured by slave traders, had basically been chained together and driven to the sea coast, all chained together. And he said, as they were driving through the villages, sometimes a chief would recognize a friend or a relative and he would stop the truck and he would say I'll pay you for my relative. They would pay them through with silver or gold or ivory or brass and he will pull him off the truck, unchain him and and pull his head out of the iron collar and his relative or his friend would become freed. He said that's how we think of it.
Kelly Kinder:What an unusual and graphic illustration of the word redeem. In him we have redemption through his blood and this is the grace with which he has graced us. He's highly favored us. Paul is basically, he wants us to feel deeply the value and importance God has placed on every person. Notice, redemption.
Kelly Kinder:A few things here. Redemption, first of all, is a present possession or reality. We have it. It says you have redemption. Literally, it says we are having redemption, which means we got it and we still have it, and it's being applied to us even right now, while you're sitting in your seat. If you're in Christ, you are having redemption. Ever thought that? What is it's? It's the ongoing rescue from your sin, and God is always at work in you to bring you out, to bring you in, just like he did the the people of Egypt. He brought them out to bring them into a new place, to a new land, from sin, from self self, from Satan. And God is out to rescue all of us, some of us, it takes a little longer than others. Right, redemption is a present possession. You have it right now. Right now.
Kelly Kinder:Redemption, secondly, was purchased at a tremendous cost, tremendous cost. The price paid is the blood of Christ, the blood of Jesus. He died on the cross for our sins and that is intended. The blood is intended as a graphic metaphor in some sense, not a metaphor, but a picture of his violent death that he experienced to pay for our sins, to sacrifice himself on our behalf. This was the means of our redemption. So I think the point there is just don't take it lightly. He paid it all. Let me add a verse from 1 Peter that says for you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed, from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. God took his own son and he gave him on our behalf. Yeah, redemption is costly.
Kelly Kinder:Third thing out of these verses that redemption is only found in him. That's our series title. Redemption is only found in him. He's the source, and sometimes we look everywhere else but the source to find our healing and deliverance, and that sounds too simple sometimes, doesn't it that our deliverance from sin, self and Satan is in a person. How sad, then, when we don't believe. We don't believe it and we try to work out our own salvation without Jesus. So redemption is really practical. Do you believe that he can redeem your marriage? Do you believe he can redeem your past? Do you believe he can redeem your past? Do you believe he can redeem your reputation or your purity, or your bad habits, or your passion for God? He can. Psalm 103, verse 4, says he is the one who redeems your life from the pit Is your life, the pits. This morning he can get you out of that pit. Psalm 103, verse 4.
Kelly Kinder:Romans 8.32 says since he did not spare even his own son but gave him up for us all, won't he also give us everything else? So a lot of us feel like that we lack something. They're walking around this earth like we don't have enough. That's that old problem. Derek talked about it last week Not enoughism Do you suffer from? Not enoughism? Do you suffer from not enough-ism? Cs Lewis said you can't go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending. So this is our priceless possession, this of redemption.
Kelly Kinder:There's a second thing here. I want you to see that redemption is a measureless gift. That's what he's talking about here when he says the forgiveness of our trespasses. Trespass in the plural means you've stepped over the line somehow of God's standard. But here our focus is on forgiveness, isn't it? Because that's what we all need Forgiveness. The word Ephesus simply means to release you from a penalty. Colossians 1, 13 and 14 says he has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. That means he took you from where you were and he transported you to a new place. And the place he took you from was not a good place. It was a place of bondage and darkness and powerlessness. To a good place. It was a place of bondage and darkness and powerlessness. To a new place in Christ, where you have power, you have freedom, you have blessing, you have everything you need for life and godliness.
Kelly Kinder:Charles Coulson, who was associate in the Nixon administration. He eventually became a Christian. He tells of watching Albert Speer, who was an associate in the Nixon administration. He eventually became a Christian. He tells of watching Albert Speer who was being interviewed one morning on Good Morning America and Colson was watching him. And Speer was the Hitler confidant who was technologically a genius and he kept the Nazi factories running all through World War II. He was brilliant and so he was listening to this interview on Good Morning America, colson Wise. He said he was the only one of the 24 criminals the war criminals there at Nuremberg, the trials after World War II to admit his guilt the only one, and he had served 20 years in Spandau Prison.
Kelly Kinder:In the interview he referred to a passage in one of Speer's earlier writings and he said to Speer, albert Speer, he said you have said the guilt can never be forgiven, or shouldn't be? Do you still feel that way? And Colson said he'll never forget the look of pathos, of on his face, of Spears' face. As he responded I served a sentence of 20 years and I could say I'm a free man. My conscience has been cleared by serving the whole time as punishment. My conscience has been cleared by serving the whole time as punishment but I can't get rid of it. This new book, he says I was writing, is part of my atoning, of sort of clearing my conscience, if you will. And the interview kind of pressed him here he said you don't really think you'll be able to clear your conscience totally. And Spear shook his head and he said I don't think it will be possible.
Kelly Kinder:Colson says for 35 years Spear had accepted complete responsibility for his crime. His writings were filled with contrition and warning to others to avoid his moral sin. He desperately sought expiation, all to no avail. In Colson comments. Here he says I wanted to write Spear to tell him about Jesus and his death on the cross, about God's forgiveness, but there wasn't time. His death on the cross, about God's forgiveness. But there wasn't time. The ABC interview was his last public statement and he died shortly after. See, the tragedy for Spear is that he never knew that there was an answer to escape his accusing conscience.
Kelly Kinder:And today you may be a person here who is accused by the enemy. Your conscience is always bombarded by lies and accusations and things that you're not enough and you did this or you did that, or this sin was the last straw. Those are lies. In Christ, the writer to the Hebrews tells us that it is the blood of Christ that will purify our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God. See, if you're living under the accusation and guilt and shame of the enemy, guess what? He's successfully shut you down, and there are many in our churches today that are shut down and we won't do anything because we feel so condemned. We're not enough, not enough, something wrong with us, something wrong with us. Redemption tells us that's a lie. It's a lie. See. The enemy loves to bring up your past and my past and never let it go. See what you did this week. God could never forgive that. But God is different. We serve a magnificent and merciful God.
Kelly Kinder:Listen to what Scripture says, and I'm just going to read some of these and let them sink into you and me. Psalm 103, 12 says as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. You know how far the east is from the west. That's infinite folks. Isaiah 44, 22,. I have swept away your sins like a cloud. I have scattered your offenses like the morning mist. Oh, return to me, for I have paid the price to set you free. Jeremiah 31, 34. For I will forgive their iniquity and I will remember their sin no more. See, we have a problem in our humanity, don't we? We have memories, but God is above our own, remembering things. He says I will forget it. Say, how does he do that? I don't know. He's God, but he basically treats us like it wasn't even there. Is that sinking in? That's amazing. Micah 7, 19. He will again have compassion on us. He will tread our iniquities underfoot like dirt. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. That's beautiful.
Kelly Kinder:And then this last one from the New Testament. This is the one you hang on to whenever you mess up and you sin. And it says in 1 John 1, 9,. If we confess, that means to simply agree with God about it. If we confess our sin, he is faithful, he's faithful, he is faithful and just. It means he's right to do it. He he's legally right to do it. He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Kelly Kinder:I could see say more, but we've got to go on. Let me go on. He says something else here that's so good. Our forgiveness is a. What it says. It's according to the riches of his grace, according to Notice. It says according to, not out of. There's a big difference there Not according to, or it's according to, not out of. So I guess think of it like this. I was just trying to think of this analogy.
Kelly Kinder:This week I found out and it kind of goes back and forth Elon Musk is the richest guy in the world right now as of September, from what I understand with a net worth of between $350 to $450 billion. So I can't even comprehend that. So I don't know whether it's $350 or $450. What's a few billion dollars, right? Listen, if Musk wanted to give away his riches, there are two ways he could do this, right? He could either give them out according to his riches or out of his riches. According to one source, musk in 2024 made more money in one day than he gave away all year. That was like about 6%. That would be out of his riches. You see the difference. I'm not making the point to dis elon, I just say this to make this point.
Kelly Kinder:Our god is a super generous god. He gives according to the riches of his grace. And what is his grace? It's an unmerited favor. You didn't deserve it, but you got it anyway and he's. He's washing you, overwhelming you with it. God's riches and I like to think of it like this. This is always helpful this little acronym G-R-A-C-E God's riches at Christ's expense. That kind of reminds me that I didn't earn it myself, but it cost Jesus to give it to me. So do you see it? Our redemption is our priceless possession because he paid our sin debt. It's our measureless gift because we have total forgiveness to cover our sin and a supply of grace that never runs dry. And you think, well, I got to be out of grace for me. No, that's not what it said. It never runs dry.
Kelly Kinder:Paul's final thought regarding our present blessings here I want you to see it is that redemption is our deepest treasure. It's our deepest treasure and I find this fascinating, really, because it basically speaks that this redemption that we have now is is still actively at work in us. That's because with our redemption, you see, we receive. What comes to us is spiritual discernment. We don't see it often, but it says there in verse eight, which he lavished upon us in all wisdom and insight, this grace, this grace that he covered us, he lavished us with it in all wisdom and in insight. And, as I say, this is often an unseen blessing of redemption. We maybe never even thought about this. But here it says we're given the spirit's wisdom and insight to sort of help us navigate our journey through life.
Kelly Kinder:If you're not a Christian, you don't have this. But a Christian, someone who's in Christ, has at his access God's own wisdom, christ's own wisdom. Listen to these verses. He says in 1 Corinthians, 2.10,. But it was to us that God revealed these things by his spirit, for his spirit searches out everything and shows us God's deep secrets as a result of our redemption. So there's something you need to know, something you need to have some wisdom and insight you need to understand to get you along the path. Just ask him. That's what James 1 says If we lack wisdom, he will give it to us.
Kelly Kinder:Here's another verse Colossians 2, verse 3. It says in him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, and I can just sort of picture this as that all the things that we want the most are found in Christ, and they're beyond our comprehension and value. And then one more 1 Corinthians 1, verse 30, it says because of God, you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption. So here in chapter 1, verse 8, it says he lavished this grace upon us. He lavished this grace upon us. The Greek word there translated, lavish, means super abounding, it means to overflow, it means to get more than you need so that you have more than enough.
Kelly Kinder:Have you ever, um, have you ever visit anybody, ever visited niagara falls? Who's visited niagara falls? A few of you, you know. I have never had the opportunity to go there and see that, but for the people that have and if I guess we talk to these folks, uh, people say who've been there for the very first time, they go there, and it says they're awed by the sight and sound and sense, this overwhelming sense of it all and every minute, what I understand. 200 000 tons of water plunge over the niagara falls into the niagara river gorge and, uh, it's a.
Kelly Kinder:It's a thunderous ovation to the generous, magnificent nature of god. God created it and when he created the falls, you know, he could have used a whole lot less water, couldn't he? He could have built the falls lower, in fact, but he didn't. He built them 12 stories high. And because they are what they are from the creative hand of God, and because they are what they are from the creative hand of God, people come from all over the world to see this, just to come and stare.
Kelly Kinder:What a picture of God's grace in Christ Jesus. It's like a Niagara Falls deafening out the sound of our enemy. His grace In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace which he lavished upon us in all wisdom and insight. God's grace toward us. You see, it's not squeezed out like an eyedropper and it's not carefully rationed like we were in some kind of drought. Not at all. His grace is a Niagara of super abundance, so lavish that we marvel at its display. If we can just get a hold of this. So we see, then, in these two verses the blessing of our redemption, and that's our text this morning, but you know, I felt like that we needed some extra help in seeing its application. So let's look now at what I just call the power of our redemption. This is our present reality, folks, that we live in this redemption as believers.
Kelly Kinder:During the final days of the old Denver Stapleton Airport, a crowded United flight was canceled and a single agent was there rebooking everybody who was like. It was chaos. And there was this long line of of really unhappy people inconvenience travelers and they're waiting to get their tickets so they could get on board. And, uh, suddenly this angry passenger comes up and he slaps down his ticket on the counter and he says I have to be on this flight and it has to be first class. And the agent replied calmly. She said sorry, sir, I'm happy to help you, but I've got all these people here that I got to help first and I'm sure then, once I help these people, I'll be able to help you. And the pastor? He was not real impressed. He asked loudly so everybody could hear him. He said do you have any idea who I am? And, without hesitating the gate attendant. She smiled, she grabbed her public address microphone and she said may I have your attention please? Her voice kind of bellowing out through the terminal we have a passenger here at the gate who does not know who he is. If anyone can help him find his identity, please come to the gate. And you can imagine, with all these people behind him laughing hysterically. The man glared at the United agent and gritted his teeth and basically retreated and everybody was applauding loudly, as you probably would have too.
Kelly Kinder:But I give you this all too often the followers of Jesus Christ live frustrated lives. They don't know who they are either. All too often we somehow believe that we are worthless, incapable, unlovable. Much of what we do is an attempt to be more lovable, to be more likable, to be worthy of just some love. And if we can just look the part, play the part, act the part, maybe, just maybe, someone will love us. And I can guarantee you, every person in this room, including me, came in today.
Kelly Kinder:Even though we might have a noble, I'm going to love other people and focus on other people. We're desperate to be loved, every single one of us. Our addictions are temporary fixes to fill the emptiness that only Christ can fill. So we're desperate to be loved, but often, I think, feel this overwhelming and this is the enemy the overwhelming sense of rejection. Rejection, there's something wrong with me. Deep within myself, I just there's something wrong with me and and well, there is there. You're not there yet, you're in process, but it's not hopeless, and God in Christ doesn't see anything wrong with you. You know, I just I'm amazed by this thing we call rejection, or feel this sense of rejection, and I can say that probably there's no one, even if you put on a good face, there's no one here that doesn't think. I wonder if they'll listen to me, if they'll like me, if they'll love me. They'll pay attention to me. Whatever Do I matter. Where do we get that?
Kelly Kinder:This couple of weeks ago, my little two-year-old granddaughter was back in the back playing at our house. We have toys back there and she just runs back there when she comes in. But the one thing she does is when she comes in, she grabs my wife's hand and she come play with me and they go back there and play dollhouse or something like that. Well, this one particular morning my wife and my daughter were there and they were busy because they had to get something in preparation for something we were doing maybe some job and she said to my little granddaughter she said I'm sorry, honey, I can't right now. Nana's got to do some other things. She was kind of hollering back there Come play with me. You know that kind of thing. And that's what she said. Well, pretty soon I heard I was in there in my office in the study, and I heard her walk back to the front in the kitchen where my wife was working and she looked at her and she said why are you crying, honey? And I guess she had tears flowing down her eyes and you know what she was feeling Rejection.
Kelly Kinder:You don't love me. And you see how the enemy plays off our lives in certain ways, so that what might not even be true is true for us, because we believe it's true and what God wants us to do is believe the truth, not the lies. You and I are unworthy, but you're not worthless On our own. We are spiritually destitute, stained by sin, darkened by sin, but in Christ you are forgiven and loved beyond what you could imagine, bought and paid for, washed clean by the precious blood of Jesus. Scripture reminds us that Jesus gave himself for our sins, to deliver us from this present evil age and our society messages us to tell us that we're not worth very much To deliver us from this present evil age according to the will of our God and Father. It's God's will that you have been delivered from the place that you are oppressed by the enemy into the freedom of God's dearly loved kids.
Kelly Kinder:Someone has said that redemption is not only a destiny changing truth. It transforms life in the here and now. Life in this world inevitably brings difficulties, but this makes it an ideal school in which to learn to continually and joyfully place our confidence in God for all that belongs to this life and all that belongs to the next. The whole Christian experience is in fact summed up in six words, thrice quoted in the New Testament the just shall live by faith. And so the question for us will we believe in the redemption Jesus has paid for us, and we have power over the lies when we do.
Kelly Kinder:Let me give you a few ways to kind of practically bring this home, and then we'll just finish up here. First thing, I think it was no more condemnation. I am accepted, not rejected. That's what Romans 8, verse 1. You're accepted in the beloved. Second one is divine favor is restored. That was lost in the garden but in Christ. When you came to Christ, christ died on the cross for your sins and you were placed into him. Divine favor is restored. God is for you, not against you. I have to say that though we kind of know that with our head, but we don't know that in here and I don't imagine what I say here will change that. But I'm praying that the Holy Spirit will get a hold of you and me that we will begin to actually believe it. This is faith, right. Divine favor is restored.
Kelly Kinder:Third thing no more guilt. You're not guilty. You don't have to carry around a guilty conscience because that guilt was taken by jesus. I mean, you might be in need of of confession because you've done some, but, but god takes that. There's no divine punishment. That's the next one. I may experience discipline. And guess what? If you belong to him, you should welcome discipline, because it says that God disciplines those he loves, like his kids. But Christ, you see, took my punishment on the cross. That's the truth. His wrath doesn't fall on me and it doesn't fall on you. So we're not looking like, we're looking, waiting for the sky to fall on us. Stop believing that it's not true. And then there's real joy. If you can grab a hold of these things, there's like okay, you can walk in total freedom and have absolute joy. It means inner contentment. You're not like walking and jumping around giddy and happy. It means that you are content, at peace, because you can live in the true freedom and joy, knowing that God loves you all the time. All the time, I mean. That was when I came to understand this. It was transformative for me, because I sin, just like you do, but I don't live there. I just reject the enemy's accusations against me and I confess my sin and I move on.
Kelly Kinder:Let me give you a couple of other verses here. Number the first one 2 Peter 1, 3. It says His divine, divine power. Circle that word in in your mind. Power, his power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness. How, through the knowledge of him. The more you get to know jesus, the more power you will have in this life. Very simply, if you're not reading your bible, if you're not spending time in his word, if you're not spending time getting intimately acquainted with him, you're going to struggle, and I believe that's why many of the things that we we deal with in counseling are simply because people haven't been in his word. You can. You can find healing in the word of God. You really can. So here's the lesson.
Kelly Kinder:The next one it's Colossians 2.10. He says so. You also are complete. That gets rid of all the not enough-ism. You are complete, everything that you need. You are also complete how? Through your union with Christ, who is head over every ruler and authority. That means he's over the enemy and everyone who tries to bring you down in the heavenly places, in the spiritual realm. He's over them and they can't touch you. They can't touch you. You know, remember what Job was in his experience, even though he didn't know what was going on when he had so much suffering in his life. And this conversation between Job and God, and God says you can do this, but this alone, god limits what the enemy can do to us, and it's only when he allows it. It's for our good purposes. God didn't do it, but he sometimes allows suffering to get us to the next level and he will do that. But we're complete in him.
Kelly Kinder:So, yes, it's true, redemption is what we long for at the end of every story, including our own, and I say it again God's extravagant gift of redemption. Basically, it just proves and reveals what God thinks about you and what he thinks about me you are his treasured possession. Do you believe this? Do you know that you're redeemed this morning? That's another question For those who don't yet know that they've never trusted Christ. You live outside of God's redemption and it says that God's wrath is on you. You pay for your own sin, and guess where the payment is? The payment of the wages of sin is death, eternal death, separation from God, a place in a place called hell. I would encourage you, if you've never trusted Christ today, that you would see this as your opportunity today and that you would respond to his invitation to confess your sins and to believe that Jesus died, he was buried, he rose again for you and he sits at the right hand of God, making intercession for you and for us who are in Christ. It's just a plea for us to simply start believing what he said about us. Plea for us to simply start believing what he said about us, and there we'll find that we are more than enough. More than enough, you know.
Kelly Kinder:It was the blind hymn writer, fanny Crosby and I'm sorry about the name, Fanny Crosby. She said it best in her famous hymn blessed assurance, because in christ, if we know him and we believe these, these things, we have assurance right and we don't question our salvation because we know the one we believed in. But she said in her her hymn. I just want to kind of read this because I think it says everything. She tells these in these three stanzas, the things that kind of stick out. I want you to listen for that we've been purchased by God and that, even though she's blind in her physical abilities, in her sight she sees it in her spiritual vision. And then listen for the last one. She says she's happy in her savior. This is where she finds her joy is in him. So let me read and finish with this blessed assurance.
Kelly Kinder:Jesus is mine. Oh, what a foretaste of glory. Divine Heir of salvation, purchase of God, born of his spirit, washed in his blood, perfect communion, perfect delight. Visions of rapture now burst on my sight. Angels descending bring from above echoes of mercy, whispers of love.
Kelly Kinder:This is my story. This is my song, praising my Savior all the day long. This is my story. This is my song, praising my Savior. All the day long, perfect submission, all is at rest. I, in my Savior, am happy and blessed, watching and waiting, looking above, filled with his goodness, lost in his love.
Kelly Kinder:Yeah, so this is God's will for us in Christ Jesus. So this is God's will for us in Christ Jesus, and let me just pray for us, and we'll be dismissed. So, father, we're thankful today for your word, for it has great power in our lives and this redemption that you paid with your own precious blood. Lord, I pray that you would make this more real than ever before to us In this season, as Tyler prayed, this is our grand opportunity, I believe, for us to be what you called us to be and not shrink back and be less than what you've made us and called us and created us for. Lord, help us to believe it and, as we go from this place, lord, give us great opportunities to share our faith. Bless us and restore us where we're broken. Lord, heal us where we're hurting and bring us into the freedom that is ours in Christ Jesus. That we pray in Jesus' name, amen.
