GOD THE REDEEMER

In our last post we talked about why studying theology is so important for us as leaders. We also covered the major doctrine of God the Creator. In this post we're going to cover God the Redeemer.

GOD THE REDEEMER

God is active in redeeming his creation. John Piper defines redemption as "release by payment" or "freedom by ransom." John Stott says, "Redemption means 'deliverance by payment of a price." It is God's desire to release his creation from the power and the effects of sin. We believe that from the beginning that God had a plan. 

Let's Read Romans 8:19-22.  In this section of Romans, Paul is specifically discussing what he calls 'our future Glory' his description paints a picture of a God who has set things in motion and specifically guided all of history toward redemption.  While he is discussing our future Glory, Paul intentionally tells us that it is not just us, humanity, but "all Creation" that looks forward to the day when it will join God's children in glorious freedom from death and decay". 

• Everything in Theology only fits together when you understand that God had a plan and nothing in that plan was accidental. It was all put in place to move all of Creation toward the living, then resurrected, now ascended Jesus. There are a number of differing views on some specifics and terminology, slight distinctions between Calvinism and Arminianism that provide different solutions to Theological differences, that we as a Church have not held a hard a fast position on so we are not going to get lost in the weeds of those discussions.
• What we are going to do is overview God's plan as the Redeemer, take away a few important conclusions and discuss why they matter to us practically as leaders. 

So here are the big picture in big overview. If you have been with us at Cornerstone for a while this is not new but we haven't talked about it specifically in a little while but it is the basis for all our Theology. Creation, Fall, Redemption, Restoration. 

• We literally just talked about God the creator and there are a lot of implications, some that we discussed and others that fit into doctrines such as Hamartiology or Anthropology but what is important in Creation for God's redemptive story is what Theologians call The Protoevangelium - or the "First giving of the Gospel" 
  • So we will talk more about this when we discuss humanity and the fall but we want to look quickly at Genesis 3:14-15. This is the curse that Man brought upon himself and all of creation because instead of being with God he wanted to be God.
  • There is a lot in scripture and tons written about the parallels between the man and Jesus; how Jesus is a better Adam. This is where they start. We have the luxury of looking back on creation and knowing how this points out and this 'first giving of the gospel' tells us that there will be hostility but in the end the serpent doesn't win. 

We see throughout scripture that God has guided history to a specific place. 

• It's throughout the Old Testament. It was virtually inconceivable to the writers of the Old Testament that thing could happen outside of God's plan. That’s why it doesn't say things like 'it rained' it says 'God sent rain'. Little choices make a big difference. But we see God's guiding history throughout 
  • We see it in texts like Isaiah 37:26. Its throughout the Book of Psalms. Practically the entire book of Daniel.
  • Another thing that fascinates me is that God has worked, not just in the nation of Israel but in other nations throughout history as well. We only have a few mentions of it.  
    • Ezekiel 16:53 God says that he will restore the fortunes of evil Sodom and Samaria. Ezekiel 28:14 says he will restore Egypt. 
    • Jonah 4:11 shows us God's heart for sending a pouty hard hearted prophet to a pagan city because he loved them
    • Amos 9:7  is absolutely fascinating. God says, "are you Israelites more important to me than the Ethiopians? " asks the Lord. "I brought Israel out of Egypt, but I also brought the Philistines from Crete and led the Arameans out of Kir." 
    • Read Psalm 87 in light of this idea. 
  • God in the Old Testament moved all of history toward Jesus. 
• There are way too many mentions in the New Testament but just a few mentions that support this idea
  • Discussing Christology is a better place to look at all the prophecies fulfilled by Jesus but there are many
  • Acts 2:23. Peter's sermon. He plainly says, "God knew what would happen, and his prearranged plan was carried out when Jesus was betrayed. 
  • Paul throughout his writings is extremely explicitly that everything happens in accordance to Gods' will (1 Cor. 12:18; 15:28; Colossians 1:19). He says in Galatians 4:4 that Jesus came at Just the right time. 

WHY GOD THE REDEEMER IS SO IMPORTANT:

Understanding God as Redeemer; that He has a plan. Has a some big implications for us in our Theology and how that is lived out in leadership

1. That History has purpose and meaning. The world wants us to believe that people with power, prestige, money, or influence guide history to what is best for them. The Bible explicitly rejects that. History is controlled by God for his Glory and our redemption. 
2. That Jesus was always the plan. I almost have no bigger pet peeve in all of Christianity when people say, "we have no idea why God choose to do this the way he did". Wrong. The plan was always Jesus. Through Jesus, God is both Just and Justifier. More discussion on that in Christology. 
3. That because we can point to God's working in the past, we can be assured of his working in the present, and have faith that he will bring history to its culmination where every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Like God the Creator, that is a great comfort in a world where it seems like there are no sure things. 
4. Practically, filtering history and scripture through Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Restoration helps us make decisions and guide ministry with intentionality and a faith that God is still working. When presented with a problem or big ministry decision, our Theology guides our thought process. We have to ask and answer the big questions; How did God originally intend this to go? What happened to this idea or thing as a result of the fall? How has that been changed by Jesus ministry, death, burial, and resurrection? And what do we think this might look like when God finally redeems it and Jesus is Lord over all? 

In Conclusion: God had and still has a definite plan for history and that plan is Jesus. The world gives us a lot of different goalposts and theories about local and world history but the Biblical view is that God is guiding all of history to his goal and that we can have assurance that if we align ourselves with his purpose, we will be moving to an assured outcome of history.