Our Ransom

God disciplines people with sickness and pain, with ceaseless aching in their bones. They lose their appetite and do not care for even the most delicious food. They waste away to skin and bones. They are at death's door; the angels of death wait for them. But if a special messenger from heaven is there to intercede for a person, to declare that he is upright, God will be gracious and say, "Set him free. Do not make him die, for I have found a ransom for his life." Then his body will become as healthy as a child's, firm and youthful again. When he prays to God, he will be accepted. And God will receive him with joy and restore him to good standing. He will declare to his friends, "I sinned, but it was not worth it. God rescued me from the grave, and now my life is filled with light." Yes, God often does these things for people. He rescues them from the grave so they may live in the light of the living. --Job 33:19-30

God's only Son, Jesus, paid the ransom for our lives. God loves us as much as He hates sin, and so He sent Jesus to pay the ransom for our lives so that we could live in the light. God did this because He knew that our sin would otherwise destroy us and because He loves us so much that He wants for us to live in the light instead of the darkness. He wants us to have joy and peace and to recognize that we cannot afford not to seek Him. The price of sin is too high (Romans 6:23). Often, we don't think of the cost of sin while we're sinning, but sooner or later we see a bill that is more than we want to pay. Jesus paid the bill for us. Because Jesus, His only Son, pleads with the Father for us to be set free from our bondage to sin and the eternal consequences of our sin, God accepts us and listens when we pray. He does not receive us reluctantly when His Son pleads for us like a parent reluctantly buying a toy for a child just so the child will stop pleading for it. No, when Jesus pleads for us, God receives us with joy and graciously restores us to right standing with Him. When He rescues us, we respond with gratitude in our hearts. He's given us the gift of memory so that we remember all we have to joyful about and thankful for. And sometimes He'll leave us with scars from our pre-rescue days just to ensure that we don't forget and return to our former ways. For our own good, He wants us to remember that sin is not worth the price. He wants us to continue to walk in the light. Thank Him today for His grace. He paid your ransom, and because of Him, you are free.