Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20060129.htm

UNDERSTANDING GOD'S WORK AT THE CROSS OF JESUS CHRIST
Part III: Understanding The Redemption Of Jesus Christ
(Matthew 20:28; Mark 10:45 et al.)
  1. Introduction
    1. With the debate over what is involved in Christ's atonement, an issue that now divides evangelicals (John H. Armstrong, The Coming Evangelical Crisis (1996), p. 34, 132f) as we discerned in our last lesson in this series, a related question arises as to what is meant by "Christ's redemption":
      1. Christ's claim in Matthew 20:28 and Mark 10:45 that He gave "his life a ransom for many", a phrase that can easily imply a substitutionary atonement, is thought by Hastings Rashdall never to have been spoken by Jesus! (Leon Morris, The Apostolic Preaching of the Cross, 1972, p. 27) Rather, Rashdall felt Jesus' death was " . . . a service which His disciples were to imitate . . .'" (Ibid., p. 28).
      2. Others avoid the substitutionary and penal ideas in defining Christ's "redemption" as well: F. Buchsel taught Jesus gave His life as proof of His obedience "and as such, as power in mankind, overcomes sin'" (Ibid., p. 33); Gould likened His death "to that of the martyrs" (Ibid.); Sydney Cave taught that in Gal. 3:13 where Paul alluded to Deut. 21:23 to claim Christ became a curse for us' that Paul did not mean a substitutionary, penal work, but the curse is not the curse of God but of the law.'" (Ibid., p. 54)
    2. We thus view Scripture's teaching on the redemption of Christ to discern what it means (as follows):
  2. Understanding The Redemption Of Jesus Christ, Matthew 20:28: Mark 10:45 et al.
    1. Word usage in the Greek Testament reveals Christ's "redemption" involved a purchase:
      1. The verb, agorazo, "redeem", a derivative of agora, "a forum or a marketplace," means to buy, and is used in 1 Cor. 6:20; 7:23; 2 Pet. 2:1; Rev. 5:9 and 14:3-4 of Christians who are bought in reference to Christ's cross, Walvoord, Jesus Christ Our Lord, p. 163f. As the word, timay ("price") that is often used of the buying of slaves appears with agorazo in 1 Cor. 6:20 and 7:23, though agorazo "is not found in connection with the purchase and freedom of slaves," we know Christians are bought by Christ and are thus His slaves by way of His redemption of them via the cross! (Ibid., p. 164)
      2. Then, the verb exagorazo that combines agorazo with ex ("to buy back, from", Ibid., p. 165) appears in Gal. 3:13; 4:5; Eph. 5:16 and Col. 4:5, and Gal. 3:13 teaches the curse of the law rests on any who does not perfectly heed it. Christ is there said to have become a curse for man, "bearing the penalty of sin" so that His redemption "is . . . both . . . penal and substitutionary." (Ibid., p. 166).
      3. The verb, peripoieo in Luke 17:33; Acts 20:28 and 1 Tim. 3:13 is used in Acts 20:28 to refer to Christ's "purchase" of the Church with His blood, with His death on the cross. (Ibid., p. 166-167)
    2. Word usage in the Greek Testament reveals Christ's "redemption" involved a freedom from bondage:
      1. The Greek verb, lutroo "and its cognate forms" in the N. T. have "the meaning of freed by paying a ransom, redeemed, set free, rescued." (Ibid., p. 167). It is used of God's redemption of Israel in Luke 24:21, a redemption from sin that would lead to deliverance from Gentile dominion, Ibid. Titus 2:14 and 1 Peter 1:18 use it of the believer's deliverance from past sin and vain lifestyles, Ibid., p. 167-168.
      2. The noun form of lutroo, lutron, appears in Matthew 20:28 and Mark 10:45 as the "ransom" describing Christ's deliverance of people from bondage to sin by His work on the cross, Ibid., p. 168.
      3. Then, the noun, antilutron occurs only in 1 Tim. 2:6 as the combination of lutron with anti, the prefix, anti acting to focus on "the substitutionary character of the ransom", Ibid., p. 168 [emphasis ours].
      4. The word, apolutrosis, a more intensive form of the verb, lutroo, repeatedly appears in the N. T. to show the redemption of Christ frees one via a payment, Ibid. p. 169. (esp. Romans 3:24)
      5. The noun, lutrosis, another derivative of lutroo, appears in Lk. 1:68; 2:38 and Heb. 9:12, and Heb. 9:12 shows the cost of the sinner's "redemption" is eternally effective! (Ibid., p. 170-171)
Lesson: By way of His death, Christ paid the PRICE to ransom and FREE the enslaved sinner from his sinful, condemned position before God. (Ibid., p 171) His death was thus substitutional and penal.

Application: (1) The USE of "ransom", "redeem" and "redemption" relative to Christ's death support belief in the FULL substitutionary and penal nature of the cross. (2) As such, (a) Christ TRULY, FULLY and ETERNALLY saves man from hell to eternal life by GRACE through FAITH ALONE so that (b) the believer is FREED from God's WRATH as an issue regarding his SALVATION!