Redemptive | Love Gives Life To Others

Sunday, February 19, 2023

To get our first-time guests up to speed let me give the extremely short version of the story that sets the stage for what we are going to study today.

A man named Elimelech (My God is King) was married to a woman named Naomi (Pleasant) and they lived in Bethlehem (Place of Bread). They had two sons named Mahlon (Sickness) and Chilion (Vanishing). When a severe famine struck their land, Elimelech took his family to Moab where he soon thereafter died. Following his death his two sons married Moabite women. Chilion married Orpah and the eldest, Mahlon, married Ruth. However, after ten years neither son had been able to produce a child with their wife and both sons ended up dying. This left Elimelech with no heir, and Naomi likely condemned to abject poverty. At some point after her sons’ death, Naomi decided to go back to Bethlehem because she heard that God had ended the famine. Along the way Naomi insisted that Orpah and Ruth go back to Moab. After some serious persuasion she was able to convince Orpah, but Ruth refused and vowed,

“For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. 17 Where you die I will die, and there will I be
buried. May the LORD do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you." (Ruth 1:16b-17)

When they arrived in Bethlehem the barely harvest was underway, so Ruth got up early the next morning and began gleaning. Gleaning was the legal process exclusively for the poor and sojourners (foreigners living in a land not their own) of picking up sheeves of grain dropped by the reapers or harvesting the sheeves around the edges of the field that the law reserved for the gleaners (Leviticus 19:9-10). Ruth eventually ended up in Boaz’s field, and as such, got noticed by Boaz while he was checking up on his reapers. Boaz wanted to know who she was and when he found out it was Ruth, the Moabite woman that had committed her life to God and Naomi, he immediately committed to both protect and provide for her. He instructed his workers to give Ruth some of the sheeves they had already harvested, to protect her, to let her glean all she wanted and to not rebuke her, that is, don’t mock her or make her feel unwelcomed. Boaz also did a massively culturally taboo thing and invited Ruth to eat with him and his workers.

When Ruth returned home, she did so with over a month’s worth of grain which immediately instigated Naomi to want to know all about how all this went down. Upon hearing her story, Naomi realized who had shown this tremendous kindness towards Ruth. It was one of Elimelech’s family and thus one of Ruth’s redeemers – Boaz!

Despite Boaz’s clear interest in Ruth, he hadn’t taken any initiative, so, after the barely harvest finished, Naomi gave Ruth a plan to help Boaz out! In Ruth chapter three, doing exactly what Naomi told her to do, Ruth makes it clear to Boaz that she wants him to marry her. Boaz immediately says he would love to, but, and this is a big but, he can’t do it until the family member that is closer in kin to Elimelech decides whether he is going to marry her. And this brings us to chapter four.

The first part of chapter 4 that reveals a beautiful reality of what love is, is in verses 1-6.
(1) Boaz calls for a decision concerning Naomi’s land and marriage to Ruth. (4:1-6)

1 Now Boaz had gone up to the gate and sat down there. And behold, the redeemer, of whom Boaz had spoken, came by. So Boaz said, "Turn aside, friend; sit down here." And he turned aside and sat down. 2 And he took ten men of the elders of the city and said, "Sit down here." So they sat down.

Given there was no son of Elimelech left to marry Ruth, the levirate system would have followed the order of the hierarchy of next of kin (possibly the same as Leviticus 25:48-49). In this case the only thing we know is that whoever Boaz has confronted at the gates is the first in line and Boaz is second, therefore this unnamed man has to refuse his right to purchase the land and marry Ruth before Boaz can do it. The key here is that this was going to be a legal preceding and needed a legal resolution and thus Boaz followed the customs and laws of the land to do that

“The main gate of the town served as the local law court. Planned with an open space around which benches provided places to sit in the shade of the high walls, the gate was a natural meeting place. It had the advantage of being open to the public, who could observe that justice was done. Boaz knew that his relative would be sure to go through the gate to work and the relative, who remains unnamed, would be prepared for some serious business when he was invited to sit down. The ten elders of the town, chosen at random, roughly correspond to the jury in English law. Responsible adults were presumed to be competent to discern what was just. In Bethlehem these elders represented the community in which the legal decision had to be carried out. Their approval was essential and the seated group of twelve constituted the court of law.”

3 Then he said to the redeemer, "Naomi, who has come back from the country of Moab, is selling the parcel of land that belonged to our relative Elimelech. 4 So I thought I would tell you of it and say, 'Buy it in the presence of those sitting here and in the presence of the elders of my people.' If you will redeem it, redeem it. But if you will not, tell me, that I may know, for there is no one besides you to redeem it, and I come after you." And he said, "I will redeem it." 5 Then Boaz said, "The day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you also acquire Ruth the Moabite, the widow of the dead, in order to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance." 6 Then the redeemer said, "I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I impair my own inheritance. Take my right of redemption yourself, for I cannot redeem it."

What in the world is going on here? Last week I shared a little about what’s called levirate law and what it meant for a person to be a redeemer of an inheritance. I’m going to come back to that in a minute, but I first need to explain something else that’s key to understand why the land and Ruth all went together.

The purpose of the Law God gave Moses was to govern the Jewish people, not just as an ethnic group who descended from Abraham, but also as an identifiable nation, meaning a nation with land and borders. You see God promised Abraham that his descendants would inherit and thrive in the land of Canaan. However, his grandson Jacob and his family ended up stuck in Egypt. Generation after generation passed with the Hebrew people finding themselves under the terrible shackle of slavery, that is, until God raised up Moses to lead the people out of captivity and back to the Promise Land. To help facilitate what God raised Moses up to do, He gave them laws that guaranteed the land they faithfully conquered and claimed, would stay in their families possession and continue to provide them with prosperity.

Read Leviticus 25 to get all the details, but, for times purpose, let me just sum it up. First, Leviticus 25 sets up a Sabbath law for the land. There would be a seven-year agricultural cycle. In the first six years of the cycle everybody would plant and reap as usual, however, in the seventh year (the Sabbath rest of the Land) they could neither plant nor reap, and thus it gave the land time to rest and be re-nourished so that that it could continue reaping large harvests generation after generation.

In addition, after seven cycles, that is 49 years, the 50th year would be known as the Year of Jubilee. People get in financial trouble for all kinds of reasons, so the law made a provision for people to be able to essentially lease their land to help them out financially. However, the law didn’t allow them to sell it in perpetuity (permanently).

“The land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for the land is mine. For you are strangers and sojourners with me.” (Leviticus 25:23)

Essentially, God was saying the land belongs to Him, and as such, He’s only letting them use it. You can’t sell what you don’t own! So, basically then, the Year of Jubilee worked like this. If there were 20 years left before the Year of Jubilee and I needed cash, I could sell the rights to plant and harvest on my land for the next 20 years. If along the way I got myself back in shape financially, I could refund the leaser of my land for however many years were left before the year of Jubilee and get my land back. On the other hand, at the end of those 20 years, if I was never able to put the money together to buy my land back, when the Year of Jubilee occurred, that land would go back to me automatically. If I was deceased, it would go to my descendants.

Furthermore, the laws concerning the Year of Jubilee basically applied to any kind of debt, including if you sold yourself into slavery. Everything got reset on the Year of Jubilee, which meant if you were a lender, you were never going to lend anybody more than what you thought you could get back from the person before the Year of Jubilee, and if you were an investor you were never going to over extend yourself and pay somebody more for land than what you knew you could earn.

Most importantly, it meant that no matter how bad you messed things up, you could know it would all get reset so that you didn’t end up cursing your descendants with generational poverty. You may die before the year of Jubilee, but the Law kept the promise of God to the Hebrew people for your descendants. Therefore, no matter how big a mess you made of your life; it would get redeemed!

 This takes us back to what we talked about last week in Deuteronomy 25. It was known as the levirate law. What happened if a person made a mess of everything and then died without an heir before it all got straightened out? Well, once again, for time’s sake, one of the ways God set up to make sure everything got restored back to its original form was known as the levirate law. If a man had two sons who got married, and one of those two sons died before having a son who could inherit his land, then the wife of the dead brother would marry the living brother to produce a son, not only in the blood line of her dead husband’s family, but also as an heir to her dead husbands land and wealth. If, however there was no brother alive to marry her, then the levirate system would have followed the order of the hierarchy of next of kin (possibly the same as Leviticus 25:48-49). Now it’s important to note that nobody other than the brothers were obligated to fulfill this expectation. The only person who was obligated to such a commitment was a brother.

So, this takes us back to Ruth. Both of Naomi’s sons are dead, therefore, Ruth, who had been married to her son Mahlon, needed somebody that was kin to Elimelech to marry her and provide Mahlon with a son, and Elimelech a grandson that would inherit Elimelech’s land.

Furthermore, Naomi needed to sell the rights to the land that belonged to her and Elimelech, but, because there was no heir, she could only sell the rights to the land to somebody that would also marry Ruth and attempt to produce an heir that would inherit that land upon his biological father’s death or in the year of Jubilee (whichever came first).

Now, if Naomi’s sons had never married then this first in line family member, that Boaz has put on the spot, could have potentially bought the field from Naomi, and if Naomi died before the year of Jubilee, the land would have been permanently given to him. However, because Ruth chose to come back with Naomi, there was a woman who could legally provide an heir to Elimelech’s land, and as such, the law would not allow the land to be sold without a commitment to provide an heir to Elimelech.

The next of kin appeared to have no idea of the situation, and thus he was more than willing to purchase the land, that is until he found it included Ruth and the likely chance, he wouldn’t own it in the end. So, the next of kin says no to the offer, which gave Boaz the right to say yes!

The second part of chapter 4 that reveals a beautiful reality of what love is, is in verses 7-10.
(2) Boaz publicly commits to purchase Naomi’s land and marry Ruth. (4:7-10)
7 Now this was the custom in former times in Israel concerning redeeming and exchanging: to confirm a transaction, the one drew off his sandal and gave it to the other, and this was the manner of attesting in Israel. (Possibly when this was written this custom was no longer practiced and thus “this was the custom in former times”) 8 So when the redeemer said to Boaz, "Buy it for yourself," he drew off his sandal. 9 Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, "You are witnesses this day that I have bought from the hand of Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and to Mahlon. 10 Also Ruth the Moabite, the widow of Mahlon, I have bought to be my wife, to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brothers and from the gate of his native place. You are witnesses this day."

Interestingly a crowd had gathered to witness the proceedings. I’m sure there was great interest, after all, news had spread all over town about Ruth! She was a highly respected woman and Boaz was at least a somewhat wealthy landowner. A man committing to a levirate vow would have been a rare spectacle anyway but fulfilling that vow with a Moabitess who committed her life to serve a Jewish woman and repented and surrendered her life to Yahweh, would have created all kinds of hype!

But here’s what I want you to see. Boaz committed to be the kinsmen redeemer for Elimelech’s land and name, and as such he committed to provide for and prosper Ruth and Naomi, and he did it with no shame and no hesitation. Despite the fact buying the field could prove to be a bad investment (remember that they just came out of a famine, so who’s to say they aren’t going to end up right back in it again!), Boaz never flinches. What a contrast Boaz is to the one who was the first in line to be the redeemer!

The third part of chapter 4 that reveals a beautiful reality of what love is, is found in verses 11-12.
(3) The town elders and witnesses to Boaz’s commitment overwhelmingly blessed it! (4:11-12)
The town elders and witnesses first blessed Ruth. (4:11a)

 11 Then all the people who were at the gate and the elders said, "We are witnesses. May the LORD make the woman, who is coming into your house, like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel.” (4:11a)

Rachel and Leah were the two wives of Jacob, a situation Jacob didn’t ask for but ended up with anyway. Jacob worked seven years to earn the right to marry Rachel, but on his wedding night his father-in-law sent Rachel’s older sister Leah, who was apparently not very attractive, into the tent to consummate a marriage with Jacob instead. Jacob had possibly drunk enough in the wedding feast that the garments and veil wore by Leah successfully hid her identity from Jacob until he woke up in the morning and saw who it was lying next to him! Jacob demanded that Laban make it right, but Laban refused to annul the marriage. He instead made Jacob sleep with Leah throughout her rightful week to try and get pregnant, then he would allow Jacob to marry Rachel so long as he agreed to work seven more years. Therefore, as soon as Leah’s weekfinished, Jacob married Rachel, spent his week with her, then started in on his second term of seven years of labor for his father-in-law. It was constant drama between Rachel and Leah, and Leah never truly felt loved by Jacob because honestly, he never loved her as he loved Rachel; but nonetheless, God blessed both women with twelve sons in all (some of which were through their maidservants) and their descendants becameknownasthetwelvetribesofIsrael. Theorganizationalidentity of the entire nation was created by the sons of these women! So, think about what the elders and crowd are saying when they are crying out that they want God to use this Moabite woman named Ruth to impact Israel on the level that Rachel and Leah did!

Interestingly, Rachel and Leah were the 2nd great grandkids of Terah. Jacob was a great grandkid of Terah; and get this, Rebekah, Jacob’s mom was a great grandkid of Terah. That’s right, Rebekah and her sons hadthe same great grandfather! So, check out this family mess! To my best understanding of how you assign “cousin titles” this is what I’ve concluded:

Isaac married Rebekah who was his first cousin once removed (she was the great granddaughter of Isaac’s grandfather Terah)

That means Jacob’s mom, Rebekah, was also Jacob’s second cousin.

Likewise, Jacob’s father-in-law, Rebekah’s brother Laban, was also Jacob’s second cousin, and as such, Laban’s daughters Rachel and Leah were Jacob’s 2nd cousins once removed.

However, given Rachel and Leah were also Jacob’s mothers nieces, they were more accurately first cousins to Jacob!

The elders and witnesses then blessed Boaz. (4:11b-12)

May you act worthily in Ephrathah and be renowned in
Bethlehem, 12 and may your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, because of the offspring that the LORD will give you by this young woman." (4:11b-12)

Ruth isn’t present at this meeting. Chapter three tells us that Naomi instructed her to stay home. The Elders and witnesses are therefore speaking to Boaz, and as such, when it says, “may you,” its referring to Boaz. Therefore, at this point the focus of this blessing is now Boaz.

The word “worthily” means to act in a way that reflects nobility, valor, and worthiness to society. It was used to describe physical strength and even the conquering actions of an army in battle. To be “renowned” then would be that you were made famous because of your noble actions.

Putting this all together, the name “Ephrathah” is just another name for the people who were native to Bethlehem, and thus they are essentially praying that Boaz would act in such a way that he becomes famous among all who live in the region; both those who are native and foreign to that land. Little did they know Boaz would end up timelessly famous throughout the world!

“The elders prayed that Boaz would have standing (ḥayil) in Ephratah. This word ḥayil (“valor, worth, ability”) is used of Boaz (2:1) and of Ruth (3:11). Ephratah (also spelled Ephrath and Ephrathah) was another name for Bethlehem (cf. Gen. 35:19; 48:7; Micah 5:2). The elders prayed that Boaz would be famous in Bethlehem. God abundantly answered their prayers as many have witnessed

In addition, they prayed for his house to be like the house Perez. That is another very specific Old Testament reference that once again proves the Bible is not shy! In Genesis chapter 38 the Bible tells us that right after Judah convinced his brothers to sell their brother Joseph into slavery rather than kill him, Judah then left his family and became friends with a guy named Hirah. While away, he ended up getting married and had three sons. Judah’s eldest son was named Er and he married a woman named Tamar. However, before Tamar and Er had children, Er died. The Bible says he was a wicked man, so wicked, that God put him to death. (Genesis 38:7). Judah then instructed his second born son, Onan, that he had to produce a child for his dead brother with Tamar. This was proof levirate law existed before God ever told Moses to write it down. However, the Bible says of Onan that, “whenever he went in to his brother's wife he would waste the semen on the ground, so as not to give offspring to his brother” (Genesis 38:9). It seems Onan was trying to work a plan to experience sexual gratification without the threat of having a child that would keep him from getting his brother’s share of Judah’s inheritance. But God judged Onan for this wickedness and killed him as well (Genesis 38:10). At that point Judah committed his last and youngest son to Tamar, but he wasn’t old enough yet, so he told her to wait. However, the truth of the matter was that Judah was scared his third son Shelah would end dead like the other two. To Judah, it may have even seemed Tamar was the problem, who knows, but the Bible makes it clear Judah was worried for his only remaining sons’ life. As time went by, and Shelah grew up, it became obvious to Tamar that Judah had no intention of ever marrying him to Tamar. Eventually Tamar heard that Judah was going to be traveling with his friend Hirah to the town where he took his sheep to get sheered, and as such, pass through a town called Enaim. Tamar, knowing they would stop in that town, decided to dress up as a prostitute and sit at the gate in an attempt to seduce her father-in-law, who had just got over grieving the loss of his wife – and it worked. If you read the story in Genesis 38 its very clear that Judah had no idea he was having sex with Tamar, however, its clearly immoral and unethical for both! Long story short, one of the twin sons of that sexual encounter was named Perez, and Perez ended up being the patriarch of the inhabitants of Bethlehem.

Certainly, the story of Judah and Tamar had the similarity of being a levirate type relationship with a foreign wife, but I don’t think that was the intent of the crowd and the elders in this blessing. I think the intent was the blessing of God on the son (Perez) that came from the relationship that ended up being the patriarch of their community. They are asking God to make the offspring of Boaz and Ruth equally as important; little did they know how eternally IMPORTANT one of them would be!

The fourth part of chapter 4 that reveals a beautiful reality of what love is, is in verses 13-15.
(4) God blessed Naomi by giving Ruth a son. (4:13-15)

13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. And he went in to her, and the LORD gave her conception, and she bore a son. 14 Then the women said to Naomi, "Blessed be the LORD, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may his name be renowned in Israel! (made famous!)15 He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age, for your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has given birth to him."

Ruth was married to Mahlon for up to ten years and never had a child, so there was no guarantee that Ruth would ever have a child, much less a son. But the consummation of the marriage to Boaz produced a son! God had blessed Ruth for sure in this relationship, but for the town women who had grown up with Naomi, they were overwhelmed with how God had just redeemed Naomi in her old age! This son meant Naomi’s drive to supply an heir for Elimelech was fulfilled and that there would be a son obligated to care for her with the proceeds of the land she had sold to Boaz. It's not that Boaz would have ever let Naomi go hungry, but Naomi now has the promise of a son to make sure she was cared for. The women seemed confident in this outcome because Ruth was so committed to Naomi. It would be unimaginable that Ruth’s son could somehow ignore the needs of Naomi.

“They pray that he may be to Naomi a “restorer of life,” i.e., one who gave new meaning to living. The women also pray that the child would one day sustain Naomi in her old age (4:14–15a). The fear of every woman in Israel was to grow old without a male provider. The women of Bethlehem considered Naomi blessed, not only because of the newborn child, but because she had a daughter- in-law who loved her “more than seven sons.” A mother of many sons in the Old Testament world was a happy mother. As long as she had no descendant, Naomi was so bitter that she could not really appreciate the blessing which Ruth represented in her life. Now that the stigma of childlessness had been removed, Naomi could come to appreciate how blessed she really was. Her life was indeed “full” of God’s blessing (4:15b).”

“The narrator wants us to know that the birth of a son to Boaz and Ruth was the Lord’s doing—‘the Lord enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son’ (v. 13). The surprise is that the focus then shifts from Ruth to Naomi as we are told what the women said to Naomi. Back in 1:19 the women spoke about Naomi, exclaiming, ‘Can this be Naomi?’ Now they praise the Lord for the transformation he has brought about. ‘The women said to Naomi: “Praise be to the Lord,” who this day has not left you without a kinsman-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel! He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth’ (vv. 14–15).”

The fifth part of chapter 4 that reveals a beautiful reality of what love is, is found in verses 16-22.
(5) God blessed Israel and us by giving Ruth a son! (4:16-22)

16 Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her lap and became his nurse. 17 And the women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, "A son has been born to Naomi." They named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David. 18 Now these are the generations of Perez: Perez fathered Hezron, 19 Hezron fathered Ram, Ram fathered Amminadab, 20 Amminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon fathered Salmon, 21 Salmon fathered Boaz, Boaz fathered Obed, 22 Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered David.

“They chose the name Obed, one who serves. Obed became the father of Jesse, and the grandfather of David.”

“God’s sovereign purpose could be traced through all the generations from Perez, who had been named in the marriage blessing (12), to David, hundreds of years later. Ruth’s determination to throw in her lot with Naomi had had far- reaching consequences, beyond anything she could ever have guessed. In view of the fact that all Judah’s kings belonged to David’s dynasty, the Moabite girl had most illustrious descendants, and the prayer of Boaz that she might be richly rewarded by the Lord (2:12) was spectacularly answered.”

When the original readers read this book they saw God’s providence to provide them with a godly, anointed King. However, all who live on this side of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus see that God used this story to demonstrate his providential hand to make the way of our Savior! In the very first chapter of the first book in the New Testament, Matthew, we see that the Joseph, Jesus’s earthly adopted father, was in the line of David, who was in the line of a prostitute named Rahab, a woman named Tamar who played the role of a prostitute to seduce her Father-in-law, and here in a Ruth, a woman who prior to her conversion to Yahweh, came from the Satan worshiping, baby sacrificing tribe called the Moabites. Our God is not ashamed of sinners. He loves us sinners! He pours out His grace on us sinners! He even gets down on our level and dwells with us sinners, and He did so physically in the person of Christ.

And that leads me to the beautiful reality of love revealed in chapter 4

Conclusion: Love is redemptive.

Love seeks to bring life. It sacrificially labors to do everything wisely and righteously possible to rescue a person. Loves sees pain and longs to bring healing. Love sees lostness and works to bring direction. Love sees sin and does all that’s possible to bring righteousness. These examples and more all end then with the person of Jesus. In Jesus we find the very definition of redemption and as such the definition of love.

Now, you’ve probably heard people talk about how Ruth points us to Jesus as the ultimate Boaz, that is, that Jesus is the ultimate kinsmen redeemer. It’s a phrase that gets mentioned on plenty of occasions in conversation about Ruth, but rarely does anybody ever stop to think about what it actually means. So, let me take a quick minute and give you four explanations with some complimentary Scriptures on what it means for Christ to be our Kinsmen Redeemer; that is, how Christ exemplifies that love is redemptive!

The following are four ways Christ, as our kinsmen redeemer, exemplifies that love is redemptive.
The first way Christ, as our kinsmen redeemer, exemplified love is redemptive is that,

(1) A kinsmen redeemer had to be willing. Jesus had a choice, and He chose to pay the price to redeem us.
A. “11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. ... 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. ... 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father." (John 10: 11, 14-15, 17-18)

B. “14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.” (Titus 2:14)

The second way Christ, as our kinsmen redeemer, exemplified love is redemptive is that,

(2) A kinsmen redeemer had to be family. Jesus Christ, who has always been the eternal son of God, became man so that He could justly pay the penalty required of man.
A. “21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. (1 Corinthians 15:21-22)

B. “14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. (Hebrews 2:14-17)

The third way Christ, as our kinsmen redeemer, exemplified love is redemptive is that,
(3) A kinsmen redeemer had to be able to afford it. Because Jesus Christ was not just man, but equally God, He could do what no mere man could do – He could fully satisfy God’s wrath on our sin, and as such, overcome the eternal curse of death for us!
A. 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. (Romans 3:23-25)

B. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, (Ephesians 1:7)

C. 18 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. (1 Peter 1:18-19)

The fourth way Christ, as our kinsmen redeemer, exemplified love is redemptive is that,
(4) A kinsmen redeemer brought glory to a father who no longer had an heir. Adam’s sin cut us off from the inheritance God created for us. However, Christ redeemed us, and as such, glorified God by restoring us to the inheritance prepared for us by the Father!
 

5 he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, (Ephesians 1:5)B. 4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God. (Galatians 4:4-7)

Challenge: Christ’s love is redemptive. He labors to rescue us. “Every Family has a Family. Every Person has a Person.” Who’s your family’s family? Who’s your person?

Discussion Guide for this sermon