Verse of the Day 3/6

Through the Bible - Deuteronomy 4-5, , Mark 12:1-27

 

Good morning,

When you hear the word "ransom" what comes to mind?  Today you might be inclined to think of a kidnapping and a person being held for ransom.  You see this in movies, TV shows, and unfortunately in real life.

 

Today's verse gives us one of the main reasons why Jesus came to earth, to "give His life as a ransom" for us.

Mark 10:45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."   NKJV

The context here points more towards being released from slavery than from a kidnapping. Seeing the movie "Amazing Grace" last year and seeing the conditions of a slave ship with the slaves chained and shackled in close quarters gave me a different perception of slavery.  It showed the bondage, the hopelessness, despair in the plight of the slaves.

 

Slavery wasn't always something that someone was born into.  Often people would sell themselves into slavery, with little or no hope of being able to pay the price for freedom.

 

In Biblical times slavery was more predominant than it is today, at least in this country.  Or is it?

 

So many people want their freedoms, a Christian songwriter wrote, "the freedoms that you love you're soon a prisoner of."  You can see examples of this all around us today.

 

John Piper writes, "The reason we need a ransom to be paid for us is that we have sold ourselves into sin and have been alienated from a holy God. When Jesus gave his life as a ransom, our slavemasters, sin and death and the devil, had to give up their claim on us. And the result was that we could be adopted into the family of God.

Paul put it like this in Galatians 4:4–5, "When the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law so that we might receive adoption as sons." In other words the redemption or the ransom frees us to be a part of God's family. We had run away and sold ourselves into slavery. But God pays a ransom and redeems us out of slavery into the Father's house."

Just think of that.  Through Jesus we are not only freed from the slavery of sin, but we are adopted as children into God's family.  As you go to "God's House" for worship this weekend.  Think of some of the other reasons why Jesus came.  Praise Him for them.

 

1. to ransom many (today's verse)

2. to testify of the truth

3. to call sinners

4. to give sight to the morally blind

5. to save from divine condemnation

6. to give eternal life.

 

In Christ,
Mike
mikevw@bellsouth.net
More tools available at: http://mikesvotd.blogspot.com
Eph 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace  NIV

 

Mark 10:42-46
42 So Jesus called them together and said, "You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. 43 But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many."

NLT