Hallelujah! Jesus is my redeemer–and yours. Personally, this is one of my favorite titles of Jesus. Maybe it’s because I so desperately need the Lord to redeem me and the blunders I’ve made walking on this earth. Years ago I found this title for Jesus, and I became fixated on it. It became part of my prayer language almost everyday. You may be thinking, Andy, isn’t redemption a one time, salvation thing?
If that’s your thought, I would tell you, yes! Yes, Jesus redeemed us for all eternity. But this word holds so much more meaning. Let’s dig into it, and I’ll show you why I love this name for Jesus so much and how it’s become a staple in my prayers.
What Redeem Means today
First, let’s unpack the definition for “redeem” as we use it in our everyday conversations. Most of the time we employ this word in context of buying groceries. Any coupon clippers out there? I’m not a coupon gal. Every time I remember to take the coupons to the store, they’re usually expired. I’ve given up. I don’t have the organization skills; yet, I’m so impressed with you all who do use them! But I digress.
When we use this word in the context of coupons, in order to redeem the coupon we must purchase something–like “buy two cans of beans to get 50 cents off.” It costs us something in order to give that little piece of paper value, to initiate its purpose. If you’re a coupon clipper, you’re a redeemer!
The Biblical meaning of redeemer
Understanding “redeem” in our cultural context, is helpful, but it’s important to unpack the biblical meaning also. When we marry the two, I think it brings it to life. How many times do we read a scripture or use “churchy” lingo, but we really only kind of understand–enough, but not enough, really? Never settle. Let’s keep on digging. I’ve got some gold to share.
A redeemer in biblical days was a person who: 1. paid off a debt. 2. cleared an obligation by making a payment. 3. bought something (or someone) back. So, it’s a little different from our modern definition except it usually involved payment of some kind. Sometimes that payment involved redeeming people and usually the redeemer was in the family.
boaz was a redeemer
One of the most beloved stories in the Old Testament that gives us a tangible picture of a Ga’al (a redeemer) is the book of Ruth. In this sweet story, a prestigious Jewish family left Bethlehem during a famine to live in a forbidden place called Moab. They didn’t plan to stay long, but the famine continued. While living in Moab tragedy struck their family. During the ten years they lived in Moab, the father, Elimelech, died. His sons then married women from this pagan land, which was forbidden, and they also died.
After their deaths, Naomi knew needed to return to Bethlehem, and Ruth, one of her daughter-in-laws, refused to leave her side. To make a long story short, as Ruth worked to take care of Naomi and provide food for them, she met a man named Boaz who was the owner of the field Ruth “just happened” to glean in. Boaz was one of Naomi and Ruth’s “kinsman-redeemers.”
kinsman redeemer
A kinsman-redeemer was a family member who could “redeem” these women–the family blood ran through his veins. They could not redeem themselves because they did not have the right blood. Naomi needed to sell land that belonged to her husband, but if a kinsman-redeemer purchased the land, she would be able to stay there. The land would be redeemed back into the family. But a kinsman-redeemer had another obligation. According to the law, if a man died without children, his brothers or relative next in line would marry his wife so she could have a child. This child would carry on the deceased husband’s name through the generations.
In the book of Ruth, the kinsman-redeemer, Boaz, purchased Elimelech’s land from Naomi and married Ruth. Both women were redeemed, and Ruth became pregnant with a son. It’s a beautiful picture of redemption of something bought back to be restored to the family. It’s also a sweet example of the “kinsman-redeemer.”
Jesus as our kinsman redeemer
Jesus is not only our Redeemer, He’s our Kinsman-Redeemer. On the night of the Last Supper, Jesus raised the cup and proclaimed, “This is my blood of the covenant which is poured out for the many for forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28). As the Son of God, the family blood pumped through His veins. He held the name and the blood required to be our Kinsman-Redeemer. As our Redeemer He:
- Paid off the debt we owed because of our sin.
- Cleared our obligation to pay our debt.
- Bought us with His life.
Redeemer Bible reading plan
This is heavy. May we not too quickly read through what Jesus did and let our redemption be too familiar to fully appreciate. Let’s take time. I pray you’ll join me for the entire month of June to allow the precious meaning of Redeemer sink deeper into your spirit. For thirty days we will read scriptures about God’s heart to redeem and all He’s done through His Son, Jesus–scriptures like Isaiah 44:6-8:
“This is what the Lord says—
Isaiah 44:6-8
Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty:
I am the first and I am the last;
apart from me there is no God.
Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it.
Let him declare and lay out before me
what has happened since I established my ancient people,
and what is yet to come—
yes, let them foretell what will come.
Do not tremble, do not be afraid.
Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago?
You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me?
No, there is no other Rock; I know not one.”
Deep breath. Tears welling up. Did you feel the eternal weight of this passage and the glory of YHWH, God Almighty, Redeemer and Rock? He orchestrated what no false god (idol) could. Money, fame, even happiness could never redeem our sinful self. Nothing, not even our own sacrifices could redeem us. But in His great love and mercy, He gave His Son. We are witnesses. Those of us who’ve experienced redemption, adopted into the family have been given value and worth. Our purpose and destiny was initiated upon redemption. Hallelujah! Grab the free pintable!
redeems my everyday
The price has been paid for our eternal redemption, but my Redeemer is faithful to redeem my everyday and yours too. From hurting a friend with thoughtless words or paying too much for something I didn’t need, to parenting blunders, Jesus redeems–He’s turned these painful things into opportunities for good. It’s who He is. It’s what He does. Jesus can and will redeem. It’s just a prayer away, “Jesus, please redeem my mistake!”
I am a witness. I’ve experienced His faithful redemption. When my daughter was four, after patiently waiting for her to slide down a “fire-pole” on a children’s wooden “fort” in the park, I snapped. My patience melted in the hot Carolina sun, and rather than continuing gentle encouragement to do this thing she wanted to do but was scared to do, I threatened punishment if she didn’t do it. The minute the threat left my lips, I immediately was filled with remorse, but Lauren quickly grabbed that pole with her little, chubby hands, and in a second was proudly standing on the ground ready to do it again. She loved it. But her momma felt terrible. All I could do was pray for God to redeem that bad mommy moment.
And He did. Twenty years later as Lauren and I stood in my kitchen talking about her student teaching experience she said, “Mom, it was a fire-pole moment.”
“What do you mean?” I asked totally confused.
She looked at me with a big grin on her face, “Well, you know, I just had to grit my teeth, grab that pole, and do it afraid.”
I could not believe my ears. The Lord had answered my prayers. He had redeemed that hot, grace-less day. That memory had become a catalyst for my daughter to do hard things, scary things throughout her college days.
A Prayer to Redeem
Do you need something to be redeemed? The truth is, all of us do. As long as we live on this planet in these earthly bodies, we will need Jesus to be a eternal and daily Redeemer. I’m feeling a prayer coming on. Grab my hands. Let’s pray.
“Jesus, thank you for being our Kinsman-Redeemer. You paid for us with your life. It’s so hard to fathom. Please don’t let us become too familiar with “Redeemer,” but let us come with grateful hearts every day to your throne of grace. Give us deeper understanding. And Lord, please forgive us of those moments we mess up. Please redeem those mistakes. Give them new, better life and purpose turning them around for good. We will be witnesses. Amen”
More Teaching on Redeemer
Throughout the month I will be unpacking the verses from our reading plan through video. Subscribe to my You Tube channel for further teaching on the Redeemer, or if you’re a “grammar,” meet me on Instagram @wordsbyandylee on Fridays at 9:00 AM ET for my Live Faith Friday teaching.
And if you want to really go deeper into study of Redeemer, grab my Bible study on the book of Ruth. It’s available on Amazon, or you can order from my site here to get a signed copy.
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