Reference: Romans 3:23-25
If we were to look up the definition forthe word redemption, we will find that it means to be brought back to a certainstate of being or position that someone or something had fallen from. Since weare dealing with spiritual things the state of being or position that we arereferring to is the original state of man before he fell prone to the power andinfluence of sin. Reading the account that took place in the garden of Eden, wecan see that man was once in perfect fellowship with Almighty God until hepartook of the forbidden fruit that hewas told not to eat. In the garden of Eden was where man lost his position andfellowship with his creator. When God first made man and placed him in thegarden of Eden to dress and to keep it, he was made in all the respects in thevery image and likeness of God. The first man, Adam, was a perfect man that Godhad created from the dust of the earth. A perfect man means that man was madein such a fashion that he lacked nothing that would cause him to be imperfectin bodily creation or in the character that he manifested. Man was made inGod's likeness and image meaning he was perfect in body and in spirit. Perfectin body means that man was formed from the dust of the earth and he was made aliving soul that could function perfectly performing his abilities that was givento him of God. God created everything in existence and placed his creation ofman in control of it.
In Genesis 1:26 we are told that God made man in his image and likenessand gave him dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air,and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing thatcreepeth upon the earth... Man at firstwas able to take care of the creation that God had created because he was madeperfect in the very likeness and image of Almighty God. Man was without sin inthe beginning which meant that he did not partake of its devastating influence.God made man and placed him over his works that he created but when man becamepartaker of sin he lost his ability to perform his duties that God had entrustedhim with. Being a partaker of sin means that man began to do things that wascontrary to the will and way of God. God had warned Adam not to eat of the treeof the knowledge of good and evil. The knowledge of good and evil is what manbegan to partake with because the Serpent through Eve caused the human race tobe infested with the disease of sin in the flesh. Sin is the transgression ofGod's law. To break the laws of God will automatically bring destruction toman. Man was originally made to perform and rule over the creation of God thathe had made, but when he fell in sin this ended his reign with God losing hispresence and fellowship. When sin entered the human race through the deceptionof Eve, man then began to do what Satan wanted him to do. The works of Satan isto destroy everything that God had created. Satan could not fight God in hisown power in direct combat with him but when he saw the opportunity tointervene into the human race, he did so through the episode in the garden ofEden. Satan through the human race took over this world that God had placed manin control of. The things that man has done down through the ages of time hasonly proved out to be harm to himself and also to the creation of the entireearth. Have you ever wondered what this world would be like if man did not fallin sin like he originally did in the beginning of his creation? Since man didfall from God this did not mean that God would not try to bring him back to hisoriginal state that he was in before he fell. Reading in Genesis 3:14-15we can see that God revealed that he would provide a way that man could regainfellowship back with him and this way would bruise the head of the serpent. Theseed of the woman that would bruise the head of Satan is of course the seedWord of God which is Christ Jesus. The truth will bruise Satan's head becausethe truth will bring man back to his original state that he was in at thebeginning. Bringing man back to this position leaves Satan with nothing. It isa pitiful shame to see that man fails to receive and obey the truth seeing thatit would redeem him back to his original state of perfection with God. Satanhas forever been able to keep man in his deceived state by his tactics deviceof deceit. Satan, who is the god of this world as so stated in II Corinthians 4:3-4,has blinded the mind of man today keeping him from coming to the knowledge ofthe truth that the gospel truly reveals. Satan does not want man to know thetrue value and purpose of the scriptures revealed in the gospel of Christ. Thisis because the gospel will redeem man back to God in a perfect state if he willobey and receive it, but Satan has succeeded in blinding man from the truth bydeceiving him into accepting a false concept of the gospel. A perversion of thegospel is what Satan has caused man to receive instead of the truth of thegospel. The truth will set man free but a perverted gospel will blind him andsear his conscience causing him to speak lies in hypocrisy. Most people fail torealize that Satan is the adversary of the soul trying to destroy it causingman to fail to come to the knowledge of the truth that would set him free fromsin's power. As long as a person has sin in their lives this keeps themseperated from God. The gospel reveals the way that will remove the stain ofsin from man placing him back in fellowship with Almighty God as he was in thebeginning of his creation. The truth will purge the conscience from dead worksto serve the living God as stated in Hebrews9:14. We can't serve God with acarnal mind, but Satan has blinded man from the truth of the gospel that wouldpurge his conscience making him a servant of God in spirit and in truth. Afalse doctrine will sear your conscience giving you a false concept of salvationkeeping you from the knowledge of God that the gospel truly reveals. If you donot know and understand the true value and purpose of the gospel of Christ thenyou will never become a true child of God and inherit eternal life. The Biblereveals that there is going to be a new world to come wherein will dwellrighteousness. Only those that have been truly born again of the water and theSpirit will inherit eternal life in the new world to come.Those who receive andobey the truth of the gospel will be like Noah and his family that was savedduring the flood to live and start a new life. After the flood, Noah's familywas the only people saved to live on the earth. Only those that will receiveand obey the truth of the gospel will be saved to live in the new world to comethat the Bible speaks about. You must by faith believe the truth and believingwill transform you into a new creature in Christ. If you are in Christ then youare in the ark of safety just like Noah being in the ark that saved his soulalive to dwell on the earth after the flood was over. Christ brought to thisearth the plan of redeeming salvation that will save the soul of everyindividual that will receive and obey it, but to reject the truth will sealyour doom forever. What will be your choice friend??