Redemption in Christianity is God buying back the human race He lost when Adam fell, paying the price through the shed blood of Christ.
Redemption means being bought back. Adam fell and the human race was lost, so God set in motion a plan of redemption. The price paid was His own blood, and this redemption comes through faith in Christ Jesus.
Romans 3:24 — This verse directly connects justification with redemption: 'Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.'
Romans 3:25 — This verse shows that redemption is through faith in Christ's blood, which is the price paid for our redemption.
The Bible presents redemption as an act of God accomplished through Jesus Christ. Romans 3:23-25 says: "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;" The apostle Peter also describes redemption as being purchased not with corruptible things, but with the precious blood of Christ: "Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:"
Les Feldick teaches that redemption is fundamentally a buying back. He illustrates this with a 'hawk shop' (pawn shop): if you pawn something and later bring enough money, you redeem it and buy it back. The human race is the same picture — when Adam fell, God lost the human race, and redemption is God's way of buying humanity back to Himself. [Clip 1] [Clip 4] [Clip 7]
When Adam sinned, God lost the human race. Adam and Eve came under the control of the god of this world, old Satan, and the fellowship with God was broken. From that point, God had to put in motion a whole process of redemption — buying humanity back with a price.
Romans 3:24 says we are "justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." Les explains that justification is God's judicial act declaring the sinner just as if he had never sinned, and redemption is the process by which God accomplishes that through grace — paying the price to buy us back.
The price was the blood of Christ. Les emphasizes that redemption is through faith in His blood, because the shed blood is what buys us back. He also points to the two mandatory statements of Scripture: without shedding of blood there is no remission, and without faith it is impossible to please God.
Les uses the picture of pawning an item: if you pawn something and later bring enough money to get it back, you redeem it and buy it back. That is what redemption means — buying back something you lost control of. God lost the human race in Adam, so He had to redeem it.
Humanity Under the Control of Old Adam
Les teaches that all have sinned and are under the control of old Adam, which is why the human race needs justification and redemption.
Redemption Means to Be Bought Back
Les defines redemption as buying back something that was lost, using the illustration of redeeming an item from a pawn shop.
God Lost the Human Race in Adam
Les explains that when Adam fell, God lost the human race and had to institute the process of redemption, paying the price with His own blood.
Redemption Through Faith in His Blood
Les ties redemption to propitiation through faith in Christ's shed blood and reminds us that without the shedding of blood there is no remission.
Buying Back What You Lost Control Of
Les illustrates redemption as buying back something you lost control of, and he applies this to both the human race in Adam and God's covenant people in Joseph's account.
God Lost Control of Adam and Eve
Les teaches that after Adam and Eve sinned, they came under the control of the god of this world, old Satan, and God lost them.
Redemption Is Paying a Price
Les explains that redemption is the process by which God pours out His grace — paying the price to buy us back.
To Be Redeemed Means to Be Bought Back
Les reviews that to be redeemed means to be bought back, which implies something was lost along the line.
Romans 3:23: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
This verse shows why the human race needs redemption: everyone has sinned.
Romans 3:24: Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
This verse directly ties justification to redemption in Christ Jesus.
Romans 3:25: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
This verse shows that redemption is accessed through faith in the shed blood of Christ.
1 Peter 1:18-19: Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:
This verse emphasizes that the price of redemption was not silver or gold but the precious blood of Christ.
To be redeemed means to be bought back. Les Feldick uses the illustration of a pawn shop: if you pawn something and later bring enough money, you redeem it and buy it back. Since God lost the human race when Adam fell, redemption is God buying humanity back.
When Adam sinned, God lost the human race. Adam and Eve came under the control of the god of this world, old Satan, and the fellowship with God was broken. From that point, God had to set in motion a plan of redemption to buy humanity back.
The price was His own blood. Les explains that redemption is through faith in His blood, and Peter says we were not redeemed with silver and gold but with the precious blood of Christ.
Justification is God's judicial act declaring the sinner just as if he had never sinned. Redemption is the process by which God accomplishes this through grace — paying the price to buy us back.
Watch the Teaching: Justification by Faith: What Does It Really Mean?