Ransom

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

Ransom – What picture comes to mind when you hear the word “ransom”?  Do you think of the famous Lindberg case?  Maybe you see Mel Gibson’s movie images.  In the world today, we think of ransom in relation to kidnapping.  For us, ransom is a demand made by evil men to return something taken from us.  This thinking distorts our view of Jesus’ ransom.  Jesus did not pay to have us released from the Evil One.  Something much more important was happening.

In order to really understand the Greek word lytron, we need to think about its Hebrew equivalents.  There are three important Hebrew ideas behind this word: to cover or atone, to redeem from bondage and to make payment.  Each of these words in Hebrew describes an action of God Himself.  He is the One Who atones.  He is the One Who redeems.  He is the One Who make payment.  But what is surprising is that the atonement, the redemption and the payment are not made to some evil power or tyrant.  The One Who demands lytron is God. 

Did you think that Jesus came to ransom you from the devil?  Not so.  The devil may falsely claim rights over your sinful existence, but God owes the devil nothing.  The devil is just as much a created being as we are.  Satan’s claims are all bogus.  He is the deceiver and his greatest deception is to convince you that he owns you.  No, God does not pay Satan to get us back.  God makes the ransom payment to Himself. 

If this seems confusing, then remember Who God is:  holy!   Holiness is the standard of the universe.  Holiness is the yardstick of heaven.  Holiness is the measure of Life.  And we are a long way from that standard.  David said, “If you, Lord, should mark iniquities, who could stand?” (Psalm 130:3).  God is not required to explain the need for a ransom.  He is God.  The only critical fact is that He does ransom us.  Jesus’ death atones, redeems and makes payment.  We are freed.