"Because He Said So! Discovering who the I AM says I am"
The I AM says I am redeemed!
“I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you.” Isaiah 44:22
I’ve tried; I really have. But I just haven’t mastered the art of couponing. It is a brilliant idea isn’t it? Businesses give us these vouchers that can be traded in or exchanged for something of a much greater cost. We can turn in a worthless piece of paper for incredible savings on their product. Combined over time these little slips of paper can accumulate a great value in savings. Back in the day, coupons were available only from printed publications like newspapers and magazines. But now, these tokens of savings are found with a click of a mouse. We have websites and apps that can search for savings on a particular product or item and with a swipe on our phone we can redeem a deal. There was even a television series about couponing, Extreme Couponing, where contestants competed to see who could save the most money while on a shopping spree. It’s interesting to think that exchanging coupons could wipe the amount due to a zero balance.
Recently we learned that we are forgiven, and we are innocent because of Christ. But God loves us so much that He doesn’t stop there. In the currency of Christ we can trade in our mistakes for His mercy and our failures for His forgiveness. With His sacrifice our sins and shame are swiped away. What was once a blot on our record becomes a beautiful recount of God’s narrative on our life. Through the blood of Christ, we are redeemed. And unlike the menial coupons that we redeem for savings on common household products, this sacrifice was significant. Jesus gave His life to take our ugly past and make it beautiful. It’s difficult to comprehend isn’t it? God loved us so much that He sent Christ to die? So, we could live a blameless beautiful life? Yes! And there are stories all through the Bible where we see it is true. For example, Paul committed grievous acts and despite all of the horrible things he did, God forgave him and found him innocent. Through God’s grace Paul, a murderer, became a messenger. God takes people whose lives are dark and worthless and redeems them for something of greater value. He makes the ugly, pretty. He makes the disgraceful, good. He makes the foul, forgiven.
Ladies, we are wiped clean with a zero balance, nothing left to pay, because Jesus paid it all. He exchanged His life for ours. We are an imperfect people loved by a perfect God. “He makes beauty out of ashes” (Isaiah 61:3). So today, when you feel the guilt and see the grime of your past, remember that you have been bathed in the blood of Christ. Look in the mirror remembering His grace and recite, “I am redeemed…because He said so!
Additional Reading: Psalm 103:1-4; Isaiah 43:1-2; Galatians 3:13-14; 1 Peter 1:18-19; Titus 2:14
Dear Lord,
I praise You today for all that You are; You are the Creator of the Universe, the King of kings and Lord of lords. You are the I AM! I know that You created me on purpose for a purpose. I am who You say I am. The enemy wants to hold me back from living out the calling You have placed on my life. Lord, saturate my mind with the truth of Your Word so that I may remember that my identity is found in You and only You. Remind me throughout the day, when the world comes tumbling in, that You are in control. Reveal Your will in my life as I only want to please You. No matter how difficult my day becomes I will remember that I can do all things through You (Phil 4:13). In Jesus' name. Amen