K.

Hobi
Soteriology, Th 855
4/1/05
1

Redemption – John 8:31-38

Introduction: We who live under the blessings of freedom in the United States can only
try to imagine what it must be like to be a slave. Though the Emancipation Proclamation
and the blood of our own Civil War have put an end to the institution of slavery in our
own country, it is alive and well in many other places of the world. These are the places
we find “redemption” going on as well.

The government-sponsored Muslim holy war of northern Sudan against the Christian
south, which began in 1983, has received some increased attention in recent days. I
found the following description of the modern day realities of slavery and redemption in
the country of Sudan on the website of a photographer named Lucian Niemeyer, who
relates his personal experiences in the region (www.lnsart.com/Sudan%20Slave%20Story.htm):
“Over the years the Sudanese government has conducted major forays into the south,
destroying villages, killing the men and taking into slavery, the women and children in
addition to their animals. Raids conducted two, three, four, six, eight and ten years ago
are documented. These coincide with the years that the slaves told me that they have been
in servitude. The average is between four to six years of servitude, while one woman told
me that she had been in slavery over twelve years. Approximately 6 years ago, CSI [a
humanitarian organization Niemeyer is associated with] was asked to take over the pro-
gram of purchasing slaves from their masters. The redemption was originally an effort
implemented by the local chiefs. Some of the local Arabs which worked and traded with
the Dinkas had a problem with the continual warfare and raids, which eliminated total
villages and enslaved tens of thousands of their friends. When the Dinka chiefs attempted
to find their stolen relatives, the friendly Islamic Arabs would seek out where the slaves
were and inform the chiefs. Then the chiefs would raise the ransom that the northern
Arabs asked for plus a fee for the intermediaries for the costs they incurred. Over time, a
monetary standard was established which amounted to $35 per slave for redemption. A
new trade was created. Usually the Arab masters would sell the weaker, older and less
able slaves for currency. As this network became more established, it has become a
source of hard currency for the Arabs and the redemption of slaves has grown into sizable
numbers. Masters now had a[n] ability to raise scarce cash; the friendly Arabs would be
the go-between, providing the logistics and risking the wrath of the government. Soon the
local chiefs ran out of the ability to raise the cash needed to redeem the slaves. CSI took
over the trade . . .. As the network has improved the slaves redeemed in a single five day
period has risen to average 4000, while a single trip has bought back over 5000 slaves.
CSI conducts these very secretive trips to new locations each two to three months. They
have redeemed over 42,000 slaves and the flow of the trade shows no sign of abatement.
The trip that I was on brought home 4119 slaves plus one, when you add the boy that was
born on the redemption day. I witnessed the birth [in the year 2000].”

Transition: As Americans, we find much of this account repugnant and tragic. When
we hear of the plight of many around the world less fortunate than we, we are correctly
renewed in our appreciation for the freedoms we too often take for granted. We conclude
with thanksgiving that slavery has never been a part of our experience, and we look for-
 K. Hobi
Soteriology, Th 855
4/1/05
2
ward with patriotic pride to our next celebration of Independence Day. But most Ameri-
cans celebrate their freedom on that day, like every other day, completely unresponsive to
the invitation of Christ, “the truth will make you free!” They respond to the assertion of
Christ that they need freedom much the same way the Jews Christ spoke to did, “They
answered Him, ‘We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to
anyone; how is it that You say, “You will become free”?’” (John 8:33).

The doctrine of redemption answers this important question. It tells us how all people,
even those who enjoy the blessings of the free world, need the truth of Christ to make
them free. You will notice that verses 30-31 tell us that the immediate recipients of
Christ’s words were men and women who had come to a point at which they believed
much about Jesus Christ, and much of what they heard Him say. But the idea that they
were enslaved and needed the freedom only His truth could bring was something repug-
nant to them. We are going to look at the Bible doctrine of redemption with the hope that
those of us who have come to believe some things about Christ might weigh whether or
not we truly have understood this freedom that only Christ can provide as the fundamen-
tal need of our existence.

I. Slavery to sin necessitates the redemption of sinners (John 8:34).

Illustration: The website I referred to earlier goes into some detail regarding the
experiences of the slaves in the Sudan: “As before, we unloaded and were taken to a
compound where we pitched our tents and prepared ourselves for the first redemption
of slaves. We walked for a way and soon saw a great number of people sitting under a
huge tree, women and children, quietly somber. In all, there were 292 people herded
together in a small group. To the side, a number of Arabs were waiting, clothed in
white robes with white face coverings to prevent photographs that would enable
northern Khartoum leaders to identify them for retaliation. The slaves had been wait-
ing, some for two months and some just arriving a few days ago. They lived in the
open, protected at night by a cloth held up by sticks to protect them from the elements
and the mosquitoes. Their food was a gruel of corn ground into a fine mush and water.
Many slaves showed signs of malnutrition over an extended period. I spoke to some of
the women and children through an interpreter. Without exception, the younger
women told the story of a raid destroying a whole village by fire, killing the men and
capturing the women and children. They told of soldiers in fatigues coming in trucks
and Arabs with white robes and horses conducting the raid, killing and burning. The
people were then herded into a march to the north. On the way the women were gang
raped. Then they were taken by a master to a home. Here the story changes. Some
women become concubines, some servants in the house, some work in the fields, all
are sexually used on a regular basis. The young girls as young as six, speak of rape. In
this group the average time in enslavement was four years. Some women were noticed
with large protruding scars. Without exception these were created by their capturers,
using iron rods, knives and fire, usually because of resistance to sex. . . . Young boys
were used as herdsman, . . . and as they grew older would be inducted into the army
while the younger ones would be used for security purposes. Most of the boys were
given instruction in the Koran. Some wore the traditional caps worn by Islamic people.
A young boy of 14 told of the raid and capture six years ago, which included his
 K. Hobi
Soteriology, Th 855
4/1/05
3
father's herd of 30 goats. His cousin was also captured with a herd of 20 goats. His
cousin lost one and was killed on the spot. The cousins [sic] herd was added to his
own, and he was told that if he lost one he would too would [sic] be killed. He proudly
told us that in the six years he did not lose one goat. His whole village had been
obliterated. Six years later the ruins of the tukuls were covered with brush and trees
taking over the area of the former village. He did not know anybody. When asked
where he would go, he replied that he would go to the local chief for help. Many of the
women had Arab children and/or were pregnant by their masters. Some of the women
could not identify the father due to the multiple rapes which they had suffered. Some
gave the name of their masters. In this group 11 had died enroute [sic] to the
redemption site” (Niemeyer, op. cit.).
Transition: The life of slavery is a difficult one, and the life of sin is called slavery
because it too is not easy. Sin is a cruel slave owner. Two Bible truths about the
realities of enslavement to sin explain its cruelty.
A. Sin’s enslavement of the human heart involves complete desperation. There
is no breaking the slave owner’s power.
Application: Redemption and slavery are key themes of the book of Exodus. The
book begins with the history of what led to the enslavement of the nation of Israel.
More than any other passage of Scripture, I believe, the first chapters of Exodus
describe for us the nature of slavery as an oppressive institution and God’s opposition
to it. A big part of the oppression of slavery is the desperation it inflicts upon its vic-
tims – the victims of slavery can do nothing about their condition. Exodus 2:23-24
indicates that this was the experience of the children of Israel in Egypt, “And the sons
of Israel sighed because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry for help
because of their bondage rose up to God. So God heard their groaning.” Sin is cruel
because it has enslaved us to a desperate condition. We can do nothing but sigh
because of bondage and cry out for help.
Application: The abject poverty of Ruth is another Old Testament picture of the des-
perate conditions of the sinner enslaved to sin and in need of a redeemer. The first
chapter of that book recounts how Ruth and Naomi lost everything. At the end of that
chapter, Naomi wants to change her name from Naomi (Pleasant) to Marra (Bitter-
ness). The reason she feels this way is that life had left her and her daughters-in-law
desperately destitute. She admits her complete inability to provide for the future of
her daughters in Ruth 1:12-13, “Return, my daughters! Go, for I am too old to have a
husband. If I said I have hope, if I should even have a husband tonight and also bear
sons, would you therefore wait until they were grown? Would you therefore refrain
from marrying? No, my daughters; for it is harder for me than for you, for the hand of
the Lord has gone forth against me.”
Application: The very real destitution of Naomi after the death of her husband and
sons pictures well the destitute condition of the sinner enslaved by sin. We can do
nothing to provide our own escape. Our condition is a desperate one. Jeremiah 17:9
says it plainly, “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick.” The
word there means “incurable” (translated “desperately wicked” in the KJV). Peter
affirms that nothing from our “futile way of life” can redeem us (1 Peter 1:18-19).
B. Sin’s enslavement of the human heart brings complete destruction. There is
no avoiding the slave owner’s abuse.
 K. Hobi
Soteriology, Th 855
4/1/05
4
Application: The Bible teaches that sin is a cruel slave owner because it is bent on
the destruction of its slaves. Moses confronted this cruel nature of slavery for the first
time in Exodus 2. Verse 11 says, “Now it came about in those days, when Moses had
grown up, that he went out to his brethren and looked on their hard labors; and he saw
an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his brethren.” Throughout the account the
groaning of the people of Israel is clearly an emphasis. The experience of the Israel-
ites in Egypt had started with such promise, even relief. But in the end, the slavery of
Egypt became unbearable. Their masters were bent on their destruction.
Illustration: Have you seen the recent news reports of the death of Hunter Thomp-
son, the so-called “gonzo journalist?” He earned that label by making sure that he was
under the influence of drugs and alcohol while writing his stories. The AP report I
saw described him as “the hard-living writer who inserted himself into his accounts of
America’s underbelly and popularized a first-person form of journalism.” It also sadly
said, “Thompson was found dead Sunday in his Aspen-area home of an apparent self-
inflicted gunshot wound, sheriff’s officials said. He was 67. Thompson’s wife, Anita,
had gone out before the shooting and was not home at the time. His son, Juan, found
the body.” Hunter Thompson was an icon of heroic stature among much of the leftist
mainstream media today, because everyone believed that Hunter Thompson truly lived
the life that was free. But Thompson did not have his slave owner fooled. Sin ulti-
mately enforced its power over its slave, and brought him down to destruction.
Appliation: Sin destroys the slaves it owns. No passage describes the condition of
the slaves of sin with more force than Romans 3:9-18. Verses 16 and 17 of that pas-
sage say, “Destruction and misery are in their paths, and the path of peace they have
not known.” In that passage, the apostle Paul is quoting from Isaiah 59, an extended
passage that describes the plight of the sinner (Isaiah 59:7-15). Sin is a cruel slave
owner. Its slaves are desperate; they cannot save themselves. And its slaves are being
destroyed; their master is bent on their destruction.
Application: Have you ever seen yourself as the desperate slave of sin in need of
redemption? Believing some things about Christ does little good for those who claim
that they have never been in bondage. Notice again the attitude of the Jews of John 8
(v. 33). The cruel condition of their slavery was only intensified by their blindness to
their need for freedom.
Illustration: Satan wants to convince sinners that they are actually free. Pinocchio is
one of the favorite videos in the Hobi house. Evidently, there are about twenty
different film versions of that children’s story – we like the 1940 Walt Disney
animated film. The story was originally authored by an Italian author, Carlo Collodi,
who published his book about Pinocchio in 1883. Evidently, Collodi had not
originally intended that his book be used as a children’s tale. Many believe this
because the original version of the book ends with Pinocchio being hanged for his
innumerable faults. The name “Pinocchio” translates from the Italian as “pine eyes”
or “eyes made out of pine wood.” Collodi’s original theme in that story was the tragic
results of eyes that fail to really see the truth. Even the version we love today gives us
glimpses of this important lesson. Remember when Pinocchio joins the traveling
puppet show? He thinks he is in for a great deal, truly free from the responsibilities of
school and the nagging of his conscience. But before long, the true intensions of his
master to make him a slave become clear. In the wonderful world of Disney, we
 K. Hobi
Soteriology, Th 855
4/1/05
5
always get a happy ending. In terms of the realities of life, however, slavery to sin
shows no mercy to those who have eyes of pine. As the original author Collodi
understood, the pinocchios of real life meet with a bitter end.
Transition: I mentioned earlier that Isaiah 59:7-15 describes the desperate plight of
the sinner. But this need not be how the story of the slave of sin ends, for Isaiah 59
concludes, “A Redeemer will come to Zion!” (v. 20).

II. The blood of Christ purchased the redemption of sinners (John 8:37, 40, 44).
Transition: Note Christ’s treatment of His death in these verses. His death was not
good news for these men, it was bad news. We normally think of the death of Christ
as good news for the sinner, but it is bad news for the sinners of this passage. Why?
Because they did not recognize their need for it. They busied themselves with
thoughts of the best way to rid themselves of the influence of the redeemer. There is
nothing more tragic than the life occupied with this damnable goal. But for those who
know their need, the Scripture tells us two wonderful accomplishments of the Son of
God in regard to the work of our redemption.
A. The Son of God had to become a man to purchase the sinners’ redemption.
Illustration: There is a significant difference between the redemption laws of the Old
Testament and the redemption that has been going on in the Sudan. Leviticus 25:47-
55 contains a law of redemption that the Lord gave the children of Israel to remind
them that “the sons of Israel are My servants; they are My servants whom I brought
out from the land of Egypt” (v. 55). This passage gives us an important clue
concerning the unique nature of Jewish redemption law, and the meaning of the
Hebrew word for “redeemer.” Whereas anyone with $35 can redeem a slave in the
Sudan, only specific people with a specific relationship to the slave could redeem a
slave in Leviticus 25. Specifically, the redeemer had to be “one of his brothers, . . . or
his uncle, or his uncle’s son, . . . or one of his blood relatives from his family” (vv. 48-
49). We see the same truth in the concept of redemption taught by the book of Ruth.
In spite of the desperate plight of these dear women, only certain people were
qualified legally to help them as their redeemer. This is why Naomi is so excited
when she learns that Ruth had been toiling all day in the fields of Boaz. In Ruth 2:20
she says, “May he be blessed of the Lord who has not withdrawn his kindness to the
living and to the dead. . . . The man is our relative, he is one of our redeemers!” Boaz
was uniquely qualified as a kinsman-redeemer for the ladies because of his connection
to the family. Others, who did not have this connection, could not provide
redemption.
Application: Isaiah especially identifies Yahweh as the “Redeemer” who is the only
one uniquely qualified to aid those who need His help: “‘For I myself will help you,’
declares the Lord your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel” (41:14); “I, even I, am the
Lord, and there is no Savior besides Me. . . . Thus says the Lord your Redeemer, the
Holy One of Israel” (43:11, 14); “This is what the Lord says— Israel’s King and
Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is
no God” (44:66); “Then all mankind will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior, your
Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob” (49:26). Clearly, only Yahweh is qualified to
purchase the redemption of His people.
 K. Hobi
Soteriology, Th 855
4/1/05
6
Application: And yet throughout the New Testament we learn the wonderful truth
that the man Jesus would save His people from their sins (Matthew 1:21). Paul talks
to Titus about “looking for that blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our
great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every
lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for
good deeds” (2:13-14). Jesus Christ is Yahweh, the only Redeemer, the one who
became a man to identify with those He desired to redeem. For God to be the justifier,
He had to send his Son to become a man, for only a man could provide the second
thing required of the Son of God in the work of redemption:
B. The Son of God had to shed His blood to purchase the sinners’ redemption.
Transition: We read earlier about the price of a slave in the Sudan. The going rate
became $35 a head. In Scripture we read about the price of redemption from sin.
Jesus defined His entire mission on earth in terms of the payment of this price: “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).
Application: As mentioned previously, the Bible doctrine of redemption begins in
the book of Exodus. On the same evening God redeemed His people from Egypt, He
also instituted the Passover. We read about this in Exodus 12:21-27. Where the blood
of the lamb was sprinkled on the lintel and the doorposts of the home of the Israelite
family, the death angel passed over them. They were not only rescued from the
destruction of Egypt, but also they were redeemed from the bondage of Egypt. The
Passover supper was given to God’s people as a memorial of redemption. Because the
death angel killed the firstborn males of Egypt, it was especially the firstborn males of
Israel who were viewed as the objects of this redemption. The redemption of first-
born males reminded the Israelites of Yahweh’s mighty work in behalf of His people
in Egypt (Numbers 18:15). Today, it reminds us of the birth of Christ, Mary’s
“firstborn son” (Luke 2:7).
Application: And so came the day when Jesus Christ changed everything. He sat
down with His disciples at the Passover and told them, “Take eat; this is my body,”
and “Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured
out for many for forgiveness of sins,” and “Do this in remembrance of Me” (Matthew
26:26-28; Luke 22:19-20). History’s picture gave way to heaven’s person. The
Passover lamb was now the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John
1:29). The redemption from slavery in Egypt became redemption from the slavery of
sin. The apostle Peter undoubtedly remembered this epic event in the upper room
when he wrote, “knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like
silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with the
precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ” (1 Peter
1:18-19, see also Eph. 1:7, Heb. 9:15). He paid the price we could not, and in that
sense His payment was a substitute for our own (1 Tim. 2:6, αντιλυτρον).
Application: The epicenter of the New Testament doctrine of salvation, Romans
3:23-26, explains for us exactly why Yahweh had to become Jesus, why God had to
become man: “being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is
in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through
faith.” This is a critical point to understand, and it constitutes another difference
between our common understanding of the redemption of slaves in places like Sudan
 K. Hobi
Soteriology, Th 855
4/1/05
7
and the doctrine of redemption in the Bible. In Sudan, the $35 price of a slave is
entirely unjust. No human should be bought and sold for any amount, let alone $35.
But in the Bible doctrine of redemption, the price of redemption is entirely just – the
price is sin’s penalty before a holy God. Because God is righteous and just, payment
for sin must be met. For God to be just, He had to demand full payment for sin.

III. The bondage of believers is a result of the redemption of sinners (John 8:31-32).
Illustration: Perhaps you think this last point ought to be rephrased to something like
“The freedom of believers is a result of the redemption of sinners.” That is certainly
what we normally think of when we think of the redemption of slaves in places like
the Sudan. Note Mr. Niemeyer’s description of the joy of the slaves who were freed
there: “Immediately after the transaction, the leader stood up and told the crowd, you
are free to go. Immediately a roar went up, the freed surrounding the CSI personnel,
some rushing to their family, some going slowly, as if there are some questions of
their acceptance in the community, others drift quietly into the underbrush returning to
their villages. Some would walk for days and weeks to find their relatives. It is a heart
wrenching time for my colleagues and me. Later, I understood that all would be
received warmly into their communities, the Arab children would now be accepted as
Dinka family members. Pregnant women would be received by their husbands.”
Application: In a similar way, the joy of freedom is a big part of the result of the
redemption of sinners in Christ. Christ redeems the sinner from the curse of the law,
its penal condemnation of the sinner (Galatians 3:13); Christ also redeems us from the
requirements of the law, its legal conditions for righteousness that are impossible for
the sinner to keep (Galatians 4:4-5); Christ redeems us from the guilt of sin, bringing
us complete forgiveness (Ephesians 1:7); and Christ redeems us from the power of sin,
giving us a choice regarding whom we will serve (Romans 6:16).
Application: It is this last point, however, that contains the difference between the
Sudan example and the Bible doctrine of redemption. In the Sudan, redeemed slaves
go where they want and do what they want with their newly found freedom. With the
redemption of Christ, on the other hand, believers are freed from the bondage of sin
that they might be enslaved to a new Master, the Lord of the Universe, the God we
were created to serve, Jesus Christ. In this sense, the bondage of believers is a result
of the redemption of sinners. We saw this emphasis in the connection between the
phrases “continue in My word” and “the truth will make you free” in John 8:31-32,
but perhaps the clearest presentation of this truth comes from 1 Corinthians 6:19-20,
“or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you,
whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought
with a price; therefore, glorify God in your body.”

Conclusion: So where do you stand in terms of the wonderful provision God has
made for the redemption of sinners? Are you still under the bondage of sin, perhaps
fooling yourself that things are not so bad as sin’s slave? Maybe you see sin more as a
comfortable friend than a cruel taskmaster. Make no mistake. Sin is a cruel slave
owner. Sin is no friend of the sinner. You cannot beat it, and it will destroy you. It
may be that you do not need any more convincing about the cruelty and destruction of
sin. If you understand the reality of the bondage and destruction of your sin today, the
 K. Hobi
Soteriology, Th 855
4/1/05
8
work of Christ in your behalf means that you can know true freedom from slavery to
this terrible enemy of your soul.
Perhaps you consider yourself a believer today, but you find yourself offended by the
idea that you need the truth of Christ to make you truly free from your sin. Like the
Jews of Jesus day, your gut reaction to the words of Christ is “We have never yet been
enslaved to anyone; how is it that you say, ‘You will become free?’” Christ said that
true believers continue in the Word. They are not offended to know that they are
sinners saved from the bondage of their own sin. If that truth offends you today, Jesus
says that you are of your father the devil. You need to repent of your self-righteous
rejection of Christ’s redemption.

Or if you truly are a believer who is thankful for freedom from sin in Christ, perhaps
you have not been faithful to the claims of this redemption on your life. Rather than
living as though you are not your own, as though you are bought with a price, you
have been living for your own glory, not God’s. Do you see today that you were not
redeemed with $35, but with the precious blood of Jesus Christ, the Son of God? Do
you see that the price paid for your redemption was way too high for you to do any-
thing short of giving your all for Him, who gave His all for you? Why serve as the
slave of sin any longer? Yield yourself to your new Master’s use today.

.
Sources: Morris, The Apostolic Preaching of the Cross; Murray, Redemption Accomplished
and Applied; NIDOTTE; Payne, The Theology of the Older Testament; TDOT; Tenny, John;
TLOT