When I first sat down to work on this sermon, I thought it would go in a very different direction. I expected to focus on how, as Christians, we are redeemed—freed from the burden of the Law. Not just any law, but the Torah: over 600 commandments that carried with them the weight of punishment, even death, for those who fell short. I planned to talk about how Jesus liberated us from that bondage, how in Christ we are truly free. I imagined unpacking the legal language of Scripture—how both the Old Covenant and Jesus’ fulfillment of it were deeply rooted in legal and covenantal terms. I thought I’d dive into theological theories and debates about what that fulfillment means. But as I began to study the word “redemption” more deeply, I found myself drawn in a different direction. I wanted to understand the original meaning—what redemption really meant to those who first heard it. And here’s what I discovered:
The Old Testament
- Ga’al
- to redeem
- to act as a kinsman-redeemer, or to buy-back
- often used in the legal and familial context of someone rescuing a relative from slavery, debt, or danger.
- “If anyone of your kin falls into difficulty and sells a piece of property, then the next of kin shall come and redeem what the relative has sold.” -Leviticus 25:25
- Padah
- to ransom
- to rescue by paying a price
- Used more broadly than ga’al, even for Israel’s deliverance from Egypt.
- “It was because the Lord loved you and kept the oath that he swore to your ancestors that the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.” Deuteronomy 7:8
Both terms (ga’al and padah) signify redemption related to liberation. This is often achieved by paying a price or acting as a deliverer.
New Testament
- Lutroo
- released by paying a ransom
- direct connection to the image of someone buying a slaves freedom
- “He it is who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds.” -Titus 2:14
- released by paying a ransom
- Apolutrosis
- a releasing for ransom
- “they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,” -Romans 3:24
- a releasing for ransom
The deeper I dug into the ancient meaning of redemption, the clearer it became—this word was never just about personal salvation. It was about freedom. Restoration. Community. Justice. Liberation. It was a call to be made whole and to help make the world whole, too.
This kind of redemption isn’t quiet or passive—it’s disruptive. It challenges systems that oppress. It lifts up the voices long silenced. It invites the marginalized, the outcast, and the forgotten to the center of the story. It’s not just about getting to heaven one day; it’s about experiencing and embodying liberation here and now. For the poor. For the queer community. For the immigrant. For anyone who has been told they are outside the reach of grace.
Jesus led the liberation—first for the Jews, then for the Gentiles. He tore the veil in the temple, breaking down the barriers between God and humanity. He dismantled the gatekeeping of religion. He fulfilled the words of the prophet Isaiah, who spoke of a day when even sexual and gender minorities—those referred to in ancient times under the umbrella term eunuchs—would be fully welcomed in the household of God.
“For thus says the Lord:
To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,
who choose the things that please me
and hold fast my covenant,
I will give, in my house and within my walls,
a monument and a name
better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
that shall not be cut off.”
(Isaiah 56:4–5)
And Jesus echoed that same inclusion when he said:
“For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth,
and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by others,
and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven.
Let anyone accept this who can.”
(Matthew 19:12)
Jesus—God made flesh—touched the untouchables. He stood on the margins. He walked with the outcasts. He lifted the lowly. He liberated the oppressed. He didn’t come to prop up the powerful. He came for us. Not the center. Not the throne rooms. Not the elite. HE CAME FOR US.
LGBTQ+ people are not only redeemed from shame—they are being raised up as prophetic voices, helping the Church rediscover the heart of Christ. Voices that call us back to the margins, back to compassion, back to justice, back to love.
Redemption is God’s act of restoring what human systems have broken—systems like the Law, the Old Covenant, and even the religious structures that still exclude today. For the marginalized—especially the queer community—redemption isn’t about being “fixed.” It’s about being freed. Freed from shame. Freed from exclusion. Freed to live fully and authentically as the person God created them to be.
Redemption means no more gatekeepers. No more conversion therapy. No more theological gymnastics to prove you’re worthy of love. In Christ, you already are.
Redemption is God’s love in action. It tears down walls. It builds up what’s been torn apart. It calls us not to conformity, but to communion. It doesn’t erase identity—it embraces it. It says: You are seen. You are loved. You belong. You are whole.
Amen.
Pastor Alex