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The Cost of Redemption
1 Peter 1:18-19
Introduction.
In economics, there are two types of demand: elastic and inelastic.
Elastic demand depends on price—typically an amenity.
Inelastic demand does not depend on price—typically a necessity (e.g. insulin for diabetics).
Manufacturers and stores can raise the price of items that have inelastic demand to whatever they want, people will buy it because they need it.
Too many people treat salvation as an elastic demand (an amenity) when it should be inelastic (a necessity).
God our Father and Jesus Christ both treated it as inelastic, paying the highest price!
Body.
What It Cost God.
It cost Him is only begotten Son (John 3:16).
In our society, we often cannot help but to place value on things.
What might you determine the cost of, say, your children is?
Consider food and clothing that you buy for them.
Consider the cost of housing and educating them.
Consider the many hours you spend caring for them.
Most of us would not even attempt to put a price on our children—priceless.
We cannot even attempt to evaluate the value of God’s Son to Him.
Yet God so loved the world that He gave His Son for us!
Christ was rich but became poor for our sake (2 Cor. 8:9).
God’s verbal approval.
After John baptized Him, His voice was heard (Matt. 3:17).
His voice was heard at the Transfiguration (Matt. 17:5).
“This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
Peter testified that He was approved of God (Acts 2:22 KJV).
At the crucifixion, it was clear Jesus meant a great deal to God.
The darkness for 3 hours.
The temple veil rent in two.
The earthquake.
If your redemption meant so much to God that He was willing to send His Son to die, should it not also be important to us?
What It Cost Jesus.
It cost Jesus His life.
He humbled Himself enough to suffer humiliation and death on the cross (Phil. 2:8).
Have you ever watched someone you care about pass from this world?
One moment they are alive, the next they are not.
It is heart-wrenching.
What if this person is your child who had to suffer the pangs of death?
What if he suffered death on a cross?
This is what our Lord had to suffer through.
He was so obedient, He even suffered crucifixion.
The difference, however, is that Jesus didn’t just die.
He had a purpose that only He could accomplish—our redemption (Eph. 1:17).
We, too, will die, but Jesus was born to die.
The friends of a governor of Mass. visited Palestine once.
They went to Golgotha, thought of the gov., and made a cane from wood there.
The gov. was grateful, but so much more grateful that our Lord thought of Him there, too.
Jesus went to Golgotha and died for you and me.
If we don’t see ourselves in that picture, there is something wrong.
What It Will Cost Us.
The cost for us is a life of self-sacrifice—it wouldn’t be worth much otherwise.
Typically the low-priced items aren’t worth much.
I want heaven, but sometimes it feels like I’m not willing to pay much for that goal.
We must be willing to surrender ourselves completely to Him.
Jesus stressed this complete surrender to His disciples, though it was difficult for them to understand.
This is imperative or you cannot be His servant.
One passage illustrates this well and a few men approached Jesus (Matt. 8:18-22).
One said He would follow Jesus anywhere (19).
Jesus replied that doing so meant not having many things, even a home (20).
He might not be willing to sacrifice so much to follow Him.
Another said that he must first bury his father (21).
Jesus told Him that the dead were to bury their own (22).
The cost is high, and this man’s priorities were not right.
Conclusion.
How important is salvation to you? What price are you willing to pay for redemption?
Jesus already paid the price, now we must assume the cost.
Price=the initial cost of something.
Cost=what you stand to lose in time, efficiency, problem solving, etc.
Like you buy a car for $500, but spend $1000 every year in maintenance/repairs.
In other words, Jesus paid the price, but we must do our part giving ourselves to Him.
Our Lord considered the cost and realized it as an inelastic demand, willing to pay the highest price.
Let us also realize the immense value of our souls, treating salvation as inelastic.
This means we will do all we can to be saved, and to keep ourselves from sin.
Do not let Christ’s sacrifice be for nothing in your life. Be saved today.