- 177.Redeemed
Galatians 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree.
We have the promise of redemption from Sin, Death, and Satan. Now we see that we also have a promise of redemption from the curse of the law. The curse of the law is simply that anyone disobeying the Law of God is under a curse, and also each is under several curses that are specific to each law. The curse for sin and disobedience is Death (“on the day you eat of it you shall die”). Various curses come into play when various laws are broken, as opposed to the blessings when the laws are obeyed.
Jesus Christ bore the curse of Sin, which is death, upon Him when He died on the cross. Believers are no longer under the curse of the law. The just curse of death was clearly upon us, but Jesus took our curse and placed it on Himself. Therefore, we shall not die because of our sin. We “earned” the just penalty of Death, but Jesus redeemed us. He was hanged on the tree of the cross and was therefore justly cursed for our sins.
Because of the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ in our place the curse of death is really gone. We are redeemed from a justly deserved death. We will live! Therefore, we can say and affirm with Paul that we are not under the Law. We are no longer obligated to keep the Law. However, we desire to keep the Law because we have been redeemed. Living out of desire instead of obligation is a much better way to live. The Law is still in effect and always will be forever, but the curse of the Law is no longer in effectfor those who believe in Christ. The Law has not been annulled, but Jesus has fulfilled it. Therefore, by faith believers have fulfilled it. The curse is no longer in effect; however, the consequences of the Law will still come into play in any person’s life. For instance, temporal death will come, but eternal death will not. For instance, adultery destroys families, although the adulterer can be forgiven, and the believer will not suffer eternal death for it. For instance, disobedience of parents diminishes character, but forgiveness restores life. And so forth. In sum, the curse of the law is gone, but the consequences of breaking the laws remain.
We live under the curse of the law (thorns and thistles remain) and thus we still suffer, but we are redeemed from the curse forever, and then in eternity there will be no more curse. And that’s a promise.