What does the human soul cost? What is the value of this gift from God? Jesus would say in Matthew 16:26 that the whole world wasn’t valued at a high enough price. But at one point there was no way that any human soul could be saved because the price was far too high. No amount of good works could save a soul. No amount of prayers offered, or sacrifices made would ever change that debt that man owed. No amount of gold, silver, precious metals or any material could ever change that indescribable debt. The only way to salvation was to never sin and all men eventually sinned because of their weakness, until one day a child was born whose purpose from the before the foundation of the world was “save His people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21). On that day salvation was born and when He died on the cross, redemption for man’s soul was paid.
But the question is, what made Jesus special? What made what He did so much more valuable than all that the world could ever offer? Peter answers that question here. Jesus was not an ordinary man, Jesus was “the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16). Peter himself said those words there in Matthew and he adds to those words in v. 19 where he says that we were redeemed “with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” Who was Jesus? Jesus was one of the Godhead, “the only begotten of the Father,” and He was without blemish and without spot.
Jesus was a higher quality sacrifice than ever could have been offered by man. There was no stain upon Him and He was far greater than any of us. He was and is, Jesus Christ and it is “in Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Eph. 1:7).
But not only was His purpose for our redemption. He came and “was manifest in these last times for you who through Him believe in God who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.” He was manifested so that we believed in something greater than the material things around us. He was manifested we might have our faith and hope in God.
This is Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, and Friend. He is the far above all that the world could ever hope to offer. Without Him, we would still be dead in “our trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1). But God is thanked that in Him we have redemption. Words fail at describing what Christ did for us. We must have the attitude of Paul: “but thanks be to God for His unspeakable gift” (2 Cor. 9:15).
Shane Millard
