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Forgiven and Redeemed



     In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us.  (Ephesians 1:7-8a)
     
        But the king said, “He must go to his own house; he must not see my face.” So Absalom went to his own house and did not see the face of the king. (II Samuel 14:24)
      
     The Lord said to me, “Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.”
      So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and about a homer and a lethek of barley. Then I told her, “You are to live with me many days; you must not be a prostitute or be intimate with any man, and I will behave the same way toward you.” (Hosea 3:1-3)

       After I rambled on yesterday, I realized that I hadn’t addressed something important. We learn in this passage that we have redemption and forgiveness. Two stories came to mind. The first was of Absalom, who murdered his half-brother for raping his sister. He had run away, and lived for several years in another country. Because of the machinations of a prophet, David was convinced to allow Absalom to come back home, but, he was to return to his own house and never darken David’s door again. Eventually, David relented and welcome Absalom back… and Absalom promptly subverted the people of Jerusalem, declared himself king, and forced David to flee for his life. 
      The second was of Gomer. She had left her husband and become a prostitute. Hosea had gone to her pimp and payed him for Gomer. Can you imagine paying a pimp for exclusive rights to your spouse? Can you even imagine being willing to look at her after she’d run away and become a prostitute (again)?
Absalom’s story is one of forgiveness – not instantaneous. It happened in stages. It’s also the story of what may be the hardest sort of forgiveness. Absalom used the forgiveness he was given treacherously.
      Gomer’s story is one of redemption – Hosea purchased her freedom and took her back home. I don’t remember whether she remained faithful, but I suspect she didn’t. Both David and Hosea, the redeemers, were stabbed in the back. In David’s story, he was so forgiving of Absalom that his military commander had to rebuke him  because he was leading his men to  regret having restored the throne to David.
        Redemption and forgiveness aren’t the same, but they often walk hand-in-hand. Neither is deserved those who receive them may prove that by their continued treachery. This isn’t a suggestion that we should not forgive or redeem others – but a warning about our own behavior since God has forgiven and redeemed us

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