Redemption and reconciliation....

During Yom Kippur, people of the Jewish faith are supposed to contemplate whom they have wronged in their lives, then go to that person to ask for forgiveness.  There is a desire for reconciliation in the heart, and an actual action to make whole a relationship which has been put asunder.  It is a worthy goal, and one which we could all follow, especially in these days of easy social media estrangement and general hypersensitivity.

I have been thinking about this idea during the current Lenten season as I have pondered the difference between redemption and reconciliation.  On the surface, they seem very similar.  But as I consider them, although superficially the same, I have decided they are very different.

When we redeem something, we gain or recover something of value in exchange for something else. We can redeem coupons or gift cards, for example, which have monetary value, in exchange for the goods we desire.  Redemption is not free, it is a transaction, and like all transactions there is a cost, even if we are not the ones paying.

Reconciliation, on the other hand, means to reunite or to bring back together.  There isn't necessarily a cost involved, and it isn't usually a transaction.  It can be as simple as reuniting an owner with their lost item, or as consequential as the reunification of long estranged family members.  Reconciliation with another person is an act of the heart, and the cost/benefit is emotional rather than transactional.

How does this fit into our Lenten journey?  We throw around the two words, redemption and reconciliation, as though they were synonymous.  But the death and resurrection of Jesus came at high price, and he has not just allowed us to be reconciled, but in fact, redeemed us for all eternity through his sacrifice.  I think, in these days of easy Christianity, it is important to go to our roots and see the cost of the grace God has extended.

We are not lost belongings, like a worthless glove without a mate.  We are uniquely us, made in God's image, of great price and worth the cost of redemption to our God who chose us.  In Ephesians 1:4 and 7 we read,

" For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight....  In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace...."

We have value, because God values us.  We are redeemed, not through our own actions, but because Jesus exchanged his perfection for our sinfulness.  We are reconciled, not because we deserve to be, but because God chooses us to be reconciled to him.

As we travel to the cross this Lenten season, remember who paid the price for your redemption, and seek reconciliation with the God who gave everything for you.

Redeemed and reconciled.  The journey to the cross ends there.