Redemption: A Declaration For All Not a Choice For a Few

By Bob Hines

Isn’t it amazing that the gospel is such Good News that even people who don’t believe it wish it were true? The Apostle Paul said the gospel is not about how to become righteous, he said it is a “revelation of righteousness.” Nobody has ever been made righteous because of their belief in Jesus; but everybody ought to believe in Jesus since He first loved us and made us all righteous in God’s sight. The degree to which we believe or acknowledge Christ’s completed work of redemption is called being saved. Being saved is a wonderful experience and discovering the treasures revealed in Christ are prime reasons for a jubilant renewing of the mind, heart, and will. Being saved can alter the opinions of how we look at others and the way we view ourselves. However, apart from the faith of Christ, human belief never could trigger a righteous standing before God. Human belief never could initiate gospel truth about redemption, but declaring gospel truth can teach others about being saved. What is gospel truth? It is the redemption of the world by Christ, the entire human race.

Our redemption never rested on older “times past” covenants between God and Man but on the New Covenant between God and His Son. Their plan centered on Jesus, Man’s High Priest, and His finished work. When Christ, having been made LORD of all died and arose, all died in His Body, all arose born from above, and all were made a new creation in Him. Only then was God satisfied, when in the twinkling of an eye, all were spiritually re-created righteous in high places....in God’s sight. Their gospel of redemption never included an option for Man’s permission. Their gospel added no if’s, no and’s, no but’s, no maybe’s and no plan B. Their gospel is not an offer to become righteous for a few but is a declaration of Man’s righteous standing, not essentially before men, but in the opinion of God. Their gospel defined is the Gospel of Grace which means unmerited favor that comes from God and the Gospel of Peace meaning a cessation of hostility.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bob Hines
• Release date: Aug 1, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301105472

Bob Hines

R. Patrick Hines is a Bible historian and graduate of Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, Illinois with a Bachelor of Science Degree including Biblical Greek and Hebrew Studies. He is a fellow member of the Greater Atlanta Biblical Archaeology Association, The Tyndale Society in Oxford, England, the American Association of Museums and the International Society of Bible Collectors. Recently he exhibited his world class collection of museum quality Bibles and manuscripts in churches throughout Georgia.

Book preview

Foreword

If every man on earth were a scribe, and every blade of grass a quill, and the oceans filled with ink, you could never end up with the total unconditional love of God. The skies could not even contain that

During the course of human history each generation continues to hold on tightly the precious reality of God's love. In spite of this, most in Christendom have failed to take a comprehensive look as to why the gospel means good news! The Apostle Paul wrote, God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them. When and where did this happen? It happened before the foundation of the world and found its expression in time 2000 years ago at the cross. It isn't something yet to happen but is historical in nature….something that has already occurred. The reconciliation isn't some sort of futuristic reality…..it's a done deal or to put it another way, It is finished. Mankind's problem isn't that we are not all reconciled to God in Christ; it's that many are not aware of it. That's why Paul said that God has committed to us the word (message) of reconciliation.

"It is finished!" It isn't being finished when a person believes, however you can believe it because it is already finished! All have been reconciled…. Believe it! Like telling a guy, You are a man. Now, be a man! The gospel isn't some sort of existential news that becomes true because somebody believes. However, we can believe it because it is already true. A blind man may not see what's around him but it's there whether he sees it or not. His subjective experience of blindness doesn't negate the objective reality around him. The gospel defined is the announcement of God's spiritual redemptive salvation of all mankind.

Today, a rising tide recognizing God's all inclusive redemptive love is overcoming the self-righteous murky religious systems that have existed for nearly 2000 years. Many are becoming aware of the devastating effects that religion has on the human race. The gospel does not incorporate any attempt to do for God what God in Christ has already done for mankind. The Good News had its intended effect in that all are righteous before God because the finished work of the Redeemer. An individual's acceptance or belief of the Good News is not what has shaped anyone's righteous standing before God.

The objective of this book is to make known the birthrights of our Redeemer (LORD/Jehovah) and His immense undertaking as the Savior of the World. Human freedom from guilt, condemnation, and the judgment of God was secured through His sacrifice. He came not to promote a theory or a chance but to execute mankind's redemptive salvation and to proclaim the gospel of grace and peace.

The Redeemer (Strong's 1350 gaal LORD/Jehovah) reconciled the entire world to Himself, not a race, not a generation, not a class, but all mankind past, present and future. The outcome of this world wide redemptive rescue mission was conceived by Him, the Strong One (Strong's 3067 Yhvh God/Elohim), and was never contingent on any decision making capabilities' of humankind. Jesus did not offer us an opportunity to be redeemed but that the world be saved (Redeemed) through Him. To His sheep (His creation) He gave (not offered) new life when He received authority over all flesh. As the Son of Man, "He came to seek and to save (not seek to save) that which was lost." As Redeemer (LORD/Jehovah) He said I am the light of the world not I am willing to be, but I am. He said, I came that they may have life not if they choose, but unequivocally may have it. All of these announcements were made under one umbrella, All power (authority) has been given to Me in heaven and on the earth (Matthew 28:18).

Jesus took all of mankind's vain attempts to the cross with Him including the old covenantal sin of unbelief. Now, we determine our righteousness by learning how righteous Jesus is. We were made righteous long before we believed and started to attend church…it's called Redemptive Salvation. Our job is to reveal to people who their LORD (Redeemer) is. With the Good News of redemption an individual's acceptance or belief can change their soul (the mind, heart, and emotions)… it's called Transformative Salvation. As you read the nuggets of gospel truth presented in this book please remember there is no bad news in the good news.

This book describes God's-eye-view of (mankind's redemption) and man's-eye-view of salvation (being saved). It will answer many of questions pertaining to God's unconditional love. For example: (1) At the Cross, what had become of the human race and how far did God intervene? (2) What did God actually seek to accomplish in Christ? (3) Did Mankind participate in what Jesus fulfilled? (4) What is meant by redemption through His blood? (5) How did the extraordinary event of the cross corporately redeem all mankind? (6) What does that precedent have to do with individual personal belief? (7) What does Life in Christ and His teachings really mean?

In Paul's Epistle to Titus, Chapter 3:4-6, he tells us, "For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness (including belief) which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost, which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour."

The work of God in Christ on the cross was an instantaneous event that obtained full redemption of all mankind in the Body of Christ. Through the death, burial and neo-creative resurrection of Jesus, God cleansed, forgave and restored everyone on the face of the earth to Himself (Heb. 9:24-28, 10:7-14). Now, we can acknowledge not establish God's redemption in our mind and experience the benefits (2 Cor. 5:14-21).

Along with our new freedom God gives us the the word and ministry of reconciliation to tell those who have not heard the Good News that they along with all others were in Christ when He reconciled the world to Himself. God is fully satisfied… He is not angry at mankind…. the war is over. He is no longer reckoning any older covenant laws against us. He removed every excuse that humanity could ever make for not allowing harmony and fellowship to exist between Himself and Man. This is the good word God has given us to understand and share with those who do not recognize they already have a redemptive relationship with God through the Cross.

"For if when we were enemies we were reconciled (brought back) to God through the death (on the cross) of His Son" (Rom 5:10a). "…much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved (the process of understanding man's freedom in Christ) by His life" (Rom 5:10b).

Truth necessitates one to speak and one to hear….however:

Key: Just as the promise is there for all who will grasp it… there remains yet no less the promise to those who either in ignorance or arrogance do not or will not grasp it.

On the cross, Christ responded in faith ….engaging all mankind equally and instantaneously in His resurrection. This redemption salvation took place in Jerusalem at the Place of the Skull two millennia ago for all humanity. Christ work of redemption did not take place and then wait for man to engage in it. It is not the point at which we have some kind of human experience it was impossible for mankind to participate in the all sufficient priestly work of Christ.

This is the only way by which the full purpose of Jesus Christ was completely fulfilled in God's time and in His order. Anything less than the full reconciliation of all things would be tantamount to a defeat and failure of what Jesus Christ has accomplished through His sacrifice on the cross. To compromise on man's spiritual position perfection in Christ is to selfishly take the reins of power out of God's hands on the Cross and place it into our own. There is nothing a human being can do, say, think or believe that would cause God to love us more or less than He does right this minute! God has always loved Mankind unconditionally. The Bible begins with the human creation of Man and ends with the spiritual creation of Man. I leave it to you the reader with Bible in hand to investigate. I am confident that the gospel will penetrate the hearts of many souls. May you find great comfort in learning about God's panorama of love for the entire human race.

Learn by heart … the gospel is not a mystery to be solved but a declaration to be explored.

Preface

The affectionate result of the gospel of grace and peace is not to try and get Jesus into people but to bring forth Jesus out of people

The heaven's parted and God look down raining gifts of forgiveness on to us; healing us on every spiritual level; we realized that our true nature is not body, that we are eternal beings; that God's love is unconditional and there's nothing we can ever do to change that; it is only our illusion that we are separate from God or that we are alone, in fact the reality is we are one with God and He loves us

In other words, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting people's trespasses against them, and He has given us the message of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:19)

In the full range of religious thought and inquiry, the matter of redemption and salvation is of the highest interest to the human race. God's unconditional love, grace and peace toward mankind was all funneled into and out of His Son. He accomplished what was needed that the entire world, past, present, and future is redeemed…. all are united with God through the cross of Christ. Commonly there are individuals who are aware of mankind's new life in Christ…..in spite of everything many are not cognizant of their position in the Redeemer.

It is impossible for human beings to trigger or negate the redemption that God in Christ alone carried out for the entire human race. Mankind's redemption in Christ Jesus was never presented to us as an option, opportunity or chance. Sadly, over the many centuries institutional religion has grown into an offense to the cross as they continually present an invalid formula of the good and bad news, manipulating both Old and New Covenant teachings to mix the Mosaic Law (That Needed Man's will) and Grace (The will of God in Christ alone). In spite of this, the inclusiveness of the New Covenant not being well understood is as true today as is has ever been. This publication addresses the challenges that many pastors and teachers face….namely the reckoning of an exclusive salvation of man's heart, mind, and will (the soul) on earth while at the same time managing the ideal inclusive spiritual redemption of all mankind in heavenly places.

Ironically, over the centuries the more people declare God's all inclusive love for all His creation, the more puzzled the organized church has become. The clarion cry of organized religion is that a limited amount of people posses Christ, when in reality the entire human race was captured by Him spiritually and presented righteous to the Father in heaven 2000 years ago. As a result, there isn't any so called after life as the church propagates since our new life in Christ will never end. Upon physical death the spirit is liberated from the body and becomes closer to her source than ever before. "The dust will return to the ground as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it" (Ecclesiastes 12:17). While only some fully identify with this truth all are redeemed: past, present, and future in the Body of Christ. When we try to believe in corruptible morality and incorruptible perfection at the same time….we become hopelessly buried in a mystery. God solved this enigma by sending forth His Son to free our spirit and soul.

The Gospel is not bad news followed by good news, or even worse, bad news followed by the possibility of good news if only you can get your thoughts together. God's plan was passionately fulfilled for all Mankind in Jesus Christ and is good news from start to finish.

Key: The Gospel did not begin with how bad we were; it began with how good God is. It began with the eternal purposes of God and what He has made of the whole human race in Jesus Christ.

"I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee" (Isaiah 44:22). God did not say return unto me in order to be redeemed.

The gospel is not about how to become righteous, it is a revelation of righteousness. Nobody has ever been made righteous before God because they believe in Jesus; but we ought to believe in Jesus because He first loved us and made us righteous in His sight. There is nothing about redemption in Christ Jesus that has anything to do with performance or what one does or does not do. The gospel is primarily about who and what all human beings are…. righteous, perfect, and redeemed in the view and opinion of God.

The degree to which we acknowledge Christ as having completed the work and will of the Father is called being saved. Believing is a wonderful experience and discovering the treasures revealed in Christ are prime reasons for a jubilant renewing of the mind, heart, and emotions. It alters the way we look at issues, how we view others, and the way we identify ourselves. However, human belief never did trigger a righteous standing before God. Human belief never did initiate the gospel of truth, but declaring the gospel of truth can promote human belief.

The Gospel defined… is that all human kind is redeemed, the entire human race. The Gospel rested not on the old covenants between God and Man, as the Adamic and Mosaic covenants, but a New Covenant between God and His Son. Their plan, never included Man's response to make it redemption applicable, but was based on Jesus, our High Priest, performing His finished work. Man could never make Jesus Lord, God made Jesus Lord of all. For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. For whether we live, we live unto the master (Lord/Adonai): and whether we die, we die unto the master (Lord/Adonai): whether we live therefore, or die, we are the master's (Lord's/Adonai's) (Rom. 14:8).

When Christ died, the entire human race died; when He arose the entire human race arose. All Mankind was in His resurrected Body and spiritually born again from above. All were made a new creation in Him, and all were presented to the Father righteous and redeemed. Only then was God satisfied as in the twinkling of an eye all were re-created righteous in His sight.

We can only begin to identify with the wonderful theme of redemption by a finite comprehension: comparing shame and glory, life and death, justice and mercy as they all converged in the Body of Christ on the cross. The cross is the song of the redeemed through all eternity.

The gospel adds no if's, and's, but's or maybe's. It is not an opportunity to become righteous but is a declaration of Man's righteous standing, not essentially before men, but in the viewpoint of God and has always existed in the risen Christ Jesus. In totality, the Gospel of Grace means unmerited favor from God and the Gospel of Peace means the cessation of hostility from God.

All human beings are righteous in the sight of God by the death, burial, creative resurrection, and life of Jesus Christ. This was foreshadowed and predicted in the ancient Hebrew writings and eventually analyzed in what is known as the New Testament by the recorded words of Jesus, Paul the apostle, and many others. It was never left up to us to make this happen. After 4000 years of failure, the human race was too treasured by God to leave redemption up to us. So, He took it upon Himself and did it in us, with us and for us, by the completed work of His Son - the Redeemer (the LORD). Clearly, God wanted it to happen and He made it happen. To believe that God could or would permit a single human being He created, to be destroyed, or even eternally separated from Him is a contradiction in terms.

"Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the Redeemer (LORD/Jehovah) hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession" (Psalms 2:6-8).

"The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand" (John 3:35).

In 1860, Mark Twain once correctly stated, The shabbiest of all lies is silent-assertion. It's easy for us to take for granted and conform to certain doctrines we've believed in or were raised up on all of our lives. At times we become numb to error because we hear the same thing taught over and over again. However, the gospel is not the dry and dusty teaching from some watered down jargon handed down to us by our descended imaginations. The refreshing and soul stirring vision of the true Gospel flows from the genuine good news about our world Redeemer (the LORD).

God in Christ has embraced all of humanity in such a way that He will never let any of us go. While the intrinsic relationship amid men is fragile, the state of the union between God and the human race is absolutely perfect. Blessed are men or women who truly know the inclusive power of the Redeemer.

The above being said this book does not advocate any of the following:

Religion - a belief taking a… God is on our side pep talk to an absurd degree….reinforced by professional institutions that teach an overriding confidence in human resolve.

Old Covenants belief systems - a belief about Man's condition of sin, repentance and making Jehovah Lord. Up to the end-of-the-ages absolute belief and obedience was needed to gain individual redemptive favor with God… this never happened.

Christian Universalism - a belief that all people will eventually experience redemptive salvation, will eventually be reconciled to God in Christ and enter His Kingdom.

Unitarian Universalism - a belief identified as Atheist, Agnostic, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Humanist, Jewish, Muslim, Pagan and other religions searching for spiritual truth and the significance of life will find it.

Ultimate Reconciliation - a belief that there will come a time when all mankind, the wicked that have died, along with the devil and his evil angels, will be released from the torment of hell and be reconciled back to God.

Preterist - a belief that end time writings were primarily fulfilled during the sacking of Jerusalem; an earthly governmental event circa 70 AD.

Anti-Semitism - a belief that the fabric of Jewish life, biblical events and traditions are of no exclusive consequence before God.

Gnosticism - a belief that some have an undisclosed spiritual knowledge about God so as that humanity could attain godhood.

New-Age - a belief in spiritual and consciousness-raising movements appealing to people who are trying to discover or rediscover a spiritual dimension in their life.

Social Justice - a belief based on the concepts of human rights and equality.

Syncretism - a belief that mingles Judaic, Roman, Greek and Pagan religious principles.

There is a growing need for objective inquiry amidst today's philosophical, religious, and cultural trends. In its place, this publication promotes a much needed paradigm shift to comprehend and appreciate the reality of the true gospel… being no longer about what must I do? But, what Jesus has done. It identifies the impact of the Cross, how that extraordinary event corporately redeemed all mankind and what that precedent has to do with individual personal belief. No matter how immense we think Calvary was….it was more powerful than what anyone can totally realize or imagine.

Key: Redemption is not a confirmation of what can happen if an individual believes the gospel. Man's redemptive freedom is no longer something to be sought but a certainty that is revealed to us. The only salvation needed now is a transformative salvation of the heart, the mind, and the will from the bondage of thinking that our personal actions including belief had anything to do with human kind's redemption through the cross of Christ.

"Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, (trying to gain acceptance from God by human works) but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God" (1 Corinthians 2:12).

"He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world" (1 John 2:2).

The gospel is the good news of God's righteousness for all humanity and was based on Jesus Christ not any religious system. Our universe in its entire splendor, our world and all its wonders, our human bodies and all their complicated parts, all this vast and intricate creation sprang from one source…. the mind and hand of God. He understood the condition of the human unrighteousness and from the beginning of time had already worked out the solution. That is the gospel of God in Christ declaring both the sovereignty of God in redemption and the responsibility of man in being saved.

"For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee. For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the LORD that hath mercy on thee" (Isaiah 54:9-10).

"And the peace of God, which passed all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:7).

Testimony

As the wisdom of God was piercing through the darkness of my mind, heart and will it has taken many years to purge my mind of damaging doctrines that centered on the wisdom of religion. For a long time I didn't actually see the finished work of Christ as the gospel. I saw the work of the cross more as potential good news.

My understanding was that if anyone was to ask God to forgive their sin… He would. If a person would pray to get right with God… He would answer that prayer. If somebody would come to God in faith the great gulf of sin that separated them from God would be bridged. It all depended on their understanding…their faith and…their decision.

I don't see the redemptive gospel message of Jesus Christ that way anymore. The gospel isn't a sales pitch in which we tell people that if they'll do this then God will do that. It all sounds so right on the surface and so difficult to see the flawed logic of such an approach apart from the Holy Spirit breaching heart, mind and will.

In basic terms the gospel is… a declaration of good news. When Jesus said, It is finished He really meant it. We have been redeemed and reconciled to God by the finished work of Christ… not by a decision that we may or may not make.

The gospel is the good news that God in Christ has dealt with the matter of Sin completely and redeemed the entire human race. We can experience transformation in this life because He first loved us.

Looking back…in my early years I was raised in the Christian faith. From the age of sixteen I was taught the very basics of Christian doctrine by my parents and the local church. I learned about Adam and Eve and the stories of Jesus in the Bible.

I learned about Heaven and Hell. In church I sang songs about Jesus and about how He became the Savior of the World. I knew it was an awesome thing that the world had a Savior and even then I knew somewhat of the awesome price He paid.

But deep inside there came some common sense questions about God that even at a young age seemed to nag at me. These were deeper feelings than I was able to express and therefore I never really addressed them at the time. After all, God was too big and I was too small to understand what it all meant.

I loved Jesus or what I knew about Him the way a young person does. But, I couldn't help but sense that for all His love and sacrifice the adults around me seemed to put limitations on Him and His great provisions for mankind. I couldn't understand why other people appeared to undo much of His hard work.

I didn't understand what the point was of God sending Jesus, His Son to save us, only to come up with a plan to ultimately keep Him out of reach of so many. It seemed that if Jesus had purchased the whole world with His Blood…. He wouldn't need our permission to spiritually redeem us.

It was like Jesus was saying You are helpless to save yourself, so I am going to die to save you, but I need you to do things even in your helpless spiritually dead state to trigger all this before it will have any effect.

I knew the members of the church I attended to be a kind, wonderful and well meaning people but something fishy was going on. Something seemed phony about it all. Even in my late twenty's my questions went unanswered. I found out later it was not like I was questioning Jesus…but what people were telling me about Him.

I knew Jesus loved me and I knew if I could stand before Him in person that He would know how sorry I was for being so disobedient at times. My thoughts were that it shouldn't matter anyway because it seemed to me that He had not created that much room in Heaven…. as my church preached that not that many appeared to be going there anyway. Even so… God comforted me as I continued to long for answers.

In my early thirty's I began to read more of the Bible, which was only a book of possibilities up until then. I investigated passages on my own. I read verses which seem to finally address many of my questions I had in my youth… essentially that the entire human race was spiritually dead when Christ died and when He was raised to life; all were raised to new spiritual Life in His Body.

I discovered that the Day of Judgment and the Day of Mercy took place on the very same day… the day of the cross…that all of God's anger and wrath was put on Jesus. God delivered His verdict on mankind: Forgiven, righteous and free. Because of the Cross we are all One in Christ; God look at the entire human race in His Son… all creation stands spiritually redeemed in His heavenly sanctuary.

Never the less, as a result of my church teachings and in my self-righteous religious mindset I was still somewhat deterred. How could I be so naive as to believe that everyone is redeemed? I mocked in my heart... these are just liberal thoughts… that's not what the church is teaching me….all you have to do is open the Bible and it clearly says that such a thing is just not possible.

In my mind, I scoffed at such a foolish idea, who would be so silly as to believe such nonsense that Jesus had the power to redeem the whole world without our permission? This is not the will of God…so I thought!

Later on…I became the curator of a world class collection of English, Greek and Hebrew antiquarian Bibles and Moody Bible Institute graduate in Biblical Studies. I continued to search out early Greek, Hebrew and Latin translation inaccuracies and oversights.

I began to see how many church doctrines from the 3rd century onward totally violated scriptural/historical/cultural events presented in the Old Testament Tanakh concerning the Messiah. I began to see Old/New Covenants, Law /Grace, and remarkably that mankind's spiritual redemption and individual salvation of the soul as separate entities.

All human kind has been justified and reconciled to God by the finished work of Christ, not by any decision that we may or may not make. As the One who came to take away the Sin of the world.

Salvation is the subjective experience of an objective reality. God in Christ has done what He has done, whether we believe it or not. He has accepted us…. that's real….we catch sight of the beauty of His acceptance and are transformed.

It took me 35 years to grasp the enormity of God in Christ… His perfect, complete and inclusive redemption manifested on Calvary. The more I listened to the testimony of God in Christ the more convinced I became of how weak my view of the Cross was… thinking Surely, God's plan couldn't be this big and this awesome….could it? Let me assure you dear reader He is bigger and more glorious than any of us could ever imagine.

It is so iniquitous to think that God the Creator was capable of making changes without the assistance of His creation? Nothing was as powerful, glorious, and life changing as the Cross of Jesus Christ. The Cross is no longer a mystery as God has revealed the way He reconciled all mankind to Himself.

However, the traditions of men do not fall easily. Many are comfortable with what they believe and have been taught that puny man can somehow derail God's love and determination shown on Calvary. God is the sovereign, supreme and almighty Creator of all things… what He wanted He delivered. If we ourselves could determine our eternal destiny God would not be sovereign.

I realized that the gospel is not an instructional message about how to become righteous and redeemed. God in Christ is not the Redeemer of a privileged few but the Redeemer of all. He was sent to redeem all and He made it happen!

Finally… I began to see the true power and character of Jesus Christ. I began to see who He really is. Yeshua (Jesus) is our Redeemer, our Strong One, and our Master. My heart was flooded with His Love, thinking: How could I have missed it? The entire human race has been redeemed 2000 years ago… we are all freed so we can believe to the saving of the soul.

At one time in my life I was so distraught by the guilt and judgment of a religiously tormented mind…. with the good news of God's peace and grace with all mankind I don't have to be and neither do you! The heart, mind and emotions in God's new creation were not designed for any redemptive guilt or judgment before God.

His victory could not be halted by the long arm of any religion, the Law of Moses or life circumstances. In my soul I knew that I could no longer feed at the banquet of failure based religious institutions. I was set free from all the false gospel horror shows and the self-righteousness of my own belief to attain redemption.

I used to look at myself in the mirror and sometimes what I saw was not so appealing….but the love of Jesus is more real to me now than ever before and have been persuaded by God's testimony alone to share the Good News of grace and peace.

It is His testimony that gives freedom to the soul…a man's heart, mind and emotions. No one is any more or any less righteous in the sight of God because we are all One in Christ… the way God planned it. His Love was never intended to fail as the Prophet Isaiah tells us from long ago:

"Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please. From the east I summon a bird of prey; from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose. What I have said, that will I bring about; what I have planned, that will I do" (Isaiah 46:9-11).

Redemptive salvation is what God believes about His new creation.

Transformative salvation is what we believe about His new creation.

The human race is redeemed not because we did something or thought something or figured something out but because God in Christ says so. It is impossible for redemptive salvation to be used as a token of choice, option, or opportunity any longer by the impulses of Mankind.

Years from now many Christian preachers and teachers will say, What were we thinking? The answer will be we were still eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil instead of drinking from the River of Life. Redemption is His story from beginning to end…now it is my story…now it is your story…now it is our story…Rejoice!

R. Patrick Hines

Introduction

The Gospel of Jesus Christ reaches deeper than the earth, higher than the sky, and farther than the universe. 2000 years ago God emptied Himself of all wrath, all judgment, all animosity, all offense, and all the problems He had with mankind. He emptied Himself of all that; and He bought us all, purchased us all by the blood of His own Son, redeemed us, and qualified us for heaven no matter what anyone said

The gospel of God is His testimony to the entire human race. Greatest story ever told is His story of love, of sacrifice, and of everlasting mercy. It is a story that has been told for over two thousand years with great passion and tears….one that has transformed the lives of countless millions all over the world.

2000 years ago grace and peace was established between God and Man. When Jesus was born in Bethlehem a multitude of the armies of heaven appeared with an angel announcing, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men!" (Not necessarily among man - Luke 2:14). The Gospel of grace and peace was never an opportunistic approach but was a sweeping declaration made possible by Christ our world Redeemer.

There is no longer any anger, wrath or hostility between God and His redemptive relationship with the human race. If one man remains outside the redemptive love of God, it means that that one man has defeated the love of God…and that is impossible. God rejoices over the redemptive salvation of His creation because He knows His Son was totally victorious. At the cross, God determined how righteous we are by knowing how righteous Jesus is.

Most religions agree that God wants man to live in harmony and peace with other men. The differences come in the manner in which people want to enjoy their relationships with God. Some bow to Mecca five times a day; some light candles; some set objects afloat on a river; some eat bread and drink wine to symbolize the body and blood of their leader; some dance around stones in the middle of a field; some walk through a forest.

Key: In reality, the manner in which people approach God only tells us about the people; not the view and opinion of God.

The gospel of Jesus Christ is good news as to what is right between God and Man. In fact the gospel is not a revelation of what is wrong with us. Many think the gospel message is to be initiated by a process that centers on their faults and eliminating them one by one making a better person eligible for redemption. Yet, the Apostle Paul addressed this type of faulty doctrine when he told the Galatians Are you so foolish? Although you began with the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by human effort? (Gal 3:3) Like today people are trying to make the flesh holy before God, when God has already made all men perfect in His sight by the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus. Because of the gospel of grace and peace is complete anything we do or say cannot dismantle the New Covenant that the Father made with His Son involving all men.

Key: Regrettably, the tenor of institutional religion has not stopped trying for some 1650 years to insult the life blood of the New Covenant.

"Blessed be the strong one (Strong's 3067 Yhvh God/Elohim) and Father of our master (Lord/Adonai) Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ" (Eph 1:3).

We will never know who we are as a redeemed people until we know that we are all spiritually identified in Christ in heavenly places. There is a great difference between being spiritual and trying to act spiritual.

The gospel never contained a plan B. It is Good News from start to finish. It is not bad news followed by good news or bad news followed by the possibility or a chance of good news. The gospel of Christ is non-negotiable. The redemption of all mankind is complete in the view and opinion of God.

Key: The self-righteousness of thinking our own belief triggered our redemption is as self-righteous as the Jews thinking that keeping the Law made them right with God. (Strong's 3551 Nomos the Mosaic Law - with emphasis on the first five books of Scripture)…. they could obtain a perfect standing before God. This is tantamount to church members perceiving to have a privileged status with God by virtue of their beliefs or punching in time at their local church.

God's faithfulness to Himself, His Word and His ultimate Will regarding the redemption of the entire human race, is not affected by man's faith or lack of it. The Cross of Christ had much more of a spiritual impact with God than it did on mankind. We have nothing to boast of except the most wonderful thing imaginable…. the works of God in Christ.

Today, we must break free from the traditions of men and establish the significance of the true gospel. The purity of the gospel is of extreme consequence. The winds of God's Spirit are blowing clearing away the mist and fog that cloud man's mind, heart and understanding. For centuries God is unfolding in greater measure the Mystery that has been hidden from ages past. The world doesn't need to get redeemed…but continues to need a renewal of the mind that we are all One in Christ. It is with prayer and appeal that God's testimony of love expressed in the following pages will enlarge our vision and ignite a passion to proclaim the good news.

This publication proclaims the victory and power of the Cross of Christ that redeemed all mankind and exposes the false doctrines about redemption and salvation as taught in most circles of modern Christianity. Of course, please keep in mind there is always a risk in challenging traditional thinking and standing alone if necessary in order to be a light in the midst of religious darkness.

Before you read any further, please recognize that you will read nothing that undermines the powerful work of the cross, the deity of Christ, His substitutional death and the shedding of His precious blood. You will read nothing that challenges the facts of Jesus' virgin birth, that He died on the cross for the sin of the world or that He was buried and rose again and is presently seated at the right hand of God as High Priest.

Reader, it is not easy to make a transition from life-long paradigms. What has dominated our thinking is ingrained in us and the grooves run deep. At times we are not even aware how the power of religion governs our whole thinking. This commentary will either confirm or challenge your own beliefs. It remains your God-given right and responsibility to honestly weigh and examine all the evidence before you and decide what you will believe as the truth.

The idea that everybody is redeemed sounds absurd to most of the Christian community, but it is through honest assessment many are convinced it is the only viable way to bring others to a saving knowledge of Christ. We need to recognize the gospel as truth; no matter what we believe and if that truth is not true for every human being, it is not the truth and becomes an uncertainty. One should be prepared to sacrifice their pet dogmas on the altar of honest inquiry.

The following is a list of references used in the preparation of this publication:

Unless otherwise noted, all Bible quotations