“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” (1 Peter 1:18-19)
Peter packs giant ideas into small spaces. You’ve got to read these verses two or three times to really catch what he’s saying.
First: You were stuck on empty. Your only option was to relive the futile lives of all those who came and went before you. You could not escape into a life of meaning with God. Then he bought your way out. He paid to free you from the emptiness – and it was expensive.
Second: God didn’t write a check to get you out of emptiness and into fullness with him. He didn’t drop a million gold bars to pay the way. He paid in blood, lifeblood. That was the price.
Third: Jesus lived a perfect life. He was spotless, sinless, guiltless. He didn’t earn a parking ticket, let alone the electric chair. But that was the price. His blood for your life. And God paid it.
Think: Does being reminded that the cost of our salvation was the blood of Jesus make you feel guilty or grateful? Does it motivate you to want to live for God, to live in the freedom he purchased for you?
Pray: Thank God for paying the blood of Jesus to buy you out of emptiness and into his family.
Do: Notice today how you are using the freedom that comes with your new life in Christ.