If You Are, Then Say So!

Psalm 107:1-2 (NLT) says this,

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good!
His faithful love endures forever.

Has the LORD redeemed you? Then speak out!
Tell others he has saved you.

In this psalm, the goodness and faithfulness of the Lord are demonstrated in two acts - redeeming and gathering, setting free and bringing back.

The earliest frame of reference for my understanding of redemption comes from grocery shopping with my Mom. Redeem was what my Mom did at the grocery store with coupons she clipped from the paper. Redemption usually wasn't worth more than twenty or thirty cents.

Redeem is a critical theological word with powerful meaning in our spiritual lives. To redeem means to pay something off or to buy something back, to restore reputation or to make something acceptable.

Another translation puts verse 2 this way, "Let the redeemed of the LORD say so." It's a call to stand up and be heard. If you're redeemed, then say so!

Am I redeemed? Geez, probably so. At least I'm supposed to be. Probably not more than twenty or thirty cents worth, though.

Who are the redeemed? Let's take a look.

"Some of them wandered in deserts" (Psalm 107:4). They couldn't find their way to a place to settle down. Sounds like restlessness, to me. Hungry and thirsty. The unsatisfied pursuit of something more, just out of reach. Feeling like their lives are slipping away.

"Others lived in the deepest darkness" (Psalm 107:10). Not just darkness - deepest darkness. People suffering as prisoners because they refused to follow God's advice. Prisoners doing hard time, at that. No one to help when they trip and fall.

"Others were foolish" (Psalm 107:17). Folks who endure the self-inflicted suffering of their own sin. Make their bed, then sleep in it. Don't eat anything, and wonder why they're hungry.

"Others sailed out on the ocean in ships" (Psalm 107:23). Folks who get a rush from the adventure of working and playing on the surface of deep water, living on the edge. The water gets a little choppy. No problem. That just feeds the rush. But when the storms come and the winds blow and the going really gets rough, courage melts away.

Do any of these describe you? They do me. Wandered in the desert. Lived in pretty deep darkness. Been foolish. Been over my head in the deep end.

God puts me on a straight path. I wander off, and God leads me back. God breaks the chains of things that hold me captive. God saves me from trouble and heals me. God brings me out of trouble, calms the storms and guides me to a safe harbor.

Are you redeemed? I am!

Are you redeemed? Then say so! Speak out! Tell others how God has restored you, bought you back, made you acceptable. It ain't about you - it's an act of praise, a testimony to God's faithful love.

My redemption cost Jesus his life. He sets me free and brings me back, so that I don't have to live alone in deserts, darkness, deep water or my own darn foolishness. That's worth more than twenty or thirty cents, isn't it?