A Modern Parable of Land Ownership and Redemption
In order to lawfully live anywhere these days, you must pay tax to your local government quarterly according to the value of your land and home. While your name may be on the deed for your home and land, it is ultimately your township or county that owns it. You are basically just the legal steward of it, so long as you pay the property taxes. A day will come when you may no longer live there. You may sell it to a new owner, or pass it down to your children and they to their children. Everyone must pay taxes to call it their home.
We have a property that shares its northern boundary with a piece of land that was vacant. Our home was carved out of that piece of land and sold as an independent lot. Both the original piece of land and our smaller subdivision were weighed down under years of unpaid property taxes. In order to purchase our home we had to negotiate the payment of those taxes for our parcel before we could get the deed. We paid the lien and now we steward our land, a home free from its historical debt. The vacant land beside us, however, still has not been redeemed. Last time I checked, there is still more than $70k due in back taxes on it. That’s over 20 years of unpaid property tax and fines!
There is a cost associated with land ownership. It never goes away and it’s always accruing. Participation in the system is subjection to its taxes and fees. For us, participation in our municipality, our townships government order, public works and civil structure requires us to pay a few thousand dollars a year, every year, for as long as we want to participate. Should we choose to stop paying that participation fee (property tax), then we would forfeit the stewardship of our home and land to the township and ultimately to someone else; someone who had the means to redeem our debt and carry on paying the taxes for the property. Can you see the metaphor at work here?
Original Stewards
Adam and Eve were given stewardship of the entire earth, which was ultimately owned by a higher municipality, the governing order of the Creator God. Their disobedience as stewards, and relegation of their allegiance to another authority, placed them and their land under the ultimate debt and consequence; foreclosure and debtors to the new tenant, Sin and Death, whose legal representative is the Satan itself, the accuser. Since humanity had no where to go outside of the earth, we were kicked off the land on paper, but remained squatters under the new tenant.
Earth’s New Tenant
This new tenant took the role of stewardship going forth into all the earth, filling it and ruling it, with darkness, perversions and atrocities, literally, hell bent on eradicating these unworthy squatters from the land and from God’s Will. Satan’s means of human extermination began with deception and morphed into genetic corruption (Gen. 6), violence, blood shed and evil; destroying the race of Adam through a spiritual war and a seed war.
A Redeemer Steps In
God’s salvation of the human race, along with their return to stewardship of the earth, was accomplished through Jesus’ obedience to the Father’s will in His life and death. Jesus’ blood redeemed (repurchased) humanity from our failure to pay for participation. You see, when Creator God was the authority humans recognized and were subjected to, the price of participation was simply participation; being fruitful and multiplying, taking dominion of the land and filling the earth with beauty, order and communities. God’s participation fee was, and always is, LIFE.
Blood Ransom
However when Sin, Death and the Satan became the authority we chose over God, the price they set for participation was blood, life-forfeited (remember, life is in the blood). Jesus’ blood paid the impossible debt stacked against us for the land, the whole earth we forfeited. His blood has placed us back in authority and seated us in heavenly places, rightful heirs of the full inheritance of God’s Will. Jesus’ blood absolved (made atonement for or covered over) everything written against us in the “tax” records. We are no longer slaves to Sin and Death, no longer squatters and refugees, but joint-owners with Him. (Gal.4:7, Eph.2:19, Eph3:6)
Judicial Authority
Even more so, it is the Satan and his legions that are the squatters now. The forces of darkness are no longer the highest authority on the earth, the Lord Jesus Christ is. The bible tells us the Jesus’ death and resurrection was a Victory. He not only saved us from our destitution but he achieved something cosmic on our behalf.
“20a bruised reed he will not break,
and a smoldering wick he will not quench,
until he brings justice to victory;
21and in his name the Gentiles will hope.” (Matt12:20-21)
13And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. 15He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.” (Col 2:13-15)
What Jesus did through his life and death (and life again) was reverse the fall of humanity that took place in Eden. He restored the throne to Adam’s line legally and without contestation. He made a way back to communion with the Creator, but not only that, He incorporated us into the triune Godhead!
Being In Christ
Yes, you heard me right. We are incorporated into the triune God. “Blasphemy!” you might say… or is it?
What Christ achieved was an unimaginable form of insulation. He insulates with his own body the body, mind and spirit of anyone who believes and He covers us so fully and completely that the writers of the epistles can only describe it as being “in Christ.”
“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” (Eph2:10)NLT
“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.” (Eph2:13)
“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. (2Cor2:14)
Do you see the imagery? We are incorporated in the Godhead because we are in Christ! I don’t know about you, but I see this playing out in my head like a person putting on a jumpsuit or coveralls. You step both feet in, one at a time, wiggle it up over your shoulders, both arms through the sleeves and then zip up from bottom to top, complete body coverage.
“But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. (Rom13:14) ESV
“Instead, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the desires of the flesh.” (Rom13:14) BSB
Paul also sees Christ like a covering we put on, or that is put on us. He goes even farther to describe this new relation we have to Christ, not only as a robe we would cover ourselves with, but that we are in fact an incorporated part of His own body.
The Body of Christ
There was a potential limitation to the Son of God becoming incarnated as the Son of Man. It (theoretically) confined Jesus to ever being in one place at one time, even after His resurrection into a glorified body. It would perhaps be impossible (a big perhaps) for Him, as a single physical person, to touch and liberate every person on the globe within the window of our limited human lifespans. However, that limitation is remedied by turning every believer into mirror images of Christ whose actions and impact are multiplied through unified church ministry.
Christ off sets His ascension by giving His followers the gift of the Holy Spirit, and in turn the Holy Spirit multiplies gift giving across the church. No longer are the called out ones followers and disciples, but rather they become saints (hagiōn : holy ones, set apart) equipped for the work of ministry! Apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds & teachers, miracle workers, healers, helpers, administrators, speakers of various tongues, interpreters…these are all modes of operating within the body of Christ, new systems of which we can all function within.
Christ In You
If you believe that God did indeed reconcile you to himself, cancelling out your record of debt and blotting out every transgression on your account, and if you choose to hold fast to that confession and put on and therefore imitate Christ, then you are in Christ. Just like Abraham believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness, and just as the Israelites received the “new slate” each year on Atonement Day by belief, our own righteousness is secure by belief in the work of God in Christ Jesus.
If you are in Christ, then also Christ is in you via His Spirit. This means that you are a place of God’s habitation. You are a functioning tselem! Just as you inhabit Christ, so God’s presence inhabits you! A mobile Tabernacle. Let Paul back me up here..
“19Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” (1 For 6:19-20)
"16Do you not know that youc are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 17If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.” (1Cor.3:16-17)
You are a temple of the living God! Not only that, you too are hagiōn, or holy, so that means that you, yes you, like the priesthood, are equipped for the work of ministry!
Rather than the days of old, when folks had to shlep their sheep to the tent of meeting and confess their sins and receive clearance and pardon from a the priest, you are a mobile temple, a blessing-mobile, a walking holiness-hut, spreading reconciliation, pardon and favor wherever you go. All because you carry the Spirit of the Lord in you and the Good News of Jesus’ atonement and reconciliation power for all the world to receive .
The Gospel Message
The gospel is good news because the story didn’t end on the cross. The death and burial of Jesus wasn’t a tragic surprise, but rather a strategic stepping stone to procuring creation out of the hands of the enemy through the triumph of Resurrection and exaltation of Jesus as the highest authority in heaven and earth. He owns it all because he redeemed it all. It belonged to Him since he spoke it into creation and its belongs to him again because he repurchased it with his life. It belongs now to all who are in Him. That’s the Good News!