Justification:

The believer in Christ is declared by the Scriptures to be justified. Justification is a legal term in which the believer in Christ is declared righteous. More than a declaration of “Not guilty,” the believer in Christ is declared “righteous.” God imputes His own righteousness to the one who accepts the work of Jesus on his behalf. God justifies the believer in Christ on the basis of faith, not works. Paul wrote in Romans 3.21-24,

²¹ But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, ²² even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; ²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴ being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;

Justification is an act of grace by God. It is a gift. It cannot be worked for or earned. It is free–courtesy of the Lord Jesus Christ. He picked up the tab for us.

Paul wrote in Romans 5.1, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ”.

Justification results in peace with God. Peace with God is a blessing in which the believer can rest. Fear of God is removed. Fear of death or judgment is eliminated. We can rest, knowing that God has nothing against us. In Colossians 2.13-14, Paul wrote,

¹³ When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, ¹⁴ having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

Everything God had against us was paid for by the death and resurrection of Christ. To the one who trusts in the work of Christ on his behalf for salvation, who believes the gospel (1 Corinthians 15.1-4) God says, “Righteous!” cf. Romans 5.9.

Redemption:

To redeem means to buy back something that used to belong to the purchaser but for some reason has passed out of his possession. The Scriptures tell us that we were redeemed by Christ. In Colossians 1.13-14, Paul wrote,

¹³ For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, ¹⁴ in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Peter wrote;

¹⁸ knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, ¹⁹ but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ. 1 Peter 1.18-19,

The biblical picture of redemption is that of redeeming or ransoming us out of the slavery of sin and death. The agora was the Greek word for the market. It was where business was transacted. In modern terms we might think its equivalent being the mall, full of shops, banks, etc. One of the commodities in the ancient market was slaves. The Greek word ἐξαγοράζω means to ‘buy out from the market’ and the biblical picture is one of buying slaves out of the slave market of sin (cf. Galatians 3.13, 4.5; Ephesians 5.16; Colossians 4.5). Apart from Christ, we were helpless and without hope, trapped in the slave market unless someone could buy us out. A slave cannot buy himself out of the slave market. He has no means. But Christ had the means. He was not in the slave market for he was sinless. The price of the purchase was His own blood.

Jesus taught the concept of being slaves to sin. In John 8.31-36, he spoke to the Jews saying,

³¹ So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; ³² and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” ³³ They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?” ³⁴ Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. ³⁵ The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. ³⁶ So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.

Redemption is a gift. And what a gift! It is an act of grace by God. It can neither be earned nor worked for. It can only be accepted (received).