Redemption #4 — The Words We Speak and Freedom From Condemnation

Redemption is not a single moment but a continual motion: you have been redeemed, you are being redeemed and you will be redeemed. In this fourth message of the series, the pastor shows that the part we play in that process starts with our mouths. Jesus became sin to remove condemnation from our lives, and the words we speak either keep that freedom working or invite guilt and shame back in.

This message continues from Redemption Part 3: Free From Condemnation, Starting With Your Words. Below you will find the full video, a structured summary, every key Scripture (linked to the New King James Version on Bible Gateway), a timestamped outline and practical steps for this week.

Sermon at a Glance

This message was preached at NTC Ministries on a Mother’s Day Sunday and posted on May 14, 2024. It runs about 59 minutes and closes with an invitation to receive Jesus as Lord. The pastor calls it the words-we-speak part of his redemption series, a second look at that theme, and he recaps the two truths from earlier messages before going further.

His aim is practical. Condemnation, he says, is what keeps believers from receiving everything Jesus purchased. Learning to speak in line with redemption keeps guilt out, builds confidence and opens the door to the blessings of God in our homes, marriages and work.

Redemption Is a Continual Motion

To redeem means to purchase. With His life, Jesus bought us out of the bondage of corruption and of Satan. But the pastor stresses that we are never only redeemed from; we are redeemed to. God delivered us from the power of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son of His love (Colossians 1:13).

That is why redemption is a continual motion. We can say, “I have been redeemed, I am being redeemed and I will be redeemed.” Our spirits have already been redeemed and are perfect. Our bodies will be redeemed last, as Romans 8:23 says we eagerly wait for “the redemption of our body.” In between, our minds, wills and emotions are in a redemptive process right now.

That middle part is why God did not take us to heaven the moment we were born again. He left us here to work with Him, allowing His love and goodness to bring all the benefits of redemption into our lives. Merriam-Webster, the pastor notes, defines redemption as the act of making something better and more acceptable. You have been redeemed to have a better life.

The second truth from earlier in the series is that Jesus, through His blood, destroyed the one who had the power of death. To do that He had to deal with sin. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says He who knew no sin became sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Jesus never sinned and had no sin nature, the pastor explains, yet on the cross He became sin. And because of that, God will never turn His back on you. He looked away from Jesus so that He would never have to look away from you.

Two Faces of Condemnation

Everyone knows guilt and shame, the pastor says. Little children know it, and even the family dog seems to. Drawing on the condemnation theme of Hebrews 10, he shows that condemnation shows up in two ways, and both keep people from God’s goodness.

In Genesis 3:8–10, God called, “Where are you?” and Adam answered that he hid because he was afraid. The pastor says the same thing happens today when a believer goes through something hard and starts wondering whether God loves them, whether He still does miracles, or whether He is even there.

In Luke 5:4–8, Peter had fished all night and caught nothing. At Jesus’ word he let down the net again, and the catch filled the boats until they began to sink. The pastor estimates it may have been a year’s income in one catch. Yet Peter fell to his knees and said, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” He did not hide; he pushed Jesus away, effectively saying he could not receive from Him because of his sin.

That is what condemnation does: it keeps us from receiving the good things of God. That is why fear involves torment, but perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18). The pastor adds that some ministers today still tell people not to accept God’s blessings, because they live in condemnation themselves and have nothing else to give.

No Condemnation in Christ

The anchor verse is Romans 8:1: “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.” When someone objects, “But you don’t know what I did,” the pastor answers that every sin you ever did, may be doing now or will ever do was dealt with on the cross. That does not mean we can do whatever we like; it means Jesus is the one who deals with condemnation for us.

Salvation is an inside job, not a matter of works, or we would end up boasting. When the commandments came down from Mount Sinai, Israel promised to do all of it and failed that very day. The law is holy, righteous and good (Romans 7:12), he teaches, but it can never make you holy or righteous. So Jesus fulfilled it and took it away, and now holiness, righteousness and goodness are found in Him.

When we do sin, the response is simple: “God, forgive me.” No wallowing, no guilt trip. If Jesus paid to take that out of your life, why hold on to it? Whom the Son sets free is free indeed (John 8:36). Learn to live without condemnation, he says, and the blessing of the Lord makes rich and adds no sorrow with it (Proverbs 10:22). That richness is not only money; it is an abundant, enjoyable life.

1 Corinthians 15:56–58 says the sting of death is sin and the strength of sin is the law, “but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” God does not hand us a formula or a battle plan; He gives us the victory. When the Father looks at someone in Christ, the pastor says, He sees Jesus on your worst day and on your best day.

Yet verse 58 shows we still have a part: be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord. That is the redemptive part we play for our souls, and it starts with the mouth. God spoke everything into existence except man, whom He also formed with His hands (Genesis 2:7). We are saved by confessing with our mouths (Romans 10:9), and the same mouth helps redemption reach our minds and emotions.

Let the Redeemed of the Lord Say So

Have you ever woken in the middle of the night feeling condemned for no reason? The pastor says that feeling is out to steal from you, and if it can rob your sleep, think what it does to your relationship with God. Jesus did what He did to get rid of it, and our job is to work with Him so that everything pertaining to life and godliness actually shows up in our homes and marriages.

Psalm 107:1–2 says, “Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Let the redeemed of the LORD say so.” The pastor defines the two key words. Mercy is not giving you what you deserve because of sin. Grace is giving you what you do not deserve. Because God dealt with condemnation, grace brings in everything we never earned.

If God did not spare His own Son, how will He not freely give us all things (Romans 8:32)? The only thing that keeps us from freely receiving, he says, is guilt and condemnation. God does not want us hiding like Adam or refusing like Peter. He wants us to come boldly to the throne of grace for mercy and grace in time of need (Hebrews 4:16), not when we feel good enough.

So the redeemed of the Lord are to say so. Anything opposite to “the Lord is good and His mercy endures forever” that comes out of our mouths invites condemnation. Speaking His goodness deals with the guilt complex that wants to creep in and drain the life out of you. God promises to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think (Ephesians 3:20), beyond even what we can imagine.

Idle Words and the Tongue

In Matthew 12:33–37, Jesus told the religious leaders that a tree is known by its fruit and that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. Every person is born separated from God, the pastor explains; nobody has to teach a child to lie or be sly. We train children morally, but God works from the inside out.

Then Jesus warns that for every idle word we will give account in the day of judgment. An idle word, the pastor says, is not necessarily a curse word. It is a word that gets you nowhere, like sitting in your car in park and revving the engine while telling everyone you are driving home. It is noise that deceives you. “For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Words do not stop when you stop hearing them. Abel’s blood still speaks (Genesis 4:10), and a careless word can come back a year later carrying condemnation. Every word has life or death attached to it.

James 3:2–13 says we all stumble in many things, but whoever does not stumble in word is a perfect man. A small bit turns a horse and a small rudder turns a large ship. The tongue is a little member that can set a whole forest ablaze, and no man can tame it, which is why, the pastor says, we need Jesus. Out of the same mouth come blessing and cursing, and he warns that condemnation lets the curse outweigh the blessing.

“We need a check up from the neck up,” he says. James asks who is wise and shows it by good conduct with meekness of wisdom. Do not let the circumstances of the day determine what you say; let what you say determine your day. When problems come, hold your tongue and declare that God is good, that goodness and mercy follow you all the days of your life (Psalm 23:6), and that this situation is in His hands.

Overcoming the Accuser With Your Words

Revelation 12:10–12 calls Satan the accuser of the brethren. The pastor says he accuses others to you and accuses you to yourself, trying to stunt your growth and convince you that you do not measure up. But “they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony.” We overcome by what Jesus did and by what we speak.

The same passage says the devil has come down with great wrath because his time is short. So the trouble in the earth, he insists, is not the wrath of God. The Lord is good and His mercy endures forever. God’s wrath was poured out on Jesus, our substitute, and if you receive the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness you will reign in life through Him (Romans 5:17).

The pastor shares a testimony. Before moving to the area he was ministering on the road for little or no pay and needed a job. A company president hired him on the spot at a union plant that built garbage trucks, let him come and go for ministry, and later gave him a raise to sit with a night painter, reading his Bible, in case of accidents. He connects that favor to the season when he and his wife began learning the importance of their words. He still confesses, “I have the patience of eternity.”

In Hosea 7:13 God says, “Though I redeemed them, yet they have spoken lies against Me.” Lies like “God gave them cancer,” “God caused the destruction,” or the claim that the tornado that destroyed a trailer court was an act of God. He will never be angry at you, the pastor says. We live in a fallen world, but we belong to heaven, so we should speak heaven’s language.

He ties it to the parable in Luke 19:15–26, read from Weymouth’s translation. The faithful servants received authority over ten and five cities. The one who hid his pound called his master a severe man who reaps what he did not sow, and the master replied, “Out of your own mouth I will judge you.” To everyone who has, more will be given. Be content and thankful, he says, and authority grows as you pass it on in discipleship.

Death and life are in the power of the tongue (Proverbs 18:21). As you speak right words, he promises, the accuser’s voice grows quieter and nothing can separate you from the love of God (Romans 8:38–39). He ends with Ephesians 4:29–32 as seed for the next message: speak only what edifies, the same root as an edifice, words that build marriages, businesses and churches.

His closing picture is a prisoner sitting in a cell with the door wide open, insisting he is still in prison. Refusing Jesus, he says, is like agreeing with your captor instead of the One who set you free.

Speaking Redemption This Week

Here are practical steps drawn from this redemption message:

• Answer sin quickly. When you fall short, say “God, forgive me,” and refuse to carry the guilt Jesus already paid for.
• Say so out loud. Make Psalm 107:1–2 a daily confession: the Lord is good and His mercy endures forever.
• Turn off the idle engine. Notice words that rev but go nowhere, and replace them with words that move your life forward.
• Let words set your day. When circumstances press, hold your tongue and declare God’s goodness over the situation.
• Stop speaking lies about God. Do not blame Him for tragedy; speak heaven’s language about His goodness.
• Build with your mouth. Use Ephesians 4:29 as a filter: will this word edify my marriage, my home or my church?

Timestamped Outline

• 0:00 Redeemed from and redeemed to
• 1:10 Have been, being and will be redeemed
• 2:23 He became sin for us
• 3:37 Adam hides from God
• 4:50 Peter: depart from me
• 5:50 Romans 8:1: no condemnation
• 8:02 The law is holy but cannot make you holy
• 10:26 Free indeed: God, forgive me
• 13:04 1 Corinthians 15: the victory
• 15:53 Our part starts with our mouths
• 18:18 Condemnation at night
• 19:26 Psalm 107: mercy and grace
• 21:49 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so
• 24:08 Matthew 12: the tree and its fruit
• 26:24 Idle words are a car in park
• 29:53 James 3: taming the tongue
• 33:24 Your day is determined by what you say
• 34:38 Revelation 12: the accuser cast down
• 40:34 The gift of righteousness
• 41:41 A job and a raise: a testimony
• 44:48 Hosea 7: lies spoken against God
• 47:15 Luke 19: the parable of the pounds
• 52:38 Proverbs 18:21: death and life
• 55:00 Ephesians 4:29–32 and edification
• 56:15 The open prison door and invitation

Redemption Series

This message is part of a seven-part series at NTC Ministries. Start from the beginning or continue where this one leaves off:

• First message: Redemption Part 1: Behold the Lamb of God Who Takes Away Condemnation
• Previous: Redemption Part 3: Free From Condemnation, Starting With Your Words
• You are here: Redemption #4 — The Words We Speak and Freedom From Condemnation
• Next: Redemption Part 6: Redeemed From the Curse of the Law

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did Jesus have to become sin?

The pastor explains that Jesus destroyed the one who had the power of death, and to do that He had to deal with sin itself. He never sinned and had no sin nature, but on the cross He became sin so that we would become the righteousness of God in Him. Doing that removed condemnation, which is what keeps people from freely receiving everything God wants to give.

Is every negative word an idle word?

Not exactly. The pastor separates idle words from corrupt words. An idle word may not be crude at all; it is simply a word that takes your life nowhere, like revving an engine with the car in park. Corrupt words, which tear down, are a further problem that he says he will address. Both matter because Jesus said we will give account for every idle word.

What is the Stockholm syndrome illustration about?

At the close, the pastor recalls teaching on the Stockholm syndrome in an earlier redemption series: a captive begins to agree with and sympathize with the captor instead of the one who freed him. He uses it to describe people who stay in darkness even though Jesus has opened the prison door, and he invites anyone listening to receive Him as Redeemer and Lord.

Scripture References

All passages open in the New King James Version on Bible Gateway:

• Romans 8:1 — no condemnation in Christ Jesus
• 2 Corinthians 5:21 — He became sin for us
• Luke 5:4–8 — Peter’s great catch
• 1 Corinthians 15:56–58 — the victory through Jesus
• Psalm 107:1–2 — let the redeemed of the Lord say so
• Matthew 12:33–37 — every idle word
• James 3:2–13 — the tongue is a fire
• Revelation 12:10–12 — the word of their testimony
• Hosea 7:13 — they have spoken lies against Me
• Ephesians 4:29–32 — words that edify

How this summary was made: written with AI assistance from the sermon’s own transcript and checked against the Scriptures listed above.

Watch More Messages

If this message helped you leave condemnation behind, there are hundreds more teachings from NTC Ministries waiting for you. Browse the full sermon archive and keep speaking in line with your redemption.