![]() Down Payment There have been two transactions, not one. The first payment, the price of our redemption, was made in order to satisfy all other claims over all men everywhere. Twice in Paul’s first epistle to the Corinthians he tells the believers that they have been bought with a price, which price Peter tells us is “the precious blood of Christ” (1 Peter 1: 18, 19). However, a second transaction was, and is still being, made to those who turn to Him in faith … to us. Jesus did not just settle the debt I owed, He purchased me and therefore has rights over me, His purchased possession. The second payment is not the price that has been paid for sin, to redeem us to God: that price is the precious blood of Christ. The second payment is the gracious Holy Spirit of God. In Ephesians 1: 14 the AV uses the term “earnest” to denote this payment which is translated literally as pledge, alternatively a down payment. Strong’s identifies the Greek word as “arrabon”, which means a pledge, or surety. It is a commercial term, referring to that part of the purchase-money or property given in advance as security for the remainder – the balance of the purchase price. In modern parlance we would speak of a security deposit. In modern Greek “arrabona”, a slightly different word, refers to an engagement ring - an expression that some prefer as linking with the concept of the Church as a bride. Whilst this has appeal it confuses two thoughts:
All Christendom has the Scriptures in common, but not all who handle the Scriptures belong to Jesus. What then makes the difference? The gracious Holy Spirit of God! He is the difference
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