One of the great failures of todays Christian message is that we often don’t recognise or communicate the great barrier sin has erected between us and God. And so we begin thinking that God is the father of all men and women and that we are all, therefore, children of God.
Jesus flatly contradicts this though, in John 8:42-47:
Jesus told them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, because I have come to you from God. I am not here on my own, but he sent me. 43Why can’t you understand what I am saying? It’s because you can’t even hear me! 44For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45So when I tell the truth, you just naturally don’t believe me!
He holds no punches does he? In order to become a child of God a sinner has first of all to be justified. Based on justification, the sinner can then be adopted into God’s family (Ephesians 1:5; Galatians 4:4-5).
Adoption is a term that Paul borrows from the first century Roman legal system. In this system of law the adopted person was given the right to the name and property of the person who had adopted them. From a position of not belonging and having no rights, they became a child with a father.
Their relationship and standing was changed and this change was brought about at the instigation of the adopting father. We can understand this clearly in the adoption process or our own legal system.
GOD’S WILL
In Ephesians 1:4-5 Paul teaches that our spiritual adoption is based upon the love of God, the choice of God and the predestining grace of God. God’s love for us must have been very great to cause him to want to adopt such wilful, rebellious creatures and we are.
Remember he was adopting the devil’s children. There was nothing good in us that may have earned us the privilege of adoption, and anyway, the predestining and choosing was done before the creation of the world.
God’s purpose in all this is that we should be holy and blameless. Such a condition would be impossible because of our sinful nature, but in the salvation we have in Christ, and in the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit he begins to change our moral nature. God wants his adopted children to reflect his character and live according to his ways and laws.
OUR PRIVILEGE
Adoption makes possible all those things that sin made impossible. Aliens become children, strangers become family and enemies inherit the blessings of God. Our relationship with God has completely changed!
‘And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.’ (Romans 8:17). To know that we will share in Christ’s glory is a staggering thought. We with our history and love for sin, are elevated to such a place of honour and privilege.
The world has nothing to compare with this. The Christian is the most privileged person alive. If only we could realise what it means to be a child of God; would our groans and complaints disappear?
Our exception of tasting the good things of God would be greater and we would begin to live according to a whole new standard, one of being an adopted child of God.
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For more on what Christianity teaches, check out the other topics in our ‘Bitesize Theology’ series:
God; Jesus; The Holy Spirit; The Trinity; Sin; Atonement; Grace; Regeneration; Repentance and Faith; Reconciliation; Redemption; Justification
Inspired by Peter Jeffery, ’Bitesize Theology’, Evangelical Press, 2000
