Adopted in Christ

Introduction: Suppose that you are a convicted serial killer sitting on death row awaiting your execution. Every charge that has been brought against you has turned out to be true and you are on every account guilty of all charges. One day the guards come to your cell door, open it and inform you that you must go to see the prison warden. Once in the prison warden’s office he informs you that you have been pardoned and you are now free to go. Not only that, but the warden also tells you that the governor himself has chosen to adopt you into his family where you will be an equal heir to his estate.

This is what God has done for us. We are all born sinners, fully deserving of God’s wrath, guilty on every account. God then, who is rich in mercy and grace sent His own Son in order to live the righteous life we couldn’t live and to die in our place. By doing these two things Jesus provided for us the opportunity to place our faith in Him alone and by doing so be declared just and right before God.

Once our guilt has been taken care of legally, God then moves on our behalf and adopts us as His children. This was God’s plan from the very beginning.

Ephesians 1:4–5 NKJV

just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,

We usually talk about justification and adoption separately, however they do go together. Adoption cannot occur without justification and once one is justified he is always adopted. What adoption does is it takes our relationship with God to a higher level. Not only does God justify us (pardon us) but He also gets personally involved with our lives. As Christians, we become a part of the family and body of Christ and God promises to take care of His own body.

Psalm 115:3 NKJV

But our God is in heaven; He does whatever He pleases.

An Incorruptible Inheritance

The first thing we must consider when taking a look at adoption is Paul’s use of the word sons. We must note that Paul’s use of the word sons does not mean that women are not adopted into God’s family.

Galatians 3:27–29 NKJV

For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

This passage makes it very clear that in Christ there is no respect of persons when it comes to race, social status, or gender. All are one in Christ. These physical attributes are not what is important. The fact that we have put on Christ is what is important. When Paul uses the word sons he is communicating to the culture of the Middle-East. In the Middle -Eastern culture only males were eligible to receive an inheritance. So, what Paul is communicating is that race, social status, and gender are irrelevant in the family of God. All who are in Christ are treated as equal heirs in sharing the family inheritance. All are treated as sons.

Second, the idea of adoption today is different than it was during this time period. Today, couples often look to adopt a baby or young child. In the Roman world, a childless man would adopt a younger man in order to receive the family inheritance and to continue the family name.

Romans 8:16–17 NKJV

The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.

Third, the value of adoption was far greater in the Roman world. Most people in the Roman world lived in poverty. They worked hard every day in the hope that they would be able to eat dinner that night. Today, an inheritance is often viewed as a nice addition or cushion to someone’s existing possessions. Then adoption and the inheritance that followed was a completely life-changing event. The receiving of the inheritance was to be rescued from subsistence living and elevated to a completely new, exceptionally rare, and far better life.

That is what our inheritance is. It is complete rescue from certain death and eternal bankruptcy in hell and to be elevated to being a joint-heir with Christ. When we are in Christ, our future is completely changed. But we all know that we have not fully come into our inheritance, and we will not come fully into our inheritance until resurrection day. That is why, after discussing adoption in Paul begins his discussion on hope.

We must also

Hope

Biblical definition of hope

Romans 8:18 NKJV

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

A large part of the Christian life is characterized by hope. We have not fully inherited, and so we hope. We might wonder, “But why does Paul begin discussing hope with the idea of suffering?” One of the many benefits of suffering is that it helps us to realize that we live in a broken world and that the allurements of this life are often disappointing and so we turn our attention to the hope of our eternal, incorruptible inheritance.

Question: How many of you have ever looked forward to something and then something else happened that took away from the joy of the thing you were looking forward to?

As Christians, we ought to view the disappointments of life as gifts that turn our heart away from the traps of this world and towards our heavenly reward.

Colossians 3:1–2 NKJV

If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.

Let’s go back to Paul’s contrast between our suffering and the glory of our inheritance.

Example: A house in disrepair being sold for less than expected. (Supposed the house is in Camden)

Paul is not minimizing our suffering in this life. He is maximizing our inheritance that is to come. He is saying, “Compared to the awesome reality of what is to come, press on faithfully in hope!”

The Great Depression/Negro Spirituals

God as Father

Although it is true that we have not come into our full inheritance, that does not mean that there is no benefit to our adoption now.

Galatians 4:6 NKJV

And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!”

The word Abba was used mostly by Jewish children when addressing their fathers. Abba implied a child’s dependency on their father and the expectation of the child that the father would meet their needs. I want you to think about this. God is the creator and sustainer of the universe. God is infinitely holy. God alone is wise. God alone is worthy to receive honor and praise. God alone commands the seas. God alone holds up the stars. God alone does all that He pleases. There is no one who can stay His hand. There is no one who can question Him and ask, “What are you doing?” He is God alone and there are no other gods beside Him. And then there is you. A created creature who depends on the Creator for everything. You were dead in your sin, a rebel, and a sworn enemy of God. And now, because of Christ, you can come boldly to the throne of the all-sovereign God and expectantly ask Him to meet your needs and He will meet them. Christ is His one true Son and now that you are in Him you are a son also.

In the Old Testament era there were three restrictions that guarded the Most Holy Place: 1). By the high priest 2). Once a year and 3). With the sacrificial blood. Now we are in Christ and the curtain separating the Most Holy place was torn. Now, under the New Covenant the first two restrictions have been removed and you can enter into the presence of God whenever you want to.

The third restriction, however, has not been removed. No longer is it the blood of a sacrificial animal, but now it is by the blood of Christ. United to Christ we have continual and confident access to God who is our Father. Now we can come to the throne of grace and find mercy to help in our need, now we can come to Him who says, “Cast all your cares on me because I care for you”, now we can be confident that He will never leave us nor forsake us because He is our Father.

Conclusion: Tonight, I want to draw two applications. First, for the Christian. If we are honest with ourselves there is still sin in our lives and there is still growth that needs to happen. Because of this we might feel the pressure to please God by “performing better” and winning the favor of our Father. Because we sin we often are tempted to feel the displeasure of God more than we rejoice in the freedom that comes from having such a good Father. What God wants for us is to experience the fulness of joy that comes from our adoption. In order for this to happen we must always keep in mind that we are in Christ. We must continually remind ourselves that God loves us, not because we are lovable (we aren’t), but because He loves Christ and we are in Christ. The love of the Father for His beloved Son flows over to us because we are in Him.

Second, to those who aren’t Christians. The Word of God lovingly tells you that you do not have an inheritance, you do not have hope, and you do not have a loving Father. That is very bad news, but there is also good news. You can choose Christ. You can choose to be found in Him, and by being found in Him find pleasure with the Father. All you need to do is this. Renounce your works because they will never justify you. By faith trust Christ and place all your confidence in Him and in His perfect life. And the last step is this: enjoy your new life in Christ and your relationship with your newly found loving Father.