John 1: 12-13, Galatians 4: 4-7

Steve Holloway

Read John 1: 12-13

'But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.'

There are two words in this verse that need to be emphasized.

First, is the word 'gave'. Becoming a child of God is a product of grace - a free gift. Second, the word "right" (exousia) meaning "power, authority, liberty."

Now read Galatians 4: 4-7

'But when the fulness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order that He might redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God.'

This verse shows the dual purpose of Jesus' work. Firstly to "redeem those who were under the law". Jesus came and died to buy us back from sin and death. In so doing, He was fulfilling the primary need of mankind - to be made spiritually right.

And yet He goes further. Not content with simply restoring us, Jesus enables us to adopted into His own family. The Father loves you so much He sacrificed His Son so you can be His child. Jesus' love for you is so great, that He willingly died to allow you to be a co-heir with Him. Sharing the same rights, place and privilege as Him.

To stand right, before God the judge, is a great thing. To be loved and invited by God the Father is even greater. Forgiveness and cleansing atoning is profound enough, but God goes the extra mile, He includes us.

God, through adoption, makes us His children. Adoption is the legal action in which one who is not naturally born to family is taken in and given the name, rights, place and privileges of that family. Just think about that. God has adopted you. He gave you the right to be His child, giving you the rights, place and privilege of HIS family.

As JI Packer puts it, "Our understanding of the Christian faith, cannot be better than our grasp of the truth of adoption."

In other words - the more we catch the truth of adoption - the more we can walk in the truth of what it means to be a Christian.