Message of the Month

                                             3/1/10

All through Christian teachings we find that we are reborn into the family of God. Christ tells Nicodemus that you must be born again. The apostle’s writings speak over and over of being regenerated in the spirit. Your spirit must be awakened and born anew in God. You must then grow from a spiritual baby into maturity. Paul tells the Corinthians, "And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it." 1 Corinthians 3: 1-2 If you are born into the family of God as a babe and then grow and mature as a Christian, why in the world was Paul talking about being adopted by God? What does adoption have to do with the Christian? To understand what Paul was saying we must first understand the Hebrew culture and law.

In the Hebrew law we find that if you were not an adult you really have no rights or inheritance. God gives us a unique condition in his family. Not only are we born again or regenerated, but we are also adopted. Paul brings that condition out here and also in Galatians. In Galatians 4: 4-5 Paul says, " But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that they might receive the adoption as sons." Paul refers to two separate things in his teachings. Christ was sent that we might be redeemed and after that we receive the adoption as sons or daughters. We can see why Paul knew that this was important if we answer three questions about adoption.

First, what is adoption? Adoption is an act whereby God gives each of us adult standing in the family. Adoption is not the way we get into God’s family. That is accomplished by spiritual regeneration, or as Christ told Nicodemus, "You must be born again." You must accept the sacrifice Christ made for your sins and ask Him to become the Lord of your life. Then you are born of the Spirit. Why is it so important to be born again if God adopts you? When a person is adopted into your family you give him your name. You give him your home. You give him your love. You give him your goods. The one thing that you cannot give him is your nature. That is why God requires that we be born of the Spirit. Then, and only then, can we have the nature of God. Then, and only then, can we have the love and compassion of God for others. Then, and only then, will we have a new pure spirit alive to God. That can only come with a new birth in Christ Jesus. Adoption is not how we get into God’s family, but it is how we enjoy it. At the point when you truly make Jesus the Lord of your life, God adopts you as a son or daughter.

When you are adopted you are adopted as an adult. Galatians 4: 1-2, Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child does not differ at all from a slave, …but is under guardians and stewards until the time is appointed by the father. A Hebrew child had no privileges, no rights, no inheritance, and no responsibility. The reason God adopts you with adult standing into His kingdom is so you will have all the rights and responsibilitiesthat are available to His children. You do not enter God’s kingdom as a second class citizen. God wants you to have all the privileges and the inheritance that is available through Him the moment you make Him your Lord. You also have the same responsibilities as those who have been serving Him for many years. God says," I give you all the same privileges and inheritance that all My children have, and I expect you to assume the same responsibilities that they have." We can’t use the excuse that we are just baby Christians.

The second question is what are some of the privileges we immediately have? We find most of them listed in Romans 8: 14-17. They are walking, freedom, speaking, assurance, inheritance, and suffering.

The first privilege is walking in the Spirit. In verse 14 Paul says, "…you are led by the Spirit." Led here means a willingness to walk with God. A baby can’t walk. They must be carried. Being adopted as an adult gives you the privilege of walking with God. An unsaved person walks according to the course of this world. Ephesians 2:2. You once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience. You have come out of that spirit and now have the privilege of walking in the kingdom of light. You can’t walk a little in both kingdoms. Some try, but it doesn’t work. Where your feet are so is your heart.

We have the privilege of walking according to God’s plan. Yes, God has a plan for every one of His children. Many of us do not walk in God’s plan but try to follow our own plan. God will not override our free will, but He tries to guide us into choosing to walk according to His will for us. He has a path for us. Romans 8:4 tells us that we walk not after flesh but after the Spirit. We have the freedom and privilege of walking according to the plan that God has made for us.

The second privilege of adoption is freedom. Romans 8: 15a, You did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear. We are free from fear. Psalms 34:4, I sought the Lord and He delivered me from fear. We are free from fear and the bondage that it brings. Galatians 4:4-5-7. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

We are redeemed under the law and set free by Christ. As a child you are as a slave under rules and regulations or the law. We are freed from that childhood by the adoption of God. We are born under the law and are judged by the law until we are freed from the law at our adoption by God. Matthew 5: 17. "Do not think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill." In Romans 6:6 Paul says "But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit. We are freed from the law, but that doesn’t mean that we are lawless. In Hebrews 8:10 God says that He will write His laws on our hearts and put them in our minds. We have freedom and are able to walk in God’s Spirit of love.

The first privilege we have because of our adoption by God was walking. Walking according to God’s plan. The second privilege was freedom. Freedom from the condemnation heaped upon us by being under the law. The third privilege is speaking. Romans 8:15. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba Father." When we are adopted by God, He becomes a personal Father. This astounded the Jews. In their culture God’s name was so holy that they would not even say His name. Here Paul was referring to God as a personal loving God, a Daddy if you will. God was a loving rather than a judgmental Father. This was a new concept to them. Christ had brought a new picture of God to them. A baby can’t speak, but at adoption we can cry, "Abba Father." Our spiritual age does not matter. We are given the privilege of speaking to God. We can pray to Him, worship Him, glorify Him, and, yes, even express our doubts to Him. We are also given the privilege of speaking to others about Him. What a privilege! When we are in the world, we can only speak defilement to God and others. When we are adopted, the Holy Spirit cleans up our old language. We are given a whole new language.

The fourth privilege of adoption is assurance. Romans 8:16. The Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. A baby doesn’t know it is a baby. It doesn’t know it is the son or daughter of its father. It doesn’t even know it is human. It has to grow into this knowledge. When we are born again, we are told that God is our Father, but we do not really have that assurance in our spirit. We do not have the understanding of who God really is in our heart. When we truly make God the Lord of our lives, and adoption occurs, we begin to see the wonderful relationship we have as we allow God to become the loving Father that He wants to be. Now we have a close, intimate, loving relationship.

The fifth privilege given to us by adoption is inheritance. Romans 8:17. And if children then heirs – heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. No baby can have possession of an inheritance. It is put into a trust until he or she becomes mature enough to wisely manage the inheritance. Spiritually we do not reach that maturity with years but by adoption by God. We need to have the inheritance now. We inherit peace, joy, goodness, and the rest of the fruits of the spirit. We also inherit strength to sojourn in this world. Not only are we heirs, but we are joint heirs with Christ. This is a very misunderstood concept. If you are just an heir with someone else, you split the pie up and go your way. You only receive a portion of the total inheritance. Joint heirs leave the pie intact and share it all together. All that is available to Christ is available to us. Do you realize what that means? Revelation 2:26-27. We shall rule over the nations. Revelation 3:21. We shall sit on the throne of Christ. John 14: 12-14. "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also, and greater works than these he will do, because I go to the Father." Verse 14, "If you ask anything in My name I will do it." It also means all we have comes through Christ. There are really two names on every check you get or write, yours and Christ’s.

That’s what prayer is all about. Jesus said, "Whatever you ask in my name, it shall be done for you." In the name of Jesus you are rich today. In the name of Jesus you have the riches of Christ. In the name of Jesus you have the grace and mercy of God. We have more in the name of Jesus than we realize. We have His peace and joy. We have His authority over Satan. We can draw upon these riches whenever we need them. As adopted Christians we don’t really understand what God has provided for us. Satan so often wins because we do not know the power that God has place in our hands if we would only believe.

The sixth privilege we have because of adoption is suffering. Romans 8: 17b. If indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified with Him. We need suffering to build strength. We need suffering to build character. Suffering shows us the grace of God. A plant that spends its life in a greenhouse will never be able to survive the chilly winds of the winter. It grows tall and spindly with no strength. The suffering Paul was talking about is suffering inflicted upon us because of Christ in our life. He was not talking about suffering that we bring on ourselves. Suffering may occur because of our being led by the Spirit but suffering may also occur because of our being led by ourselves. In the former case God will be with us and use it for our good, but in the latter case we are on our own. At times we invite suffering. There is no glory for God in that.

Are you taking full advantage of your privileges as an adopted son or daughter or are you letting the good get in the way of the best? Don’t waste your inheritance.

Finally, the third question we need to ask is, "How can we enjoy adoption today?" The first thing we must do is believe that we have an inheritance in Christ, and that it is a joint inheritance. We must believe that all authority and power was given to Jesus Christ, and that He inherited all things. Then we must believe without a doubt that we are joint-heirs with Christ. If we believe, we must invite and allow the Holy Spirit to lead us. He is the Spirit of adoption. He is the One that brings it about. Romans 8:2 tells us that He is the Spirit of life, but in Romans 8:13 it tells us that He is also the Spirit of death, the death of the deeds of the flesh. We spend years trying to conquer the desires of the flesh on our own without success. God will do it for us if He is first in our lives. God will not settle for being second. He must be first or nothing at all. We must stop playing with God. We must yield to Him today.

The blessing is real. If we start taking the responsibility of an adopted son or daughter, the blessing is there. We must stop asking God for toys, and start asking Him for tools to work for Him. Start asking for weapons to storm the strongholds with. In other words, our focus must change from us to God.

It is a marvelous thing to be adopted by God, but is also an awesome responsibility. We must stand and be counted. God is looking for sons and daughters who are willing to put Him first, willing to storm the gates of hell, and who are willing to be endued with power from on high. If you are willing to put God first, you will see souls saved. You will see the sick healed. You will have power over the enemy. You will see the fruits manifest in your life.

TODAY GOD IS CALLING. TURN YOUR LIFE OVER TO HIM.