“For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” (Romans 8:15)
Have you ever thought about what it means to be a child of God? It’s a phrase we often use in the church, but it’s easy to skip right over its amazing and beautiful significance. Romans 8 helps us understand. Verse 15 says, “you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”
When we become Christians, something incredible happens: we become children of God. This isn’t like children of the Boys & Girls Club or children of the Boy Scouts. No, we are adopted into the family of God as his own beloved sons and daughters. God invented adoption, the embrace of a person into a family as one of its own. It isn’t temporary or incomplete. Adoption is final, complete, and permanent.
And it comes with all the family’s love, affection, and privileges. He adopts us into his delight, and he adopts us into familial rights. Romans 8:17 tells us we are “heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ.” As his children, we become inheritors of His glory, riches, kingdom, and joy for all eternity with Jesus, his Son.
This isn’t something we can earn. And once we get it, we don’t need to worry about losing our place or status. If we are in Christ, as believers, we are in the family of God–His children forever.
I originally wrote this post for my church, Immanuel Nashville, in our Daily Pulse email. If you want encouragement from God’s word delivered Monday thru Friday to your inbox, I encourage you to subscribe!