God’s children are adopted by the electing, predestinating love of God the Father (Jeremiah 3:19; Ephesians 1:4-5; Hebrews 2:10). We are adopted by covenant promises, commitments and fulfillment. (Romans 9:8; Galatians 3:13-29; Hebrews 2:10-18). We are adopted by the death of Christ, who fulfilled all covenant obligations and received for us all covenant promises, setting us free from bondage to the law, to the kingdom of darkness, to death, to sin and to the world. (Ephesians 1:4-11; Galatians 1:4; 4:1-7; Hebrews 2:10-18). We have been given the Spirit of Christ to bear witness to our adoption which was accomplished by Christ when He bore our curse and yielded obedience in satisfaction for our obligations to the law, both penalty and obedience. Christ’s own Spirit gives us faith in Him and His redeeming work for us, causing us by these to call on God as our Father. (Romans 8:15-16; Galatians 3:26-29; 4:5-6; Ephesians 1:7). Because we are sons, we are heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Jesus Christ. (Romans 8:17; Galatians 3:26-29; 4:7; Ephesians 1:11). As heirs, we have already received God’s Spirit to dwell in us, and we will receive all things with Christ in glory. All of God’s sons are sons both by adoption and by the new birth. (John 1:12-13; 2 Peter 1:3-4). Adoption and the new birth constitute the greatest display of the love of the triune God to us (1 John 3:1-2). Although we are sons, it does not yet appear -- either to us, but especially to the world -- what we shall be, but when Christ appears, He will openly make known to all of the physical and spiritual universe that we truly are the sons of God! (1 John 3:1-2).
It was the love of God the Father that chose us in Christ and gave His Son to be the propitiation for our sins (1 John 4:9-10). It was the love of God the Son to take our case, our obligations and our nature (John 15:13; Galatians 2:20; Hebrews 2:13). It was Christ's love that caused Him in our nature to assume all of our responsibilities under the law, to redeem us from the curse of the law that we earned from God’s justice by our sin (Exodus 21:1-6). And it was the love of the Spirit of God (Jeremiah 31:3) that made us alive with Christ, giving us faith in Him, whom He has lifted up and magnified in the preaching of the gospel as our near-kinsman Redeemer. Christ is not ashamed to call us His brethren. He was crucified to buy us out of our sin-indebtedness and to free us from the captivity of sin's guilt, power and consequences. He, God the Son, the only begotten of the Father, truly set us free (John 8:36), bringing us to God as His sons, and doing all for us according to His eternal Suretyship engagements in the covenant of redemption (John 17; Hebrews 7:22-25; Revelation 13:8). Truly, we now find it in our hearts to cry, “Blessed by the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath [so] blessed us with all spiritual blessings in Christ!” (Ephesians 1:3).
- Pastor Rick Warta
It was the love of God the Father that chose us in Christ and gave His Son to be the propitiation for our sins (1 John 4:9-10). It was the love of God the Son to take our case, our obligations and our nature (John 15:13; Galatians 2:20; Hebrews 2:13). It was Christ's love that caused Him in our nature to assume all of our responsibilities under the law, to redeem us from the curse of the law that we earned from God’s justice by our sin (Exodus 21:1-6). And it was the love of the Spirit of God (Jeremiah 31:3) that made us alive with Christ, giving us faith in Him, whom He has lifted up and magnified in the preaching of the gospel as our near-kinsman Redeemer. Christ is not ashamed to call us His brethren. He was crucified to buy us out of our sin-indebtedness and to free us from the captivity of sin's guilt, power and consequences. He, God the Son, the only begotten of the Father, truly set us free (John 8:36), bringing us to God as His sons, and doing all for us according to His eternal Suretyship engagements in the covenant of redemption (John 17; Hebrews 7:22-25; Revelation 13:8). Truly, we now find it in our hearts to cry, “Blessed by the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath [so] blessed us with all spiritual blessings in Christ!” (Ephesians 1:3).
- Pastor Rick Warta
RSS Feed