One of the greatest promises God has given us is adoption to be children of God. For those of us who believe, He has accepted us to be part of His family and heirs of eternal life (more on this next time). He didn’t decide to adopt us because of our love for Him or all the great things that we have done, but because He loved us, because Christ died for us that we may be sons of God. I talked last time about being a sponsor for children and how missionaries go to a strange land and accept children as their own, sharing God’s love. How much more does God love us and accept us as His children. What an awesome thing!
Ephesians 1:3-12
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 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, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth — in Him. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.
Long before we existed, long before we were in our mother’s womb, God had a plan for each of us. His plan was to adopt us into His family, even those of us who were not born as Jews, God’s chosen people. Christ paid for our sins and He welcomes us into His home if we accept it.
John 1:12-13
But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, 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.
Ephesians 2:11-18
Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh — who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands — that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.
Romans 8:14-15
For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. 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.”
Because of the work that Jesus did, because of His sacrifice, we have direct access to the Father. No more sacrifices, no more going through priests or anyone else, only through Jesus Christ, our High Priest, our Lord, our Savior, we have become sons of God and we can speak directly to God. When we pray, He hears us. If we confess our sins to Him, and ask Jesus into our heart, trusting in Him and following Him, we become a part of His family, having the Spirit of God in us, having a place in heaven prepared for us. God is good.
John 14:1-6
“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know.”
Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?”
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
My Daily Scriptures 