By Kingsley Baehr
Since November is National Adoption Month, let me ask you;
“Are you adopted?”
“Have you been chosen?”
“Are you being deeply loved?”
“Have the total expenses of your adoption proceedings been paid in full?”
Are you God’s heir?
“Or are you still homeless, unwanted, unloved and wondering why it seems that way?”
Of course, I am not asking about your physical life.
“So,” you might think, “What in the world are you asking me about!?”
As you look deep into your heart and soul, have you been adopted, chosen, and deeply loved spiritually? Has the God of the Bible chosen, and adopted you? He certainly does love you deeply, since He sent His Son Jesus to pay the total cost for your adoption into His family. However, for your adoption to actually take place, you have to accept it. God, the loving Father, will not kidnap you and force you into His family. He waits for you to accept Him as your Father and experience all the benefits of becoming a member of His family.
“Benefits?” you ask. How about:
Sins forever forgiven,
An eternal home in heaven,
Strength for the daily stress,
Peace that does not depend on circumstances,
Provision for daily needs
His almighty arms upholding you, and I could go on and on.
So let me ask you again: “Are you adopted?” If not, why not? What could possibly be preventing you from accepting adoption from the gracious, merciful, loving Father God?
Please accept these adoption “papers” which God Who desires to be your Father is holding out to you.
God decided in advance to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ. This is what He wanted to do, and it gave Him great pleasure. Ephesians 1:5
But when the right time came, God sent His Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent Him to buy freedom for us … so that He could adopt us as His very own children. And because we are His children, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba*, Father.” Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are His child, God has made you His heir. Galatians 4:4-7
But to all who believed Him and accepted Him, He gave the right to become children of God. John 1:12
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when He adopted you as His own children. Now we call Him, “Abba*, Father.” For His Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children. And since we are His children, we are His heirs. Romans 8:14-17a
Beloved, we are God’s children now; and what we will be has not yet appeared, but we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is. I Jn. 3:2
* “Abba” is a personal Aramaic word for “father”. It would be “Daddy” in English.