Thursday: The Spirit of Adoption
How does Paul describe the new relationship in Christ? Rom. 8:15. What hope is found in this promise for us? How do we make it real in our lives?
The new relationship is described as freedom from fear. A slave is in bondage. He lives in a state of constant fear of his master. He stands to gain nothing from his long years of service.
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Not so with the one who accepts Jesus Christ. First, he or she renders voluntary service. Second, he or she serves without fear, for “perfect love casteth out fear” (1 John 4:18). Third, adopted as a child, he or she becomes heir to an inheritance of infinite worth.
“The spirit of bondage is engendered by seeking to live in accordance with legal religion, through striving to fulfill the claims of the law in our own strength. There is hope for us only as we come under the Abrahamic covenant, which is the covenant of grace by faith in Christ Jesus.” – Ellen G. White Comments, The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 6, p. 1077.
What gives us the assurance that God has indeed accepted us as children? Rom. 8:16.
The inward witness of the Spirit confirms our acceptance. While it is not safe to go by feeling merely, those who have followed the light of the Word to the best of their understanding will hear an inward authenticating voice assuring them that they have been accepted as children of God.
Indeed, Romans 8:17 tells us that we are heirs; that is, we are part of the family of God, and as heirs, as children, we receive a wonderful inheritance from our Father. We don’t earn it; it is given to us by virtue of our new status in God, a status granted to us through His grace, which has been made available to us because of the death of Jesus in our behalf.
| How close are you to the Lord? Do you really know Him, or just about Him? What changes must you make in your life in order to have a closer walk with your Creator and Redeemer? What holds you back, and why? |
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Yes, there are always things to overcome in our lives... Some things we do not want to see, because these are things that we like to be bound to! Only through the Power of God working in our hearts we may learn to do this trade. Trade our sins for His love! That's the only way. Once we nurture such a relationship, it becomes difficult to betray our feelings... In a world that everything is volatile, trading seems to be the rule! Why trading true love for moments of physical pleasure? We must learn to savor the love of Christ for us! Dwell in it! Till our taste is completely changed!
I do not hear an inward authenticating voice assuring them that they have been accepted as children of God. In fact. I remain fearful that I will be rejected. How do I gain the peace about my salvation? I have accepted Christ as my saviour, yet I still sin - I repent but remain fearful of the wrath of God. Please help
I don't know whether this illustration helps you or not but it helps me, so I will share it. When I was a kid, I used to do all the naughty things that kids do. I fought with my brother and teased my sister. I lied to my parents and stole cookies out of the cookie jar when they weren't watching. In spite of my bad behaviour as a child, I was never in any doubt that they loved me. For sure, I stretched that love to the limit at times. And they remonstrated with me and punished me as all parents do. Yet I knew that my parents loved me. I ran away from home a couple of times but only got as far as the front gate because ultimately I knew deep down that I was loved and that they wanted me to grow up a caring and loving person. And besides, Mum cooked the best vegetable pie on the planet.
Being saved is just like family. I know that I am very fortunate to have grown up in such an environment, but when I am inclined to doubt God's love for me I remind myself that he loves me even more than my parents.
Very good illustration.
Maurice your comments certainly struck a cord with me. While I never ran away from home I KNEW my folks loved me. While studying today's lesson I decided to look up the word translated "abba" in the Theological dictionary I have. Here is what I found:
Note: The word “abba” in Early Christianity:
As concerns the usage of Jesus, the probability is that He employed the Hebrew word for father not merely where it is expressly attested (Mark 14:36) but in all cases, and particularly in address to God . . . . In so doing He applies to God a term which must have sounded familiar and disrespectful to His contemporaries because used in the everyday life of the family. In other words, He uses the simple “speech of a child to its father.”
When the Aramaic term is used in the Greek Epistles of Paul (Romans 8:15, Galatians 4:6), there may well underlie it a liturgical reminiscence, possibly the beginning of the Lord’s Prayer. In any case there can be no doubt that the use of the word in the community is linked with Jesus’ term for God and thus denotes an appropriation of the relationship proclaimed and lived out by Him. Jewish usage show how this Father-child relationship to God FAR SURPASSES ANY POSSIBILITIES OF INTIMACY ASSUMED IN JUDAISM, INTRODUCING INDEED SOMETHING WHICH IS WHOLLY NEW.
Kittel
Quoted from the “Theological Dictionary of the New Testament” vol. 1 p.6
It truly blessed me beyond anything I had thought about before with my relationship with God! Thought I would share that.
Faith is the most important thing on this journey. By faith anything we ask for is ours. Fear cripples the promise...Christ died to fulfil His promise. He is not as man so He will not treat us according to our sins. Please read Psalm 103....I find comfort. Let go off the thoughts and fears and accept Jesus fully today please.
I recommend to spend time with Jesus daily and get to know Him , talk to Him as to a friend and listen to Him talk to you. One way to listen to Him is by reading Steps to Christ. I especially recommend chapter 6: Faith and Acceptance. You don't have to feel anything, but as your faith and love for Christ grows, you will eventually naturally feel that acceptance that you long for.
My heart goes out to you. It must be horrible to have to live your life in fear of not knowing where your Eternal destination lies. I believe the best advice I can give you is take God at his word, God's written word. You do not need a still Small Voice in your head to assure you of anything. And I even think that you begin to tread on dangerous grounds when you start depending on "voices". I know that I am not you but I wake up every morning with fear too.
Please try this because it works for me! Before I go to sleep at night I tell the devil" Do not harass me in the morning. You will not harass me in the morning. You will keep your distance from me and in Jesus holy name and by the authority that he has given me and the power that he has given me I rebuke you, in Jesus holy name. Amen"
It sounds like you might have a spirit of fear that is harassing you. Satan and his cohorts get their kicks, by making God's children miserable, afraid and doubtful of their salvation(daily and eternal salvation). God wants you to know that you have Authority and Power over all your enemies, especially Satan and his cohorts.
Look for bible verses that remind you that you are his. He will never reject you. It's not in his nature.
Your acceptance with God is not based on what you do, it is based on what Jesus has already done for you! Now you believe that, believe also that His victory is your victory and walk in the newness of life as an heir of all that God has for those who love Him!!
Dear Rachael, your feelings are most normal. Developing confidence comes with a daily relationship with Jesus. On the other hand, if we all were 100% sure that we were saved, we did not need Christ anymore, right? When feelings of despair come to your mind, cling on the love of Jesus for you. He gave you His life! Wouldn't He give you peace?
Dear Rachael, I can relate to your post, have been learning more about our amazing God the last few years that has really helped me with my fears. God's wrath is with sin not against you, he is there drawing us to Himself to help us. We can trust His faithfulness. Be honest and vulnerable with God just as you have been here with your brothers and sisters. Yes the struggles are real, but God is on your side you are a child of God
Whatever changes we need to make to have a closer walk with God, HE is always there and ready, with HIS HOLY SPIRIT, to help us make those changes too.
Hello Sister Rachael,
You are not the only one who struggles with this, and like the others here, I will share my thoughts with you.
The Gospel presented in the words of John Sullivan Dwight's version of “O Holy Night” has often strengthened my faith when the Adversary has come to accuse me in my weakness. Specifically:
1) “Long lay the world in sin and error pining, Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.” Why would the Father of us all offer himself up in the person of his Son Jesus to save us, taking such a terrible risk and paying such an extreme price, only to condemn us, reject us and destroy us? Know these feelings for what they are: the voice of the Adversary. Our loving Father would never perpetrate this horrible abuse, and that is why we have a “thrill of hope” and why weary with sin we “rejoice”, for with the Father’s offering to us, “a new and glorious morn” has broken. Through his Son Jesus, he is the author and finisher of our faith and through his Spirit we have power to act in that faith.
2) “Led by the light of Faith serenely beaming, With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand.” “The King of Kings lay thus in lowly manger; In all our trials born to be our friend.” “He knows our need, to our weaknesses no stranger, Behold your King! Before Him lowly bend!”
What exactly is this “light of Faith”? Paul says in this way in his letter to the Galatians (we just studied this), we are not “not justified by the works of the law [that is, being good to avoid God’s condemnation], but by the faith [or faithfulness] of Jesus Christ" (Galatians 2:16, KJV). It is in the faithfulness of Jesus that we must place our trust, NOT in our faithfulness, which is like trying to claw our way out of a very deep dark miry pit.
I like the way Sieg Hoppe commented in “Tuesday: The Dangerous Consequences of Legalism” (https://ssnet.org/blog/tuesday-the-dangerous-consequences-of-legalism/):
“Jesus did not come to earth to be an example. Jesus came to this earth to die for our sins and to credit to us his faithfulness...a faithfulness that no human being has ever been able to achieve. Not one! All we have to do is believe it is true and accept it.” Yes, all we have to do is believe what the Father is telling us about himself, not what Satan is telling us. Our Father knows our need; he knows our every weakness. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16.)
3) “His law is love and His gospel is peace.” “And in His name all oppression shall cease.” Dear Sister, think about this: Would a loving parent make an impossible demand on their child, and then oppress, condemn, punish and reject the child for not performing? Such a parent is recognized as abusive, dysfunctional and worthy of strong censure. So why would any child of God believe that our loving heavenly Father would make such an impossible demand on his children on this earth? To believe this is to believe the lying Deceiver’s assassination of God’s character.
Instead, in the face of the Deceiver’s vile innuendo, we can look to Jesus (who is the revelation of the Father, John 14:9) and:
“Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we, Let all within us praise His holy name.
Christ is the Lord! O praise His Name forever, His power and glory evermore proclaim!”
His Power. His Glory. Ever more proclaim. Amen.