You are Adopted in Christ

Introduction

We’re continuing our series that was launched last week entitled Building Upon Our Heritage

This morning, we’re discussing a topic that Paul introduces in verse 5 – We Are Adopted in Christ

*please turn there + introduction to our 9 weeks in vv 1-14 (loved | chosen | forgiven | redeemed | united | indwelt | etc.)

Text

Ephesians 1:5-7, 11 – ⁵ He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, ⁶ to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. ⁷ In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace… ¹¹ also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will,

This morning, we’re going to be discussing 4 incredible truths about our spiritual adoption

We’ll be looking at our passage out of Ephesians this morning, along with a number of other portions of Scripture to garner a better understanding of what it means that we have been adopted in Christ

But before we get into our passage, it’s worth covering a base understanding of our adoption

By way of definition, Louis Berkhof says that…

“adoption is a legal act, whereby God places the sinner in the status of a child, but does not change him inwardly any more than parents by the mere act of adoption change the inner life of an adopted child. The change that is effected concerns the relation in which man stands to God. By virtue of their adoption believers are as it were initiated into the very family of God, come under the law of filial obedience, and at the same time become entitled to all the privileges of sonship.” – Berkhof, Systematic Theology, 516.

So our adoption brings us into God’s family, which would assume…

A. We were not born into God’s family

After all, you can’t adopt a child who’s already your own

And this is a hard truth for many to come to grips with—how does the song go?

*Father Abraham, had many sons, many sons had father Abraham, I am one of them, and so are you…

When is this song accurate and when is it wrong?

Romans 9 makes it clear that “not all [are] Israel who are descended from Israel; nor are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants…” but goes on to say… “it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants.”

So just because God created us, does not mean that we are in His family

And just because you may be descended from the longest possible lineage of faithful adherents to the One true God—dating back to Abraham, himself—does not mean that you’re “grandfathered” in

So if we weren’t born into God’s family—who’s family do we originally belong to?

More bad news…

Ephesians 2:1-3 – And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

According to this passage, we were

i. born into the family of the dead

ii. walking in disobedience to our Creator

and

iii. obeying our “father”

(*explain each)

Similarly, Jesus confirms our original status by saying..

John 8:34b-35 – Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever.

So we need to be sons of God, though we’re born outside the home as slaves to sin

How then does this spiritual adoption come about?

B. Spiritual adoption occurs at salvation

In Romans 9, Paul emphasizes that “the children of the promise are regarded as descendants”

Here, he equates those affiliated with God’s promise to redeem with those who are His children

Likewise, Ephesians 1 goes on to say…

Ephesians 1:13-14 – In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.

When we worked through Ephesians in PBF a few years ago, we equated the giving of the Holy Spirit with the reception of a new last name

When a child is adopted, he or she is legally indistinguishable from other members of the family, bearing a new last name and taking on a different family identity

If God saved you, one of the things He did was erase your previous familial relationship and give you His last name, metaphorically-speaking

And by way of metaphor, God literally changed Paul’s name when He saved him (*explain)

Galatians 3:26 – For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

Upon adoption, Jesus becomes our brother, and the One true God our Father—and it all happens when a person embraces faith in Christ Jesus

With this, we see that…

C. Adoption is a unique privilege

It’s a bit lengthy, but I want to quote from a theologian who has been formidable in shaping my understanding of adoption

Wayne Grudem, in his Systematic Theology says this of the unique privilege of adoption:

“Although adoption is a privilege that comes to us at the time we become Christians (John 1:12; Gal 3:26; 1 John 3:1 – 2), nevertheless, it is a privilege that is distinct from justification and distinct from regeneration. In regeneration we are made spiritually alive, able to relate to God in prayer and worship and able to hear his Word with receptive hearts. But it is possible that God could have creatures who are spiritually alive and yet are not members of his family and do not share the special privileges of family members — angels, for example, apparently fall into that category. Therefore, it would have been possible for God to decide to give us regeneration without the great privileges of adoption into his family. Moreover, God could have given us justification without the privileges of adoption into his family, for he could have forgiven our sins and given us right legal standing before him without making us his children. It is important to realize this because it helps us to recognize how great are our privileges in adoption. Regeneration has to do with our spiritual life within. Justification has to do with our standing before God’s law. But adoption has to do with our relationship with God as our Father, and in adoption we are given many of the greatest blessings that we will know for all eternity. When we begin to realize the excellence of these blessings, and when we appreciate that God has no obligation to give us any of them, then we will be able to exclaim with the apostle John, “See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are” (1 John 3:1).” – Grudem, Systematic Theology, 738-739.

(*explain further, distinguishing redemption, regeneration, forgiveness, justification, etc.)

So to sum up, we understand that none of us were born into God’s family—it takes the acceptance of God’s promise through the gospel of Jesus Christ in order to become a member of God’s family (*gospel?)

Next, we see that spiritual adoption is not disjointed from God’s holistic act of salvation—we are adopted the same time we’re justified, forgiven, regenerate, etc.

And lastly, we need to appreciate the unique privilege that adoption affords us

Namely, we see it in our first incredible truth about our spiritual adoption out of Ephesians chapter 1…

I. Our Adoption Welcomes Us into a New Family

The opening of our passage this morning makes this point clear…

Ephesians 1:5a – He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself…

Ephesians 2 makes it clear that we were born into a different family—one where our siblings are the “sons of disobedience” and our father is “the prince of the power of the air”—i.e., Satan

Biologically-speaking, our parents were Adam and Eve who chose to align themselves with Satan in the garden of Eden

Had they chosen to deny his temptation, all their offspring would have been “children of God” biologically

But as it went, they wanted a different “father,” so-to-speak, and solidified their decision by denying God’s base command and listening to His enemy instead

Now, all those born of Adam and Eve have descended from this lineage—just like you and I didn’t choose what family we were born into, so we didn’t choose to incur the original sin-nature passed down by that decision

As Jesus put it, we were outside of God’s household and family—ostracized due to our inherent situation and our own prideful family loyalty

Until Christ compelled us with an invitation to join HIS family, we were more than pleased to remain on the outside

But once He beckoned us with His grace through His sacrifice on the cross, we were welcomed in…

Ephesians 2:19 – So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household

And suddenly, everything about our identity changed

We got a new father and new siblings

No longer are we aligned with the “sons of disobedience”—we are now brothers and sisters in Christ, with Jesus Himself as the first among many brethren (Rom 8:29)

And Jesus’s reprimand to the Pharisees in John 8 no longer applies to us:

John 8:44 – You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father.

Instead…

John 1:12-13 – But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even 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.

So our siblings are drastically different and our Father is entirely different

What implication does this have on our lives today?

We are to live like we’re in His family!

I mainly mean this in two senses:

A. Our new family is a present reality and independent of our own thoughts, words, and deeds

And

B. It should be obvious that we’re a part of a different family

These two points represent the same split that we see in the Book of Ephesians (*expl—indicative / imperative)

Thus, if you’re in Christ, nothing you can think/say/do or fail to think/say/do will change your status—we’ll talk more about that later

But the second point is how this present reality ought to affect our response

Remember in John 8, Jesus said, “everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever”

Now picture the adopted son, redeemed from a life of slavery, called out of a family characterized by the sons of disobedience with Satan as their father

Picture him welcomed into the new family with new siblings (children of God) and the perfect Creator as his adoptive Father

But imagine him living exactly as he did in his previous life—a slave of sin and Satan, aligning himself with everything the world values

Anyone can see that there’s something dramatically wrong with this picture

And yet, every time we disobey God, we’re acting like our “biological parents”—Adam and Eve

We affirm the same decision they made to align themselves with Satan or their own will!

Brothers and sisters (and I really mean that)—it must not be so!

Romans 8 shares the importance of holding this “last name…”

Romans 8:14-17 – For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.

But even beyond this, something phenomenal happens when we are welcomed into our new family…

C. We become more like our new Father

There are many ways that human adoption reflects spiritual adoption

Yet the differences are quite drastic as well, leaving spiritual adoption in a category of its own

In other words, our understanding of spiritual adoptions cannot be derived exactly from what we see in human adoption—and that’s very good news

For instance, human adoption always spawns from the crucible of brokenness (*explain)

When a person is spiritually adopted, it is ONLY good—someone who was born into death is now made alive and brought into the relationship he or she was intended to be in from the beginning

Yet the differences extend far beyond that—John MacArthur explains…

“Human parents can adopt children and come to love them every bit as much as they love their natural children. They can give an adopted child complete equality in the family life, resources, and inheritance. But no human parent can impart his own distinct nature to an adopted child. Yet that is what God miraculously does to every person whom He has elected and who has trusted in Christ. He makes them sons just like His divine Son. Christians not only have all of the Son’s riches and blessings but all of the Son’s nature.” – McArthur, Ephesians: MNTC, 15-16.

An adopted son or daughter will never have the genetic similarities that a biological child retains

And yet, we see something entirely different in spiritual adoption…

1 John 3:1-3 – See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.

You and I are daily made to be more like our Father and one day, we will be just like Him in a sense that is unfathomable to us in our current state

Isn’t spiritual adoption awesome?!?!

And while I’d like it to be all good news all the time, we must understand that…

II. Our Adoption Came at a High Price

That original decision for Adam and Eve to align themselves with a different family came at a cost we couldn’t ever hope to cover

The legal ramifications of their betrayal were passed down swiftly and permanently, as if to say, “this is what it is now like to be outside of God’s family”

The world was subjected to futility, sin turned us against our God and against one another, and the new family trait of DEATH was brought to bear

There was utterly nothing they could do to undo their decision

And yet, even then, the message of hope was delivered—and curiously enough, it was spoken to Adam and Eve’s new father—the Devil…

Genesis 3:15 – “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise Him on the heel.”

There was the promise—he would not be the permanent father to Adam and Eve’s subsequent children

One of her offspring would crush their faux father, allowing them to follow Him to the heavenly Father

Our passage talks about the actualization of this promise…

Ephesians 1:7a – In Him we have redemption through His blood,

We know this singular “seed” to be Jesus, and His redemption is from the family we were born into

To speak in human terms, the heavenly Father only has one “biological” child—and He was born of the Spirit to the virgin Mary (*Christmas)

In a sense, the one true Son came to live among those who had rejected His Father

He did this because of Adam and Eve’s plight: they couldn’t do anything to undo their betrayal, so God sent His Son…

Hebrews 2:10 – For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings.

But this suffering is stated in veiled terms in Genesis 3—the “bruising of His heel” looked much different than Adam and Eve likely anticipated…

(*describe the suffering of Christ)

Why is it important to talk about the cost of our spiritual adoption?

While the reasons are manifold, several rise to the top:

(1) it elicits gratitude in our hearts (*explain—“leaving on the price tag”)

(2) it reminds us of the severity of our sin (*explain—temptation to take it lightly)

(3) it shows “how deep the father’s love for us” (*explain—results in worship)

But the end of v 7 and the beginning of v 11 discuss the third incredible truth surrounding our spiritual adoption…

III. Our Adoption Results in Astounding Blessings

Yes, we are redeemed from our previous family—one characterized by death with Satan as it’s patriarch

And yes, we are adopted into the family of our God through the blood of His Son

But we see also that…

A. Our sins are forgiven

I hope you’ve been able to see the independent value of each aspect we’ve been discussing

While we’re narrowing in on our spiritual adoption in this hour, it’s important to see that each facet of this salvation is a gem by it’s own right

The latter half of v 7 states…

Ephesians 1:7b – In Him we have… the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace

In reiterating Wayne Grudem’s point, it’s entirely possible that God could have set up a system wherein the forgiveness of sins was not presumed in redemption

Like a slave redeemed out a slavery, it’s feasible that he would still need to pay for any crimes he committed while in his previous setting

There are whole systems of Christianity that would adhere to a form of this

Ever heard of “purgatory”? (*explain)

But our spiritual adoption comes with the forgiveness of sins, so we can now say…

Romans 8:1 – Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Our new family comes with a clean slate—the very résumé that our perfect brother (Christ Jesus) holds is applied to our account (which is another independent blessing—imputed righteousness)

But what’s more, our passage shows that…

B. We receive an inheritance

…when we’re welcomed into God’s family

Our passage picks this up in v 11 –

Ephesians 1:11a – [In Him] also we have obtained an inheritance…

Galatians 4 virtually summarizes everything we’ve stated up to this point, while emphasizing the inheritance we receive as children of God:

Galatians 4:1-7 – Now I say, as long as the heir is a child, he does not differ at all from a slave although he is owner of everything, but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by the father. So also we, while we were children, were held in bondage under the elemental things of the world. But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, 5 so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God.

What then does an heir receive?

Since we’re adopted into His family, is it a paltry remnant?

This couldn’t be further from the truth!

In a passage that Pastor John Piper claims is one of the most vital in all of Scripture, the Word of God exclaims…

Romans 8:32 – He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?

What are the two words that stand out to you in that passage, as it pertains to inheritance? (ALL THINGS)

(*Secondhand Lions—“the kid gets it all”)

What falls outside of “all things?” nothing!

Our spiritual adoption avails us to no disadvantage and yet every privilege of being a child of God!

Not only do we get GOD, but we get everything that comes with Him

Isn’t our spiritual adoption amazing?

But it doesn’t end there—verse 11 closes with the final bit of good news:

IV. Our Adoption is Final

Those familiar with adoption likely know about “finalization day”

It’s the time when the family goes to the courthouse for a judge to declare an adoption “final”

It’s a day of celebration where typically family and friends are allowed to be present

How much greater a joy accompanies the adoption of a child of God!

Jesus even says…

Luke 15:10 – In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.

On our spiritual “finalization day,” the company we enjoy is the heavenly host—and imagine the eruption of joy when the gavel comes down and the judge declares JUSTIFIED!

And according to our passage, there is no chance of that declaration becoming untrue:

Ephesians 1:11b – …having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will

In two weeks, Pastor Brent is going to talk about our predestination in Christ, so you’ll learn much more about the determinant will of God and its unwavering nature

But the relevance for us today is that we can rest assured: since God works according to His own purpose, after His own counsel, and in accordance with His own will—nothing external could possibly change our status as “adopted”

And because all of this was decided “before the foundation of the world” (v 4), we can rest assured that he had all the facts leading into His decision to finalize our own adoption

So brothers and sisters—fellow adoptees—let’s rejoice that…

Our adoption welcomes us into a new family (*recap)

Let’s remember that Our adoption came at a high price (*recap)

Let’s stand in awe that Our adoption results in astounding blessings (*recap)

Let’s praise our new Father that Our adoption is final