A Child of God

“When you stop learning, you start dying.” That is a phrase I have said many times to many different people. It is for this reason that I struggle with those who have an attitude that God has nothing left to teach them. Whatever the exact words may be, the idea expressed is “I’ve read the Bible and know what it says.” Ok, so have I – that is, I have read the Bible. And I know what parts of it says, but I always come across parts that I have missed or perhaps missed the significance. The reality is that the more we study the Bible, the more we realize we do not know.

Last week, while preparing my sermon, I was struck by a phrase I have probably read 100 times or more. John 1.16 includes three words that just jumped off the page at me for the first time. Those words – “grace upon grace.” Now, I understand that grace is not just a one-time inoculation which allows salvation. I frequently mention Titus 2.11-12 which speaks of grace training us to live righteously. Training, as in an ongoing process. But currently I am exploring a doctrine I certainly believe by inference, but have not really studied deeply before. That doctrine is adoption.

The reality is that if you have ever made the statement “brothers and sisters in Christ” or called another church member “brother Bob” or said the Lord’s Prayer which begins with “Our Father” you infer that you believe in adoption as well for Bob is likely not really your biological brother and, more importantly, the Bible is clear that only be receiving Christ can we be in Christ and have God as our heavenly Father.

This past week I began a sermon series on the doctrine of adoption. As I continue to look into what the Bible teaches, I am becoming more and more convinced that adoption is the next step beyond (dare I say greater than?) salvation. I have long considered the possibility that God’s ultimate gift to us is our resurrected bodies which Christians will have for eternity. Such a body is only possible for those who believe – that is, those who are saved. I had not firmly settled on that idea, but now I am starting to see our resurrected bodies as a great gift, but not as the ultimate gift. The bodies are a gift as a result of our being a child of God. Such a gift is truly grace upon grace.

In my sermon this past week, I used the following metaphor to reveal my understanding of grace upon grace. All people must stand before God as judge. Those who receive Jesus (John 1.12) are declared “not guilty” (justified) during this life; those who do not receive Jesus (John 1.11) will stand before God after they die (Revelation 20.11-15). But for those who are “not guilty” God does not simply act as human judges who declare the verdict and then go about their business. Instead, God invites the person to be one of His children. What a magnificent thought! So, God’s grace is offered to save us from the guilt of our sin, but additional grace is given that we might not just be saved, but that we might be adopted – by God Himself.

So, if you are “saved” then you are a child of God. The question then becomes: How should we respond as one of His children? Next week, I will explore that idea briefly by contrasting the love of our Father with the mentality of the prodigal son from Luke 15.