Wouldn’t it be exciting to wake up some morning and find out that one of the richest people of the world had decided to adopt you, making you one of their legal heirs! Imagine, you are now an heir to untold wealth and property! The thought of being specifically and deliberately chosen to become part of a loving family should be wonderful, especially if you never had one, even if that adoptive family wasn’t rich or powerful. In our Scripture passage from the Book of Romans speaks of how God has made all who believe and follow His Son Jesus, His children and joint heirs with Him. Let’s take a look.
The Bible here confirms the truth that all true believers and followers of Jesus are heirs of God (vs. 16-17). We are heirs of salvation, of eternal life with God in heaven. Not only that, though, we are also heirs of everything else God has. Christians are joint heirs with Jesus. What does that mean? It means that all that Jesus has will be ours, as well. According to Roman law at the time of Paul, all of a parents' wealth and belongings were equally divided among all of the children, including adopted ones. In Jewish practice, the first born received most of inheritance, leaving little for the rest. That is not the way it is with God. Believers are adopted into His family, and we are joint heirs with Jesus. God freely gives us everything He has. Everything that belongs to Jesus belongs to us through the cross (Ephesians 1:11, 18).
When someone becomes a Christian, when they have accepted the Lord Jesus as their Savior, they gain all of the privileges and responsibilities as a child in God’s family (vs. 14-15). We are no longer slaves, but the Master’s child. Just as one who joins a family would hopefully desire to not bring shame or reproach to that family’s name, we should not want to bring shame to the Name of God, and to His family. Before salvation, sin had control of our lives. Its domain was our fleshly bodies (vs. 12). The more we allow it to, the more power sin can have in our lives. After salvation, we have the Holy Spirit indwelling us, and He provides us with the energy and power to continually and gradually be subduing our sin nature (vs. 13). With His power, we can strive to live a life that brings honor and glory to our Heavenly Father.
We cannot live the Christian life in our own strength. It is only through the power of the Holy Spirit that we are able to. Sin leads to death. However, Jesus defeated and destroyed the power of sin and Satan on the cross. As believers, we are to regard as dead the power of sin in our body. Sin’s appeal should be dead and lifeless. If the old sin nature is dominating a person, he cannot live as a child of God. The Holy Spirit, though, gives us the power to put to death our sinful urges and desires. We need to turn away from earthly pursuits, and instead sow into the kingdom of God. We can do that by seeking guidance from the Holy Spirit and by spending time in God’s Word. The Holy Spirit confirms the validity of our spiritual adoption by the fruits of the Spirit which we are given, and His power in our lives (vs. 16). Following the Spirit and God’s Word the Bible, we can live lives that will bring honor to God’s family as His child.
Becoming a member of God’s family does come with a price (vs. 17), and that is persecution and suffering. The world has never liked anyone who is actively living for and following the Lord Jesus Christ, and that is even more evident in these days today. How did the world treat Jesus when He was here upon earth? He was persecuted and mistreated, and eventually put to death by His own people. We cannot expect that we will be treated better. However, the Bible promises us that if we share in the sufferings of Christ, we shall also share in His glory.
Becoming a child of God and member of His family is far more exciting and wonderful than being adopted by any billionaire family could ever be! Jesus is happy to share the vastness of His inheritance with us because we are now God’s children, His brothers and sisters, and joint heirs with Him. We are sons and daughters of the King!
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