A few years ago some friends of mine heard of a natural disaster in a different part of the world. They left their quiet, safe and peaceful home and traveled a great distance to this previously unknown place to render aid to those suffering. Their hearts were greatly moved by what they saw. They took up temporary residence and gave themselves to assisting the hurting people of this city. They gave aid, they fed the hungry, bandaged the wounded, and wiped away oceans of tears. Then, they enlarged their family and began adopting those without family.
Their family grew from two to many. Lovingly each new family member was embraced and given a new family name, and with the name came promises. The promise of belonging, having a place in a family with sisters and brothers. They were each given a bed and daily food. With their new name came the promise of an inheritance. They would share in the family’s wealth.
My friends were following in the footsteps of their adopting family. The Christian family is God’s family, adopted, brought into his eternal household through the rescuing love of Jesus Christ his son. He came, paid the rescue price for humans devastated by the disastrous effects of sin. He offers, us a place, “in my Father’s house are many rooms and I go there to prepare a place for you”. (John 14:1-4).
The apostle Paul reminds us that we are adopted as God’s children through faith in Christ and “if we are his children, then we are heirs, joint heirs with Christ and we will share in his glory”(Romans 8:16, 17), WOW! Awesome news! You can be a child of God, sharing in the glory, joy, and eternal blessings of Jesus. This is a gift, promised and realized through faith in Jesus Christ.
Christians have a hymn we love to sing, it expresses the joy of adoption into God’s family
“There’s a new name written down in glory, and it’s mine, oh yes it’s mine, and angels love to tell the story, a sinner has come home, for there is a new name written down in glory, and it’s mine.”
Today you are invited to join God’s family drawn from every nation into an eternal inheritance that cannot be lost or stolen and where rust cannot destroy it. It is guaranteed by the work of Jesus Christ on the cross. This adoption is open to all. It can be yours too, the same way it is for me, by faith, and is yours for the having. Welcome home sister…brother. Thanks for listening.
