Adoption is not a sentimental name for religious belonging. Scripture places it in the saving work of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Through Christ, people who were under sin and the law’s condemnation are brought into God’s family as sons and daughters, with access to the Father and a promised inheritance.
READ THE KEY PASSAGES
Begin with what
Scripture says.
Galatians 4:4–5God sent forth his Son... To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.
Romans 8:15Ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
Ephesians 1:5Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself.
01
Adoption comes through the Son
John 1:12As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God.
Galatians says God sent forth His Son to redeem those under the law so that they might receive adoption. The believer is not adopted because he has made himself useful to God. Adoption rests on the redeeming work of Christ.
This means adoption must never be separated from the gospel. The Father does not quietly overlook guilt in order to form a family. He receives sinners through the Son who redeemed them. The family relationship is as secure as the Savior through whom it is given.
Adoption is grounded in the Father’s purpose and the Son’s redemption. It is secure because its basis is God’s grace, not the believer’s usefulness.
02
Adoption gives real access to the Father
Romans 8:17And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ.
Romans contrasts the spirit of bondage again to fear with the Spirit of adoption, by whom believers cry, ‘Abba, Father.’ This is not casual speech about a God who has become less holy. It is the confident access of people received by grace through Christ.
A believer may come to God with need, confession, thanksgiving, and dependence because he is no longer merely facing a Judge from a distance. Yet he does not approach as though he were the center. He comes through the Son, reverencing the Father who has made him His own.
The Spirit of adoption changes how believers approach God. They come as children to a Father, with reverence and confidence rather than fear of rejection.
03
Adoption includes inheritance
Romans 8:23Waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
Romans continues: if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ. God’s family receives more than present comfort. It has a future fixed by the Father’s promise. The believer’s inheritance is ultimately God Himself and the glory shared with Christ.
This future does not erase present suffering. Paul speaks of suffering with Christ and of creation groaning. Adoption does not promise an easy life now; it gives a hope that suffering cannot cancel.
Heirship is not a promise of present comfort. Romans joins it to suffering with Christ and to the hope of coming glory.
04
Adoption is present and still awaits completion
Hebrews 2:11He is not ashamed to call them brethren.
Believers have already received the Spirit of adoption, yet Romans says they wait for the adoption, the redemption of the body. This is not a contradiction. The family relationship is real now, while its public, bodily fullness still lies ahead in resurrection glory.
That tension gives steadiness. The believer need not doubt his Father because his body remains weak or the world remains broken. He waits as an adopted child whose final inheritance will be openly displayed when Christ returns.
The final redemption of the body shows that adoption has a future fullness. God’s children await not escape from creation, but resurrection and inheritance.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICE
Questions for further reading.
- 01
Why does Galatians connect adoption with the redeeming work of the Son?
- 02
How does adoption change the way a believer approaches God in prayer?
- 03
What does Romans 8 mean when it speaks of adoption as both received and awaited?
Read patiently. Let God’s Word speak.
Adoption means that God receives believers into His family through the redemption of His Son. By the Spirit they know the Father, live as heirs with Christ, and wait with hope for the day their adoption is displayed in resurrection glory.
