(Psalm 2 and Romans 8:1-2,14-17)
Jess and I have some friends who adopted a child from overseas. And as you can imagine with the process it’s months and months and months. You have to be so committed to it that you have to begin even before the child is conceived. And it is a costly process – our friends bore the entire cost themselves. They had to pay for the trips overseas. They had to fill in the right paperwork – the visas, the passport work, the application forms. They had to meet with the officials and the administrators. And when they finally held their dear boy they had done everything so that he was part of their family. They have given him a home and are raising him as their own child.
The process of adoption is one of the ways that the New Testament describes the gospel. A family, reaching out in love, bearing the cost and bringing the child back into their house is the story of Jesus’ work in the world.
Happy Mother’s Day to you today. Our term 2 sermon series has been entitled: in Christ, I am… It’s a sermon series designed to challenge us about how we can live as Christians, in light of what Jesus has given to us. It’s a series about filling our hearts. Being convicted. And then living it out before the world around us. And today’s topic, deliberately chosen because of his Mother’s Day is “In Christ, I am adopted”.
Our time this morning has a simple trajectory in 3 parts, and they all focus on Jesus’ work in bringing us into His household. First of all, we want to be convicted that Jesus is part of God‘s family. Secondly, that he adopts us into God‘s family together. And so thirdly we are supposed to live as family members towards each other and into the world.
1. Jesus is part of God’s Family.
In our vision talk last year, I made the point that the world around us is confused about what a family is. With so many traditional breakdowns, compound families, mixed marriages, foster care, adoptions – family is an idea that we kind of all get but it’s hard to define. I went to the Australian governments Institute of family studies website definition of a marriage and started scrolling. This is what I found. What confusion! But even the most secular definitions of family include language like parents and children, love support shared values and doing life together within their framework.
Christians can move beyond the confusion of our age because we know the idea of family comes from God himself. In his letter to the Ephesians, the Apostle Paul says this: “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name”. Family starts with God. If you like, God was – in Himself – a household of love and relationships since … forever. Christians call God Trinity. When he reveals his Trinitarian nature, reveals names that describe family relationships – Father, Son and a Spirit of love.
Now we only know this because Jesus, who is the eternal Son become flesh, told us in his ministry was God is like. Jesus was there, he has seen it, so he knew. And he is qualified to speak about what it means that God calls himself Father, Son and Spirit. And you know what he says? Being Father means He is absolutely devoted to His Son in love. He absolutely loves his son. He is filled with joy for His Son. He delights in His Son. He is completely for his Son. The same with the Spirit, who always listens to the Son, obeys Him and seeks to promote his greatness. The Father and Spirit are behind the Son in everything he does. They are united in love and purpose with the Son. As God, they direct his steps – even through the valley of the shadow of death. They want the son to be glorified. Honoured. They wants the best for His Son. Their plan in the end is “to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.” Jesus will be the focus at the close of history. God is in himself a family of love.
As we saw two weeks ago, this family connection does not change when the Son takes on flesh and becomes human. God is still the heavenly Father, and Jesus is still the eternal Son, even though he is human. In the Old Testament, God spoke this truth so his people would recognise Jesus as God: The Son was the centrepiece of the Father and the Spirit’s work here on Earth. Our first reading this morning came from Psalm 2: ” “I have installed my kingon Zion,my holy mountain.” I will proclaim the LORD’S decree: He said to me, “You are my son; today I have become your father.Ask me, and I will make the nationsyour inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession.” God’s great King will be his son. Ultimately it will be the eternal Son, the one from the heavenly Zion, the holy mountain. His people were called to recognise Him. It was prophesied that he will be the one who destroys the enemies of God and the one who provides safety for His people, verse 11: “Serve the LORD with fear and celebrate his rule with trembling. Kiss his son, or he will be angry and your way will lead to your destruction, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him“. The Son will show demand God’s justice and God’s love, he will protect God’s people and be their Saviour.
So family starts with God. God was family within himself from before the beginning. And as he creates the world, he builds family into its design. Genesis 1 tells us that all humans are made in God’s image. And so it is no surprise that as he creates man and woman, he gives to them the ability together to create human life. Father and mothers give birth to sons and daughters. So the “famili-ness” of God is reflected in the earthly families of humanity. Remember Ephesians 3: “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name”. And it is a reminder to us, that even though we all have human families that by bloodline we are connected to, that we are all supposed to be part of a greater, eternal, heavenly family. Connected to God. That’s the family we were ultimately made for.
But if it doesn’t feel like there is a family connection towards God, there is a good reason. One of the things we will see across this series is that sin can be shown from different angles. And today we see it from a family angle. When we don’t want God in our lives, or we don’t want to live like God tells us, it is the equivalent of walking out of the household and slamming the door behind us. Rejecting the inheritance. Leaving the family. As we look across the bible there are many stories into which we can see our sinful selves: Like Esau, we sold our birthright and gave away our inheritance. Like Absolom, we rejected and rebelled against our father. Like the prodigal son, we left the household and wanted nothing to do with it. In sin, we are runaways. Fleeing our heavenly Father and casting off God’s love, protection and provision.
There are two consequences of this: Firstly – Any goodness and light in this world is connected to God. To try and have those things without God will only ever be fleeting at best. Joy – it comes and goes so quickly doesn’t it? Happiness is elusive. Fears and worries keep intruding. And even if we push those worries down, they rise up from another direction. There is no substitute for God’s goodness or peace, only pale imitations in this world. And eventually, these little tastes will be extinguished, destroyed unable to be enjoyed again.
The second and most brutal consequence of walking out of the family is that we can’t come back. Our sin tarnishes us. It stains us. If God is pure, then we are filthy. I remember when I was a kid, I was over at a friend’s house and his mum, Mrs McGoldrick told us: if you go to the park, do not go down into the mangroves. Me: Yes Mrs McGoldrick. Guess what we did. We went down into the mangroves. And it was fine until I lost my footing and fell straight down into the muddy filth. I was just gross head to toe. And so my friend and I walked back to his home. And Mrs McGoldrick was at the door. What do you think she said: You can’t come in, you’re filthy! Show of hands, pick a side: Are you on Mrs McGoldrick’s side? Or my side? Remember: I’m your pastor, I’ve taught you the gospel, I’ve invited you to my house. I’ve prayed for you. All these good things – that’s got to count for something right? No it doesn’t. I disobeyed the owner of the house. So I can’t come back.
That’s the same with us in our sin. We’ve left God’s household. We are stained with sin. We can’t come back. How on earth are we getting out of this?
Well if it can’t come from our side, it can only come from God’s side. Where someone who is part of the family, in the household, comes to us and invites us back. Jesus is part of God’s family. And the father and the spirit send the son out to bring his children home.
2. Jesus adopts us into God’s family.
Gospel story is a story of adoption. Romans 8:14: “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.” To come back into a relationship with God, we need to be adopted back into the family. That’s how far our sin has taken us away from God. We are outsiders, strangers. We have no rights in God’s household – they must be freshly granted to us.
The New Testament speaks regularly about an adoption into God’s family. We are told God desires it for the Jews, and for the gentiles, that we wait for it as Christians, and that God predestined his people to receive this position.
Remember the confusion I mentioned earlier around the definition of family in Australia? It’s funny, when you go to the Australian government’s website, there is much more clarity on adoption. Two sentences: Adoption is one of the options used to provide permanent care for children who are unable to live with their families. The adoption process establishes a permanent, legal parent-child relationship between a child and their adoptive parent(s). Adoption involves a new and binding relationship. And notice the adjective: permanent. Permanent care. Permanent relationship. Adoption is permanent.
This is God’s heart for humanity. In Christ, we are loved. In Christ, we are saved. It is God’s desire to see his children brought back home. To adopt them.
The gospel is an adoption story. Imagine in your minds an incredible mansion with many rooms. Immaculate and perfect. And outside the gates, as far as the eye can see there is just an ocean of slum like living. Dark muddy and gross. The story of the gospel is that the owner of the house, the Trinitarian God want the people out there to come into the mansion. And so the Son goes out through the gates out into the slums to invite people to come back with him. He comes into our world as one of us to call us home into the God’s household. And with him is the Spirit. Notice how Romans 8 shows just how profoundly connected the Son and His Spirit are (as they have always been): “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.” The Spirit goes out, and lifts the bowed heads of those in need to lift their eyes towards Jesus. The great joy of the gospel is that there will be many people who look up, enabled by the Spirit, to take Jesus’ hand and follow him back to the house. That’s God’s heartbeat: he wants people to come in – not as slaves, so we are left to fear whether it’s a permanent arrangement. But rather, the Spirit’s presence with us declares: You are in the family. Its an adoption. Right into the family with all the benefits and privileges of being connected to God.
And the permanence is guaranteed by Jesus Himself. To come into the immaculate house, you need to wash, to be cleaned. Mrs McGoldrick was right. She said: You can’t come in – go to the outside shower and clean off. That’s what Jesus does for us. And so for every person that Jesus helps up, he dusts them off, he wipes them down, he washes them clean. But in doing so, all the filth that was on us goes on to him. So because of Jesus, we are invited into God’s family but because of our filth Jesus is no longer acceptable there. At the cross, we see how costly our adoption was.
Us: Jesus:
Unrighteous and sinful Righteous and sinless
Disobedient, distant to Father Obedient to Father
Out of the family In the family
And at the cross, Jesus exchanged our position for His. The righteous for the unrighteous to bring you to God says the bible. He took the scorn of a deserter and gave us the privilege of a family member.
But did it work? Romans 8:1: “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.” There is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. No condemnation. Freed from the law of sin and death by Jesus who went to the place of death for us. And Given the family life God always intended for His people. When we have Jesus, God will never hold our sin against us. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. That’s why it’s a permanent relationship. God has adopted us into his family.
And so the Spirit pours forth with the truth of verses 14-16: In verse 14 – the Spirit leads us as God’s children, verse 15, no longer in fear, adopted as Sons. Notice that: men and women, boys and girls all sons of God, in the place of Jesus the Son. The Holy Spirit leads us to call on God as “Abba, Father”, just like Jesus, just like a family member should. And verse 16, the Holy Spirit walks with us assuring us that the great eternal household (which can sometimes disappear from view in this world) is always there.
Jesus is part of the Family, and he adopts us into God’s family. So now, we must live as family members.
3. Live as Family Members
Last term, as we look into Jesus’ identity, we came across the story where Jesus stood in the crowd and was told that Mary, James and the family were outside. “Pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother”.” Do you remember this? Those who follow Jesus and accept the Father’s invitation are adopted, come into God’s family and are brothers and sisters of Jesus.
And that has huge implications for how we think about the gathering of Christians around us at church. If Jesus is your brother, and your brother and your brother and my brother. What does that make us? Family. We are not of the same bloodline, but we are united by blood. The blood of our Lord Jesus which was shed for us at the cross. And in his mercy and wisdom he has adopted us and brought us together by the Holy Spirit – the Lord, the giver of life. As he has with every local gathering of his people all around the world and from every generation. We might not have chosen this local gathering for ourselves, but it’s no accident that we’re here. We are a spiritual family together. And we are supposed to live like it.
That’s what the Apostle Paul says to Timothy about the church in Ephesus: “Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. [Fill in the gaps with me] Treat younger men as __________, older women as _________, and younger women as _________, with absolute purity.” Notice that churches are made up of old and young, male and female with appropriate ways of relating to each other with respect and love. And we are to treat each other as family. As we do that, we honour our Heavenly Father “from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name”.
As an example, today is Mother’s Day – a day which in our society brings joy to some and sadness to others. But it always falls on a Sunday. And so as a church family together, we celebrate those who have given birth to children. But we take a spiritual view of motherhood too. Do not the women who guide our little ones in LKBF or playgroup act as spiritual mothers to them? The women who teach our school aged children in KBF act as spiritual mothers to them, bringing them to the word of God and encouraging them to know their Heavenly Father? What about those women who lead in our services or in music or prayer – do they not act as mothers to all of us – exhorting us to praise God and teaching us by their actions and words? What about those women on the welcoming team – do they not act as spiritual mothers standing at the door, welcoming family members and visitors into the household of God? What about those who serve morning tea – are the not providing nourishment and encouraging family relations, just like a spiritual mother would? What about our female bible study leaders, do they not act as mothers encouraging those under their pastoral care to the Word of God? And those women who are wardens or Parish Councillors – do they not show the concern of a spiritual mother as they ensure the safety of the family of God here at St Annes? We could go on.
Today we have a photographer here at St Annes for family photos on Mothers Day. Don’t be limited in your thinking about who is your family here. Why not take the opportunity to also have a photo with a spiritual mother, father, brother or sister in Christ – someone who cares for you as one who has the same adoption to Sonship because of Jesus?
When we live as God’s family, we bear witness to the world about God’s goodness and inclusion. Just over the last three years, our church has been growing with new Christians and new members from all over the world. We come from different places, yet we love each other as brothers and sisters. It’s so beautiful and a testament to the family that God desires to be with His people for eternity. Praise God that in Christ, we are adopted.