IDENTITY, pt. 6—I am a Child of God
John 1:12, 13

“You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” 1 Pet. 2:9

Believers are BORN into the family

Humans are physically born into a single family scenario separate from every other family on earth. Humans are also spiritually born into the singular family of humanity separated from the family of God. This spiritual separation results in deadness toward God which can only be remedied by being ‘born again’ into the family of God through belief and repentance (John 3:3-8, 35, 36; Eph. 2:1-7). As with physical creation, the father provides his genes to produce a child. Similarly, God the Father births a new spirit inside a person giving them new spiritual DNA, making them part of the family (2 Cor. 5:17). This new family provides personal access to the Father and close connection to other brothers and sisters that every human is designed for, which is called the ‘church’ (Eph. 2:18-22). As children of the King, believers are given power, privilege, and authority by their Father as kingdom children (2 Cor. 10:3-5; 2 Tim. 1:7). The believer’s Father fits them into His family of faith!

Believers are ADOPTED into the family

Children without families in ancient Greece and Rome were valueless, taken advantage of, abandoned, abused and nearly never adopted. Into this reality, God offers adoption into His family. Jesus is known as the only Son of God (‘begotten’ KJV, Gr. monogenes, ‘one of a kind/unique/special son’; John 1:14; 3:16) meaning that he is the only true original family member sharing the same nature as the Father. No one can adopt themselves into a family but must be invited and then accept. Amazingly, it is God’s will to purposely adopt the lost and rebellious (Eph. 1:5). Believers are ‘sons and daughters of God’ by being adopted into a family they don’t deserve (Gal. 4:4-7; 2 Cor. 6:18). Believers are adopted by the Father through the work of the Son, who then become heirs to everything the Son has rights to (Rom. 8:12-17; Heb. 2:11). After adoption, believers represent the new family and are connected to their new Father’s name and reputation. Children of an amazing Father help others become part of their amazing family (2 Cor. 5:20)!