What does the Bible say about adoption?

I want to answer the following short message in this article:

I would like to read very much an article that explains what the Bible says about adoption, because this theme is not touched in the church, though it is actual in every country at any time.

God wants to adopt all people

After Adam and Eve fell into sin, it came upon the whole humanity and through sin, people became enemies with God. He wants to reconcile and to adopt us to become fellow heirs with His Son, Jesus Christ. This thing is presented widely on the pages of the Holy Scriptures, but in this article I will explain a passage from the Epistle of Paul to Romans, chapter 8.

Holy Spirit is God’s agent for our adoption

I know a Christian couple in United States of America who went to a camp for children from Ukraine. There was a boy from the orphanage there and God put a special love on their hearts and the wish to adopt him. The process of adoption was very difficult for them and sometimes it seemed almost impossible. Today the boy is with them after so many efforts. That certain couple lived in United States of America and they had to come to Ukraine for many times, but because they were not able to come at any time, they needed an agent of adoption – someone, an an advocate, that represented them everywhere during the process of adoption.

We, all Christians were slaves of sin and we lived in this slavery. When we heard God’s calling to adoption, through the Gospel, we believed in Jesus Christ and God sent us the agent of our adoption, that is the Holy Spirit. Apostle Paul wrote about this:

For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” (Romans 8:14–15)(NASB)

Holy Spirit, who is present in the life and heart of every Christian is the One who gives us the assurance of our adoption and He assures us daily about this, as it written below:

The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God. (Romans 8:16)(NASB)

God adopted us to be sons with full rights

It is hard to imagine this, but God adopted us to make us fellow heirs with His Son, Jesus Christ, as He says:

And if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him. (Romans 8:17)(NASB)

We are fellow heirs with Jesus Christ and we will be glorified with Him.

We have to share the sufferings of Jesus Christ because we are adopted by God

That’s why, Apostle Paul says:

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. (Romans 8:18)(NASB)

Our body will be redeemed at the end of the process of adoption

Our self is subjected now to the pressure of sin from the world we live in and only by being obedient to the advice of the Holy Spirit we, Christians manage to live a holy life and not anymore to be slaves of sin. Here is why the Word of God says so:

For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. (Romans 8:19–23)(NASB)

Some refused adoption…

Apostle Paul speaks in Romans 9:4 about the Israelites to whom “belongs the adoption”, but refused it

…for not knowing about God’s righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. (Romans 10:3–4)(NASB)

What have you done in their stead?

The Lord Jesus gives you the chance to become the child of God

In the beginning of the Gospel of John, where the divinity of Jesus Christ is described, it writes:

He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. (The Gospel of John 1:10–13)(NASB)

Don’t follow the bad example of those who did not receive Him. Believe in Him from all your heart and give Him your life.

The adoption of children is an image of the divine redemption

One of my friends with his wife adopted a girl from Romania. When they adopted her, she was abandoned, suffered of malnutrition and no one taught her to speak. She looked very frightened and ill. Our friends showed their love and affection for this child. Now the girl is more than 10 years old and is a lovely child that brings much joy to her parents and to all people. Everytime I meet my friend and I ask him about their girl, he talks very passionately about her and thanks God for the honor He gave them to have this child and that he can show by her adoption the image of redemption all of us can have in Jesus Christ.

Translated by Felicia Djugostran