..’til He appeared and the soul felt its worth…
God sent His Son so that you could become His child.
God sent a sinless baby to pave the way to adopt a sinful adult.
A Child was born so that you could be born again.
But what does “born again” mean? It sounds churchy and…weird. But it really is a beautiful concept.
Born again describes what happens to those who say YES to Jesus Christ as the way provided for us to be made right with God. We were born once into our biological family and we are now “born again” into the family of God like the picture of adoption. The adoption process is accompanied with layers of formalities, legal issues that must be observed, and transactional paperwork that must be completed. But at the heart of adoption is a relationship that forms between a parent and child.
I want to give us a few questions to think through in relation to last week’s message. If you missed it, you can listen to the December 15th message here.
Consider these questions…
People from ancient Roman cultures would wait to see how a person turned out before they adopted someone. Would you consider adopting a child if you knew that child would eventually grow up to disown you?
What does it mean to you that God desires to adopt you as a child of His?
Read Galatians 4:4-7. The term “Abba” is a very relational term that means dad or daddy. What other names do you use to address God in your prayers?
Do you struggle with self-worth? Do others around you struggle with self-worth? Does it make a difference now that you know how God views you? Would it make a difference if others knew how God views them?
We are no longer to look at God through the lens of what we’ve done, but who we are…a child of God. If you get a chance, read this story and watch the video at the bottom…
If you have received Jesus Christ as your Savior, that’s your story.
If you have not, it could be.
Because your adoption papers were signed the day Jesus died for your sins to redeem you from the consequences of being a lawbreaker. Now you have been invited to be His child. Your part is simply to say “YES.”
“YES, I believe that when Christ died for me, He paid for my sins. YES, I want to be adopted into the family of God. YES, I want to live for Jesus every day of my life.”
I hope this Christmas we will experience The Thrill of Hope that comes along with knowing that we are loved enough (failures and all) to be adopted by God through the sacrifice of His Son.
Join us for our Christmas service THIS SUNDAY, December 22 at 10:30 AM as we wrap up The Thrill of Hope Christmas series. Make sure to do everything you can to get some people here with you. It’s amazing what could happen if we would just extend an invitation.
See you soon…
Ryan
