Tag Archives: sonship

The Spirit Of Sonship

Bible Study, , , ,

THE SPIRIT OF SONSHIP

“Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation – but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. For if you live according to the flesh you will die but if, by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. 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. Now, if we are children, then we are heirs – heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in His sufferings in order that we may also share in His glory.” Romans 8:12-17.

What magical words! We are no longer slaves but sons!

We have a Father who is a perfect Dad – not one who disappoints us, who abuses or neglects us or one constantly judges or punishes us because of our immature behaviour. And we have His Spirit who lives in us, who reassures us that we are God’s children and who enables us to call out to our Daddy, “Abba. Pappa!’ because that is who God is to us.

Jesus came to earth primarily to reveal the Father.

“I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do…I have revealed you to those you gave me out of the world…” John 17:4; 6.

He patiently taught His disciples and showed them by His works the true nature of God as their heavenly Father. The first message He gave to Mary for His disciples after His resurrection was startling, to say the least!

“Jesus said, ‘Do not hold on to me for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'” John 20:17.

The implications are huge! Not only have we been given the right to be called children of God, but we are also on the same level of sonship as Jesus is. Whatever privileges he enjoyed as God’s son are now ours because we is His brothers and sisters.

“In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through suffering.

“Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.” Hebrews 2:10, 11.

Wow! Imagine that! There is no God like our God. What grace that we should be called children of God, and even more than that, that Jesus is not ashamed to call us brothers and sisters! That means that God has the same love for us that He has for His Son. We enjoy the same status and privileges that Jesus enjoys. We have been raised with Him and seated with Him in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 2:6); we share His inheritance – His nature (2 Peter 1:3, 4) and we will reign with Him in His eternal kingdom.

“But aren’t you being presumptuous?” you ask. Certainly not if I am simply repeating what God’s word says.

But there is a condition. God’s grace has freed us from the penalty of our sin. He has removed our guilt and re-established us in His family as His sons and daughters. He has given us His Spirit as our Helper. “Now,” says Paul, “you have an obligation to live the life He has freed you to live. No more selfish indulging!”

If we do not respond to God’s grace by putting our sinful ways to death with the help of the Holy Spirit, we will perish just as surely as though we were never rescued and restored to our place in the family of God. Without the evidence of a changed heart and new life, what we claim is nothing but empty words.

Bottom line – only those who are led by the Spirit are the children of God. Are you one of God’s children?

Acknowledgement

THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 

Every Kind of People

Christian Life, , ,

EVERY KIND OF PEOPLE

“That’s when Peter stood up and, backed up by the other eleven, spoke out with bold urgency. ’Fellow Jews, all of you who are visiting Jerusalem, listen carefully and get this story straight. These people are not drunk as some of you suspect. They haven’t had time to get drunk – it’s only nine o’clock in the morning. This is what the prophet Joel announced would happen.'”

“In the last days I will pour out my Spirit on every kind of people…'” Acts 2:14-15 (The Message).

What made the sceptics think that the followers of Jesus were drunk? Were they staggering, slurring, speaking incoherently or lacking in judgment or without inhibitions? Were they outrageously joyful, perhaps dancing, singing and shouting? What were the critics saying about them?

They had certainly not lost control, like people drunk on alcohol. Those who witnessed their behaviour commented on one phenomenon — these people were communicating amazing things in their own languages. Drunken people don’t do that! Drunken people can hardly speak their own language coherently.

Although one of the gifts of the Spirit is the gift of speaking unlearned languages, this event was unique because it was the counterpart of the God’s proposal of “marriage” at Mount Sinai when He came down on the mountain with all the accompanying words and practices of a Hebrew wedding. At Pentecost they affirmed His proposal and the church – the Bride of Christ – was born.

It is not necessary for us to try to recreate Pentecost because it was a once-off event which inaugurated the church era. The Holy Spirit has never been withdrawn. According to Paul, we can grieve Him and we can quench Him, we can blaspheme Him but we cannot remove Him from the world. He has been given to mankind to implement the work of Jesus on earth and will continue to do so until Jesus comes.

The Holy Spirit’s ministry is threefold: He convinces the unbeliever of sin and draws him to Jesus; He convinces the believer of righteousness, teaching us about Jesus and reminding us of our standing in Him; He convinces the devil of judgement because he was judged at the cross.

Every facet of His work in the believer is related to our standing before God. The apostle Paul called Him “the Spirit of son ship”. “For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by Him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’ The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.” Romans 8:15-16 (NIV).

There is a phrase that is bandied about in certain circles of the church to distinguish between “ordinary” believers and those who have had a special “experience”, making them a cut above the rest. Christians are categorised by either being “born-again” believers, as though there are believers who are not “born-again”, or “born-again and Spirit-filled” believers, making them a little bit better than the rest!

Nowhere in the Bible do we find this distinction made. The Holy Spirit came at Pentecost and took up residence in the hearts of believers. No one can be a believer without Him. The issue is: not how much of Him we have but how much of us does He have. He came for and on every kind of people.

The plea of the New Testament writers is not “beg God to fill you with His Spirit” but ‘be filled with the Spirit” and “walk in the Spirit” and “be led by the Spirit” which puts the ball in our court. The key word is submission. The Holy Spirit is not primarily about gifts or goose bumps but about living and acting like sons of God because that’s who Jesus is and we are to be imitators of Him. Everything else follows according to the Holy Spirit’s initiative.