Two days after she arrived in this country, Liya Strode came to our house Sept. 28 with her parents. Over the next nine days, Linda and I had the privilege – along with other members of our family and members of our daughter-in-law’s family – to get to know this beautiful, delightful, contented little girl. We even were able to celebrate her first birthday with her.
At times, I would look at her and think, “Wow! What a dramatic change has taken place in her life.”
She had no known family. She lived in a country, Ethiopia, where she could have faced a life of great hardship. She was in a culture where she, as a female, would have normally begun manual labor as a small child – burden-bearing work that could have stunted her growth.
But now, she has parents who have sacrificed for her and are lovingly caring for her. She has all she could need materially. She will be able to have a childhood marked by play more than by taxing work. She will hear the story of Jesus repeatedly throughout her life.
The revolutionary change that has occurred in Liya’s life – as great as it is -- provides only a snapshot, though a beautiful one, of the magnitude of the eternity-shifting transformation that has taken place for those of us who are Christians.
We were enemies of God, rebels against His rightful rule. We deserved His eternal condemnation. We were hopeless. We had no power to work our way into friendship with Him, much less into His family.
Yet, He chose to adopt us into His family. He became a perfect Father to us. We became dearly loved children to Him.
The apostle Paul wrote about this wonderful truth in salvation in these ways:
But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God (Gal. 4:4-7).I am blessed to be in a nuclear family that includes a real-life picture of this eternal truth. I also am blessed to be in a church family that includes real-life pictures of this eternal truth.
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!” The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, 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 (Rom. 8:15-17).
May we see in each of these children a beautiful reminder of the glorious truth that God has adopted us as His own. And may we rejoice and rest in this forever truth.
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