KCCBR Combined Worship

10/1/2023

Adoption to Sonship

Galatians 4:1-7

 

Introduction - Him who had no Sin (2 Cor. 5:21)

Pastor Choi closed last week by telling us when a person, whoever he is, puts his faith in Jesus, he receives as his inheritance the blessing that God promised to Abraham. He shared with you the word paidagogos. That spoke of the tutor or guardian who was over a child until he was an adult. In Galatians 4:1-7 Paul expands on the analogy of a child's coming of age (3:24-26). Here, he contrasts believers' lives before salvation (as children and servants) with their lives after salvation (as adults and sons). The imagery in this text would be understood by both Jews and Gentile readers since the Jews, Greeks, and Romans all had a ceremony to mark a child’s coming of age.

 

Galatians 3:29 said: “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Pastor Choi clearly told us that the true spiritual descendant of Abraham is the one who places his faith in Christ. With that, we become kingdom people, possessing God’s kingdom and the blessed inheritance belonging to Abraham. I think a good Scripture to introduce today’s text can be found in 2 Cor. 5:21 “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” Some call that verse the Great Exchange.

 

In today’s text we will look at three things.

First, we will look at “Who We Were” in verses 1-3.

Second, we will look at “What God Did” in verses 4-6.

Lastly, we will look at “Who We Are” in verse 7.

 

1. Who We Were (1-3)

1 What I am saying is that as long as an heir is underage, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate.

2 The heir is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father.

3 So also, when we were underage, we were in slavery under the elemental spiritual forces of the world.

 

Paul left at 3:29 telling us that if we belong to Christ, then we are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. In 4:1, he is expanding on this thought of the child coming of age. He says as long as the heir is underage, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. For the Jews and Gentiles, there was a definitive time and ceremony that would mark the transformation from being a child to becoming an adult. Paul is using this analogy in the natural world to introduce the spiritual work that God is doing in the believer’s life. Verse 1-2 relates to a child under the care of guardians and trustees until a time set by the father when the child will be released from their controls.

 

In verse 3, he introduces the spiritual lesson. Until we had faith in Christ, we were in slavery to the elemental forces of the world. In the Roman world, the coming of age ceremony was called “toga virilis.” The Jewish ceremony was and still is called “bar mitzvah.” Bar Mitzvah actually means “son of the commandment.” In Greece, a boy was under control of his father until about the age of 18. They would have a festival called “apatouria.” During the festival the boy would be declared an “ephebos,” a type of cadet. He would have responsibilities for his clan or city for two years. During his coming of age ceremony they would cut his long hair off and offer it to the god Apollo.

 

In the Roman ceremony, boys and girls would sacrifice their toys and dolls to their gods as a symbol of putting away their childish things. The underage child’s conditions were not much different than those of a slave. William Hendricksen says the underage child is “heir de jure” but not an “heir de facto.” The heir had legal rights but was still not heir in fact. The time set by the father would determine when the child would become an heir in fact.

 

In verse 3, it says: 3 So also, when we were underage, we were in slavery under the elemental spiritual forces of the world. Romans 2:12 says: “All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law.” Every unbeliever is kind of a slave to the law whether Jew or Gentile. For an unbeliever to come of age in the spiritual sense, is to come to faith in Christ. When that happens, they are partakers of the promise given to Abraham in Genesis 12:3. Until that happens, an unbeliever is in bondage.

 

What does it mean that we were in slavery under the elemental spiritual forces of the world. In context, it seems to be the basic elemental things of human religion which include the law. Galatians 4:9 has the same phrase and is connected with ceremonial rituals of human religion. The NASB translation has it like this: “But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how is it that you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles, to which you want to be enslaved all over again?”

 

Now, let’s look at Colossians 2:8: “See to it that there is no one who takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception in accordance with human tradition, in accordance with the elementary principles of the world, rather than in accordance with Christ.” Here, Paul is associating “elementary principles of the world” with deceptive human tradition and philosophy. Human tradition, thinking and philosophy invents all sorts of religion with attached rules, The Judaizers were trying to bring this way into the Christian Church. To follow the Judaizers would be to go back to the slavery the Galatians were once under. God’s plan was different.

 

2. What God Did (4-6)

4 But when the set time had fully come,: God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law,

5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.

6 Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.”

 

We were only the heir dejure and not yet the heir de facto. What did God do that made us to be the heir defacto? First we read when the set time had fully come. This means simply that it was the right time according to God. God is orchestrating His plan throughout history and everything is done according to His will. The common Greek language and the time of peace and order known as Pax Romana were well established.

 

There also was a well established road system to make it easier for missionaries to travel. However, the time was right, most importantly because it was God’s time. At this time, it says: God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Jesus had to be human in order to represent mankind and take the penalty of sin upon Himself on man's behalf. He had to be fully God in order for His sacrifice to have the infinite worth necessary to atone for the sin of mankind.

 

He was born under the law as a Jew and kept the law perfectly. Him who knew no Sin became sin for us. Why did Jesus empty Himself and become made in the likeness of man? Verse 5 tells us the answer: to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. We were all under the law until we met Christ. We were stuck with no way of escape in ourselves. But, Him who knew no sin became sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. The work of Christ did it all. When He said it was finished, it was finished. Complete!

 

Verse 6 says: “Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.”

The closest we can get to translating Abba into English is daddy or papa. God sent His Son to the cross to redeem us and He sent His Spirit into our hearts to assure us that we are His. Notice, it is the Spirit that calls out, “Abba, Father” in our hearts. God’s Spirit brings us into an intimate personal relationship with the Father. The Spirit in our heart guides us to seek God in His Word. His Spirit teaches us how to live and love and forgive. His Spirit sets our hearts on things that build our relationship with God and His church family.

 

3. Who we Are (7)

7 So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.

The coming of age for us is the moment we confess with our mouth and believe in our heart Jesus as our Lord and Savior. We are either in one of two families. Either God is our father or Satan is. If Satan is, we remain as slaves to sin. If we are God’s child, we are no longer in bondage to sin. The Holy Spirit comes into our hearts and transforms us into God’s new creation. Why is this good for us to know now? Many of us are Christians. We aren’t slaves of sin. But we do suffer. We have sicknesses, financial challenges, tragedies and loss of loved ones. Some suffer in this world because of their faith. Why is it good to know now that we are God’s children?

 

Romans 8:16-18 16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 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. 18 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. Being a child of God means we can be content in all circumstances because we know our home is not here!

 

Conclusion - God’s Love (Rom 5:6-8)

Until we came to know Christ, we were children of Satan. We didn’t deserve anything from God, but His justice. The justice we deserve is death which is the penalty for sin. To receive grace is to receive the greatest gift we will ever receive. When we come to realize God’s love for us shown in Christ, then our love towards God will be great. That’s important to know because Jesus said that those who are forgiven much, love much. If we think about who we were, what God did and who we are now, there should be a whole lot of love inside of us from God. May we love God and the world much with this love.

 

Let’s think about Romans 5:6-8 as we close this sermon: 6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will hardly die for a righteous person; though perhaps for the good person someone would even dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

 

When we pray, let us thank God for adopting us to sonship with the greatest demonstration of love ever known.