Some of the most well-known words to the believer are the first six words of the Lord’s Prayer: “Our Father, who art in heaven.” Our Father - God is known as our heavenly Father. We pray to God as our Father, speak of Him as our Father, and even sing to Him as our Father.
For example, one well-known hymn says, “God, our Father, we adore Thee! We, Thy children, bless Thy name! Chosen in the Christ before Thee, we are holy, without blame. We adore Thee! We adore Thee! Abba’s praises we proclaim.”(1) This one hymn mentions God as Father in different ways; as Father and Abba.
This evening we are going to learn why we are able to call God our Father, and why we are indeed His children.
We Were Once Slaves of Sin (3:29-4:3)
29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. 1 Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all, 2 but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father. 3 Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world.
In verse 29, Paul said that those who receive Jesus as Savior are heirs to God’s kingdom. He then entered into a discourse about the state of an heir, applicable in his historical context. He stated how a male heir, while he was still a child, was considered no different than a slave (v. 1). Paul was speaking of sonship in ancient Rome. In Roman law sons were raised under their father’s power which was known as patria potestas, which was the father’s power of absolute possession and control over a family member.(2)
The son was a servant in his father’s household, and was seen as being no greater than a slave until an appointed age, which was about twenty-five-years-old. Therefore, the son was placed under guardians and stewards selected by the father in order to teach him the ways of his father and proper moral conduct.(3) According to F. F. Bruce, one of these guardians was known as a tutor.(4) Back in Galatians 3:24, Paul stated that God’s children, the Jewish people, were all placed under a tutor, which he noted was the law. The law that Paul referred to was the Law of Moses, which included the Ten Commandments and numerous other Levitical rules and regulations.
In Galatians 3:23-25, Paul said that the law was necessary to instruct God’s people in righteousness before Jesus came into the world to bestow the law of the Spirit. When Christ finally arrived, this event was the “coming of age” for all of the Jewish people who chose to follow Him as their Lord and Savior. They were ready to move from childhood into adulthood; or from slavery into true sonship and inheritance in the kingdom by the Spirit of God.
In applying this insight to those who do not know Jesus Christ, they are still trapped under the law and seen as slaves in the eyes of God. Today, we are not held under the Ten Commandments, but under the laws of men and rules of social morality. The laws to which we are subject, that are taught by our earthly parents and government, are necessary to instruct us in morality. But, as Paul said in verse 3, the laws of men are of the elements of this world, and if we still live by these laws then we are held in spiritual bondage and considered to be slaves of sin.
If we do not know Jesus Christ as Savior then the Spirit of God does not live within us. The Spirit is the one who convicts and instructs us in godliness once we have accepted Jesus into our heart. Though the laws of men can teach us to be a good person, we are incomplete and seen as a slave without the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit teaches us the laws of the Spirit; as demonstrated in the fruit of the Spirit, which are love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). If we do not know Jesus then we are still a slave to the laws of men, and we are lacking the freedom found in the Holy Spirit.
We Are Now Adopted by God (4:4-5)
4 But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.
Jesus Christ, God’s one and only Son, was born of a woman, meaning that God came down in the form of a man to dwell on this earth for a short time among human beings. He was born under the law to redeem those, or rather liberate those, who were held captive under the law.
F. F. Bruce says that when God came to the earth in the form of Jesus Christ that “He entered into the prison house where His people were held in bondage so as to set them free.”(5) We just learned that sons were considered as slaves to their earthly father until they became a certain age. What the Lord did was He entered the house of another father (the house of the ruler of this world, or rather Satan), and He demanded to adopt those who desired to go with Him.
In ancient Rome a father adopted a child by paying for him. The price for our adoption was paid in full with Jesus’ death on the cross. Once a father chose to adopt a child there followed a ceremony called vindicatio. The adopting father went to the praetor, one of the Roman magistrates, and presented a legal case for the transference of the person to be adopted into his own household. After the vindicatio ceremony was over then the adoption was complete.(6)
What English word does vindicatio sound like? It sounds like “vindication.” The American Heritage Dictionary says that the word “vindicate” means, “to clear of accusation, blame, suspicion, or doubt with supporting proof.”(7) If we choose to follow God through His Son, Jesus Christ, then we will be cleared of any accusation of sin that has been placed on us, and we will be cleared of the accompanying consequence of sin, which is eternal death (Romans 6:23).
Paul said that our sonship with God is similar to being adopted out of the household of one father, and into the household of another father and becoming part of his own family. If we do not know Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior then we are not a part of God’s family; but rather, we are part of the family of the elements of this world. When Paul spoke of the elements of this world, back in verse 3, he was referring to the realm of Satan; for Jesus identified the devil as the ruler of this world (John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11).
If we do not know Jesus Christ then our father is none other than “the father of lies” (John 8:44), or Satan himself, and our coming of age in the devil is tragic. Jesus once stated, “Now the ruler of this world will be cast out” (John 12:31), and John declared, “The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone” (Revelation 20:10). The inheritance that we receive from the father of lies at our coming of age in him is hell and damnation. The laws of men cannot save our souls; however, the laws of the Holy Spirit of God can.
If we will receive Jesus Christ into our heart then we will be redeemed from subjection to the laws of men, and we will be adopted as sons of the living God! In Roman law,
There were four main [benefits] of adoption. 1.) The adopted person lost all rights in his old family and gained all the rights of a legitimate son in his new family. In the most binding legal way, he received a new father. 2.) It followed that he became heir to his new father’s estate. Even if other sons were afterwards born, it did not affect his rights. He was inalienably co-heir with them. 3.) In law, the old life of the adopted person was completely wiped out; for instance, all debts were cancelled. He was regarded as a new person entering into a new life with which the past had nothing to do. 4.) In the eyes of the law he was absolutely the son of his new father.(8)
If we decide to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior then we will receive a new father, God the Father, and we will become heirs of the kingdom of heaven; and all our former debts, or rather sins, will be wiped clean and our past ways forgotten. Our new Father in heaven will never hold our past against us.
A new mother stayed with her parents for several days after the birth of her first child. One afternoon she remarked to her own mother that it was surprising that the baby had dark hair, since both her husband and she were fair. The grandmother said, “Well, your daddy has black hair.” To which the daughter replied, “But, Mama, that doesn’t matter, because I’m adopted.” With am embarrassed smile, that mother said the most wonderful words her daughter had ever heard: “I always forget.” All Christians are adopted children of God who are accepted by God with the same unconditional love that this mother had for her daughter.(9)
The Lord Becomes Our Daddy (4:6)
6 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!”
During the process of adoption there were seven witnesses required to be present. If anyone later accused a son of not being adopted then one of these seven witnesses were to step forward and declare his true sonship. Paul said that God’s Spirit witnesses with our spirit to declare that we really are His children.(10) Because the Holy Spirit testifies on our behalf we can cry out to God with great confidence and call Him, “Abba!”
What significance is there in the word “Abba?” Abba is a word that could not have been spoken by a mere slave, for it is an intimate word reserved only for the closeness between a father and his son that is earned either after the child’s coming of age or after his adoption. Verse 6 tells us that the word Abba means, “father,” but Abba can also be translated as, “daddy.”(11)
This is a very special word, especially today, because there are many people who don’t know what it is to have a daddy. If you want someone who is always dependable and who will be a true father to you, then call upon the Lord as your daddy. If you believe in Jesus Christ as your Savior, then God will accept you as His own son or daughter.
We Have Received an Inheritance (4:7)
7 Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.
In Romans 8:15-17, Paul said, “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father.’ The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs – heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.”
William Barclay says that once we are adopted by God, after receiving His Son, Jesus, into our heart, that “we begin a new life with God and become [an] heir of all His riches. If that is so, we become joint-heirs with Jesus Christ, God’s own Son. That which Christ inherits, we also inherit. If Christ had to suffer, we also inherit that suffering; but if Christ was raised to life and glory, we also inherit that life and glory.”(12)
Being a child of God is not going to be easy while we live on this earth, because our inheritance here is hardship and persecution. Jesus said in John 15:20, “If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you.” However, once this earthly life is over, our inheritance with God is eternal life in the kingdom of heaven. That’s an inheritance that is truly worth waiting for, and it is promised to and waiting for all the children of God.
Time of Reflection
This evening, if you do not know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, then you are a slave to the laws of sin and death, and when you reach maturity in these laws then you will die an eternal death in the flames of hell; but there is a way to escape the inheritance of death that you are destined to receive.
God stepped into this world, which is the household of Satan; and right now He is asking if you wish to become His own adopted child. All you have to do is say “yes” to Him in order to receive an inheritance of eternal life, and a new Father who cherishes you, cares for you, and loves you deeply.
The way to say yes to Him is to believe that God came in the form of Jesus Christ to rescue you from your sins. Believe that He died on the cross for your sins, believe that He conquered sin and death when He rose from the grave; and you will become a child of the living God (Romans 10:9-10).
NOTES
(1) George Frazer, “God, Our Father, We Adore Thee,” The Baptist Hymnal (ed. Wesley L. Forbis; Nashville: Convention Press, 1991), p. 248.
(2) William Barclay, The Letter to the Romans, The Daily Study Bible Series (Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1977), p. 106.
(3) F. F. Bruce, The Epistle to the Galatians, The New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1982), p. 192.
(4) Ibid., p. 192.
(5) Ibid., p. 196.
(6) Barclay, p. 106.
(7) The American Heritage Dictionary, 2nd ed. (New York: Dell, 1983), p. 758.
(8) Barclay, p. 106.
(9) Michael P. Green, Illustrations for Biblical Preaching (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1997), p. 16.
(10) Barclay, p. 107.
(11) Max Anders, Galatians, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville: Holman Reference, 1999), p. 51.
(12) Barclay, p. 107.
