God's Gift of Relationship
- Rev. Jerry Lepasana
- Dec 11, 2005
- Series: All I Want for Christmas
All I Want for Christmas: (Part II)
GOD'S GIFT OF RELATIONSHIP
John 1: 11-12; Galatians 4:4-5
- He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.
- Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God--
- But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law,
- to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons.
As I was starting to write the message for this Sunday, I tried going to the web to find out the most popular gifts for this Christmas. To my surprise, the Google led me to an article which appeared in New Zealand Herald entitled, "Facelifts, tummy tucks popular gifts this Christmas."
This article, which was written by Tom Anderson, says that since most men in Britain have everything they need, women are ordering nose-jobs, liposuctions and tummy tucks vouchers at record rates so that their men will have a fresh look come 2006. I think Christmas giving has become a little bit strange nowadays.
Certainly, giving and receiving gifts will always be a big part of Christmas because we are celebrating how God gave Jesus as His greatest gift to the world. Last Sunday, as we have started dealing with our new theme, "All I Want for Christmas," I shared three appropriate descriptions of God's indescribable gift:
- The Priceless Gift
- The Perfect Gift
- The Perpetual Gift
I hope I was able to convince each one of us that Jesus is a gift worth having and sharing.
This morning, I would like to continue in speaking about this gift and emphasize a very important aspect of it. I know we will appreciate it further when we realize that God's gift to us included a personal relationship with Him through Jesus Christ.
Both the apostle John and Paul talked about this when they wrote about the incarnation of the Lord Jesus Christ. Let's examine the beautiful implications of this relationship:
I THE ADOPTION INTO HIS FAMILY:
Our texts clearly reveal to us God's heart when He sent Jesus to the world. He did not just forgive us of our sins and send us away. He received us as sons and daughters and gave us the privilege to be a part of His family.
Paul's reference to this truth in Galatians 4:5 has two significant parts:
A. Redemption - In the New Testament, to redeem literally means to buy back. It is the act of God whereby He paid the ransom price of those who are slaves to sin in order to grant them freedom.
- Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree."
Everyone who is born into the world is a slave of sin. The law of God reveals his or her bondage. Christ paid the price to set us free.
B. Adoption - This theological word is based on the last part of verse 5, "that we might receive the full rights of sons." If you are reading this in the King James Version, it would read, "that we might receive the adoption of sons."
The idea of adoption speaks of the process by which God places those who come to Christ as children into His family.
- 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."
What a great truth! God rescued us from slavery, turning us from slaves into sons. It was probably acceptable to keep us as slaves in the Kingdom, or it would even be nice to treat us as friends in the kingdom. However, to give us the greatest blessing, He placed us as close to Him as possible. And the closest we can get is to be in the same family.
II THE ASSURANCES IN HIS FAMILY:
Going back to the statements of both John and Paul on sonship, you will find the explicit reference to having full rights and benefits of the family. In the Bible, there are specific blessings of being part of God's family:
A. Confidence - This is the internal witness of the Holy Spirit giving us the sense of confidence that we are indeed the children of God.
- The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children.
(Warren Wiersbe)
B. Intimacy - Being children of God we have the assurance of relating to a loving Father who absolutely cares for our needs.
- 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."
One of the best pictures of God's unconditional love comes from the parable of the prodigal son. The father who is deeply hurt because of the sinful behavior of his youngest son was willing to forgive and restore his son into his original standing in the family.
Behold the love of God! When the son was hesitating to come home, the Father was eagerly waiting for him to come home. When the son deserved condemnation and rejection, he was given affirmation and restoration. What a great love!
C. Inheritance - Adoption brings the privilege of inheritance. Through Christ we become heirs of the Kingdom. We now have an inheritance. The riches of the Kingdom of God are ours through Christ.
- 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.
Notice also the statement, Co-heirs with Christ. God has appointed His Son, Jesus Christ as "Heirs of all things" (Heb. 1:2); and since we are joint-heirs with Christ, this makes us "Joint-heirs of all things."
- So then, no more boasting about men! All things are yours,
- whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future--all are yours,
- and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God.
As children of God, we have received great blessings. This was part of God's plan when He sent His Son to be our Savior.
III THE ACCOUNTABILITY IN HIS FAMILY:
Our passage in Galatians allows us to understand our great blessing of being in Christ. From being slaves, now we have become sons and daughters. John testifies how great the love we have experience for us to become children of God:
- How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
Consequently, we also need to comprehend the accountability that is connected to this new position:
A. Slaves obey out of duty:
During the ancient times, slaves who were bought for a price from the slave markets obeyed their masters because it was their duty to do so. Their highest accountability is to conform to their master's bidding.
B. Sons obey out of devotion:
Today, the children of God must also obey but obedience must come out of gratitude and love. True obedience to God is impossible without the right kind of love for him.
- "If you love me, you will obey what I command.
I believe this is the reason why the greatest commandment we must consider is related to loving God:
- Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.'
You see, it is not enough to know that God's loves us; we must determine to know whether we really love the Lord. God longs for our love. In fact, speaking to the church of Ephesus, He expressed His deep emotional pain because they have left their first love toward Him.
- Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.
How is your love for God? Is it possible that just like the Ephesian church, you have also become cold towards Him? During this Christmas, may we all take the time to deepen our love and relationship with God. Remember, Christianity is more than a religion; it is a relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.