Transformed – teen devotion – January 2, 2022
One truth shared: The Child-King changes everything for us. We are no longer slaves. We are sons and daughters. Heirs. Spirit-filled. Adopted to be his very own.
But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.
Galatians 4:4-5
Adopted
How can I help you grasp what it is that Jesus has done for us? These words that Paul has for us are clear. They aren’t hard. But, how I can help you grasp the importance and impact of what Paul says?
Maybe I can do it by helping you imagine what it’s like to NOT be a part of the family. Maybe I can do it by helping you to imagine what it is to be an outsider.
If you’re an outsider, you get to watch what is happening, but you don’t get to enjoy it. You are on the outside looking in. You hear the party. You see the party. But you just have to watch.
If you’re an outsider, you have limited, and often, no access to the head of the house. He might give you attention, but your requests don’t carry the same weight as a son or a daughter. The ways he cares for you will be different.
If you’re an outsider and you are not a part of the family, you certainly won’t be included in the family legacy. Your name is not in the will. You won’t get a part of the inheritance.
Jesus couldn’t imagine that. He couldn’t imagine you sitting on the outside looking in. He couldn’t imagine you calling to the Father for help and not getting it. He couldn’t imagine leaving you out of the will. So, he did something about it. He left heaven at just the right time and did what had to be done so that you would be adopted into the family.
Now, you have all the rights of a son or a daughter. You get to enjoy the full rights of being family. You get full and frequent (all the time!) access to the Father, and he gives full attention and weight to your prayers. Your name is written, by his blood, into the will. You get to share the Son’s inheritance with him and with every other believer.
You’re family with Jesus now. You’ve been adopted into his family.
Prayer: Dear Jesus, thank you for doing what had to be done so that I would be part of your eternal family. In this new year, help me to live as children of God live. Help me to honor you in all that I think and say and do. Amen.
