And because we are His children, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, "Abba, Father." Now you are no longer a slave but God's own child. And since you are His child, God has made you His heir. Galatians 4:6-7
What would you do if you found out that you were an heir to the throne of a very wise and wealthy king? I'm willing to bet a number of things about your life would change if you received this news. You probably would not worry or stress about some of the things that you currently worry and stress over. You would probably have less concern about your future. And, if you are a kind, generous person, perhaps you are thinking of how you would use this new role as heir to this king to help others. Friends, you and I may not be heirs to an earthly king, but as children of God, we are heirs to the Heavenly King who is infinitely greater and more powerful than any king on this earth.
This week, we are talking about a name for God, Abba, which is a term of endearment similar to our word "daddy." Relating to God as Father means that we are His children. Not only are we children, if God is our Father, we are also His heirs. The Apostle Paul writes about the idea that followers of God are heirs in Galatians 4. In this chapter, Paul writes that because Jesus came and died on the cross for our sins, if we put our faith in Him, we become God's children and, therefore, heirs.
At this point, you must be wondering, "What is the inheritance?" The inheritance is eternal life with Christ. Because of Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection, those who place their faith in Him will have eternal life spent forever with Christ. It does not matter how bleak our life is on earth. We can be confident that, if we have placed our faith in Christ, good things are coming. We can look toward our inheritance. Ultimately, we know that our stories end in salvation and redemption. In the end (which is really just the beginning), we get to spend forever with Christ. That, my friends, should give us hope.
Such hope is impossible to keep to ourselves! If we have such hope, we should want to tell as many people as possible so that they, too, can share in the inheritance that is promised to followers of God. My friends, this good news is too precious to stay silent!
If you are a follower of God, when is the last time you considered the fact that you are also an heir? Through your relationship with God, you have the privilege of calling Him "Father" and all the benefits that go along with being His child. Today, take time to journal with this prompt: "How does the fact that I am an heir affect the way I live?"
Read Galatians 4:1-7 (NLT)
Think of it this way. If a father dies and leaves an inheritance for his young children, those children are not much better off than slaves until they grow up, even though they actually own everything their father had. They have to obey their guardians until they reach whatever age their father set. And that’s the way it was with us before Christ came. We were like children; we were slaves to the basic spiritual principles of this world.
But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children. And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.” Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir.
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