Galatians 3:25-26. 25But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, 26for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.
We have reached the climax of Paul’s argument so far—”in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.” The truth that we are God’s children, His sons and daughters, is, as Sinclair Ferguson says, “the apex of creation and the goal of redemption.” This is not some sort of universal sonship applicable to all humanity. Yes, in some sense, because we are all the creation of God we are all God’s children. But what Paul is talking about here is something far more special. This is sonship by faith in Jesus Christ, THE Son. When we trust in Christ, He shares His status with us as His adopted brothers, co-heirs with Christ.
Why does Paul use the word “sons” rather than children? Is this sexist? No, quite the opposite. When Paul says that “you are ALL sons,” women included, He is making a bold, counter-cultural statement. In a world where daughters were not ever legal heirs to the family fortune, Paul is calling all of us, men and women in Christ, heirs of the fortune of God. In addition to the gender barrier being broken down by Christ, so is the racial barrier. “You are ALL sons of God” includes Jews and Gentiles. Sonship is not the result of biology or of law-keeping. Nor is it the result of a renunciation of Gentile identity or culture, and an embracing of Jewish culture.
Sonship is the ultimate in freedom. Our sonship in Christ is literally an equality with the man Jesus in all things. In love. In acceptance. In blessing. In position. In inheritance. All that is Jesus’ is ours in Him. I’m not sure that this side of heaven we can even begin to really comprehend the meaning of this. As Paul says elsewhere, “Eye has not seen, or ear heard, or mind conceived, the things that God has prepared for those who love Him.” Probably the best we can do is partake of this truth in bite-size pieces.
Honestly, most of us still live our daily lives as the prisoners, slaves, or tutored children that Paul has talked about previously. Few of us spend much of our time living as free adult sons. The problem is that if we don’t believe in our adoption as adult sons, then do we even believe the gospel? Are we people of faith, children of Abraham, if we can’t embrace our sonship? Do you need it to come as a command? OK, here it is: God commands us to apply all the blessings of sonship to ourselves. So let’s get started!
You: Do you live as a child under a guardian, or as an adult, free, son of God?
You in Christ: How does our union with Christ grant us all the benefits of sonship?
Christ in you: What benefits of sonship are you still failing to embrace?
Pray: Father, You have welcomed me into Your family through faith in Jesus. Help me to live as Your beloved son and heir of all that is Yours. Amen.
