Galatians 3:29. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.
The ancient world lived under what was called the “law of primogeniture”—the oldest son in a family was the favored son and heir, inheriting nearly the whole estate (or at least double what any of the other children might receive). You may recall Jacob, the younger son of Isaac, “needing” to steal Esau’s blessing in order to gain an inheritance, a blessing Jesus himself would bestow on Jacob (along with a limp) years later. Of course, Jesus is God’s firstborn son, his only begotten, His “heir according to the promise.” Jesus alone deserves to receive all the promises of God, and He has. The radical love of Christ, however, has made us co-heirs with Him. Not just Jews—Jews and Gentiles. Not just Christian men—men and women.
The oldest son was a treasure in an ancient family (consider Hannah and Samuel). He represented the family before God, which is why God required oldest sons to be given back to him (consider Abraham, Isaac, and the ram). An Israelite family would circumcise and dedicate their oldest son at the Temple, offering a sacrifice to redeem their son (consider baby Jesus and the turtledoves). This sacrifice was a way of saying that our whole family is dedicated to God.
Christian, it’s time for you to start seeing yourself as an oldest son—representing the family of God, imaging your Heavenly Father, enjoying the blessings of your big brother, Jesus (without having to steal them), and dedicated to the service of God.
Instead, many of us live with some sort of inferiority complex. Am I really worth anything to anyone? Does anyone even care about me? So we spend much of our time trying to prove that we deserve to exist. Trying to make people like us or at least not ignore us. Others of us live inside a superiority complex. We self-justify and defend ourselves against any form of critique or blame. Look at me. I’m a better person than you. I don’t need help. I can figure out life on my own. There is no freedom in either of these ways of living.
“Heirs according to the promise” is the cure for both extremes. “Heirs”—you are not inferior; you are an heir of the kingdom of God, your Father. “According to the promise”—not according to anything you have done, but only by grace. May Christ in us bring us into the freedom of a proper view of ourselves—Heirs, nothing less. By promise, nothing more.
You: Do you tend to feel inferior or superior in your Christian life?
You in Christ: How can your union with Christ give you a proper view of self?
Christ in you: What might being an “oldest son” change in your life if you really began to live that way?
Pray: Father, you have given me the same status as Jesus. How can I ever be grateful enough or faithful enough? I can’t, but help me to trust it anyway. Amen.
