(Romans 8:15, 23 Galatians 4v5 Ephesians 1 v 5)
We get our identity, it is said, from our parents.
This lends weight to at least one side of the debate
About nature or nurture.
One of our sons is adopted and so we have had a case study
Under our very roof.
His distinctiveness was never diminished by a court order
Or by a name change.
Something did change however.
He entered a new family.
Formally under the rule of others
He came under the “rule” of a new father
All that he was, in gift, nature and possessions became subject to his new life.
“You are not your own”, says Paul, “you were bought with a price”
And adoption, back then, meant totally becoming subject to the wishes of the new Father
All authority and jurisdiction from the previous family was completely gone.
Such was the radical meaning of Paul’s adoption metaphor.
And, we are now adopted into the family of God himself – the perfect Father.
This means that, just like my son, we are under a different roof
Live a different life. Under new “rules”.
Satan’s power and authority has been cancelled
A new authority is established.
We may not want to think about what we were
But the “Abba” cry should remove all doubt as to what we are now.