Adopted

Ephesians 2 says we were dead in sin. Dead. As in a doorknob. Not mostly dead. All dead. Paul says we once walked in the manner of the world following Satan. We were self-focused, self-consumed and self-motivated. We lived for self and worked for self. We were our own idols and our own worst enemies. When we chose the kingdom of darkness in the Garden of Eden, we threw out our batteries and exchanged them for batteries that did not work. We then tried to fix ourselves because we knew we were not functioning properly. We knew something vital was missing and took on a mindset of trying to fix ourselves and solve our problems even if that meant trampling on everyone else to do so.

In Ephesians 2 there is this beautiful phrase: But God.... God saw the state we were in. Instead of recharging those batteries, God threw out the batteries and in their place gave us a power source that never runs out. We got the upgrade, the new and improved. We got Holy Spirit living inside us. It is like your favorite childhood toy or blanket. We may patch them up trying to make them last longer, but they still look ratty and dirty. God, instead of patching us up, threw out the dead and put a new source of life in us.  Despite our state of deadness, God redeemed us. We were so favored by and deeply loved by God that He wanted to make us new. We do not work for our salvation. We are given freedom. Now we are learning how to let go of the brokenness and old ways of thinking so we can live in freedom as children of God.

We were children of wrath, sons of disobedience (Eph 2). Jesus came to the orphanage of the world and saw you. He looked you in the eyes and said, “I choose you. I want you.” The Law runs the orphanage. It is a works-based environment. Jesus came to release us from this system of works. He came that we could be adopted into His family as children of God. As a child, you do not earn your standing in the family. You simply are a son or daughter because you were born. That is all that was required. You did not have to fill out an application and go through an interview process to become a child. You simply are one because you were born.

God created us. We are His masterpiece, the pinnacle of His creation. That means He knows how to fix us when something is broken. He tears down the broken walls and crumbling foundation. He may ask us to help clear away the rubble and rebuild walls, but He is the one that does the actual work. It is like asking a child to help you build a bookshelf. They may pound in a few crooked nails, but they are not the real builders of that bookcase. We cannot fix ourselves. That is something only God can do.

When we were adopted into God’s family as children, we were given a place to belong. God seated us with Jesus in heaven so he could show us the vast riches of his grace and kindness. We were not only given a place to belong but we were also given purpose. God created good things for us to do (Eph 2:10). He created dreams and desires for us, not us for them. He created these things for us to walk in. This means we do not just dream about them but we can actually step into them and do them.