LIFE IN THE SPIRIT PART 4: I AM THE CHILD OF GOD (ROMANS 8.14-17)

Believers not only belong to Christ, but are the child of God. The Spirit of God is not only a seal through which our attachment to Christ is secured, but also a seal through which our attachment to God the father is officiated. The Spirit of God is the Spirit of adoption. God the father through Jesus Christ not only saves us from the deadly destiny, but also adopts us as his children legally through and legalized by the Holy Spirit (8.14).

The Spirit of God confirms our legal status as children of God. Paul even went furthermore to claim that the adoption is not only legal at the beginning, but also realized through the journey of life until the consummation time. The adoption is therefore secured by the Spirit of God. In verse 17, Paul said that we are heirs of God. 

On approaching death many people write a testament, through which they mention their wishes after their departure. Normally, a testament will name the heirs of the deceases (children, grandchildren, brothers, sisters, etc.). A testament will prove whether someone is truly a heir of the decease or not. Thus, the Spirit of God serves as both a birth certificate and a testament confirming one legal status as a child of God. Our adoption is one legalized by the Spirit of God, two it is realized in our status as heirs of God, and three it is irreversible: once and forever (my understanding of Paul). We are children of God and therefore we are heirs of God, now and forever.

Even more amazingly, our status as heirs of God is not different from Christ: we are Christ co-heirs of God the father. What had happened to Christ will happen to us (8.17). If we share in Christ's suffering then we also will share in his glory. The promise of adoption is therefore not a painless and easy life. Paul indicated potential hardships and inflictions experienced by children of God as Christ had been suffering from all those tortures. The promise of adoption is thus one the awaiting eternal glory through the drama of suffering as we are longing to be united with Christ, and two the leading, guiding, comfort and protection through difficult circumstances by the (parakletos) Spirit of God.

The adoption is real, sincere and full of love. We are not saved to be slaves, but to be children of  God. There is no negative motif behind the salvation offered by God through Jesus Christ. We even are empowered to call God the Father, Abba (an Aramaic word for English equivalent 'daddy). This use of Abba illustrates the potential closeness and intimate relationship between believers and God (8.15). While sin always slaves and condemns us, the Spirit of God assures us of our new status and privilege as children of God (8.16).

Finally, our status as children of God is again recognized by a Spirit-led life (8.14). At this point, we may have in mind the idea of a business franchise. As Starbucks in all over the globe have certain standard of quality and service, children of God in this world also are expected to bear certain intrinsic godly characteristics. I think it is not unfair to say that the characteristics meant by Paul are moral characteristics. We are called to live a life led by the Spirit. We are called to live according to what the Spirit desires. We are called to leave our fleshly desires. We are called to be righteous as God is righteous. Those are pillars of godly life according to Paul in Romans 8. Our righteous deeds however are again not an obligation to the law, but a cheerful response to our loving Abba. 

Romans 8.1-17 begins with 'no more condemnation' and ends with our new adopted status as children of God. The adoption pays ahead all future possible condemnation and punishment: that is the ground of a Christian life. The adoption secures our journey of faith through different difficult circumstances: that is the encouraging promise of a Christian life. The adoption carries out certain godly living standard according to what the Spirit desires: that is the very call of a Christian life.