I'M ADOPTED TOO!

From Stephen Templeton:

I really enjoy spending time with other adoptive parents. We all draw encouragement from one another as we share how amazing and powerful God has shown himself to be in our families. Real-world testimonies of God's faithfulness, kindness and love are so evident in our adoption stories. And as adoptive parents, we have a deep experiential understanding of what it means when God says that He has adopted us, that we are his true sons and daughters.

For it was always in His perfect plan to adopt us as His delightful children, so that His tremendous grace that cascades over us would bring Him glory- for the same love He has for His Beloved One, Jesus, He has for us. (Ephesians 1:5 The Passion Translation)

These truths have special meaning, partly because we've experienced an element of the anticipation, price, joy, heartache and happiness that come with being adoptive parents. We are eyewitnesses to the amazing transformation occurring in our children's lives, and we are so aware of how our children's destinies have been radically altered by adoption. 

And of course, the beautiful truth is that we have also been adopted by our Heavenly Father.

And so that we would know for sure that we are His true children, God released the Spirit of Sonship into our hearts- moving us to cry out intimately, “My Father! You’re our True Father!” Now we’re no longer living like slaves under the law, but we enjoy being God’s very own sons and daughters! And because we’re His, we can access everything our Father has-- for we are one with Jesus Christ! (Galatians 4:6-7 The Passion Translation)

As we know from our own experiences, adoption is a legal procedure.

Parental Rights Terminated

Before we adopted our children, as part of this legal procedure, their biological parent's rights were terminated. Similarly, the rights of our former father, our enemy Satan, have been terminated. Now he has no legal right over our lives. He has no authority over us. He is a deceiver and the father of all lies, and as such, he continues to try to exert authority and influence over us. Our enemy loves to deal in disappointments, distractions and disillusions. However, we do not have to listen to his voice because he has no legal right to speak into our lives. Thanks be to God, his rights have been terminated over our lives! 

Be encouraged and settle this permanently in your heart, that your former father, our enemy, has no authority or legal right over your life. That authority now rests with our adoptive father, our Heavenly Father, the eternal God who is always full of love, faithfulness and kindness to us.

Permanently and Absolutely the Son & Daughter of our New Father

When God adopted you and me, we became his sons and daughters. We are now permanently and absolutely his sons and daughters. Nothing can change this fact. We now live our lives as his royal children, as his his princes and princesses. 

When we adopted our children we changed their last names- they permanently and absolutely became Templetons. Their former surnames were history, and their lives and destinies were permanently altered and changed for the better. When your Heavenly Father adopted you, he changed your name- we now bear his awesome and glorious name. Through Jesus's sacrifice on the cross and our belief in him, the curse on our lives was completely and permanently broken and washed away. Favor and blessing are now our legitimate right and destiny. 

He looks at you, smiles and whispers "my beloved" and "my precious child".

Our Old Life is Gone--All Debts Have Been Paid

God is a wonderful creator, and we are now his "new creation", his "masterpiece". Our old life is gone, and behold everything is new. We are no longer living in a spiritual orphanage or as bastard children. All our debts have been paid. We don't have to go to debtors' prison to work off debts we have incurred. We have a generous, loving and kind Father who has paid in full all our spiritual debts. We are free in him- free to live the life he has for us to the fullest. We are not bound by shame and guilt because he has paid it all. 

Again, our enemy will try to trick us into believing that we still have pay for our sins and shortcomings, but this is a lie. We are true sons and daughters, and our Father has paid for it all through Jesus.

We are His Heirs

You are an heir to your new Father's estate, not to your former father's curse. We now have a glorious inheritance (Eph 1:18) because we are his children. And because we are his, because we are filled with his Spirit, let's live our lives as true sons and daughters. This is our true identity, our true destiny and calling- to live as his ambassadors, as his friends, as his redeemed, as his children.

All his kindness, all his strength, all his mercy, all his wisdom, love, peace and joy are marked for you, his treasured and greatly loved adopted daughter and son. 

Now today, let's live like a much beloved children!

You will hear more from Stephen at Hope at Home 2014. Register Today!