Tag: <span>god’s family</span>

Reflecting Our Father’s Family
Published March 5, 2022

Reflecting Our Father’s Family

In Romans, Paul reminds us that God appointed us to reflect the character of Jesus.

“For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.” Romans 8:29-30

Throughout my life, relatives and friends have frequently remarked that I resemble my mother, father, brother, or another distant relative from my clan. Personality traits and tendencies from my ancestral past have become my unconscious and sometimes undesirable hereditary heirloom. Now, in my mature years, I scrutinize their remarks by consciously analyzing my mannerisms, habits, and even my conversational nuances to ensure they reflect my true person.

Although most hereditary traits are endearing and complement character, many traits are compromised by the hereditary nature of sin. As believers in a fallen world, plagued by a natural propensity to express undesirable hereditary habits, we must scrutinize our behavior to ensure that it conforms to the image of Jesus. In Romans, Paul reminds us that God appointed us to reflect the character of Jesus. As Jesus’ adopted brothers and sisters, and part of our Father’s family, we must persevere to reflect Him in word and deed.

Do you reflect the character of your Father’s family? Are you the person God appointed you to be?

Thankfully, God sent the Holy Spirit, as our teacher and helper, to equip and empower us to overcome natural and undesirable traits and tendencies and to authentically reflect Christ in our everyday lives. As Christ followers, we are free from sin’s power — free to become everything the Father foreknew — free to reflect the grandeur and glory of our Father’s family.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for allowing me to become part of Your family. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. Empower and equip me to become more like Jesus — reflecting Him in character and deed. Amen.

By Allan Mitchell
Used by permission

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Further Reading

•  Attributes of God

•   The Everlasting God – By Stoddard

•  Salvation Explained

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thoughts by Allan Mitchell Thoughts by Men

Adopted By God
Published August 21, 2021

Adopted By God

“For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’” Romans 8:14-15

Recently my wife and I bumped into a friend and his son whom we had not seen for a year. In that time, the teenager had grown from boy to young man, from thin and wiry to broad-shouldered and tall — and his voice was lower, too.

In addition to growing up physically, the young man was ever more like his dad — upbeat and positive, brimming with good. The boy seemed a “chip off the old block.”

And he’s adopted.

If you were to see father and son side-by-side, you would probably know it; the boy’s dark hair and eyes stand out in contrast to his dad’s Scandinavian complexion. But they are family.

The Apostle Paul says that when we are led by the Spirit of God, we become His children, His offspring through adoption. We may be in body and He may be in Spirit, but at the core, we are family. We have been freed from spiritual slavery and fear. Within the body of Christ we differ in race and nation, but deep down we’re family, born of God. We call Him “Daddy” (the affectionate meaning of “Abba”).

As a child adopted by God, I need to ask myself if people can tell I’m carrying the family name, if I’m living by the Spirit. John reminds us of the telling sign: “By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another” John 13:35.

Can others tell that we belong to God’s family? Do they see us bearing His complexion?

God, thank You for adopting me into Your family. May my life honor Your reputation as a loving and caring Father. Amen.

By Dr. Bill Strom
Used by Permission

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