Unconditional Adoption

Adoption is a topic that has become near and dear to my wife and I’s heart. Since being married, we have had the hunch that adoption is in our future. We’ve known people who have been adopted and spent considerable time with them. Even more, adoption is a visible picture of what God does for us in Christ.

When we choose to adopt a child, we are taking someone we (in most cases) have no connection to, giving them our name, making them part of our family, and giving them the title of son or daughter. All the privileges and benefits our biological sons or daughters have, the adopted son or daughter now has. There are no distinctions.

We aren’t putting conditions on the son or daughter to be a part of the family. We are unconditionally choosing them, loving them, and bringing them in. Many times, we will do this at a great cost as my wife and I have learned that adoption is not cheap. There is a high cost to bringing in a new child both financially and emotionally.

When we look at how the Bible speaks of God adopting us, the parallels are striking. Physical adoption is our spiritual adoption on display. God adopted us to be a part of his family not based on anything we had done, but because it pleased him. He did this even before the world began and we had done anything either good or bad. Ephesians 1:4 says, "Even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.”

We weren’t his, but he calls us his in his graciousness. Romans 9:25-36 says, "As indeed he says in Hosea, 'Those who were not my people I will call ‘my people,’ and her who was not beloved I will call ‘beloved.’ ''And in the very place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ there they will be called ‘sons of the living God.’”

We receive all the privileges and benefits of being in God’s family because he brought us in at a great cost. Romans 8:32 says, "He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” God purchased us with his own Son’s life. He placed the punishment on him that should have been placed on us. Now we are heirs. We are sons and daughters who’ve been given everything and we didn’t deserve any of it.

Adoption is a beautiful thing. In it, we see strangers made family. We see someone far off brought near. That God would adopt me is flooring. My hope and desire through physical adoption is to be able to point others to the true and greater spiritual adoption in Christ Jesus.

"In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will." - Ephesians 1:5