Imagine you are a convicted serial killer sitting on death row awaiting execution. You are guilty of every charge for which you have been imprisoned. One day the prison warden comes to your cell door and announces that you have been fully pardoned. You are now free to go. Further, the warden tells you that the governor who pardoned you has also adopted you into his family. You are to go live in his home, take his family name, and become heir to his estate.[1]

This is a good picture of what God has done for believers. In spite of our crimes against Him, God has redeemed us from prison, taken us into His family, given us His name, and promised us an inheritance. Adoption into God’s family is quite an astounding truth that we often take for granted.

In our Summer Sermon Series, we are considering Christian identity, and one way that Christians identify themselves is as the children of God. We are the people of God. Being adopted into God’s family should have a radical impact on how we identify ourselves.

Physically speaking, a large part of our identity comes from the family we are born into. Many of our physical features come down to us through our parents. You inherit your ethnicity, hair and eye color, size, and abilities from your parents. Who you are—how you identify yourself—is largely based on your place in the family. Just like your physical family tells you much about who you are, so your spiritual family tells you a lot about who you are.

What does it mean to be a child of God and part of the people of God? And how does that affect our identity?

[1] Jerry Bridges (2012-03-02). Who Am I?  Identity In Christ (Kindle Locations 537-540). Cruciform Press. Kindle Edition.