5
by showing us Himself (John 14:9), and makes us into a royal priesthood (1 Pet. 2:9). He
calls us directly to an inheritance of spiritual and heavenly good things, and appoints
unto us a kingdom (Luke 22:29). Believers are now eminently and emphatically called
the sons of God" (1 John 3:2), as Isaiah had prophesied (Is. 56:4-5), and the Holy Spirit
witnesses with their spirits that this is so (Rom. 8:15-16). God consciously becomes their
personal Father, and this Father name becomes God`s new covenant name,
representing the family covenant to which He binds Himself on behalf of His children, so
that they now have liberty to cry, Abba, Father (Gal. 4:6).
Galatians 4:4-7 teaches that when the fullness of the time was come; namely, that
appointed time, (till which the children were to be under tutors, ver. 2.) God sent forth his
Son to redeem that were under the law, setting them free from the use of ceremonies, and
that we might receive the adoption." They receive the adoption into Christ`s kingdom
provided for by the testament of Christ`s blood. That kingdom consists of the whole
world, so that every crumb of bread believers receive, every aspect of creation they
observe, and every act of providence carried out testifies of the love of the Father and of
their own good. To this spiritual kingdom entered into by adoption belong victory over
sin, the bruising of Satan, inestimable riches, peace of soul, joy in the Holy Spirit, and
boldness in Christ (Eph. 3:12).
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What adoption is not
To more precisely analyze the Puritans` teachings on adoption, it is advantageous to first
consider what they thought adoption is not.
Adoption is not regeneration
We are prone to treat regeneration and adoption as synonymous because in regeneration
the Christian is someone born from above. Adoption, at first glance, seems to be another
way of describing the consequences of that new birth. The Puritans assure us, however,
that this is not so. These are two distinct blessings, though all who are born again are
adopted, and everyone who is adopted is born again.
19
Regeneration and adoption deal with two different problems. Adoption deals with
our status. We are by nature children of wrath and children of the devil; our status is one