We are Heirs of God.

Today we are reading from Romans 8:12-17.

¹² So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. ¹³ For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. ¹⁴ For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. ¹⁵ For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” ¹⁶ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, ¹⁷ and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.


I read these words and you know what my first thought was...would I rather be a slave or a debtor?  Then I wondered where that thought came from.

Cause I got to thinking about some cultures if you save a person's life they are indebted to you and must serve you.   I wonder if that came from the seed that God plants in our hearts about him?

But Christ died for us.  Freeing us from the bond we had, the having to follow the path of sin.  So he in essence saved our lives.

ERGO we owe him a great debt. 

Since we owe him a great debt, should we therefore continue in the path of the flesh?  Of course not!  We owe him a debt, we should live to the life that he has brought us to.

The life we are brought to was that of being a child of God.  An heir of God in essence and reality.  To be a CHILD to God.  That's what happened when he saved us.  

Should a child of God himself fall back into slavery?

Hold to that.  Believe it.  Listen to the Spirit of God as he whispers it in  your heart.  YOU ARE A CHILD OF GOD.   An adopted, for real, child of God.  



These words caught my eye:
and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
You know how good families stick together through thick and thin? Minding each other, watching each other's back, going through the good and the bad with each other?   This happens in God's family too.  Hard things will happen.. times of suffering and pain.  Don't run away from it.  Stick through it. 

When our brothers and sisters in Islamic countries suffer... pray for them, care about what happens to them. When Christian business owners are attacked, send them letters of encouragement.  We are family regardless of where we live, what colour our skin is, our size, shape, national dialect.   So if we know that one of us is suffering, we suffer to along with them.  So be an encouragement and help!

Together, let us be glorified with Christ!
 
 What say you? 

To follow along with the rest of this devotional series in Romans Click Here. 

The image I used for the graphic was originally this, and came from my brothers' portfolio.  You can see more of his images here.   I just love the bird looking out of the hole looking for protected and safe and yet curious about what's going on outside.

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