1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,120 This is like the biggest thing 2 00:00:02,120 --> 00:00:03,800 that's ever happened to me. 3 00:00:03,800 --> 00:00:05,880 11 year old Tana just spent the 4 00:00:05,880 --> 00:00:07,720 last two years wishing the judge 5 00:00:07,720 --> 00:00:09,440 would make her foster parents. 6 00:00:09,440 --> 00:00:10,520 Her forever parents. 7 00:00:10,520 --> 00:00:11,920 They're just caring, loving. 8 00:00:11,920 --> 00:00:14,240 They take really good care of me. 9 00:00:14,240 --> 00:00:15,680 And then last Monday, 10 00:00:15,680 --> 00:00:17,800 her friend Miss Jackie were just 11 00:00:17,800 --> 00:00:20,120 little friends were just little buddies. 12 00:00:20,120 --> 00:00:22,280 The office manager at her school 13 00:00:22,280 --> 00:00:24,200 walked in with amazing news. 14 00:00:24,200 --> 00:00:27,000 I grabbed her shoulders and I just said, 15 00:00:27,000 --> 00:00:28,960 have you heard the news baby? 16 00:00:28,960 --> 00:00:30,120 Have you heard honey? 17 00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:31,400 You get your forever family. 18 00:00:31,400 --> 00:00:33,000 My heart was so happy. 19 00:00:33,000 --> 00:00:35,200 It was like I was like screaming. 20 00:00:35,200 --> 00:00:37,600 Tana was so happy the adoption was final. 21 00:00:37,600 --> 00:00:40,000 She could not let go of Miss Jackie. 22 00:00:40,000 --> 00:00:41,840 She just kept holding me tight. 23 00:00:41,840 --> 00:00:43,680 She just held me tighter and tighter 24 00:00:43,680 --> 00:00:46,040 and so I took advantage of that and I 25 00:00:46,040 --> 00:00:48,560 just kissed her up one side and down the 26 00:00:48,560 --> 00:00:50,400 other. She's easy to cling onto. 27 00:00:50,400 --> 00:00:52,160 Tana's mom is grateful the security 28 00:00:52,160 --> 00:00:53,920 camera at school recorded the moment. 29 00:00:53,920 --> 00:00:57,120 It just made me feel like oh my God. 30 00:00:57,120 --> 00:01:00,200 Alright, I've seen that 10 times and I 31 00:01:00,200 --> 00:01:03,000 still cry when I see that because it's 32 00:01:03,000 --> 00:01:06,000 the joy and the happiness that she felt. 33 00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:08,960 As we look at the idea of adoption 34 00:01:08,960 --> 00:01:11,640 and I was thinking this weekend. 35 00:01:11,640 --> 00:01:14,600 I know that that is a story for some of 36 00:01:14,600 --> 00:01:17,520 you here that some of you are here as 37 00:01:17,520 --> 00:01:20,040 adopted kids into families and some of 38 00:01:20,040 --> 00:01:22,880 you are here as the families that have 39 00:01:22,880 --> 00:01:25,760 adopted so this sermon may hit close to 40 00:01:25,760 --> 00:01:28,840 you with maybe part of your story and 41 00:01:28,840 --> 00:01:30,960 maybe you're here and no one knows that 42 00:01:30,960 --> 00:01:33,400 side of your story but that the idea of 43 00:01:33,400 --> 00:01:35,880 adoption and the idea of being brought 44 00:01:35,880 --> 00:01:38,680 into a forever family if you will means 45 00:01:38,680 --> 00:01:40,800 a lot about you. 46 00:01:40,800 --> 00:01:44,240 But you look at that little girl's face 47 00:01:44,240 --> 00:01:48,360 and just the joy on her face. 48 00:01:48,360 --> 00:01:51,080 It's really hard to describe so instead 49 00:01:51,080 --> 00:01:52,960 of me trying to describe it I want you 50 00:01:52,960 --> 00:01:54,680 to try to describe it. 51 00:01:54,680 --> 00:01:57,840 Who can put words to what you saw as she 52 00:01:57,840 --> 00:01:59,840 just starts clinging on to the social 53 00:01:59,840 --> 00:02:02,840 worker because of the news that she got 54 00:02:02,840 --> 00:02:04,080 about her forever family. 55 00:02:04,080 --> 00:02:05,600 How did that hit some of you and if 56 00:02:05,600 --> 00:02:07,280 you're new to the church I like to ask 57 00:02:07,280 --> 00:02:09,560 questions and I will wait for responses 58 00:02:09,560 --> 00:02:10,800 whether it's awkward or not I don't 59 00:02:10,800 --> 00:02:11,520 really care. 60 00:02:11,520 --> 00:02:13,360 But understanding how did that, how did 61 00:02:13,360 --> 00:02:16,000 watching just that simple video hit some 62 00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:17,760 of you? 63 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:18,760 Hope. 64 00:02:18,760 --> 00:02:23,760 Exhilarating absolutely sure. 65 00:02:23,760 --> 00:02:25,760 Others. 66 00:02:25,760 --> 00:02:28,760 Power over overpowering. 67 00:02:28,760 --> 00:02:31,760 Yeah. 68 00:02:31,760 --> 00:02:34,760 From uncertainty to peace. 69 00:02:34,760 --> 00:02:35,760 Yeah. 70 00:02:35,760 --> 00:02:37,760 Others. 71 00:02:37,760 --> 00:02:40,760 A miracle okay. 72 00:02:40,760 --> 00:02:43,760 Pure joy absolutely. 73 00:02:43,760 --> 00:02:46,760 Happy. 74 00:02:46,760 --> 00:02:49,760 Happily ever after okay. 75 00:02:49,760 --> 00:02:51,760 I'm looking for one word I know insert 76 00:02:51,760 --> 00:02:53,760 roll of all your eyes I do this a lot. 77 00:02:53,760 --> 00:02:55,760 It's kind of like a setup but I'm looking 78 00:02:55,760 --> 00:02:57,760 for one specific word and I'm wondering 79 00:02:57,760 --> 00:03:00,760 if any one of you felt the same that I 80 00:03:00,760 --> 00:03:02,760 did when you saw the way that she just 81 00:03:02,760 --> 00:03:05,760 clung on to her with the news. 82 00:03:05,760 --> 00:03:07,760 Any others? 83 00:03:07,760 --> 00:03:08,760 Joy? 84 00:03:08,760 --> 00:03:10,760 Close. 85 00:03:10,760 --> 00:03:13,760 Love? 86 00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:15,760 Okay we're getting farther away. 87 00:03:15,760 --> 00:03:18,760 Relief? 88 00:03:18,760 --> 00:03:19,760 Close. 89 00:03:19,760 --> 00:03:22,760 Tony. 90 00:03:22,760 --> 00:03:23,760 Oh you're right there. 91 00:03:23,760 --> 00:03:25,760 If I was offering you lunch we'd be 92 00:03:25,760 --> 00:03:26,760 sitting down. 93 00:03:26,760 --> 00:03:27,760 We haven't ordered anything. 94 00:03:27,760 --> 00:03:28,760 Yeah. 95 00:03:28,760 --> 00:03:31,760 The law oh you get to combine that. 96 00:03:31,760 --> 00:03:34,760 You said okay. 97 00:03:34,760 --> 00:03:35,760 Okay there you go. 98 00:03:35,760 --> 00:03:36,760 Yeah. 99 00:03:36,760 --> 00:03:37,760 Combining great. 100 00:03:37,760 --> 00:03:39,760 Wholeness. 101 00:03:39,760 --> 00:03:41,760 That there was a feeling of wholeness that 102 00:03:41,760 --> 00:03:43,760 all is right. 103 00:03:43,760 --> 00:03:46,760 That this is the way it was supposed to be. 104 00:03:46,760 --> 00:03:49,760 Which is interesting because in the grand 105 00:03:49,760 --> 00:03:51,760 scheme of the life of someone that is 106 00:03:51,760 --> 00:03:55,760 adopted or a family that is adopting it is 107 00:03:55,760 --> 00:03:57,760 somewhat of a curve ball. 108 00:03:57,760 --> 00:03:59,760 For whatever reason kids get put up for 109 00:03:59,760 --> 00:04:02,760 adoption and for whatever reason families 110 00:04:02,760 --> 00:04:06,760 adopt children is many different reasons 111 00:04:06,760 --> 00:04:07,760 but there is a completeness. 112 00:04:07,760 --> 00:04:11,760 There is a wholeness to this. 113 00:04:11,760 --> 00:04:14,760 And I know for some of you you are in the 114 00:04:14,760 --> 00:04:15,760 midst of that right now. 115 00:04:15,760 --> 00:04:17,760 We have some of you that have gone through 116 00:04:17,760 --> 00:04:20,760 that not too long ago and out of chaos, 117 00:04:20,760 --> 00:04:23,760 out of uncertainty, out of all of these 118 00:04:23,760 --> 00:04:25,760 things that something gets brought and 119 00:04:25,760 --> 00:04:28,760 brought whole in the idea of adoption and 120 00:04:28,760 --> 00:04:31,760 it's a great way to start the A in faith as 121 00:04:31,760 --> 00:04:33,760 that's where we are for Lent. 122 00:04:33,760 --> 00:04:36,760 We're looking at the acronym faith which is 123 00:04:36,760 --> 00:04:39,760 kind of the in reformed conversations the 124 00:04:39,760 --> 00:04:42,760 canons adore was Tulip but I'm using some 125 00:04:42,760 --> 00:04:44,760 curriculum from the late 90s early 2000s 126 00:04:44,760 --> 00:04:47,760 Jim Osterhaus's faith where last week we 127 00:04:47,760 --> 00:04:51,760 looked at a fall in humanity now A adopted 128 00:04:51,760 --> 00:04:55,760 by God in Ephesians 1 3 through 6 says this. 129 00:04:55,760 --> 00:04:57,760 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord 130 00:04:57,760 --> 00:05:00,760 Jesus Christ who has blessed us in Christ 131 00:05:00,760 --> 00:05:02,760 with every spiritual blessing in the 132 00:05:02,760 --> 00:05:07,760 heavenly places even as he chose us in him 133 00:05:07,760 --> 00:05:10,760 before the foundation of the world that we 134 00:05:10,760 --> 00:05:13,760 should be holy and blameless before him. 135 00:05:13,760 --> 00:05:16,760 In love he predestined us for adoption to 136 00:05:16,760 --> 00:05:19,760 himself as sons through Jesus Christ 137 00:05:19,760 --> 00:05:23,760 according to the purpose of his will to the 138 00:05:23,760 --> 00:05:26,760 praise and glorious grace with which he has 139 00:05:26,760 --> 00:05:29,760 blessed us in the beloved meaning in Christ. 140 00:05:29,760 --> 00:05:32,760 So something I want all of us to see this 141 00:05:32,760 --> 00:05:35,760 morning is that you and I were destined to 142 00:05:35,760 --> 00:05:40,760 be adopted by God by God as Father us a 143 00:05:40,760 --> 00:05:43,760 fallen people as we talked about last week 144 00:05:43,760 --> 00:05:46,760 we all sinners in need of a Savior but 145 00:05:46,760 --> 00:05:49,760 before all of that we are brought in to the 146 00:05:49,760 --> 00:05:52,760 family of God regardless of the families 147 00:05:52,760 --> 00:05:54,760 you grew up in. 148 00:05:54,760 --> 00:05:56,760 Maybe you grew up in a church I know for a 149 00:05:56,760 --> 00:05:58,760 lot of our families they're church families 150 00:05:58,760 --> 00:06:00,760 the mom and dad grew up in the church the 151 00:06:00,760 --> 00:06:01,760 kids are going to grow up in the church. 152 00:06:01,760 --> 00:06:03,760 Lord willing their kids will grow up in the 153 00:06:03,760 --> 00:06:05,760 church and it will be a generation of church 154 00:06:05,760 --> 00:06:09,760 family but that isn't all of us that's not 155 00:06:09,760 --> 00:06:11,760 all of our stories for some of you you are 156 00:06:11,760 --> 00:06:13,760 the first churchgoers in your family being 157 00:06:13,760 --> 00:06:15,760 brought into the family of God but 158 00:06:15,760 --> 00:06:19,760 understand that scripture tells us that you 159 00:06:19,760 --> 00:06:22,760 and I were destined for adoption by the 160 00:06:22,760 --> 00:06:27,760 Father a fallen nothing people were destined 161 00:06:27,760 --> 00:06:32,760 for adoption and if we sit on that just for 162 00:06:32,760 --> 00:06:37,760 a minute it really should cause a lot of 163 00:06:37,760 --> 00:06:41,760 emotion in us a lot of maybe what we saw in 164 00:06:41,760 --> 00:06:43,760 the little girl on the clip but that 165 00:06:43,760 --> 00:06:45,760 knowing that we were destined for adoption 166 00:06:45,760 --> 00:06:48,760 means that the family system that we grew 167 00:06:48,760 --> 00:06:50,760 up in the family system that we were born 168 00:06:50,760 --> 00:06:52,760 in the family of system that goes all the 169 00:06:52,760 --> 00:06:54,760 way back you know to our great great great 170 00:06:54,760 --> 00:06:57,760 great great great grandparents Adam and 171 00:06:57,760 --> 00:07:00,760 Eve right if we go back to that that there's 172 00:07:00,760 --> 00:07:03,760 a brokenness in our family system and a 173 00:07:03,760 --> 00:07:07,760 system that we needed that wholeness and we 174 00:07:07,760 --> 00:07:09,760 weren't going to get it in of ourselves we 175 00:07:09,760 --> 00:07:11,760 weren't going to get it in and of of our 176 00:07:11,760 --> 00:07:13,760 families we weren't going to get it if we 177 00:07:13,760 --> 00:07:15,760 just kind of followed that line of Adam and 178 00:07:15,760 --> 00:07:18,760 Eve that something needed to be done a process 179 00:07:18,760 --> 00:07:21,760 needed to take over and that is the process 180 00:07:21,760 --> 00:07:25,760 of adoption and there's a lot about adoption 181 00:07:25,760 --> 00:07:27,760 in both the Old Testament and the New 182 00:07:27,760 --> 00:07:30,760 Testament a couple just snippets of this is 183 00:07:30,760 --> 00:07:33,760 that God selects Abraham right out of the 184 00:07:33,760 --> 00:07:35,760 people of the earth to make a covenant with 185 00:07:35,760 --> 00:07:38,760 him that selection process that adoption 186 00:07:38,760 --> 00:07:41,760 process was seen in Genesis 12. Deuteronomy 187 00:07:41,760 --> 00:07:44,760 7 the Old Testament Israelites are God's 188 00:07:44,760 --> 00:07:47,760 chosen people. Jumping a little bit in the 189 00:07:47,760 --> 00:07:49,760 New Testament in the Old Testament 1 Samuel 190 00:07:49,760 --> 00:07:52,760 16 when Israel desired a human king which 191 00:07:52,760 --> 00:07:54,760 we learned about a couple years ago in three 192 00:07:54,760 --> 00:07:57,760 kings which they had God they had Yahweh 193 00:07:57,760 --> 00:07:59,760 they had but they looked around and said we 194 00:07:59,760 --> 00:08:01,760 don't have what all these other groups have 195 00:08:01,760 --> 00:08:03,760 they have human kings we want a human king 196 00:08:03,760 --> 00:08:06,760 God intervened sent a prophet Samuel to anoint 197 00:08:06,760 --> 00:08:10,760 his chosen. John 15 Jesus specifically 198 00:08:10,760 --> 00:08:13,760 selects his apostles and disciples. Second 199 00:08:13,760 --> 00:08:16,760 Thessalonians Paul exhorts to many churches 200 00:08:16,760 --> 00:08:19,760 that they were chosen by God. First or 201 00:08:19,760 --> 00:08:22,760 second Peter 1 Peter reminds us of our 202 00:08:22,760 --> 00:08:26,760 election and our calling by God himself. Now 203 00:08:26,760 --> 00:08:29,760 a note on that word election we're going to 204 00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:32,760 talk more about that next week but a lot of 205 00:08:32,760 --> 00:08:34,760 times in reform circles which we are reform 206 00:08:34,760 --> 00:08:38,760 church we can use that as kind of like a 207 00:08:38,760 --> 00:08:42,760 status symbol and we learn this in the whose 208 00:08:42,760 --> 00:08:44,760 sermon is it anyway when we talked about 209 00:08:44,760 --> 00:08:48,760 infrolapsarianism and all of the superlapsarianism 210 00:08:48,760 --> 00:08:50,760 that a lot of times people look at this idea 211 00:08:50,760 --> 00:08:53,760 that we are God's elect as some kind of status 212 00:08:53,760 --> 00:08:57,760 symbol and in my opinion you're missing it. 213 00:08:57,760 --> 00:09:00,760 We were elected by God because we needed to 214 00:09:00,760 --> 00:09:04,760 be. It was nothing that we did right when he 215 00:09:04,760 --> 00:09:06,760 called the Israelites he said you're a nothing 216 00:09:06,760 --> 00:09:08,760 people you are stiff neck meaning you're 217 00:09:08,760 --> 00:09:10,760 that's biblical word for stubborn right you 218 00:09:10,760 --> 00:09:13,760 are a stubborn people you were enslaved and 219 00:09:13,760 --> 00:09:17,760 now I'm going to make you mine and a lot of 220 00:09:17,760 --> 00:09:19,760 times we like to claim that ownership and we 221 00:09:19,760 --> 00:09:22,760 do it in a very inappropriate way we need to 222 00:09:22,760 --> 00:09:25,760 do that in a very humble way that we are 223 00:09:25,760 --> 00:09:28,760 humbled by the fact that God chose someone like 224 00:09:28,760 --> 00:09:32,760 me God chose someone like you sinners. He didn't 225 00:09:32,760 --> 00:09:35,760 have to he could have created a holy people 226 00:09:35,760 --> 00:09:37,760 you could have said no they're already holy I'm 227 00:09:37,760 --> 00:09:39,760 going to choose them they're going to be the 228 00:09:39,760 --> 00:09:43,760 A team but he doesn't he chooses us out of 229 00:09:43,760 --> 00:09:47,760 nothing but pure love for us and then Matthew 230 00:09:47,760 --> 00:09:50,760 24 Jesus refers to the elect and how they will 231 00:09:50,760 --> 00:09:55,760 fare in the end days. So this idea of election 232 00:09:55,760 --> 00:09:59,760 can be very confusing it's been debated between 233 00:09:59,760 --> 00:10:02,760 you know you're kind of more Baptist more 234 00:10:02,760 --> 00:10:04,760 reformed Armenian thoughts there is so much 235 00:10:04,760 --> 00:10:09,760 debate about what this means and I I'm not one 236 00:10:09,760 --> 00:10:11,760 to debate this I think it's kind of a fruitless 237 00:10:11,760 --> 00:10:14,760 debate as far as whether we were elected or 238 00:10:14,760 --> 00:10:17,760 chosen or not because it says it many times we 239 00:10:17,760 --> 00:10:20,760 just went through six examples seven examples 240 00:10:20,760 --> 00:10:24,760 but there's many more that God chose you and me 241 00:10:24,760 --> 00:10:28,760 great let's just let that be our starting point 242 00:10:28,760 --> 00:10:31,760 allow that to be our identifier in this world 243 00:10:31,760 --> 00:10:34,760 because what it shows all of us is that we have 244 00:10:34,760 --> 00:10:37,760 a job to do and that we need to do it in a 245 00:10:37,760 --> 00:10:41,760 certain way that if God has chosen us if God has 246 00:10:41,760 --> 00:10:44,760 elected us to be his people not because we were 247 00:10:44,760 --> 00:10:48,760 the A team but we were the C team and he said out 248 00:10:48,760 --> 00:10:52,760 of you the world will know that I am Yahweh 249 00:10:52,760 --> 00:10:56,760 because he's going to work through us really in 250 00:10:56,760 --> 00:10:59,760 spite of us so a question could easily come out 251 00:10:59,760 --> 00:11:04,760 how do I know if I am chosen how do I know if I 252 00:11:04,760 --> 00:11:07,760 am part of the elect maybe you're coming here this 253 00:11:07,760 --> 00:11:11,760 morning go I did some bad stuff this past week I 254 00:11:11,760 --> 00:11:14,760 don't think I think I lost the election right I 255 00:11:14,760 --> 00:11:17,760 think I lost what God if God has called me I I've 256 00:11:17,760 --> 00:11:21,760 run from him every day this week I knew I was 257 00:11:21,760 --> 00:11:23,760 supposed to do that I knew I was supposed to say 258 00:11:23,760 --> 00:11:26,760 that I knew I wasn't supposed to do that and I 259 00:11:26,760 --> 00:11:28,760 decided not to do I was supposed to do and do the 260 00:11:28,760 --> 00:11:31,760 thing that I knew I was not supposed to do I think 261 00:11:31,760 --> 00:11:33,760 that makes sense I think you got it and 262 00:11:33,760 --> 00:11:36,760 understanding that we need to understand 263 00:11:36,760 --> 00:11:39,760 something else and it comes from Romans 8 for all 264 00:11:39,760 --> 00:11:41,760 who are led by the Spirit of God our sons or 265 00:11:41,760 --> 00:11:45,760 daughters of God for you did not receive the 266 00:11:45,760 --> 00:11:49,760 spirit of slavery to fall back into fear but you 267 00:11:49,760 --> 00:11:52,760 have received the spirit of adoption as sons who 268 00:11:52,760 --> 00:11:57,760 cry out Abba father the spirit himself bears 269 00:11:57,760 --> 00:12:02,760 witness to our spirit that we are children of God 270 00:12:02,760 --> 00:12:05,760 and if children then heirs heirs of God and 271 00:12:05,760 --> 00:12:09,760 fellow heirs with Christ provided we suffer with 272 00:12:09,760 --> 00:12:15,760 him in order that we may be glorified with him 273 00:12:15,760 --> 00:12:19,760 so there is something going on despite any one of 274 00:12:19,760 --> 00:12:24,760 us that God is at work the spirit is at work in 275 00:12:24,760 --> 00:12:27,760 each and every one of you that God is saving and 276 00:12:27,760 --> 00:12:32,760 adopting to bring his family for eternity and our 277 00:12:32,760 --> 00:12:37,760 role is to point people to him that our 278 00:12:37,760 --> 00:12:40,760 understanding in life should be being part of the 279 00:12:40,760 --> 00:12:43,760 family of God is the greatest thing that we are 280 00:12:43,760 --> 00:12:47,760 going to have in our life now I can say that I can 281 00:12:47,760 --> 00:12:50,760 put that on the table and then I can ask and I am 282 00:12:50,760 --> 00:12:53,760 asking myself first how many of us think about 283 00:12:53,760 --> 00:12:57,760 that that I am in the family of faith that I am in 284 00:12:57,760 --> 00:13:00,760 the family of God that I have been adopted into 285 00:13:00,760 --> 00:13:04,760 this family not because I bring anything to it but 286 00:13:04,760 --> 00:13:09,760 because I need to be think about if that little girl 287 00:13:09,760 --> 00:13:13,760 was never adopted that maybe she went to foster 288 00:13:13,760 --> 00:13:16,760 home to foster home maybe she had the interviews 289 00:13:16,760 --> 00:13:20,760 and kind of all the intricacy that is that adoption 290 00:13:20,760 --> 00:13:24,760 process and no one ever took her then she became 291 00:13:24,760 --> 00:13:27,760 eighteen seventeen in some states and just became a 292 00:13:27,760 --> 00:13:32,760 product of the state and never had a family kind of 293 00:13:32,760 --> 00:13:37,760 DNA if you will was never given that her life would 294 00:13:37,760 --> 00:13:40,760 be drastically different and what if the same went 295 00:13:40,760 --> 00:13:43,760 for us with God that if God looked at each and every 296 00:13:43,760 --> 00:13:47,760 one of us right 260 people here this morning like 297 00:13:47,760 --> 00:13:51,760 what if God weighed your life and said I don't think 298 00:13:51,760 --> 00:13:56,760 you measure up friends I love you but none of us 299 00:13:56,760 --> 00:13:59,760 would get in if on our own merit if on our own way 300 00:13:59,760 --> 00:14:02,760 of life and our own way of doing our own thing none 301 00:14:02,760 --> 00:14:09,760 of us would be in that the spirit is the one at work 302 00:14:09,760 --> 00:14:12,760 but you have received the spirit of adoption as sons 303 00:14:12,760 --> 00:14:19,760 by whom we cry Abba father friends this is really 304 00:14:19,760 --> 00:14:23,760 good news yet it can be tough for some of us this 305 00:14:23,760 --> 00:14:26,760 morning and I want to touch on this a little bit 306 00:14:26,760 --> 00:14:30,760 because some of you your families have not played 307 00:14:30,760 --> 00:14:34,760 out in a positive way that sometimes when you bring 308 00:14:34,760 --> 00:14:37,760 up this idea of adoption or family there is a part 309 00:14:37,760 --> 00:14:40,760 of us that really cringe because our family life 310 00:14:40,760 --> 00:14:45,760 either past or present is not going well well pastor 311 00:14:45,760 --> 00:14:48,760 you say that being part of the family of God is the 312 00:14:48,760 --> 00:14:51,760 greatest thing but being in my family right now is 313 00:14:51,760 --> 00:14:56,760 not so I have no idea how to receive it I have no 314 00:14:56,760 --> 00:15:00,760 idea how to receive what positive family vibes or 315 00:15:00,760 --> 00:15:05,760 whatever it is means because I don't have it and friend 316 00:15:05,760 --> 00:15:08,760 to that I say I am sorry about what you are going 317 00:15:08,760 --> 00:15:11,760 through today or what you may have gone through 318 00:15:11,760 --> 00:15:15,760 yesterday but understanding that the family of God 319 00:15:15,760 --> 00:15:21,760 being brought in means so much and it has nothing to 320 00:15:21,760 --> 00:15:24,760 do with the family systems you were brought up in 321 00:15:24,760 --> 00:15:28,760 this is God doing all the work adopting you into a 322 00:15:28,760 --> 00:15:34,760 forever family that sometimes we need to shed those 323 00:15:34,760 --> 00:15:37,760 systems that we were brought up in or those systems 324 00:15:37,760 --> 00:15:40,760 that maybe we currently have and asking God to bring 325 00:15:40,760 --> 00:15:44,760 about a reconciliation to bring about that wholeness 326 00:15:44,760 --> 00:15:50,760 so to help us understand this morning this forever 327 00:15:50,760 --> 00:15:55,760 nature of God's adoption a pastor that I follow and 328 00:15:55,760 --> 00:15:58,760 read a lot John Piper kind of does a nice breakdown 329 00:15:58,760 --> 00:16:00,760 and so I use some of his points along with some of my 330 00:16:00,760 --> 00:16:03,760 own today to help us look at God's adoption in the 331 00:16:03,760 --> 00:16:07,760 right light because there are some of you and I still 332 00:16:07,760 --> 00:16:10,760 kind of feel this way a little bit I don't like this 333 00:16:10,760 --> 00:16:13,760 you know I kind of want to do this on my own any of you 334 00:16:13,760 --> 00:16:16,760 that have ever had kids any of you that have ever been 335 00:16:16,760 --> 00:16:19,760 aunts or uncles or whatever that senior kids grow one 336 00:16:19,760 --> 00:16:23,760 of the most beautiful yet frustrating sides of having 337 00:16:23,760 --> 00:16:28,760 kids is when they develop independence because when 338 00:16:28,760 --> 00:16:31,760 they develop independence it's usually not at the 339 00:16:31,760 --> 00:16:34,760 right times and usually not around about the right 340 00:16:34,760 --> 00:16:37,760 things that's when they start asking and actually mean 341 00:16:37,760 --> 00:16:42,760 that three word that comes from the pit of hell why 342 00:16:42,760 --> 00:16:45,760 that when we give those commands and our kids look at 343 00:16:45,760 --> 00:16:50,760 me and say well why or when all of a sudden it's like 344 00:16:50,760 --> 00:16:53,760 hey it's time for bed and they throw at you well it's 345 00:16:53,760 --> 00:16:59,760 not a school night this isn't debatable it's time for 346 00:16:59,760 --> 00:17:04,760 bed you get your butt in bed but yet as that independence 347 00:17:04,760 --> 00:17:06,760 is starting all of a sudden that independence can 348 00:17:06,760 --> 00:17:10,760 easily turn into defiance and again we always want our 349 00:17:10,760 --> 00:17:13,760 kids to be able to question and learn and go deeper but 350 00:17:13,760 --> 00:17:16,760 at some times you just want them to be quiet and go to 351 00:17:16,760 --> 00:17:20,760 bed and the same thing happens with us in faith and a 352 00:17:20,760 --> 00:17:24,760 lot of us myself included we do this with God God calls 353 00:17:24,760 --> 00:17:28,760 us to do this or God calls us to do that and we ask God 354 00:17:28,760 --> 00:17:31,760 the creator of the universe that same three letter 355 00:17:31,760 --> 00:17:37,760 question why and God can easily say because I'm God 356 00:17:37,760 --> 00:17:43,760 you're not so just do it and even some of us then are 357 00:17:43,760 --> 00:17:49,760 like well prove to me why I have to do this poof gone 358 00:17:49,760 --> 00:17:53,760 God could do that he's not Zeus right but he could he 359 00:17:53,760 --> 00:17:58,760 could easily do that he could say oh you of little faith 360 00:17:58,760 --> 00:18:01,760 why are you doubting me but he doesn't because he has 361 00:18:01,760 --> 00:18:04,760 adopted us into his family and he has taken on that 362 00:18:04,760 --> 00:18:10,760 father role in our life and for us to understand why we 363 00:18:10,760 --> 00:18:14,760 have been adopted what that means for our life we have 364 00:18:14,760 --> 00:18:18,760 to understand a couple things about adoption the first 365 00:18:18,760 --> 00:18:21,760 and this is kind of a link though I have walked with 366 00:18:21,760 --> 00:18:24,760 families that have gone through adoption or people that 367 00:18:24,760 --> 00:18:27,760 have been adopted that has never been anything that 368 00:18:27,760 --> 00:18:31,760 kind of either my family both immediate and extended 369 00:18:31,760 --> 00:18:34,760 have never really done my wife's family not really 370 00:18:34,760 --> 00:18:37,760 either we love when families do that we love the 371 00:18:37,760 --> 00:18:40,760 stories that we hear you know and when you bring on a 372 00:18:40,760 --> 00:18:43,760 dog it is not the same thing and so I'm sorry if you're 373 00:18:43,760 --> 00:18:46,760 offended by that but it's not but understand that there 374 00:18:46,760 --> 00:18:50,760 is a process to adoption and the first is we need to 375 00:18:50,760 --> 00:18:55,760 count the cost of adoption Galatians 4 4 and 5 say this 376 00:18:55,760 --> 00:18:59,760 but when the fullness of time had come God sent forth 377 00:18:59,760 --> 00:19:03,760 his son born of a woman born under the law to redeem 378 00:19:03,760 --> 00:19:06,760 those who were under the law so that meet we might be 379 00:19:06,760 --> 00:19:11,760 received as adopted sons so the idea of redeeming here 380 00:19:11,760 --> 00:19:15,760 tells us that something or someone has set us free into 381 00:19:15,760 --> 00:19:20,760 this family by paying a price now to go through an 382 00:19:20,760 --> 00:19:24,760 adoption process isn't free it costs now in the world 383 00:19:24,760 --> 00:19:27,760 today it costs money and it costs time and kind of 384 00:19:27,760 --> 00:19:30,760 authority and there's courts and legal system and all of 385 00:19:30,760 --> 00:19:35,760 that but when God adopted us it came at a cost you and 386 00:19:35,760 --> 00:19:38,760 I were redeemed by God but because he paid that ultimate 387 00:19:38,760 --> 00:19:43,760 price God said I love this group of sinners I want them 388 00:19:43,760 --> 00:19:49,760 to be a part of my family but in order to fulfill the law 389 00:19:49,760 --> 00:19:53,760 a debt had to be paid a penalty needed to be made clean 390 00:19:53,760 --> 00:20:00,760 and that was the death of his son that Christ died so we 391 00:20:00,760 --> 00:20:06,760 could have eternal relationship with God so let me ask if 392 00:20:06,760 --> 00:20:08,760 you're here this morning you're a mom a dad a grandma 393 00:20:08,760 --> 00:20:12,760 and grandpa an aunt or an uncle and in order to get your 394 00:20:12,760 --> 00:20:17,760 family out of a debt you needed to give up one of your 395 00:20:17,760 --> 00:20:21,760 children grandchildren niece or nephew their life in order 396 00:20:21,760 --> 00:20:27,760 to make it right could any of us do it my guess is no and 397 00:20:27,760 --> 00:20:30,760 if you said yes right away I think we probably need to 398 00:20:30,760 --> 00:20:33,760 have a conversation and so I have office hours on Tuesday 399 00:20:33,760 --> 00:20:37,760 and Wednesday but understand kind of what's going on here 400 00:20:37,760 --> 00:20:41,760 God knew this was going to happen God knew that the need 401 00:20:41,760 --> 00:20:46,760 for a penalty a need for a death was going to have to 402 00:20:46,760 --> 00:20:49,760 take place so we could be the adopted sons and daughters 403 00:20:49,760 --> 00:20:56,760 of God he was counting the cost and Jesus' life paid our 404 00:20:56,760 --> 00:21:02,760 debts the penalty for our sin so there's a legality of 405 00:21:02,760 --> 00:21:05,760 adoption and so we're going to continue on in verse 6 so 406 00:21:05,760 --> 00:21:09,760 we have Galatians 4, 4 and 5 I just read but verse 6 says 407 00:21:09,760 --> 00:21:13,760 and because you are sons God has sent the spirit of his 408 00:21:13,760 --> 00:21:19,760 son into our hearts crying Abba Father you see there's a 409 00:21:19,760 --> 00:21:23,760 legality there's a righteousness that comes to being a part 410 00:21:23,760 --> 00:21:27,760 of the family of God that when Christ died on the cross his 411 00:21:27,760 --> 00:21:31,760 righteousness were given to us imputed is the theological 412 00:21:31,760 --> 00:21:35,760 term placed over us because there was no good in us to be 413 00:21:35,760 --> 00:21:39,760 in the family of God none of us were good enough to be 414 00:21:39,760 --> 00:21:43,760 righteous enough to be in the family of God righteousness 415 00:21:43,760 --> 00:21:49,760 was required for this process because of the legal realities 416 00:21:49,760 --> 00:21:53,760 of the law that God created those and those needed to be 417 00:21:53,760 --> 00:21:57,760 justified and dealt with the law demanded that we would be 418 00:21:57,760 --> 00:22:00,760 punished because of sin and we would be excluded from the 419 00:22:00,760 --> 00:22:05,760 presence of our Father of the creator because of that sin 420 00:22:05,760 --> 00:22:10,760 that in our sin we cannot be in right relationship with God 421 00:22:10,760 --> 00:22:14,760 think about that in your day to day that if you are living 422 00:22:14,760 --> 00:22:20,760 your life and even linking a pinky with active sin that we 423 00:22:20,760 --> 00:22:25,760 cannot be in the presence of God and a lot of times we 424 00:22:25,760 --> 00:22:29,760 struggle with that because we're saved so if we're saved 425 00:22:29,760 --> 00:22:32,760 and some of us once saved always saved and all this stuff 426 00:22:32,760 --> 00:22:35,760 that we can just kind of play in the playground of sin and 427 00:22:35,760 --> 00:22:38,760 think that God is going to just forgive us because you know 428 00:22:38,760 --> 00:22:43,760 what that's what a dad does that's called cheap grace 429 00:22:43,760 --> 00:22:48,760 that's not understanding what happened you see work needs to 430 00:22:48,760 --> 00:22:53,760 be done by the spirit to work in our hearts to be convicted 431 00:22:53,760 --> 00:22:57,760 that if you are living today a life of sin and there is zero 432 00:22:57,760 --> 00:23:01,760 conviction going on in your heart then I would ask that you 433 00:23:01,760 --> 00:23:08,760 do intake on your relationship with God. 434 00:23:08,760 --> 00:23:11,760 A lot of you know because I talk about it most Sundays that 435 00:23:11,760 --> 00:23:14,760 Carrie and I we have three boys right and if they were 436 00:23:14,760 --> 00:23:18,760 constantly okay with just sinning against mom and dad I 437 00:23:18,760 --> 00:23:21,760 don't think anybody would look at that relationship and go 438 00:23:21,760 --> 00:23:26,760 parent of the year no that there is an understanding when 439 00:23:26,760 --> 00:23:29,760 something is broken it needs to be fixed when laws are broken 440 00:23:29,760 --> 00:23:31,760 or I mean maybe not laws we don't call that in the 441 00:23:31,760 --> 00:23:34,760 holland owner house but understand when rules are broken 442 00:23:34,760 --> 00:23:38,760 there needs to be a conversation at times there needs to be 443 00:23:38,760 --> 00:23:42,760 a punishment that there needs to be a reconciliation this is 444 00:23:42,760 --> 00:23:47,760 the legality of sin and this is something that God did for all 445 00:23:47,760 --> 00:23:52,760 of us. 446 00:23:52,760 --> 00:23:56,760 Think about the process without the cross if the spirit 447 00:23:56,760 --> 00:24:02,760 wasn't there to regenerate a fallen person's heart then the 448 00:24:02,760 --> 00:24:06,760 bounty of sin would just be all over their life and maybe you 449 00:24:06,760 --> 00:24:10,760 know those people maybe you know those people that claim to be 450 00:24:10,760 --> 00:24:14,760 Christians but then live out a life that is very contradictory 451 00:24:14,760 --> 00:24:19,760 to the Bible and sometimes they preface it with this idea of 452 00:24:19,760 --> 00:24:24,760 love that you know what as a believer I am called to love 453 00:24:24,760 --> 00:24:27,760 even if you are sinning I am going to love you but there is 454 00:24:27,760 --> 00:24:32,760 an opportunity for all of us to say but hey you got to follow 455 00:24:32,760 --> 00:24:36,760 dad better we all know people like that because we all are 456 00:24:36,760 --> 00:24:39,760 like that because I am sure there are people that can say 457 00:24:39,760 --> 00:24:44,760 the same thing about us and hey I hear you I hear that you are 458 00:24:44,760 --> 00:24:49,760 a believer but I don't see this you seem to be okay with this 459 00:24:49,760 --> 00:24:54,760 how does that work it is saying that you love God yet in your 460 00:24:54,760 --> 00:24:59,760 actions you don't right it is like saying man I love my wife 461 00:24:59,760 --> 00:25:03,760 when is the last time you talk to her I don't know it has been 462 00:25:03,760 --> 00:25:06,760 a minute really when is the last time you spend time with her 463 00:25:06,760 --> 00:25:11,760 I don't know I try not to this is an example this is not 464 00:25:11,760 --> 00:25:17,760 actual you can ask my wife I am obsessed but understand that 465 00:25:17,760 --> 00:25:21,760 people in faith do the same thing now this isn't to brow beat 466 00:25:21,760 --> 00:25:25,760 any of you but for some people it is why I love the Lord I just 467 00:25:25,760 --> 00:25:31,760 don't go to church why we are called to be in the fellowship 468 00:25:31,760 --> 00:25:34,760 of believers we are called to come and fellowship and I know 469 00:25:34,760 --> 00:25:37,760 some of you are rolling your eyes because it is a pastor 470 00:25:37,760 --> 00:25:40,760 saying this and my livelihood comes out of this church but I 471 00:25:40,760 --> 00:25:44,760 think I would say that if I was a car salesman which I think I 472 00:25:44,760 --> 00:25:49,760 would be good at but understand that part of when we say that 473 00:25:49,760 --> 00:25:54,760 we love God but we don't act like it there is a contradictory 474 00:25:54,760 --> 00:25:59,760 there that doesn't work and understanding that we don't have 475 00:25:59,760 --> 00:26:03,760 an understanding of the adoption process if we don't learn from 476 00:26:03,760 --> 00:26:07,760 that we don't grow from that because the adoption of God is 477 00:26:07,760 --> 00:26:11,760 the beginning of the transformation in our life I 478 00:26:11,760 --> 00:26:14,760 guarantee you that little girl was never the same when her 479 00:26:14,760 --> 00:26:17,760 forever family was established that she is now a part of 480 00:26:17,760 --> 00:26:22,760 something she went from being lost to found she is from being 481 00:26:22,760 --> 00:26:27,760 a kind of an individual in no man's land to a family that is 482 00:26:27,760 --> 00:26:30,760 powerful and that is the transformational process of 483 00:26:30,760 --> 00:26:34,760 adoption Romans 814 for all who are led by the spirit of God our 484 00:26:34,760 --> 00:26:39,760 sons and daughters of God as we live as sons and daughters of 485 00:26:39,760 --> 00:26:43,760 God God doesn't leave us without the help to bear the attacks of 486 00:26:43,760 --> 00:26:49,760 our own selves maybe you have this I don't think we have yet to 487 00:26:49,760 --> 00:26:51,760 have this in our family but it is probably coming like a freight 488 00:26:51,760 --> 00:26:56,760 train because I know I did it I remember I did not want to 489 00:26:56,760 --> 00:27:00,760 practice my French horn and my mom told me that I had to and I 490 00:27:00,760 --> 00:27:04,760 said in my mind I am going to run away I am going to run away 491 00:27:04,760 --> 00:27:07,760 because I do not want to practice my French horn I say this out 492 00:27:07,760 --> 00:27:11,760 loud I am going this is a terrible example so what did I 493 00:27:11,760 --> 00:27:16,760 do I left a note I broke my French horn and I got a couple 494 00:27:16,760 --> 00:27:20,760 granola bars and I went to a I went don't be shocked I did not 495 00:27:20,760 --> 00:27:26,760 like crack it in half I just undid the valves it is a terrible 496 00:27:26,760 --> 00:27:30,760 thing and I went a block away and said I was going to live in 497 00:27:30,760 --> 00:27:36,760 this tunnel slide at a park I was home in 45 minutes because I 498 00:27:36,760 --> 00:27:39,760 had eaten all the granola bars I drank the Capri Suns and I 499 00:27:39,760 --> 00:27:44,760 thought I was going to die you are like wow Pastor Jim soft and 500 00:27:44,760 --> 00:27:48,760 you are right but understand that you probably maybe have had 501 00:27:48,760 --> 00:27:51,760 that in your family or your situation with your kids or 502 00:27:51,760 --> 00:27:53,760 someone in your family well I don't want to be in your family 503 00:27:53,760 --> 00:27:58,760 anymore friends we say that to God all the time when we choose 504 00:27:58,760 --> 00:28:02,760 to actively sin that is what we are saying to our parent the one 505 00:28:02,760 --> 00:28:04,760 that brought us in the one that did the work that is what we 506 00:28:04,760 --> 00:28:09,760 are actually saying so one of the final one of the last things 507 00:28:09,760 --> 00:28:13,760 I want to bring up today is do you love the fact that you have 508 00:28:13,760 --> 00:28:18,760 a forever family do you love the fact that God the father of 509 00:28:18,760 --> 00:28:22,760 you and me has brought us into his family and what he asked for 510 00:28:22,760 --> 00:28:29,760 us is to point people to him or are you just like oh I don't 511 00:28:29,760 --> 00:28:37,760 want to do that well then friends I think what we are I think we 512 00:28:37,760 --> 00:28:41,760 struggle with that then I don't think we fully get it then what 513 00:28:41,760 --> 00:28:49,760 it means to be in God's forever family because there is 514 00:28:49,760 --> 00:28:53,760 something that we have to remember at the end and it is the 515 00:28:53,760 --> 00:28:58,760 inheritance of adoption Galatians 4 says and because you 516 00:28:58,760 --> 00:29:03,760 are sons God has sent the spirit of his son into our hearts 517 00:29:03,760 --> 00:29:08,760 crying Abba father so you are no longer a slave but a son and 518 00:29:08,760 --> 00:29:13,760 if a son then an heir through God then Romans 8 says the spirit 519 00:29:13,760 --> 00:29:17,760 himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of 520 00:29:17,760 --> 00:29:22,760 God and if children then heirs heirs of God and fellow heirs 521 00:29:22,760 --> 00:29:26,760 with Christ provided we suffer with him in order that we may 522 00:29:26,760 --> 00:29:32,760 also be glorified with him. 523 00:29:32,760 --> 00:29:35,760 I am not sure how many of you have made up wills in your 524 00:29:35,760 --> 00:29:40,760 family but when we started having kids we had a brother in 525 00:29:40,760 --> 00:29:42,760 law who does insurance and we did the whole life insurance 526 00:29:42,760 --> 00:29:45,760 thing and we knew we were going to need a will because a will 527 00:29:45,760 --> 00:29:50,760 helps figure things out when mom and dad are gone and as a 528 00:29:50,760 --> 00:29:53,760 pastor I have sat down in contentious meetings when all 529 00:29:53,760 --> 00:29:56,760 of a sudden a family member is gone and it is all about what 530 00:29:56,760 --> 00:29:59,760 am I going to get. 531 00:29:59,760 --> 00:30:03,760 I have stories I am not going to do too many to name and to 532 00:30:03,760 --> 00:30:07,760 recount right now but they have been really ugly that you have 533 00:30:07,760 --> 00:30:10,760 people that are just waiting for mom and dad or uncle Remus to 534 00:30:10,760 --> 00:30:15,760 die so you can get all of the stuff because there is a 535 00:30:15,760 --> 00:30:20,760 conversation around adoption that has to do with inheritance 536 00:30:20,760 --> 00:30:23,760 and for some of you you know what you are going to get. 537 00:30:23,760 --> 00:30:25,760 You are going to get a hug. 538 00:30:25,760 --> 00:30:27,760 You are going to get a high five or maybe you got her eyes. 539 00:30:27,760 --> 00:30:31,760 I don't care but understand not physically but that you look 540 00:30:31,760 --> 00:30:33,760 like them just so we understand. 541 00:30:33,760 --> 00:30:35,760 Hopefully when someone dies you are not given eyeballs. 542 00:30:35,760 --> 00:30:37,760 That is weird. 543 00:30:37,760 --> 00:30:40,760 But understand that we are inheriting something being a 544 00:30:40,760 --> 00:30:42,760 part of God's family. 545 00:30:42,760 --> 00:30:45,760 That being a part of the family of God there is an inheritance 546 00:30:45,760 --> 00:30:49,760 and you want to know what the inheritance is and allow this 547 00:30:49,760 --> 00:30:51,760 to blow your mind as my mind is blown. 548 00:30:51,760 --> 00:30:58,760 Our inheritance from God is forever. 549 00:30:58,760 --> 00:31:00,760 For eternity. 550 00:31:00,760 --> 00:31:06,760 Eternity with God is our inheritance. 551 00:31:06,760 --> 00:31:10,760 And for maybe 11% of us we are like yeah I think I would like 552 00:31:10,760 --> 00:31:11,760 money. 553 00:31:11,760 --> 00:31:15,760 No you don't because that will pass away. 554 00:31:15,760 --> 00:31:19,760 The inheritance we get from being adopted by God is a 555 00:31:19,760 --> 00:31:24,760 forever eternal life with God in heaven. 556 00:31:24,760 --> 00:31:28,760 If that doesn't blow your mind, if that doesn't excite you, 557 00:31:28,760 --> 00:31:32,760 I am sorry but you might be dead inside or you might not fully 558 00:31:32,760 --> 00:31:36,760 understand because what you are doing is living for however many 559 00:31:36,760 --> 00:31:40,760 years you have on this earth. 560 00:31:40,760 --> 00:31:46,760 Friend, that is a speck of sand on the beaches of the dunes. 561 00:31:46,760 --> 00:31:53,760 That the inheritance we get is everlasting life with God. 562 00:31:53,760 --> 00:31:58,760 And I don't know about you but that is good news. 563 00:31:58,760 --> 00:32:03,760 But here is the thing and we will get more to this next week. 564 00:32:03,760 --> 00:32:07,760 As we go through this life we will suffer. 565 00:32:07,760 --> 00:32:12,760 There will be groaning, Romans 8 and I close with this says this. 566 00:32:12,760 --> 00:32:16,760 For now we know that the whole creation has been groaning 567 00:32:16,760 --> 00:32:19,760 together in the pains of childbirth until now. 568 00:32:19,760 --> 00:32:23,760 And not only the creation but we ourselves who have the first 569 00:32:23,760 --> 00:32:28,760 fruits of the spirit groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for 570 00:32:28,760 --> 00:32:32,760 adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 571 00:32:32,760 --> 00:32:36,760 Paul reminds us that there is pain in the adoption path. 572 00:32:36,760 --> 00:32:39,760 In the process. 573 00:32:39,760 --> 00:32:41,760 John Piper writes this. 574 00:32:41,760 --> 00:32:47,760 That for some of us who have kids or maybe adopted kids or family. 575 00:32:47,760 --> 00:32:51,760 That we are going to go through situations in your family and in 576 00:32:51,760 --> 00:32:57,760 the family of God where we won't be able to see that life continue 577 00:32:57,760 --> 00:33:01,760 because we will lose kids in the process. 578 00:33:01,760 --> 00:33:04,760 John Piper writes, whether adopted or not, 579 00:33:04,760 --> 00:33:10,760 watching your kids hurt, paralyzed or even die, there are groans. 580 00:33:10,760 --> 00:33:14,760 In this life we were told all these things will happen but that 581 00:33:14,760 --> 00:33:17,760 does not stop the adoption of the individual. 582 00:33:17,760 --> 00:33:22,760 No, we know the best is yet to come. 583 00:33:22,760 --> 00:33:25,760 There is much groaning in the path of adoption on the way to full 584 00:33:25,760 --> 00:33:27,760 salvation, Piper says. 585 00:33:27,760 --> 00:33:29,760 But the outcome is glorious. 586 00:33:29,760 --> 00:33:31,760 It is well worth it. 587 00:33:31,760 --> 00:33:34,760 This is especially relevant for parents who experience real groaning. 588 00:33:34,760 --> 00:33:39,760 A child with a disease, a handicap or some other consistent issue. 589 00:33:39,760 --> 00:33:44,760 It does not make them loved any less but the groaning is real. 590 00:33:44,760 --> 00:33:48,760 So what is he telling us as we go into the next section of this lent 591 00:33:48,760 --> 00:33:54,760 process, the reality that some of us who outlive our kids, see our 592 00:33:54,760 --> 00:33:57,760 children, whether in our family or the family of Munster Church, 593 00:33:57,760 --> 00:34:02,760 struck down by war, accident or disease, the groaning is done in 594 00:34:02,760 --> 00:34:08,760 hope because we are adopted by God and destined for a resurrection and 595 00:34:08,760 --> 00:34:14,760 an eternal future of health and wholeness and never ending joy. 596 00:34:14,760 --> 00:34:16,760 So is the adoption process hard? 597 00:34:16,760 --> 00:34:18,760 You bet it is. 598 00:34:18,760 --> 00:34:22,760 But friend, the work has been done. 599 00:34:22,760 --> 00:34:25,760 That if you have claimed Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, then 600 00:34:25,760 --> 00:34:30,760 you have been adopted into God's family and that means something very, 601 00:34:30,760 --> 00:34:33,760 very intentional. 602 00:34:33,760 --> 00:34:35,760 More on that next week. 603 00:34:35,760 --> 00:35:03,760 Let's pray.