Series: Saints
Message: Adoption
Preacher: Japhet De Oliveira
Reflection: Japhet De Oliveira
Live Wonder: Jessyka Albert
Live Adventure: Jessyka Albert
Live Purpose: Kyle Smith
Editor: Becky De Oliveira
Refresh: Begin with prayer. Ask for the Holy Spirit to open your heart to new understanding and for God’s character to be revealed.
Read: Romans 8:12-17 in the English Standard Version (ESV). Note 1–3 insights or questions.
Reflect: One final review before tomorrow when several pastors around the world will preach on this passage and share their insights. F. F. Bruce, in his commentary on Romans, shares the following insight into this passage:
“Abba! Father!” This phrase occurs in two other places in the New Testament – in Mark 14:36 (in Jesus’ prayer in Gethsemane) and Galatians 4:6 (quoted in a note on Verse 14 above). Abba is an Aramaic word (in the “emphatic state”) which came to be used among Jews (as it is to this day in Hebrew-speaking families) as the familiar term by which children address their father. In synagogue worship Jews did (and do) address God as their Father, but not by this form of the word.
This is one of the many reasons Chapter 8 is phenomenal. Paul desires nothing more than for us to know Jesus as he knew Jesus. He wants us to grasp a fragment of the essence of his encounter and to make it our own. For this reason he asks, “How do you know if the Holy Spirit is in your life?” Not just by the things we do (fruits), but by the way we refer to God. How we call on His name. The way we sense the family connection that runs deep. We know the Spirit is with us when we know that there is no place we cannot return from. That assurance means that every single thing we have in life—good and bad—we want to share with God. When we hit rock bottom and are certain that there is no way that we can be redeemed, that is the time to allow our hearts to respond to God. Paul writes about this in other places too (2 Corinthians 6:2 and Hebrews 3:7,8).
A friend of mine, Ron Craig, recently told me that his son, currently serving as a Navy chaplain, has been promoted from lieutenant to lieutenant commander. His son called him to share the notification he had received from his superiors. He thanked his dad for everything his dad had done for him in his life. Ron said that there is nothing quite like this: to hear from your children, not only that they are doing well, but that they appreciate all you have tried to do for them.
Tomorrow, in my local church, we will celebrate communion together. We enjoy the whole experience. This means that before our regular service starts at 9:30 a.m., we begin with the ordinance of footwashing. We pause for a moment in time, just like Jesus did with His disciples before He celebrated Passover with them and instituted the communion we still observe today. Footwashing simply reminds us that we are family. We serve each other. The bread and the juice bring home the reality that we belong to Jesus. I look forward to the day when this earth is recreated and we will celebrate that meal with Jesus—all of us together. We all belong to Him.
Recalibrate: Who do you need to thank more often in your life? What draws you closer to Jesus?
Respond: Share a prayer of confession and consecration.
Research: Read one of the suggested commentaries on this passage.
Remember: “The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children” Romans 8:16 (NIV).
Japhet is senior pastor at Boulder Adventist Church in Boulder, Colorado, and was co-founder of the One project. Originally from southeast London, he served in the South England Conference for nine years—as a pastor and later as conference youth director—before moving to the United States in 2006. He is married to Becky and they have two sons, Joshua (18) and Jonah (14).
No parent likes to see their child in pain. You can only imagine what it was like for God to watch Jesus go through all the trials He faced here on earth, concluding with His death on the cross. God also doesn’t like to see you or your child in pain. The Bible doesn’t simply say, “You’re going to have a lot of suffering.” Paul goes on to say that you will suffer just like Jesus suffered, but you will also be glorified just like Jesus was. Pray a prayer of commitment over your child, asking that no matter what battles they may face in the future, that they continue to know that they are children of God and that the plan for their life has a glorious ending!
Paul tells us, in Verse 17, that if we are God’s children, just like Jesus is, we will suffer with Him and also be glorified with Him. None of us really likes to suffer, do we? Think about a time when you suffered. Was it when you scraped your knee up pretty badly? In the book of James, we are told that we can count it as a joy when we suffer because in the end it makes us stronger people! When you were first learning how to walk, you suffered a little and probably fell down a lot, but then you learned to walk, to skip, and to run! Suffering isn’t great at the time it’s happening, but it makes us strong. What is another way you suffered and then become stronger?
There is a claim that many Christians buy into and it is the idea that if you accept Christ all of your suffering will go away. The Bible couldn’t disagree more. The Bible doesn’t say God wants to make us suffer, but it doesn’t promise life will be easy either. Life is full of ups and downs. Maybe you are riding high on life right now or maybe you are in a deep valley. Here is what we are told: Jesus suffered. He is the suffering Savior. His life was riddled with loss, pain, and self-sacrifice. I don’t know where you are in life right now, but understand that Jesus is with you. He shares in your suffering. But He doesn’t want for us to live in pain and suffering. The greatest news is not that He shares in our suffering and we in His but that we also have a part in His glory! Glory is something none of us deserves, but, to be honest, we don’t deserve anything good. God has chosen to give us everything that is His. That is what it means to be a child of God.