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“And if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.” (Romans 8:17)
The Lord God Almighty offers a marvelous opportunity of heirship to mankind. As we pass from this world into the next, the final destination can be blessed with the riches of God’s glory for all eternity. Some profess universal salvation because God is love and would not cause any of His creation to suffer in a lake of fire. Heaven is not a gift; it is a reward. It would not be just for the unrighteous to receive what the righteous have strived for, even if they had only accepted Jesus’ sacrifice as payment of their sin debt. The Universalist focus on God’s love omits that God is just. There is no love without justice; either way you phrase it. We will be held accountable for our thoughts and deeds, either righteous or unrighteous. “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done.” (Revelation 22:12)
People are not heirs of God’s Kingdom because of family heritage. If one’s father or grandmother was a child of God, that does not mean their children will be automatic. Heirship is not based on anyone’s decision but on the individual who chooses to follow Christ. It is a spiritual rebirth and not a physical reminder. “That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants.” (Romans 9:8)
Heirs of God do not come by exceptional service or by any merit system. One cannot inherit heirship from a family. Neither can one inherit it by being one step from a child of God. “But what does the Scripture say? “Cast out the bondwoman and her son, For the son of the bondwoman shall not be an heir with the son of the free woman.” (Galatians 4:30)
Receiving heirship from God does not come by any ceremony that a man can perform. Baptism, circumcision, or baby dedications will not bring one into heirship with God. “Faith was credited to Abraham as righteousness.” (Romans 4:9) Faith in the Word of God in His Son Jesus.
As said before, heirship with God does not come from anything physical we can do but from a spirit’s rebirth. The Holy Spirit’s work is to regenerate the spirit to lead a person into righteous living. “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3)
As we have received the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus, who now dwells within us, renews our mind, and guides us to righteous living, brings us into the state of adoption. We are adopted into the faith and are children of God. “Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” (Galatians 4:6)
In the presence of the Spirit’s leading, we become a new person different from what we were. We are no longer our own as the blood of Jesus has purchased us. The Holy Spirit guides our growth into a likeness in mind with our Lord and Savior. “Have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him.” (Colossians 3:10) The key to this transformation is that we have received Jesus into our lives to live through our lives. Our personal relationship with Jesus entitles us to our adoption, being a Child of God and an heir of God. “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.” (John 1:12)
Being an heir of God is not based on elders and children. There are no stipulations attached to the portion of the inheritance. The forefathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, do not receive a more substantial portion than a recently converted believer. All of God’s children are equal in God’s Divine family. God is impartial and loves all His children with the same agape, unconditional love. All of God’s children are blessed with the same promise that God has offered. “In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us.” (Hebrews 6:17-18)
All God’s children are equally related to the First Born Son Jesus, bringing this great heirship. Jesus, over the history of humanity, is the First Born of many brethren. The inheritance of the heirs of God is high enough for all of His children. The children of God are not all prophets, Apostles, preachers, or even well-matured saints. Not all of God’s children are of great wealth and have influence, many are not of great strength or useful for significant tasks, but they are all heirs of an equal share. As heirs of God, we should rejoice and look ahead to our portion.
The inheritance of the heirs of God is Divinely great as we receive all these things and not just a portion. “He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son.” (Revelation 21:7). The heirs have received salvation, “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?” (Hebrews 1:14). They will have joy in their eternal life, “So that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:7) the unbreakable promises of God, “In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath.” (Hebrews 6:17) By living our faithful lives, we have received the grace of God through all the trials of life-giving glory to God while waiting for His Son’s return. “So that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 1:7)
We have lived on faith in our Lord’s Word throughout our life. We have believed and acted in faith on that belief. We seek His Kingdom, living for His righteousness in hope; our inheritance comes by obedience to His commands. “By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.” (Hebrews 11:7) We have believed in our hearts and seen through our faith the inheritance of His Kingdom. “Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?” (James 2:7)
Thomas N Kirkpatrick
First Baptist Church of Durant, November 1, 2018
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