Adoption in Christ: For Us, For God, For Others

By: Dave Bahbah

Galatians 4:1-7

4 But I say, for the duration of time that an heir is a child, not yet of age, he or she is no different than a slave, even though he or she is the master of everything, ²but he or she is under a guardian and estate manager until the time set by the father. ³In the same way, we also, when we were children, not yet of age, we were enslaved under the fundamental principles of the world, ⁴but when the fullness of time arrived, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the Torah, ⁵in order that he might liberate those under the Torah so that we might receive adoption to sonship. ⁶And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying out, “Abba, father.” ⁷Therefore, you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, you are also an heir through God. (all translations mine)

           Interpreters of Paul’s letter to the Galatians have long struggled to explain how the ethical instructions of chapters 5-6 relate to chapters 1-4. Paul’s warnings against the misuse of freedom “in Christ” (5:13) in these latter chapters have often been thought to address a different problem than his attack on “legalism” in the remainder of the letter. Yet, in Gal. 4:1-7, among others passages, Paul provides us with a profound connection through the use of a social metaphor—adoption.

           Throughout his letters, Paul uses many different metaphors drawn from everyday life to describe the phenomenon of the believer’s union with Christ (i.e. salvation), or being “in Christ,” such as “sanctification” (cultic metaphor); “justification” (legal/ethical metaphor); “reconciliation” and “redemption” (social metaphors); and others. Behind Paul’s array of “in Christ” metaphors lies wonderful diversity and continuity. Each metaphor sheds light on this reality in way that the others cannot, while at the same time each also communicates that “God being for us” (divine initiative) cannot be separated from “us being for God” (human response). In other words, freedom “in Christ” and ethics belong together like two side of the same coin.

           To see how this is communicated through the adoption metaphor in Gal. 4:1-7 we must understand two important differences between the modern practice of adoption and the ancient Greco-Roman practice. First, unlike the modern practice that involves the adoption of vulnerable children, the Greco-Roman practice involved the adoption of an adult male. In 4:5-7, adoption is to “sonship.” Second, the primary purpose of Greco-Roman adoption was for inheritance, to secure the legacy and fame of the father, or, put differently, the purpose of adoption was not to ensure the future of the son, but the future of the father. Thus, while adoption is “for us,” our benefit, Paul uses this metaphor to communicate that our adoption also comes with great responsibility to be “for God.”

           So what does this look like for Paul? In his own word: “For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters, only you were not called to freedom so that it might become an opportunity for the flesh to have its way, but, rather, through love, continue serving one another. For the entire Torah is fulfilled in one word: “you will love your neighbor as yourself.” (5:13-14); “And let us not tire of doing what is good…continue working to do good toward all, and especially toward members of the household of faith.” (6:9-10). For Paul, with the other New Testament authors, the epitome or test of being “in Christ” is ethics, the way we are “for God” because he is “for us” is loving others.

Tip for the Day: Pursue fostering (to adopt) children in the foster care system. While this is not what Paul’s adoption metaphor is directly dealing with, our modern practice of adoption is a natural outworking of our adoption to sonship, a way of being “for” those for whom almost no one is for.

Dave Bahbah is the Adult Ministries Associate Pastor at Woodside Bible Church in Troy, MI (Metro Detroit). He graduated from Denver Seminary with an M.A. in Christian Studies. He’s married to Erin and has 2 boys: Carden (3 years) & Jude (10 months).