Adoption Gives a New Inheritance (Part 4)

So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir — Galatians 4:7

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you — 1 Peter 1:3-4

Legal adoption agreements vary from state to state, but if you adopt out of California the legal order, for the father specifically, states the following:

I am the adopting father and I agree that the child will

1) Be adopted and treated as my legal child and

2) Have the same rights as a natural child born to me, including the right to inherit my estate

As an adoptive father, these words are amongst the most emotionally moving I’ve ever read. Behind this agreement we see the commitment of a pursuing father not only to bring a child into his family but to promise provision and inheritance equal to a natural born child. This is a father that legally declares this child is my responsibility and, ”I will never leave you or forsake you” (Heb. 13:5). The child is now in the hands of a father who promises to nurture, guide, discipline, keep, and forever love. The love that the father has for the natural son is now the same love he has for the adopted son. Spiritually speaking, the love that God Father has for God the Son is the same love He has for us (John 17:23). And with that love brings inheritance. This eternal inheritance, like our adoption, was “promised before the beginning of time” (Titus 1:2). This promised inheritance is cause to reinforce our thirsty souls with refreshing delight. We are betrothed to the One who proclaims in Him we will never thirst!