Our Adoption
Sing to God, sing praises to his name;
Father of the fatherless and protector of widows
God settles the solitary in a home;
-Psalm 68:4-6a
I am adopted.
No, not in the physical sense. I was brought up by my biological parents and continue to have a strong, loving relationship with them today. But spiritually speaking, I am adopted. God was not always my Father.
In the end of John 8, Jesus is engaging with some Jews in a theological conversation. They tell him that God is their Father, to which he replies, "You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies" (8:44).
Ouch.
Before we believe and trust in Jesus Christ as our only hope for salvation, God is not our Father. We are "children of wrath, like the rest of mankind" (Ephesians 2:3). We are blinded by Satan, who is the "god of this world" and he has kept us "from seeing the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God" (1 Corinthians 4:4).
Satan is not a good father, either. He does not want the best for us. He wants to hurt, destroy, manipulate, and kill us. The Bible calls him a lion who is seeking someone to devour.
But God, being rich and mercy, and although we are ill deserving of his love, chose to adopt us. Just relish this passage:
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. (Ephesians 1:3-6, ESV)
God takes dead sinners and gives us newness of life, bringing us into his family. We are now heirs with Christ and are seated with him in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6). We literally go from walking zombies to kings and queens with Christ! We were chosen. Relentlessly pursued by a good Father who loves us and cares for us.
For my husband, Blake, and I, adoption is not a matter of infertility but of theology. We have a biological son and as far as we know, we can still have more biological children. But we plan to adopt as soon as we can. What a beautiful portrait of the Gospel. God is a Father to the Fatherless, Psalm 68 says, and takes care of orphans. For many of us, God is the only father we'll know, as our earthly fathers have either abandoned us or passed away.
I think the full orphanages all over the world are a huge blind spot in the church today. We will fight diligently to keep a baby from being aborted (as we should!) but once they're born, we tend to forget about them. Sadly, all too often they end up lost in the foster care system, never finding their forever family.
Often times, even when children do get adopted, it's only the attractive, healthy children that get picked. And again, if you feel God is calling you to a specific child, that is absolutely fine and wonderful, whether they're healthy or not. This is not to guilt trip everyone into adopting a child with difficulties. But let's at least be open to praying, "God, are you calling me to adopt a special needs child?" After all, we weren't very attractive to God when he adopted us. We weren't beautiful to him, but rather, walking corpses, dead in our sin. He chose to bring us into his family and change us and make us beautiful, and through sanctification, present us holy and blameless before him.
I can't tell you how many couples I've met--good, Christian couples who love the Lord--who have spent thousands and thousands of dollars on fertility treatments, and after a few unsuccessful attempts, conclude that God must not want them to have children. They never even consider adoption. This is not a slam against fertility treatments at all, rather it's just shedding light on an error in our thinking. We don't even consider adoption. It's not even on the radar for most. And sometimes when people do finally turn to adoption, it's with a sigh of defeat, as if it's somehow second-best. We must ask ourselves, Is this the biblical perspective?
Christ has called us to make disciples of all nations and to preach the Gospel to all people. Blake and I plan to pursue a career in overseas missions. We may end up bringing the Gospel to remote villages who have never heard the Gospel, and what a privilege that will be...but at the end of the day, our main mission field is our children. Right now, I'm seeking to fulfill the Great Commission by raising our son, Isaiah, to hear the Gospel and about what Jesus has done for us. What better way to reach "the nations" than to adopt a child? To bring them into your family and call them your own, and to raise them in a place where the Lord Jesus Christ is the focus, is so incredibly beautiful. And it's biblical. God loves adoption. We know he does, because he's adopting people into his family everyday! Knowing all this, I can't help but wonder what reason we have not to adopt?
You may be wondering, what if I can't adopt right now? Maybe you're single. Maybe you're married but like us, cannot afford to adopt right now. Maybe you're an older person--a grandparent--unable to take care of a child. Or, maybe, like some missionaries, you live in a dangerous area of the world, and to bring a child with you would be to put him or her in more harm than good. In any case, rest assured, even though you cannot adopt a child right now, you can do something.
Pray. Pray for children to find loving Christian families to bring them home. Find people who are trying to adopt and pray specifically that their process goes smoothly.
Give. Adoption isn't free, and many couples are discouraged by being financially unable to afford adoption, especially internationally. Providing financial support is a great way to contribute to the adoption mission.
Talk. Many churches never have a sermon or a class on what it means to be adopted, physically and spiritually. You can encourage this within your church by being a voice for those who have none. Find out just one orphan's name and faithfully pray for them as a church to find a family.
Foster. Even if you cannot formally adopt, you can provide temporary homes for children, and many times, there are government programs that help foster parents afford to do so.
One thing Blake and I have started doing is praying for our future adopted son or daughter. Who knows, they could be in the womb right now, being knit together by God! Maybe they're five years old. Or two. Or not even on this earth yet. I wonder what he or she will look like. We are praying that God would keep them safe and healthy until we can bring them home one day. Would you join us in praying? Thank you!
