Understanding God, Myself, and the WorldSample

We have a new family

Family remains one of the core features of human existence. The reason for this is because we are created in the image of God. As image bearers of God, we all long to be part of a family. We all desire to belong and to be loved. And it is within family that we can experience a sense of belonging and love. We see the concept of family in the very nature of God: God the Father and God the Son exist in perfect unity and love. Family, therefore, reflects something important of who God is, and also of who we are. 

For many of us, the idea of family might not be so positive. Some of us might have grown up in a dysfunctional or abusive household. Our understanding of family might be distorted because we might have never experienced a sense of belonging and love in our own families. This causes us to project this distortion onto God and the family of God. We see God as harsh and abusive, because our earthly fathers might have been like that. 

Also, because of our inherent sinfulness, we were separated from God. In a sense, sin leaves us as orphans in this world. Sin always fractures relationships. Sin fractures relationships in family, communities, and within ourselves. Most of all, sin fractures our relationship with God. We are all cast out of the Garden of Eden. We drift away from God. We are separate and removed from God to the point that we do not know who He is. He is holy and we are sinful. We are no longer family. And we feel the effect of this fracture. Loneliness is a shattering reality. It is a modern-day epidemic. We feel separated and isolated from others, even though technology connects us more than ever before. 

And this is where we see the power of adoption. Not only does God save us, He adopts us as His own. Through the redemptive work of Christ on the Cross, our sins are forgiven and we receive the Holy Spirit “by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”” (Romans 8:15, ESV). We have a new status. We are included in the family of God. We have a new identity. We are sons and daughters of God. We are loved. We are wanted. We belong.  

Reflect on your perspective on God and family. Do you have any negative associations with God and family? In prayer, ask God to reveal His fatherly heart to you. Allow Him to show you that you are His child whom He loves, accepts, and treasures.