March 7th, 2025
by Steve Marshall
by Steve Marshall
Church family:
While we were living in Chicago, we had the privilege of attending the Chicago Auto Show’s First Look event. As it was the day before the opening, I anticipated smaller crowds. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Navigating the thousands of spectators, I held tightly to six-year-old Ashlyn’s hand. That is, until the moment I had to get a picture of one amazing truck in front of me. Letting go for a moment, I snapped the picture but when I reached again for her hand, Ashlyn was nowhere to be found in a sea of people. My stomach sank as my desire to love and protect and rescue my daughter overwhelmed any other thought. Being that there was no sign of her in any direction, I moved to a higher vantage point when suddenly, for a split second, the crowd separated and there she was. Understandably, she was somewhat panicked, and as I reached out to grab her hand before she disappeared again, she was crying tears of both fear and joy as she was reunited with her earthly father.
In parenthood, we get a glimpse of the depth of relationship with our Heavenly Father. The love, care, provision, protection, presence, and inheritance you have for your child are to be reminders of the extravagant promises that God our Father has made with us, His children. In Christ, you are an adopted child of God. YHWH, the uncreated One, eternal God, maker of the universe desires for us to call Him Father. YHWH wants us to know Him intimately, as a Father knows his children. He wants you to call Him, “Abba! Father!” (Rom. 8:15).
While I may have (briefly) lost sight of Ashlyn at the Chicago Auto Show, God our Father promises us as believers that He will neither leave us nor forsake us (Heb. 13:5). He is with us always to the end of the age (Mat. 28:20), and at the end of the age He has made us fellow heirs with Christ in His eternal Kingdom. Believers in Jesus Christ will share in the inheritance and glory that belongs to Christ in God's eternal kingdom (Rom. 8:17). Why? Because part of our salvation includes being fully adopted into God's family. Through faith in Christ, children of God are granted the full status of heirs. As a Christian you have been adopted into a family where God is your Father, Jesus is your big brother and the Church bestows even more brothers and sisters. Adoption is God’s act of free kindness to you. God adopted you because He wanted to. Your adoption into His family is an act entirely of His spontaneous and uncoerced love.
Our Heavenly Father wants us to know that just as our own children have complete access to us, we have complete, unrestricted access to Him. He invites us to come and ask Him anything. He says, “go into your room and shut the door and pray to (Me) your Heavenly Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you” (Mat. 6:6). The privileges of being a child of God are extravagant and eternal. Are you enjoying all that is yours as a child of God?
See you Sunday, as children of God: Steve
While we were living in Chicago, we had the privilege of attending the Chicago Auto Show’s First Look event. As it was the day before the opening, I anticipated smaller crowds. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Navigating the thousands of spectators, I held tightly to six-year-old Ashlyn’s hand. That is, until the moment I had to get a picture of one amazing truck in front of me. Letting go for a moment, I snapped the picture but when I reached again for her hand, Ashlyn was nowhere to be found in a sea of people. My stomach sank as my desire to love and protect and rescue my daughter overwhelmed any other thought. Being that there was no sign of her in any direction, I moved to a higher vantage point when suddenly, for a split second, the crowd separated and there she was. Understandably, she was somewhat panicked, and as I reached out to grab her hand before she disappeared again, she was crying tears of both fear and joy as she was reunited with her earthly father.
In parenthood, we get a glimpse of the depth of relationship with our Heavenly Father. The love, care, provision, protection, presence, and inheritance you have for your child are to be reminders of the extravagant promises that God our Father has made with us, His children. In Christ, you are an adopted child of God. YHWH, the uncreated One, eternal God, maker of the universe desires for us to call Him Father. YHWH wants us to know Him intimately, as a Father knows his children. He wants you to call Him, “Abba! Father!” (Rom. 8:15).
While I may have (briefly) lost sight of Ashlyn at the Chicago Auto Show, God our Father promises us as believers that He will neither leave us nor forsake us (Heb. 13:5). He is with us always to the end of the age (Mat. 28:20), and at the end of the age He has made us fellow heirs with Christ in His eternal Kingdom. Believers in Jesus Christ will share in the inheritance and glory that belongs to Christ in God's eternal kingdom (Rom. 8:17). Why? Because part of our salvation includes being fully adopted into God's family. Through faith in Christ, children of God are granted the full status of heirs. As a Christian you have been adopted into a family where God is your Father, Jesus is your big brother and the Church bestows even more brothers and sisters. Adoption is God’s act of free kindness to you. God adopted you because He wanted to. Your adoption into His family is an act entirely of His spontaneous and uncoerced love.
Our Heavenly Father wants us to know that just as our own children have complete access to us, we have complete, unrestricted access to Him. He invites us to come and ask Him anything. He says, “go into your room and shut the door and pray to (Me) your Heavenly Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you” (Mat. 6:6). The privileges of being a child of God are extravagant and eternal. Are you enjoying all that is yours as a child of God?
See you Sunday, as children of God: Steve
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