Knowing God: Chapter 19 - The Sons of God

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Chapter 19 of Knowing God has a singular focus: to help us grasp adoption, what it means to be the sons and daughters of God. “What is a Christian?” Dr. Packer asks. “...one who has God as Father,” he answers. It is the primary identity of who a Christian is, and should be the primary controlling thought of what it means to be a Christian. (Jn 1:12-13; Gal 4:4-5; Eph 1:5; 1 Jn 3:1-2)

The Heart of the New Testament
Adoption is the heart of the New Testament. The message of the New Testament can be focused in three words: “adoption through propitiation!” Where as in the Old Testament God’s covenant name with His people is “Yahweh” emphasizing His holiness, His separateness from them, in the New Testament “Father has now become his covenant name.” “…the stress of the New Testament is not on the difficulty and danger of drawing near to the holy God, but in the boldness and confidence with which believers may approach him: a boldness that springs directly from faith in Christ, and from the knowledge of his saving work.” (Eph 3:12; Heb 10:19-22)

The Gospel of John & God's Fatherhood
The gospel of John shows to us four (4) things implied by God’s fatherhood of Jesus which is instructive to us about our relationship to God the Father:
  1. Authority (John 6:38; 17:4; 5:19; 4:34)
  2. Affection (John 5:20; 15:9-10)
  3. Fellowship (John 16:32; 8:29)
  4. Honor (John 17:1; 5:22-23)
“All this extends to God’s adopted children. In, through and under Jesus Christ their Lord, they are ruled, loved, companied with and honored by their heavenly Father. As Jesus obeyed God, so must they.” (1 Jn 5:1, 3)

Two Overarching Points about Adoption
Dr. Packer goes on to provide two overacting points about adoption:
  1. "It is the highest privilege that the gospel offers: higher even than justification.”
  2. “The entire Christian life has to be understood in terms of it. Sonship must be the controlling thought…at every point.”
The Sermon on the Mount: "The Royal Family Code"
The Sermon on the Mount “often called the charter of God’s kingdom…could equally well be described as the royal family code.” Adoption appears in the sermon as the “basis” of three things:
  1. “Christian conduct”
  2. “Christian prayer”
  3. “The life of faith”
Five Insights about Our Adoption in Christ
Considering our adoption in Christ gives us five insights:
  1. "Our adoption shows us the greatness of God’s love."
  2. "Our adoption shows us the glory of the Christian hope."
  3. "Our adoption gives us the key to understanding the ministry of the Holy Spirit."
  4. "Our adoption shows us the meaning and motives of 'gospel holiness’ (...authentic Christian living, springing from love and gratitude to God, in contrast with the spurious ‘legal holiness’ that consist[s] merely of forms, routines and outward appearances, maintained from self-regarding motives.)"
  5. "Our adoption gives the clue we need to see our way through the problem of assurance."
The Secret to Living the Christian Life
For those of us who seek to live our lives fully for Christ, it is adoption that is the “secret” to the living out of our life in Christ: “This is the Christian’s secret of a Christian life, and of a God-honoring life [yes, a 'happy life’].”

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