In my last post I mentioned how the idea of adoption shows up very infrequently in the history of theology, far less frequently, than say, ideas like justification and redemption. You might think, if no one has thought very much of adoption, then is it really such a big deal?
The first thing to say is that it was a big deal to Paul, who wrote much of the New Testament. The second thing to say, strange as it sounds, is that he only uses the word 5 times. Stay with me...
The word translated as "adoption" in (most of) our Bibles is a the Greek word "huiothesia," which is a compound of "huios" (son) and "tithemi" (to place or to set). So the word adoption literally means "to set in the place of a son." Now I said a moment ago that this word only occurs 5 times in the New Testament, and yet I also said a moment ago that it is still a very big deal. How?
Well, the amount of times a word is used doesn't necessarily tell you how important it is: the way it is used tells you its significance. And we find huiothesia being used at very important places in Paul's writings. For example,
When Paul is talking about God's eternal plan to save, way back into the mists of pretemporal eternity, before anything has been made, we find huiothesia: "even as he chose us in him before the foundations 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." (Ephesians 1:4-5)
When Paul is talking about the covenant God made with the people of Israel, which constitutes the basic foundation of the whole Old Testament, we find huiothesia: "They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises." (Romans 9:4)
When Paul is talking about salvation itself, the sending of Jesus to redeem us, we find huiothesia as the point of it all: "But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons." (Galatians 4:4-5)
When Paul is talking about the work of the Holy Spirit, he calls him the "Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba, Father!" (Romans 8:15)
When Paul is talking about the resurrection of the body at the end of time, we find huiothesia: "And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies." (Romans 8:23)
So though Paul only uses huiothesia five times, he uses it at crucial moments: when discussing, the eternal plan of God, the outworking of that covenant in Israel and in Jesus, the work of the Spirit, and the consummation of redemption. Those are huge topics, and the fact that Paul say fit to think about all of those concepts under the umbrella term of adoption means we ought to pay attention to the idea. After all, it only explains creation, covenant, redemption, and consummation, that's all!
Not only that, adoption/huiothesia helps us understand the Trinity, because as Paul as shown, huiothesia is at the very heart of the plan of God the Father (who determined before time began to adopt us as sons (Eph 1), the work of the Son (who redeemed us for adoption, Gal 4) and the work of the Holy Spirit of adoption (Rom 8). The whole Trinitarian character of God is described in terms of adoption.
And then of course, there are many other New Testament themes that adoption helps illuminate and make sense of: the whole notion of God as Father, the concept of our eternal inheritance, the church as the family of God, and on and on it goes.
No wonder JI Packer has said that you only understand Christianity as well as you understand adoption.
The first thing to say is that it was a big deal to Paul, who wrote much of the New Testament. The second thing to say, strange as it sounds, is that he only uses the word 5 times. Stay with me...
The word translated as "adoption" in (most of) our Bibles is a the Greek word "huiothesia," which is a compound of "huios" (son) and "tithemi" (to place or to set). So the word adoption literally means "to set in the place of a son." Now I said a moment ago that this word only occurs 5 times in the New Testament, and yet I also said a moment ago that it is still a very big deal. How?
Well, the amount of times a word is used doesn't necessarily tell you how important it is: the way it is used tells you its significance. And we find huiothesia being used at very important places in Paul's writings. For example,
When Paul is talking about God's eternal plan to save, way back into the mists of pretemporal eternity, before anything has been made, we find huiothesia: "even as he chose us in him before the foundations 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." (Ephesians 1:4-5)
When Paul is talking about the covenant God made with the people of Israel, which constitutes the basic foundation of the whole Old Testament, we find huiothesia: "They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises." (Romans 9:4)
When Paul is talking about salvation itself, the sending of Jesus to redeem us, we find huiothesia as the point of it all: "But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons." (Galatians 4:4-5)
When Paul is talking about the work of the Holy Spirit, he calls him the "Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba, Father!" (Romans 8:15)
When Paul is talking about the resurrection of the body at the end of time, we find huiothesia: "And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies." (Romans 8:23)
So though Paul only uses huiothesia five times, he uses it at crucial moments: when discussing, the eternal plan of God, the outworking of that covenant in Israel and in Jesus, the work of the Spirit, and the consummation of redemption. Those are huge topics, and the fact that Paul say fit to think about all of those concepts under the umbrella term of adoption means we ought to pay attention to the idea. After all, it only explains creation, covenant, redemption, and consummation, that's all!
Not only that, adoption/huiothesia helps us understand the Trinity, because as Paul as shown, huiothesia is at the very heart of the plan of God the Father (who determined before time began to adopt us as sons (Eph 1), the work of the Son (who redeemed us for adoption, Gal 4) and the work of the Holy Spirit of adoption (Rom 8). The whole Trinitarian character of God is described in terms of adoption.
And then of course, there are many other New Testament themes that adoption helps illuminate and make sense of: the whole notion of God as Father, the concept of our eternal inheritance, the church as the family of God, and on and on it goes.
No wonder JI Packer has said that you only understand Christianity as well as you understand adoption.
