Galatians 4:6-7 6And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.
Adoption has four consequences. First, we are called God’s sons and daughters, full members of God’s family. God is the creator of all people but not all people can call God, Abba. There is a special class of people who are the true children of God. Paul’s opening statement shows the basis or reason for why believers can call God, “Father.” That is because of the Holy Spirit within them. The Spirit comes to begin this special relationship with God when a person puts his or her faith in Jesus Christ as Lord.
Second, we receive the Spirit of his Son into our hearts. All three persons of the Trinity are mentioned in this verse and all are involved in this redemption and adoption. The Spirit comes into our hearts, the innermost place where change begins. It is in the inner part of us where our minds are renewed and changed. The Spirit guides our thinking so that it begins to imitate the way Jesus thinks. We become conformed to his likeness. The Spirit speaks to our consciences, guiding, convicting, and empowering our thinking and worldview.
Third, the new, close relationship allows us to call God, “Abba, Father.” Jesus used this intimate Aramaic term to address God (Mark 14:36). The redeemed share in this close relationship with God as our Father. This is a special relationship that only those who have faith can have. When we believe the gospel of Jesus, we become part of God’s family, which allows us to call one another, brother and sister. We are bonded together with the love of Christ.
Fourth, the result of being filled with the Spirit is liberation from slavery from our old life of sin (Romans 6:6). A slave is bound under the law of sin and death. Sin enslaves through being deceived and impassioned by the flesh and through the weight of works of the law. Flesh is represented in libertinism, and the law is represented in legalism. Both of these extremes bring a form of bondage. The Holy Spirit brings freedom from these and shows the new way of freedom in love.
Fifth, we become heirs of eternal life to receive resurrection life like Jesus (Titus 3:7). We become co-heirs of the promises made to Abraham and fulfilled in Christ. God has made all this possible. It is a matter of grace and it is guaranteed!
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