Student Week

We were able to end the summer in our favorite way, in the mountains of northern New Mexico, surrounded by hundreds of college students (actually, it was almost 2000 students this year!), singing, hearing great speakers and generally being refreshed in the Lord. It was a wonderful week.

You'll be surprised to know that one of my favorite sermons was on the subject of Adoption. : ) Tony Merida did a great job of preaching the Word to us each evening. He and his wife just adopted four children from the Ukraine this summer, so his passion and excitement for adoption had some fresh emotion. He compared the earthly experience of adopting children to the spiritual experience of being adopted by God. Here are the main points from his message:

1. Adoption saves us from a bad situation.
2. Adoption is planned. (Ephesians 1:5)
3. Adoption requires the right qualifications. Only Jesus himself had the authority to adopt us.
4. Adoption is costly.
5. Adoption involves a change in legal status.
6. Adoption transforms the child.
7. Adoption gives the child full inheritance.

When we were children, we were in slavery under the basic priciples of the world. But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our heart, the Spirit who calls out, "ABBA, Father. " So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.
Galatians 4:3-7