Assurance of Sonship: The Spirit's Transformative Work

Devotional

Day 1: Indissoluble Sonship

Our relationship with God as His children is permanent and unbreakable. This assurance of sonship is foundational to our faith, providing certainty and security in our salvation. It is not based on our actions but on God's adoption of us into His family. This indissoluble sonship means that no matter the circumstances, our identity as God's children remains intact. It is a profound truth that offers peace and stability, knowing that our salvation is secure in God's hands. [00:53]

Ephesians 1:5-6 (ESV): "He predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved."

Reflection: How does understanding your permanent sonship with God change the way you view your daily struggles and challenges?

Day 2: Spirit-led Transformation

Being led by the Spirit is evidenced by a transformation in our conduct, desires, and behavior. This is not about subjective feelings but about a practical change that aligns us with God's will. It is a test of our true sonship. The Spirit's leading results in a life that reflects God's character and purposes, moving us away from our old ways and into a new life of righteousness and holiness. This transformation is a continuous process, requiring our cooperation and willingness to be molded by the Spirit. [02:04]

Galatians 5:16-17 (ESV): "But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do."

Reflection: In what specific area of your life do you sense the Spirit leading you to change, and how can you practically respond to this leading today?

Day 3: Conviction by the Spirit

The Holy Spirit convicts us of sin, leading to a spirit of bondage and fear. This conviction is necessary for true repentance and transformation, as it reveals our depravity and inability to save ourselves. The Spirit uses the law to awaken us to our sinful state, leading to a sense of condemnation and fear, which ultimately drives us to seek God's grace and mercy. This process is not meant to leave us in despair but to bring us to a place of genuine repentance and dependence on God. [25:22]

John 16:8-9 (ESV): "And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me."

Reflection: Reflect on a recent moment when you felt convicted by the Holy Spirit. How did you respond, and what steps can you take to ensure that conviction leads to transformation?

Day 4: Spirit of Adoption

The Holy Spirit assures us of our sonship, allowing us to cry out "Abba, Father." This assurance is deeply spiritual, providing peace and certainty of our salvation, and is a testament to God's grace and love. The Spirit of adoption transforms our relationship with God from one of fear and distance to one of intimacy and closeness. It is through this Spirit that we experience the fullness of God's love and acceptance, knowing that we are His beloved children. [17:25]

Galatians 4:6-7 (ESV): "And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, 'Abba! Father!' So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God."

Reflection: How does the assurance of being God's child impact your prayer life and your approach to God in times of need?

Day 5: Transformation through Conviction

The process of conviction and transformation by the Holy Spirit is essential for entering into a loving relationship with God. It is through this process that we move from a state of bondage to one of adoption and assurance. The Holy Spirit's work in our lives is not just about pointing out sin but about leading us into a deeper relationship with God, where we experience His love and grace in profound ways. This transformation is ongoing, requiring our openness to the Spirit's work in our hearts. [32:05]

2 Corinthians 3:18 (ESV): "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit."

Reflection: What is one area of your life where you need to allow the Holy Spirit to bring about transformation, and what steps can you take to cooperate with His work today?

Sermon Summary

In Romans 8:14-15, Paul provides profound assurance to believers about their salvation through the concept of sonship. This sonship is not a temporary state but an indissoluble relationship with God, who has adopted us into His family. This adoption signifies a new relationship, transcending mere forgiveness and ensuring that we are the children of God. The Apostle Paul emphasizes that those led by the Spirit of God are indeed the sons of God. This leading by the Spirit is not about subjective feelings or personal guidance but about a transformation in conduct, behavior, and desires, which are practical tests of our sonship.

The sermon also explores the role of the Holy Spirit in producing a spirit of bondage and fear, which precedes the spirit of adoption. This spirit of bondage is not a negative state but a necessary phase where the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin, leading to a profound realization of our depravity and inability to save ourselves. This conviction is essential for true repentance and transformation. The Holy Spirit uses the law to awaken us to our sinful state, leading to a sense of condemnation and fear, which ultimately drives us to seek God's grace and mercy.

The spirit of adoption, on the other hand, is the work of the Holy Spirit that assures us of our sonship, allowing us to cry out "Abba, Father." This assurance is not just intellectual but deeply spiritual, providing peace and certainty of our salvation. The Apostle Paul contrasts the spirit of bondage with the spirit of adoption, highlighting the transformative work of the Holy Spirit in the believer's life. This transformation is not just about escaping condemnation but entering into a loving relationship with God as His children.

Key Takeaways

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2. Spirit-led Transformation: Being led by the Spirit is evidenced by a transformation in our conduct, desires, and behavior. This is not about subjective feelings but about a practical change that aligns us with God's will. It is a test of our true sonship.

3. Conviction by the Spirit: The Holy Spirit convicts us of sin, leading to a spirit of bondage and fear. This conviction is necessary for true repentance and transformation, as it reveals our depravity and inability to save ourselves.

4. Spirit of Adoption: The Holy Spirit assures us of our sonship, allowing us to cry out "Abba, Father." This assurance is deeply spiritual, providing peace and certainty of our salvation, and is a testament to God's grace and love.

5. Transformation through Conviction: The process of conviction and transformation by the Holy Spirit is essential for entering into a loving relationship with God. It is through this process that we move from a state of bondage to one of adoption and assurance.

** [00:53]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:13] - Introduction to Romans 8:14-15
[00:31] - Assurance of Salvation through Sonship
[00:53] - Indissoluble Relationship with God
[01:11] - Adoption into God's Family
[02:04] - Being Led by the Spirit
[03:10] - Misinterpretations of Spirit Guidance
[05:20] - Examples from Acts of the Apostles
[07:08] - The Holy Spirit's Guidance
[10:06] - Sanctification and Spirit's Leading
[12:13] - Assurance of Salvation
[13:15] - Understanding the Spirit of Bondage
[17:25] - Spirit of Adoption
[25:22] - Conviction by the Holy Spirit
[32:05] - Transformation through Conviction
[44:26] - Closing Prayer

Sermon Clips

For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God, and of course, if we are in the relationship of sons, it is an indissoluble relationship. You can't go in and out of sonship. That is where every doctrine of falling away from grace is finally unscriptural and false. [00:59:28]

Our position as Christians is not merely and only that we've been forgiven and then may sin ourselves out of forgiveness and then come back again, having been forgiven as the result of repentance. Now we are put into an entirely new relationship. We are adopted into the family of God. [01:37:14]

The man who is not a Christian is not led by the Spirit of God. He resists the Spirit; he is opposed to the Spirit. He doesn't receive the revelation of the Spirit; he is devoid of the Spirit; he is dead in trespasses and sins. [02:34:56]

The Holy Spirit can impress a thing upon the mind. He can keep a thing before us constantly so that we can't escape it. We are conscious of a kind of pressure upon the mind and upon the spirit. We feel an urge verging us in a given direction. [06:01:09]

The spirit of bondage and of fear is the peculiar work of the Holy Spirit himself. The law cannot do this. It's one of the things the law cannot do. That is why the law had not solved the problem. The law was incapable of doing this, but it is the Spirit's special work. [35:39:24]

The Spirit comes and applies the law to us, and as he does so, he produces this spirit of bondage and the fear. What then are its manifestations? Well, here, the first thing, of course, is a sense of condemnation. [36:41:22]

The Apostle says, I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. You remember what it was, don't you? He thought he understood the law, but he didn't. Then the Holy Spirit really brought the law to him. [25:48:57]

The Holy Spirit is the spirit that convicts of sin and of righteousness and of judgment. It is the Holy Spirit that brings a man down and shows him his need, and that is the way he brings him into a spirit of bondage and of fear. [31:57:22]

The spirit of bondage, which I have just been describing, always precedes the spirit of adoption. You see, the Apostle is building up this case. There are grounds for assurance in the first half of this 15-plus as well as in the second. [42:43:47]

The Spirit of God comes down in revival. His first effect invariably is to do this very thing: is to humble people, is to convict them profoundly of sin, is to make them feel utterly and completely hopeless, which they had never felt before. [31:25:50]

The Holy Spirit Himself produces our adoption, and therefore, when he talks about the spirit of adoption, he means the spirit that produces the adoption or creates the adoption within us. [16:16:06]

The spirit of adoption, whereby we cry Abba, Father. Now then, here is the same word used twice. You see, there's a comparison in the contrast here. There are two sides to this matter, but the same word is used: spirit, spirit. [13:12:80]

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