Adopted into the Family

“To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.” -Colossians 1:2

Our culture exerts a relentless pressure to build an identity on temporary things—our jobs, our possessions, our relationships, even our feelings. This constant striving is exhausting. The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Colossians, begins by reminding us of a better way: the profound freedom that comes from an identity anchored not in what we do, but in who we are in Jesus. But let’s be honest: do you truly live like a child of the King, or more like an orphan trying to earn your keep?

Paul addresses his readers with two powerful terms: “saints” and “faithful brothers.” We often think of “saints” as spiritual superheroes or miracle-workers, but Paul uses the term for all Christians. If you are in Christ, you are a saint—a person called by God for His divine purposes. Similarly, when Paul says “faithful brothers,” he uses a Greek word, adelphos, that is better translated as “siblings.” This is not a casual greeting; it is a declaration that we are not God’s subjects, minions, or pawns; we are his beloved sons and daughters, full members of His family.

This family status gives us access to two exclusive, life-altering privileges: Grace and Peace.

1. Grace is God’s unearned, undeserved, and unstoppable favor. It is the gift of His goodness that we could never achieve on our own, received solely through what Jesus has done for us.
2. Peace is more than the absence of conflict; it is the complete restoration of our relationship with God. Through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, the hostility caused by our sin is over. We now have true, unshakable peace with our Father.

These divine privileges stand in stark contrast to the human rights our world offers. Society can offer justice, but it cannot offer grace. A victim of a crime has a right to see justice served, but God’s grace offers that same perpetrator—and indeed, offers us—complete forgiveness and a fresh start through faith in Christ. While justice would give us the penalty we deserved, grace gives us a priceless gift. Likewise, a nation can offer external safety, but it cannot guarantee internal security for the soul. In the United States, even before the pandemic, mental health issues were rising dramatically, with nearly one in four adults experiencing some form of mental illness in 2021. This demonstrates that external safety does not equal internal peace.

The rights the world offers are fragile and can be taken away. But the grace and peace given to us as children of God are eternal and secure. Knowing who we are as adopted children is the foundation. The next question, then, is how we live—how do we walk in a manner that honors the Father who has given us everything?

Reflection Questions

1. In what areas of my life do I feel the pressure to find my identity in what I do, what I own, or how I feel?
2. How would my daily anxieties change if I truly lived as a beloved child of God with full access to His grace and peace?
3. Do I sometimes take these spiritual privileges for granted, treating them more like rights than precious gifts?

Prayer

In this quiet moment, let’s thank God for adopting us into His family and for the incredible privileges of grace and peace. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you live from this secure identity today, rather than from the shifting identities offered by the world.