Family

Bill White | Feb 14, 2021

Study Guide

An important facet of being recreated by God—into his image—is being part of his family. As adopted members of the family of God, we have both great responsibility and immense privilege and security. Four things that mark us as being in the family of God are our inheritance, confident access to God, submission to his discipline, and intimacy with him.
Application

  1. Part of being in God’s family means we have an inheritance that gives us freedom and security. How much time and energy do you spend worrying about finances or the future? Are you concerned about policy changes in our country right now? What steps do you need to take in order to gain some freedom in these areas?

  2. When you encounter a problem in life, what is your first reaction? Do you take your concerns to the Father with boldness and confidence? How can the idea of “confident access” change the way you live?

  3. Consider the idea of God’s discipline. Have you ever had a moment when you realized that God was entitled to do his will in your life, even if it meant loss or sorrow for you? How did that experience affect you?

  4. When God does “squeeze” you through difficult times, do you have a reflex to cry out to your Father? How can you view these hardships as a gateway to intimacy with God?

  5. When God called Abram to leave his familiar home and family, he packed his belongings and followed God. For us, determining our position in God’s family can be more difficult. Did the sermon this weekend resonate with your soul and reorient your identity? Or did it raise questions for you? If so, whom do you need to talk to in order to get some answers and direction?

Key Points

  • God’s call to Abram was extreme. However, he also extended a promise of comfort and blessing. We must likewise be willing to answer God’s call at great personal cost, for this is how God will bless others through us.

  • When we become followers of Christ, we gain the right to be in God’s family. We also receive a new birth that will begin to restore and reshape us into who God wants us to be.

  • There will be many who believe they are in God’s family but have not truly answered the call to follow Jesus. We must carefully examine our souls and consider whether we are true members of God’s family.

  • Knowing that we have an inheritance from God should bring us a sense of security, freedom and peace.

  • As believers, we are also privileged to have confident access to the throne room of our gracious God

  • Submitting to God’s discipline through trials and as a result of our sin is a formative element of our family identity. Because of God’s discipline, we know that we are his children.

  • When we are squeezed by the brokenness of the world, we have such intimacy with God that we can cry out to him as our Father.

Scripture: Genesis 12:1-4

Topics: Family, Inheritance, Submission