Galatians 4:4-7 (NKJV)

‘…God sent forth His Son… to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.’

Heirship is not a title; it’s a position in the kingdom of God and it is not a position for everybody and not everybody who says ‘am a heir in the kingdom’, is really a heir in the kingdom. There are procedures and protocols to becoming a heir. The first is that you become redeemed. If you have not been redeemed from the old self-life, then you cannot be a heir. Heirs do not operate in the power of the old nature. Secondly, you become adopted. God does not adopt the unredeemed. Yes, He loves the unredeemed and sent His Son to die for the unredeemed, but until the unredeemed accepts the offer of redemption, they are loved but not adopted into the family as sons. Thirdly, the sons must be infused with the Holy Spirit; the power from on high, the power that enables them live as sons; the operating ability that makes them function as sons.

All these processes may happen at the same time, but they must happen. We mustn’t glibly call ourselves children and therefore heirs of the kingdom when in reality we are still slaves to sin and slaves under the law. Redemption, Adoption and Infusion (RAI) must take place to ensure and prove that we are really sons and therefore heirs, not slaves anymore. Too many are still slaves but call themselves heirs. This is the height of self-deception.

‘Lord, I know I am not a slave but a heir. You have redeemed me, you have adopted me and you have filled me with your power. With such lavish graces and such privileges, how can I now stoop down to again become a slave to beggarly elements? O Lord, help me live out the full life and this high calling and never stray away from my inheritance in Christ. Amen.’