Noah Webster created his second and most renowned dictionary in 1828. In that pivotal and comprehensive book, when he defined the word adopt, he said it meant to take a stranger and give him the rights and privileges of a natural born child.
There is something else Webster said. In addition to giving that stranger the rights of a natural born child, we also treat him as a natural born child.
This situation is easy to picture when we think of a human adopting another human. But what about the childless couple that treats their dog with the same love and outpouring of gifts that a human child might get? We’ve all seen doggie Christmas presents for sale. Diapers for dogs? They make them. Google “dancing dogs” and we can see a dog in a dress dancing an elaborate dance with her human master. It seems in some respects these pets have become more human than animal.
What about when God adopts us? Do we become more like God than like the human we are? When we dance with God, do others around us gawk and say, “No human could do that. You’d almost think he was part God.”
John 1:12 tells us that when we believe on God’s name, we have the right to become his children. That means God will treat us as more than human, for he is more than human.
Galatians 4:5-7 says that Christ came so that we might be adopted as God’s sons. That tells us we are no longer completely human, but sons and heirs of the godhood of the Father.
Romans 8:23 reveals the desire of all creation to become more like the Father. The redemption of our bodies is the final step in our adoption process.
Matthew 18:5 explains the outward evidence of the adoption process in Jesus’ own words: “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me.” When we welcome those who have no standing before others, and who need our love to survive, then we have become like Jesus. To be like Jesus is to become more than human.
When we emulate Jesus, we move from the realm of humanity into the realm of godliness.
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Flashback Friday: Originally Published September 2, 2014 in Relationships