GROWING INTO SONSHIP

We will begin this brief study by stating that when a person becomes a Christian, he is but a child in the spirit; a child of God nonetheless. He, however, needs to grow into sonship, and that comes with a conscious effort on the part of the child. The scriptures indicate this to be true and also shows: (1) the need to attain sonship, (2) how to attain it, (3) the responsibilities that come with being a son, and (4) the benefits of sonship. The Bible says in John 12:1, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” “To become” implies that it is not automatic. Our theme scripture for this study would be Galatians 4:1-2, “Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father." 

Let us consider a few scriptures. Isaiah 9:6 says, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given….” Notice that a child is born, but he is given only when he has become a son. It goes without saying that the Lord Jesus was born a child. Following our theme scripture, therefore, He needed to be taught by or kept under teachers of the law of His time, until the time appointed of His Father, when He gave Him to the world at Jordan, declaring “…This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mat. 3:17). Immediately after this, what we see is that the Lord is “…led by the Spirit into the wilderness” (Luke. 4:1). Remember Romans 8:14, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” Notice that before this time, the Lord Jesus would go to the temple like every other Jew and listen silently as the Law was taught. But after He was given as a son with that public announcement, He became the Teacher. After His forty days of fasting and prayers, and the temptations he went through, he went to the Temple on a Sabbath day and “stood up to read” (Luke 4:16). No, He wasn’t going to sit and be taught anymore; it was His time to teach others. He was now a Son – no longer a child kept under schoolmasters.

It is safe to say that between his birth and the day He read from the book of Isaiah, publicly declaring His ministry, he was not more than a servant (as used in our team verse). Philippians 2:7 says He “…made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant….” To grow into sonship is to make oneself of no reputation and choose to be taught the Word of God. The Apostle Peter admonishes in 1Peter 2:2 “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow (into sonship) thereby...” (Emphasis mine). So then, children in the Kingdom need the milk of the Word to grow, just like natural children, breast milk. To refuse this milk or to get an adulterated one is to remain a child. This is why someone can be in church for decades but would not be able to tell his left from his right, as far as spiritual matters are concerned. Give them a leadership position in church and they'll make a shipwreck of it, because they're still children.

The Apostle Paul, speaking by the Spirit, therefore admonishes “That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things…” Ephesians 4:14-15. Because a man cannot give what he doesn’t have, we couldn’t “speak the truth in love” unless we have received it by the teachings of the Word. Any believer who wishes to grow into sonship must take seriously continuous personal study of the Word, meditation on the Word, listening to wholesome messages, reading Spirit-inspired Christian literature, and sharing fellowship with believers who are “…of full age, even those who by reason of use (of the Word) have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil” (Hebrews 5:14) (Emphasis mine), for “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise…” (Proverbs 13:20). 

Paul says by the Spirit, “For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe” Hebrews 5:13. Christians who have been in church for long, but are still babes in Christ are that way because they are “…dull in your [spiritual] hearing and sluggish [even slothful in achieving spiritual insight]. For even though by this time you ought to be teaching others, you actually need someone to teach you over again the very first principles of God’s Word. You have come to need milk, not solid food” (Hebrews 5:11-12 AMPC). This is the class of believers who cause all manner of quarrels in church. Sometimes, they won’t leave church but they won’t let others stay and get blessed either. They cause all manner of divisions, often boasting of how long they have been in church. Of this group the Bible warns in Philippians 3:2, “Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers….” Dogs, because they go back to their “vomit”, doing those evil works again, which they renounced when they got converted. They need to be taught the Word so that they can grow up into sonship.

It is easy to know “the time appointed of the father” for a child to grow into a son, as this comes with a certain level of responsibilities. Jesus knew the time the Father had appointed for Him; He could tell that He had become a son. We can know too. The indicators are there in the scriptures and we shall look at some of them here. When one graduates from taking milk to taking strong meat (of the Word), he has grown into sonship. As a "child," every preaching or teaching sounds wonderful. But as you grow into sonship, if you attended a meeting and all the preacher had to offer was milk, it feels sometimes as though your time could have been better spent. That is because what you need is strong meat. It is not pride but a desire for more, a longing for strong meat. At that stage you need to start teaching others, grooming them to become like you, grown up and raising others. That is exactly what the Lord Jesus did. He went into the temple, read from the book of Isaiah, and started teaching the people. He taught His disciples to be just like Him for years, before His ascension, and instructed them to make disciples of others too.

Another thing you would realize is that while listening to a message or reading a Christian literature, you would be grasping much more than you are hearing or reading. What to do at such times is to jot down the extras that the Spirit channels to you, because you will need them to get stronger – develop spiritual muscles – and also to teach others. Those extras are the gears that differentiate sons from babes. At this stage, you’d notice pride go out the window, because the more you know God, the more humble you become. The things that make the average Christian get puffed up don’t mean anything to you any longer. Your concerns are more for things that are eternal. You look no more “at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal…” (2Corinthians 4:18). You have learnt to make sacrifices and let go. They took away Jesus’ costly garment from Him, beat him many times, and dehumanized Him as much as they could. He could have prayed “…to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels…” (Matthew 26:53) to fight for Him. But he had grown into sonship. Vengeance is not a thing for the class of sons. They don’t “command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them…” (Luke 9:54), because they understand that “the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them” (Luke 9:56). As a son you’d rather “Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you” (Luke 6:28). It is the Father’s will for every Christian to grow into sonship and to leave spiritual childishness.

Sons have the benefit of knowing what is on the Father’s mind. The Father is delighted to let them in on secrets regarding his estate. They understand His ways because they have constant fellowship with Him, which in itself is as a result of creating time to fellowship with the Father. Therefore, “He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel” (Psalm 103:7) (emphasis mine). The children of Israel only saw demonstrations of God’s power but Moses, a son, knew The Source of that power and how to wield it. God wants every child of His to grow into a son because of what is at stake. This is why “…as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God…” (John 1:12). 

In conclusion, although “The Spirit Himself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ…” (Rom 8:16-17), still “…the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant….” What should we do then? “…Be not slothful, but followers of them (sons) who through faith and patience inherit the promises” (Heb 6:12). “And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified” Acts 20:32. God bless you!