Romans 8:15-17 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.
Every heart longs to know where it truly belongs. Deep within every human soul is the question of identity — Who am I? Where do I come from? It’s why, when someone is adopted in the natural, they often spend years searching for their biological parents. There’s an ache to know their true origin, a longing to connect the story of their beginning with their present. And until that longing is resolved, there is often a sense of incompleteness, a struggle to move forward — because to understand where we are going, we must first know where we came from.
Spiritually, humanity lives with that same ache. Sin severed our relationship with our Creator, leaving the human heart wandering like an orphan — searching for belonging, identity, and love in a broken world. We chased affirmation in achievements, relationships, and recognition, but nothing could quiet the orphan spirit that longed for the Father’s embrace.
Then came the miracle of redemption — the moment heaven’s plan was revealed through Yeshua (Jesus), who came not only to save us from sin but to bring us home. Paul wrote that “you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father.’ The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs — heirs of God and joint heirs with Messiah” (Romans 8:15–17).
Through Yeshua, the Father restored what sin had fractured. We are no longer slaves to fear or orphans searching for belonging — we have been adopted into the family of God, fully accepted, fully loved, and fully known. Adoption in the kingdom is not second-best — it is God’s highest expression of love and inclusion. In the ancient world, adopted children received the same rights, inheritance, and authority as natural-born heirs — and so it is in Yeshua.
When you came to faith in Yeshua, you didn’t just receive forgiveness — you received family. The Father didn’t just pardon you; He claimed you as His own. You were not merely rescued from sin; you were brought into His household with full rights of inheritance. Heaven has signed your adoption papers in the blood of the Lamb. You now carry His name, bear His likeness, and share in His inheritance.
And just as many who are adopted long to know their true parents, so too every believer must come to know the Father — not just as Creator, but as Abba. Until you truly see yourself as His child, you will live like a spiritual orphan — striving for love instead of resting in it, performing for acceptance instead of living from it. But once the revelation of His fatherhood grips your heart, everything changes.
You begin to walk not as one trying to earn love, but as one already loved. You stop striving for identity and start living from it. The orphan spirit loses its grip because the Father’s voice silences every lie, declaring over you: “You are My beloved child; you are Mine.”
Beloved, heaven knows your name. The Father Himself has chosen you, adopted you, and sealed your inheritance with His Spirit — an inheritance that can never fade or be taken away. You were never meant to wander through life searching for belonging; you were created to dwell in His house, to rest in His embrace, and to live from the security of His love. So stop searching for identity in the shadows of this world — the One who formed you has already found you. Let the Spirit of adoption rise within you until every trace of the orphan spirit is silenced. You are no longer an orphan or a stranger — you are family. An heir of God and co-heir with the Messiah, chosen, beloved, and forever His. In Him, you’ve found where you came from and discovered where you are going!