Galatians 4:1-7

Galatians 4:1-7
English Standard Version (ESV)

  I'll admit it here -- I don't spend much time following the British royal family.  I know that there are countless publications that follow their every step, but I can't bring myself to be interested.  But think about one of the newborn children -- they have been born into something amazing, but they haven't fully realized the depth of the promise just yet.  They're an infant, unaware of their place in the world, not realizing fully who their father is, not seeing the glories of the throne that await. 
  In the same way, sin clouds our vision.  Paul here is talking about how those who were under the Law, but think about what sin does to your own vision -- we lose focus on God and God's Kingdom, and we instead get so lost in smaller things.  We fail to care properly in the ways God would have us care, and we often end up investing our time and energy in things that don't truly matter. 
  But God has sent a cry into our hearts that beats for our heavenly Father.  We are heirs to the promise through Jesus Christ, and though our sin prevents us from fully realizing the depths of God's love for us, we were created for more -- we have been saved by grace, redeemed from sin and death, and though we do not deserve it, eternity is within us, urging us to claim our true identity as God's beloved children. 
  You are an heir to the promise because of what Christ did for you!!  God's Kingdom has not come in its final victory over sin and death yet, and so we do not fully realize the depths of the promise, but God continues to remind us of the wonders that are to come!