https://odb.org/2025/03/11/heirs-of-gods-salvation
Galatians 4:1–7 (NIV): What I am saying is that as long as an heir is underage, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. 2 The heir is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father. 3 So also, when we were underage, we were in slavery under the elemental spiritual forces of the world. 4 But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. 6 Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.
It is interesting that Paul writes in Galatians 4 that as long as an heir is under age, he is no different from a slave in the sense that although he owns the whole estate, he is still subject to guardians and trustees until he reaches the time set by his father. Under Malaysian law, the Age of Majority Act sets 18 as the age of majority. Thus, at 18, a minor becomes a major, or in the English language, the master of a family becomes a mister. However, under the Guardianship of Infants Act, an infant is only considered an adult at 21. While a major can enter into legally binding contracts at 18 and be subject to full criminal sanctions, the guardianship over a minor only ceases at 21. The latter is usually relevant in custody cases, and once a child reaches 21, the child decides on his or her own whether to stay with the father or the mother.
But Paul is ahead of his time when he wrote that the heir is subject to guardians and trustees until he reaches the time set by his father. In a will, the distribution of the estate is determined by the owner, who has passed. It is not uncommon in the last testaments for a testator to specify the age when an estate is to be bequeathed to an heir. Thus, although the law will apply 18 as the age if the will is silent, the testator may specify 30. Or if the estate is to be sold and proceeds held on trust in a foundation, the foundation could pay a lifetime stipend to the heir.
But for adoption in verse 5, Paul uses the Greek word, Huiothesia, a word used to describe the practice of placing a male from outside of the family to become a son to inherit the estate during ancient times. That is how Paul likens our adoption into the family of God through Christ Jesus, and it is very apt as the Jews, the ones first chosen by God, rejected Christ. It is very apt too as we were slaves to the ruler of the world before we knew Christ, like a minor, but the time specified by the Father has now come through the redemptive work of Christ. We are now sons and daughters of God, with Christ crucified and resurrected!
Christ has provided for us as sons and daughters of God an inheritance in heaven, a place in the Kingdom of God, and most crucially, He has written our names in the Book of Life. Every time we are tempted to sin or drift away from God, remember that Christ has redeemed us with His blood. Remember that we are heirs who have reached the age of majority and may no longer be liken to slaves. The time appointed by the Father has come, and we now rightfully own the estate, no longer subject to guardians and trustees. Act and behave like one in all that we do! Amen!
Ronnie's Thoughts 