Asher Sisneros

The five pillars of literature are sovereignty, authority, law, sanctions, and succession/inheritance. Greek, Roman, and Christian literature address those points. Paul’s epistles are no exception. In the epistles, sovereignty, authority, law, and sanctions are relatively straightforward. Jesus is sovereign, He has authority over all the earth, the law is stated in the Bible, and the sanction for breaking the law is eternal damnation. Inheritance is slightly more complicated. 

Adam was figuratively the son of God. In Jesus’ genealogy in Luke 3, Adam is listed as God’s son. While he was created by God like all creation, and even made in God’s image, Adam was not literally God’s son in the same way Jesus was. However, he was still entitled to the inheritance of eternal life being made in God’s image. Also, he enjoyed blissful communion with God. Regularly, Jehovah walked in the Garden of Eden and talked to Adam. However, this pleasure didn’t last forever. There was one mandate in the garden: do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Adam failed and took the fruit, forfeiting his inheritance. It was hereditary. All his unfortunate descendants were punished for his failure. Everyone was cursed, inheriting nothing but a sinful nature. 

Abraham pleased God because of his zealous obedience. The Abrahamic Covenant was formed. It was God’s promise to protect Abraham’s descendants and turn them into a numerous nation if they would uphold His law. Abraham’s grandson Jacob was renamed Israel as the fulfillment of the covenant. His descendants formed “God’s nation.” They were called to be a beacon of light and prosperity to the entire world. They were called to be the shining city on the hill. While they served Jehovah faithfully, they prospered. But in the end, their sinful nature grasped hold of the nation. The godly protection promised to the Israelites was conditional. The people needed to uphold their end of the deal by obeying God’s law. When they failed, Israel was split into two nations: Samaria and Judah. Eventually, both nations fell into foreign subjection. The nation was completely destroyed and burned in AD 70 when the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed, and Israel ceased to exist. 

The disinherited sons of Adam had no hope. Abraham’s descendants were offered hope on the condition of lawful obedience. However, perfect obedience was impossible. Their very nature was born into sin as sons of Adam. Faithful and perfect obedience was impossible. It still is impossible. The deal offered to the Israelites was a covenant of works. Through their works, they could receive salvation. The problem was that salvation through works was impossible after Adam’s failure. 

In his epistles, Paul explained that salvation through works was impossible. Jesus brought salvation through grace. He was the incarnate Son of God, acting as a mediator between God the Father and mankind. He was two natures in one body. There was the fleshly human and the divine natures, making Him God and man. By perfectly obeying the law of God, His human nature was entitled to eternal life. This entitlement was robbed when the Jews executed Him for blasphemy. It was an injustice. The price for committing sin is death. The reward for abstaining from sin is eternal life. Jesus was killed as a sinless man. This was wrong. However, all mankind received hope because of His sacrifice. The injustice in His death satisfied the justice which demanded the life of all sinful men. 

“Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.” (Romans 5:18-19)

In Paul’s epistle to the Ephesians, he explains that God predestined people to salvation from the beginning of the world. Thankfully, their mercy was not in the hands of their works. Rather, it came through grace, and through grace, they were adopted. It was salvation through mercy. 

“…He chose us in Him, from before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us as sons by Jesus Christ….” (Ephesians 1:4-5) “In Him also, have we obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to His counsel.” (Ephesians 1:11) 

This adoption extended to the Gentiles. Under the covenant of grace, all peoples were accepted into the kingdom of God based on faith. In the Old Testament, becoming an Israelite was required to join the visible church. That dissolved by the New Testament. The law is a sword. It divided people. However, the gospel was the great unifier. It united races and nations, drawing the division line between faiths—worldly and biblical. The epistles preach of a single world order under Christ, including Gentiles.

 “Which in other ages was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets: that the Gentiles be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakes of His promise of Christ through the gospel.” (Ephesians 3:5-6) 

In conclusion, when Adam forfeited his sonship, he became a son of sin. All descendants were sons of sin. They were sons of Satan. But Paul explained that through Jesus’ sacrifice, the price for every man was paid and salvation was offered to mankind through adoption. The disinherited sons of Adam were adopted back into God’s family, inheriting eternal life. Heavenly inheritance is only possible through adoption.