When Paul wrote to the Ephesians that God “predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will,” (Eph 1:5), there would have been a gasp from those who heard the letter read. The family of God was growing, and this had very real implications for the lives of those involved; they were about to join a new family with new siblings. Gentiles and Jews were co-inheritors with equal honor and standing in the family of God. Their identity was brothers and sisters. Likewise, slaveowners and slaves were now brothers and sisters. They all had the same
...more
