The sons of God stand in a position of privilege that cannot be overstated. We are not left in the dark, nor are we kept at arm’s length as mere laborers in God’s field. The gospel does not leave us as servants, ignorant of the Master’s intentions, but brings us into the very heart of God’s household—by faith, as friends, sons, and heirs.
Christ Abolished Servanthood—You Are Now a Friend
Jesus Himself draws the line:
“I no longer call you servants, but friends. The servant doesn’t know what his master is doing. But I tell you what I’m doing, and therefore I call you friends.” (John 15:15)
This is not a sentimental upgrade. It is a categorical shift. The servant’s relationship is defined by distance, ignorance, and obligation. He does not know the master’s mind; he simply obeys, hoping for favor or fearing reprisal. But Christ, by His own word, has ended that arrangement for those who believe. Through faith, you are no longer a slave—you are a friend of God. This is a positive, irreversible outcome of justification. To return to a servant mentality is to reject what Christ has accomplished.
Sonship and Inheritance: The Reality of Adoption
But Christ has gone further still. Not only are we called friends, but we have been made sons of God and brothers of Christ. This is not a metaphor; it is the legal standing of adoption, sealed by faith. As sons, we are heirs—participants in the inheritance of God Himself. The riches of this inheritance are not vague promises but are spelled out in the body of truth delivered to us in the epistles.
“And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.” (Acts 20:32)
The word of His grace is not an optional supplement; it is the means by which we are built up and made to enjoy our inheritance. If you neglect this, you forfeit the very riches Christ died to secure for you.
The Apostolic Stewardship: Revelation for the Household
The apostles were not religious innovators or mere moral teachers. They were entrusted with revelation from Christ Himself, charged to steward and communicate the realities of God’s household. The epistles are not a new law. They are the unveiling of how the life of Christ operates in the sons of God. To ignore or minimize the apostolic teaching is to cut yourself off from the knowledge that distinguishes a friend from a servant. The apostles teach us how the household functions, how the inheritance is enjoyed, and how the life of Christ is manifested.
Built Together: The Household and Temple of God
Paul is explicit:
“Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:
In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.” (Ephesians 2:19-22)
This is not poetic language. This is the reality: you are no longer an outsider. You are a fellow citizen, a member of God’s own household, built on the foundation of apostolic revelation with Christ as the cornerstone. You are being fitly framed together into a living temple—a habitation for God by the Spirit. This is sanctification, not as a process of self-improvement, but as the result of being placed in Christ and built together with the saints.
What Is Lost If You Accept the Error
If you cling to a servant mindset, or if you treat the apostolic revelation as secondary, you lose everything that Christ has secured. You forfeit intimate knowledge of God’s purposes, you remain ignorant of your inheritance, and you stand outside the household as a laborer rather than a son. Worse, you undermine the finished work of Christ and the very foundation of justification by faith. This is not a secondary matter. To reject your status as friend, son, and heir is to reject the gospel itself.
The Finished Work Demands You Stand as a Son
The gospel is not an invitation to labor for wages or to strive for a place at the table. It is the declaration that, by faith, you are already seated as a son, already called a friend, already made an heir. The conscience is cleansed, the inheritance is secured, and the household is open. Anything less is a denial of Christ’s work and a return to bondage.
Do not settle for servanthood when sonship has been purchased for you. Stand in the full light of the revelation given through Christ and His apostles. Know your place, enjoy your inheritance, and participate in the life of God—not as a slave, but as a friend, a son, and an heir.
