Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, wrote multiple letters, or Epistles, to different churches all around Europe and Asia Minor. One recurring theme was Adoption and Inheritance.
Adoption and Inheritance are spiritual, and also physical, in a sense.
You could say that “Adoption” and being “Born Again” are the same thing (see John 3:1-21). When we are adopted by Christ, we are bought by His blood and sacrifice. As soon as we are Adopted, we are saved, and we undergo a fundamental change of heart that changes from the innate desire to please self to the desire to please God. This change in our hearts is the very definition of being born again. Many call this “Regeneration”, a death of the old self and the putting on of the new self. (Ephesians 4:22-24)
When a person is Adopted and Born Again, they are promised an Inheritance. The contemporary definition of “inheritance” would be the possessions a chosen person gets after another dies. This definition cannot be used in this context, because That would mean that we only get our Inheritance when God dies. That is impossible. God cannot die. He will never die. Christ, as a man, died but was resurrected on the third day. But God did choose select people from before the foundation of the world to become His children (Romans 8:29). Therefore, our Inheritance will be tendered when we have completed God’s work on earth as His instruments, either when we die or are “snatched away” by Christ (also known as the Rapture) (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18, 1 Corinthians 15:51-53, Philippians 3:20-21, Daniel 12:1-2, Matthew 24:30-31), whichever comes first. Our Inheritance will be more than just Heaven, it will be the New Heavens and the New Earth without any sorrow, pain, or death and with indescribable joy and peace and the opportunity to see our Lord and Savior face to face! All of us as the true Church are awaiting this glorious Inheritance with great anticipation.
The relation between Adoption and Inheritance is simple: We were Adopted by God as His children because of the selfless act of death on the cross, and therefore we will get the Inheritance He promises us. It’s simple and miraculous!
Inquisitive Brianna 