by Don Hooton
More than one hundred million people watched last Sunday’s Super Bowl in which the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Philadelphia Eagles in an intensely close game. No doubt the Chiefs celebrated their win (Heard Mahones was going to Disney!) – and the Eagles probably flew away in disappointment even though they had worked hard to make it to the game’s greatest event. The game is about winning.
And on Tuesday, our nation celebrates romantic love on Valentine’s Day. Roses, chocolates, gifts and cards (and lots of cards). I mean, who doesn’t remember all the cards we used to share in school? Still, most are shared to shower rightly on the objects of our love the gifts that we believe reflect love. Admittedly, today’s practices are fraught with other things that I don’t applaud – but to banner your love for the love of your life is certainly something we should be doing (Song of Solomon 2:4).
But I digress.
In contrast to the SuperBowl culture of victories and rushed days to shower Valentine love to many, Tracey and I heard last week real SuperStories about real love at Florida College Lectures from https://sacredselections.org. They shared victories and they exchanged notes of love and adorations. But these stories are not about the applause of people perfection or the trophies of candied hearts. Instead, these are stories of the vulnerability and fragility of women who carry a child they know they cannot raise. Sacred Selections is the cause that David and Dana Carrozza started to help place these children in the homes of Christians. It is a beautiful story of redemption, love and unending mercy. Kids loved – not because they are icons of athletic prowess or paper Valentines, They are Super-loved kids.
The apostle John wrote: “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God” (1 John 3:1). Eyes should open to see the depth and magnitude of God’s love for people He now calls, in an extraordinarily redemptive way, His children. We were children deserving wrath (Ephesians 2:1-2). But now, we are children who have His love, grace and mercy (2:3-8). How is that? How did we become children of like that?
We were adopted. Paul said to the Galatians: “When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons” (4:4–5). In ancient Jewish culture, there were no clear processes for adoption. If a man died, his brother automatically became the head of his household, so adoption was never a needed process. What Paul has in mind, likely, is adoption as Rome practiced it. But redefined by God. Roman adoption was rarely to provide a more suitable environment for the adopted; Instead, it was to provide to the adopting family a suitable male heir – particularly among noble orders of senators and equestrians. Most say it is hard to determine how common it was among the lower classes and also, girls and women were seldom adopted, regardless of class. It did not serve the adopted – it served the adoptee.
But when Paul tells us we are adopted – He shows that God gifted us in adoption. He said, “For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear. Instead, you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father!” The Spirit himself testifies together with our spirit that we are God’s children, and if children, also heirs—heirs of God and coheirs with Christ—if indeed we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him” (Romans 8:15-17). We are chosen to be given glory, to be given grace, to be given love, to be given an inheritance that would never be taken away.
I read of one man who shared about his own adoption to parents: “They knew nothing about me when they chose me. Unlike biological children who inherited their genetics from their parents, my parents did not know my parents or anything about my story. They chose me as I was, where I was.”
And that my friends it what makes us superKids. God has showered us with such unconditional love that we have not earned to receive such accolades or trophies. God has chosen us to know a love without condition, a mercy without judgment, and a joy without end. You don’t have to win any SuperBowl to be a superKid. You don’t have to return the favor of an exchanged valentine card to get one.
As Tracey and I sat in the presentation of the amazing good Sacred Selections does (and I am sure there are others), we had had tears in our eyes. These families who sacrifice all to share love for one – or more – is a life changing truth. They know little about these little ones they adopt – but they do. They know little about the genetics the children will inherit – but they still do. They set aside the fear of such unknowns and embrace the reality of love shared – and they chose to adopt – not knowing.
But God? He knew. He knew me. He knew you. He knew we were neither good or righteous – but God sent His Son and “proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6). And when He knew us – He still chose us in Christ. That is a super kind of love that knows no holiday and no contest. It is the Way of the One who is our Father and Elder Brother who loves us with SuperKid Love.