Articles
We Are Children Of God - 1 John 3:1-3
The apostle John referred to the readers of his first epistle as my little children, beloved, and children. These are terms of endearment that express John’s love and concern for his fellow believers. They are also terms that describe the relationship he had with them. The relationship that believers have with one another is special and is often described in familial terms. Believers are referred to as brothers and sisters because they belong to a family with a heavenly father. John’s audience can be described as his children because of the love and concern he felt for them. They are, however, God’s children because of their relationship with the Father.
John wrote, “See how great a love the Father has given to us, that we would be called children of God; and we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know him” (1 Jn. 3:1). What is the relationship between the world and God’s children? Those who participate in beliefs, values, and actions that are hostile to God are identified as the world. They do not know God because they have no interest in Him. Likewise, the world does not know God’s children because they have no interest in them. The children of God and the world are on different paths and are guided by different beliefs. Believers, then, should not be surprised by the opposition and hostility they receive from the world.
God’s children are polar opposites of the world, but they are closely aligned with their Teacher. John wrote, “Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not been manifested as yet what we will be. We know that when He is manifested, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is” (1 Jn. 3:2). For the second time, John affirmed that believers are currently the children of God. Yet, John shifted his focus to discuss what we will be. R.C.H. Lenski wrote, “Here on earth we are in humiliation that is similar to that of Christ, eventually we shall be in a glory that is also similar to that of Christ.” This blessing is reserved for those who continue as the children of God.
How should we respond to the great love that the Father has given to us and to the blessing of being like our Teacher when He is manifested? John wrote, “And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure” (1 Jn. 3:3). We respond by continually purifying ourselves in thought, attitude, and behavior. Eugene Peterson wrote, “All of us who look forward to his coming stay ready, with the glistening purity of Jesus’ life as a model for our own.
Jesus is coming back, and each day presents us with a choice. Will we live like the world, or will we live as the children of God? Let us strive to live in a way that is pleasing to our Father.
