We're All God's Children
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· 347 viewsDoes the Bible really say that we are all God's Children?
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Introduction:
We are continuing this week with our sermon series “The Bible Doesn’t Say That,” as we look at phrases and expressions that are often made that are either not in the Bible or incorrectly adapted from the Bible. Today, we are going to talk about one that at first may make you say, “Hold on a minute! I think the Bible does say that.” But hold on to the end and you will see where we are going with this.
People often talk about the human family as one unit that is all connected by a Creator that we call our Heavenly Father. This is true. People will also say things like, “We are all God’s children.” Now, when they say this, they are trying to connect all of us in the human race and encourage us to love everyone.
Now, I want everyone to pay attention and listen to me right now so that no one misunderstands what I am fixing to say. It is ABSOLUTELY, 100% TRUE, that we are all one HUMAN race. We are about to have a vacation Bible school where we will be teaching that we are not actually a bunch of different races, but we are all connected and share a common history and ancestry through Adam and Eve. In fact, we will begin there in just a moment. I also want to EMPHATICALLY agree that God calls us to love everyone and not hate anyone. That does not require that we agree on everything and that we give up our principles and biblical values to love someone, but it does mean that we are not to attack or hate anyone.
So where is the contradiction or error in this statement. Isn’t this statement biblically correct and shouldn’t we move on to another one? Well, we start off okay with the whole human race and loving one another argument, but something happens that separates us from the rest of the world when we accept Christ and changes this whole idea that we are all God’s children. So, take a journey with me as we look at how it all began and what happened to change everything.
Read Text. Pray.
1. God is Our Creator Father ()
1. God is Our Creator Father ()
A. We are made in God’s image (v.26)
A. We are made in God’s image (v.26)
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
Most babies actually look something like their parents. There are a lot of people that you can look at and immediately tell that they are siblings or that they are closely related by how they look.
When God made us, He actually put His mark on this world by creating a bunch of humans that were made in the image of God. I will get into the moral aspect of what this image of God looks like in a minute, but first think about what we are doing here today. We are gathered to consider the truths of a Book that was written over thousands of years by many different human authors, all claiming to have been inspired by one Divine Author.
What other creature do you know of that does that? What other creature thinks through the complexities of the decisions that are made? Do you think that kangaroos in the Outback sit down and make a packing list....because you know they have that pouch thingy on the front......before taking a summer vacation to the beach? Do cows order their food from cow run restaurants? Do animals specialize in a labor force to make their lives better? The answers to these questions are easily, no!
The human mind operates with an intelligence that even scientists can’t grasp and at the same time has the ability to operate with such mind, boggling stupidity that we have groups of people like “People of Walmart” and such that seem to operate without taxing much of their God-given brain power at all!
That’s all because God made us intelligent beings like He is. We share some of the same traits as God. We can build enormous sky scrapers and orderly societies. And just because we now have modern technology doesn’t make us any smarter than the ancient humans. They made everything they made without the use of machines! In fact, the Bible says that when Solomon built the temple that not even the sound of a hammer was herd in the temple, because they cut exact sized blocks of stone from the quarries and placed them in their places with such incredible accuracy that a modern day architect would have his mind blown.
B. We are made male and female (v.27)
B. We are made male and female (v.27)
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
Part of the image of God also includes gender. God made us male and female.....on purpose. God wasn’t confused about gender. He didn’t make us this way because God is part male and female as some have erroneously tried to argue. God made us this way to complement one another. This is true of our sexuality as well as our gender roles and our personalities.
Consider this. Much ado has been made about complementary roles between men and women. There has been a push to have no distinction between the roles. But when we consider the great passages about gender like , we discover that marriage and gender roles are actually a part of the image of God.
Let me explain. We worship one God, in three Persons. All three Persons are equal in essence, power, wisdom, holiness, and all the other attributes of God. And yet, their is a distinction in the roles of each Person of the Godhead. The Persons don’t argue about Their roles and Their roles do not make them less divine or significant within the Godhead. It is a perfect blend of how They can be of the same essence and unity, but have diversity at the same time. Their is one What and three distinct Whos.
Since this part of man and woman’s relationship reflects the Godhead so well, it is no wonder that gender roles are under so much attack by the enemy these days. When Satan sees a biblically functioning home with biblical gender roles, it reminds him of the God he hates!
C. We are made moral creatures (v.26-28)
C. We are made moral creatures (v.26-28)
And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
But last, we are moral creatures. We consider our actions before we take them. We have God’s Law written on our hearts. We consider the evil of abortion, euthanasia, suicide, assault and battery, etc. because God made every human in the human family moral creatures as a part of being in the image of God. Now, for sure, some moral compasses need tuning and we live in a fallen world with hardened hearts. But, God hardwired the Law into our hearts so that we can use the Law to show people the reality of their sin and need for a Savior.
2. Believers Share a Special Relationship with a Heavenly Father (; )
2. Believers Share a Special Relationship with a Heavenly Father (; )
And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!”
For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”
A. We are adopted and a new legal relationship has begun
A. We are adopted and a new legal relationship has begun
And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!”
B. We have a new family with siblings
B. We have a new family with siblings
For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”
C. We have a new level of intimacy with God
C. We have a new level of intimacy with God
3. Because of Sin, Many Now Have a Different Father ()
3. Because of Sin, Many Now Have a Different Father ()
You are doing the works your father did.” They said to him, “We were not born of sexual immorality. We have one Father—even God.”
Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me.
Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word.
You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
John 8:41-
You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
Conclusion:
It is a nice, warm, fuzzy feeling to think that we are all together in the same boat. We are all just one big family. On some levels, we really should start to think like this. But I want to urge us to extreme caution to not assume that just because we all share God as our Creator, we all will be a part of the same heavenly family. And, I should even go so far as to say that just because you may have been part of the same church family on earth, does not mean you will be in the same heavenly family in heaven.
The one thing that matters most is that you have been adopted into God’s family by faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. Have you realized that your sin separated you from your Creator? Have you realized that it is an offense to Him.? It insults His nature and character. Have you realized that you stand in the wrath of God because He is holy and is the highest authority that you must give account to? Have you realized that He loves you so much that He sent Jesus to live the life for you that you couldn’t live and die the death that you deserved bearing the wrath of God on Himself for you?
What you must doe is believe on Jesus by faith and trust in Christ to save you. You should repent and turn from your sin and follow Jesus in a new family relationship as your brother and Lord and call out to God as your Abba, Father! The final step is to proudly show that you belong to His family by confessing Him before man and the first and greatest way to do that is through baptism. You show people that you have died to the old you and now live for Christ.
Please consider this. Simply knowing that God created you is not enough to erase your sin. You need to trust in Christ to forgive you and cleanse you as wellz