Christians Are God's Children

OCTOBER 28, 2020 STUDY NOTES I JOHN 3:1-2 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES CHRISTIANS ARE GOD’S CHILDREN INTRODUCTION John has instructed us to “abide in Christ” and resist false teaching He has encouraged us to live with the expectancy of Christ’s return Which means we are to live daily as a “Child of God” John just said, “Look at what God has done in others” We should be able to see what God has done in the life of others, 1Jn 2:29 If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one that doeth righteousness is born of him. We should be able to see the present works of Christ in the life of every “Child of God” Now he invites us to give serious thought to what God has already done in our life John wants us to know what God will now do in us if we allow Him to do it Paul said that God has much more for our life today, 1Co 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. We have not learned all that there is to learn, there is more that God wants us to learn We don’t know all that there is to know now, we can know more than we do We have not achieved all that is possible to achieve in this life, there is more to achieve We have not received all that God has for us now, God has more for us every day Which can be revealed to us through the Holy Spirit, 1Co 2:10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. God has much more to reveal to us today than what we have already seen or heard Keep on going--Keep learning--Keep living for Christ--Keep the door of your heart open We need to understand what it means to be a “Child of God” today We need to know what it will mean to be a “Child of God” when Jesus comes again John excites us by sharing what God is yet to do in the life of a “Child of God” The full revelation of Jesus will be when He returns to the earth The full revelation of every “Child of God” will be when Jesus returns to the earth In 1 John 3:1 we find, “Who we are now,” in 1 John 3:2 we find, “What we shall be” But most important of all, we find in 1 John 3:3, “What we must be now” NOW WE ARE A CHILD OF GOD 1Jn 3:1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. “Behold” calls for our attention so that we will pay attention John the Baptist called out “Behold” to direct our attention to who Jesus is, Joh 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. Our first attention toward Jesus must be for the forgiveness of our sins, that is where we begin Both “Beholds” direct our attention to the “Amazing Grace” of God “Behold” is like saying, “Wow, take-a look at this” The thought is, come to know by taking a close look with a desire to learn The point is, there are things that every “Child of God” needs to know and understand In other words, be sure you see this, you have got to see this and understand this It is a wonder of wonders, a miracle among miracles, come see this “manner of love” what manner of love 1 What kind of love is this? What is the character of this love? Of what quality is this love? Of what quantity is this love? The original wording indicates the uniqueness of God’s love, it is “Supernatural” love It is unnatural for this world of mankind, it is foreign to the way of man, it is not of this world “What manner” presents how great the love of God really is It also implies astonishment and admiration, where did such love come from? 1Jn 4:8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. God is love, but who does God love? Joh 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. What did the love of God do for the world? Rom 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. It was not what we deserved or even what we wanted, but what we needed most of all There is no greater love than the love of God for us, Joh 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Great love loved us, Eph 2:4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, God’s love was for His enemies, Rom 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. Because of God’s love, the enemies of God are now reconciled to God, Col 1:21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled There is much more of God’s love in the heart of a “Child of God,” Rom 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. It is love that we can believe and receive, 1Jn 4:16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. There is no other love like God the Father’s love for “His Children” God’s love is greater than any other power, Rom 8:37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. Even greater than the power of death, Rom 8:38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nothing will ever separate us from the love of God, Rom 8:39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. No wonder John said, “Behold, what manner of love” Then he identified it as the “Father’s love” the Father John could have said, “Behold, what manner of love God hath bestowed upon us” And it would have been meaningful to us, but he said “The Father” And that makes it even more meaningful, with the emphasis of the Father-child relationship Because of God’s love we can become a “Child of God” As Children of God we receive the “Father’s love,” Rom 8:15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The word “Abba” has the meaning of “Father” and our word “Daddy” expresses the meaning The Holy Spirit inspires a Child of God to refer to God as, “Daddy, Father” As “Children of God” we have that kind of a familiar relationship with God We have the privilege of speaking to the Father as Jesus spoke to the Father, Mar 14:36 And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt. John says that it is “the Father” who has “bestowed” His love upon us hath bestowed upon us, The Greek word translated “bestowed” has the predominant meaning of “to give” We cannot even begin to make a list of all that which God has given us 2 But among the top of the list stands the love of God for His children God’s love is a gift to us, we did not buy it, we did not earn it, we did not even deserve it But God has given to us His love in abundance, literally He lavished His love upon us He has loved us, He now loves us, He will always love us His love is our “Permanent possession” We live in a world where too often a love relationship is broken We have the assurance of an eternal love relationship with God because He calls us “Children” that we should be called the sons of God: The word translated “sons” is the common term for “child” or “children” Christians are a “Child of God” and God is willing to call us His children, Joh 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: God is not ashamed to claim us as one of His children He is not ashamed to proclaim to the world that we belong to Him Even though the world does not understand what it means to be a “Child of God” therefore the world knoweth us not, “The world” refers to those who are lost, the unbelievers, those who have never been born-again “The world” is the system of Satan and sin, the order of mankind who does not believe God “The world” cannot even begin to understand who we are, what we are, why we do what we do They try to understand that which is spiritual with an unspiritual mind, with a natural mind Paul said that it cannot be done, 1Co 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. The lost cannot understand a “spiritual mind” but a Christian can understand a “natural mind” Before we were saved we lived according to the thinking of the “natural mind,” Eph 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Those who are lost live under the influence of the lusts of the flesh and the lusts of the mind, Eph 2:3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. Christians received a spiritual life when they accepted the great love of God for us, Eph 2:4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Having been saved by the grace of God we are now united into the “Living Christ,” Eph 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) As a “Child of God” we know who we are, but the world does not know who we are Illustration: The little old man on the bicycle who ask me a question that dumfounded me “I know who I am, and you know who you are, but who are we?” That is a good question for the Christian to answer John tells us why the world does not know us or understand us, they do not know who we are--because it knew him not. When Jesus walked upon the earth in the flesh the world did not know who He was, Joh 1:10 He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. Because they did not know who He was they did not know why he was here or what he was doing, Luk 19:10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost. The world does not understand the Christian because they do not understand Jesus our Lord Until a person comes to know Jesus as their Savior, they cannot know God as their Father Because the world does not know Jesus and does not know God, they will persecute the Christian, Joh 16:3 And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me. The world does not recognize or acknowledge us because they have never recognized Jesus They don’t understand who we are because they don’t know who He is 3 Without a personal experience with Jesus they cannot understand our personal experience with Jesus Because Christians know Jesus, they want to be more like Jesus everyday We study the Bible so that we can learn more about Jesus, 1Pe 2:2 As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: Peter said, grow in the knowledge of Jesus, 2Pe 3:18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen. How can we grow “in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ?” First be sure that He is your Savior, be sure that He is now the Lord of your life Talk to Christ daily through prayer, let Him talk to you daily through His Word Study His Word to know Him and talk to others about the One you know Christians today need to understand what Paul meant when he said, Php 3:8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, Based upon his personal experiences with Christ in the past he knew what he wanted in the future Paul wanted to be Christ-like today because he knew why God had saved him, Php 3:12 Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Which is that WE SHALL BE LIKE HIM 1Jn 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. “Beloved,” what a way for John to continue to tell us what he wants us to know A Child of God is a “Dear one” who has been loved by God and continues to be loved by God “Beloved” also refers to those who because of God’s love for them, love God It also identifies those who have the love of God within them and have a love for others We have come to understand the family of God because we have come to know the love of God We know that we are now the “Children of God” now are we the sons of God, Be sure you understand what this says, it does not say, “we shall be sons of God” It does not teach that when Jesus appears you will have the chance of being saved The emphasis is “Now,” right now, even here and now The present revelation is that we already are a “Child of God” A present reality, a sure thing, without doubt, a guarantee that we can know beyond any doubt We can learn something new every day about being a “Child of God” We can sit down and talk about it today, but we will understand it better by and by We know that we know, but we do not know all there is to know about being a “Child of God” “NOT YET” do we know it all, but we will know and it doth not yet appear The contrast is between what we now know and what we shall know The contrast is between what we now are and what we shall be So, what we are now is not what we shall be What we know now is a guarantee, what we see now is a promise of what we will see The presence of the Holy Spirit is our guarantee, Eph 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, We already have the assurance of what John is going to tell us because God has given us the Spirit, Eph 1:14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory. All that has been purchased through Jesus Christ will one day be revealed 4 what we shall be: We have a future, there will be a future revelation, after this there is more There really is a “hereafter with God” for God’s Children There is more to being a child of God than what we are now Only God now knows what we will be when Jesus returns We can’t even begin to imagine what it is going to be like in the future Christians will once again be what God originally created man to be, Gen 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. We can gain more knowledge of what we will be as we live what we are now but we know that, when he shall appear, As a “Child of God” “we know” that Jesus is coming again, no doubt about it, no question Regardless of what the world tells us, even though the world does not believe it We know because we are God’s Children, and we have inside information Heaven knows it, God sent two messengers from Heaven to tell us, Act 1:10 And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; They assured us that it will be “this same Jesus” who is going to come back, Act 1:11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. There is a lot that we don’t know about the Second Coming of Jesus We don’t know the day or the hour of His return We don’t know for sure all of the earthly events that will occur when He returns But John tells us there is one thing for sure that we can know, “we shall be like Him” we shall be like him; Something is going to happen to us when Jesus returns A divine transformation is going to take place at which time we will be like Him, Php 3:20 For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Php 3:21 Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself. When Christ is fully revealed, we will be fully revealed We will come to know fully who Jesus is, we will come to know fully who we are In-Christ Every Child of God will be fully conformed to the likeness of Jesus We don’t fully understand all of that now, but Paul tells us something about it He calls it a mystery, 1Co 15:51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, A N.T. mystery is not a secret, it is not something that we are not supposed to know It is something that was previously unknown until God revealed it to us Something that was once concealed but now revealed, what is this mystery that God is revealing? “We shall not all sleep” means that all Christians will not die physically before Jesus returns “But we shall all be changed” is exactly what John is telling us, “We shall be like Him” “All” means both the living Christian and the Christian who has died physically It is not the spirit that will be changed, it is the body that the spirit will dwell in So, the body that is going to be with Jesus will have a “new nature,” it will be “changed” It is a change that must take place, how long will it take for the change to take place? 1Co 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. “In a moment” means so quick that it cannot be measured by time “In the twinkling of an eye” is faster than the eye can wink or even blink So quick that the eye cannot see the process, blink your eyes and it has already happened The eye sees the “before” and before the eye can see anything else it sees the resurrected body 5 Now another very-important question, “WHEN” will it happen? “at the last trump” It is the same trumpet that is found in, Mat 24:31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. It is the same trumpet that is found in, 1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: The dead shall be raised incorruptible and we shall be changed (1 Cor 15:52) Why shall we be changed? 1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. Body and spirit, we must be like Jesus for our eternal state with Him for we shall see him as he is. As Christians we live to be Christ-like today To know that we cannot be like Him until He returns is not a negative thought It is not to discourage our spiritual growth today The positive point is that we can become more and more like Him every day The goal is to become as much like Jesus as we possibly can before He returns We are to be encouraged by what we learn from this passage, look close at what it says We have a promise, “We shall be like Him,” why? Because “we shall see Him as He is” When will that be? “When He shall appear,” when Jesus returns, He will be known completely So, the application for today is simple, to be “like Him” see as much of Him as you can see today Learn as much as you can learn about Him today, know as much as you can know about Him Learn of Him and know Him today so that you can live like Him today You must live for God today because you are a child of God, you are a child of the King Listen to the song 6