1 John 3:1 See what great Love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
Conducting ourselves in a way that would be pleasing in God's sight is
accomplished only through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, which is evidence
of the great Love God has for us. John is telling us, the children of God, that
we should see this great Love, but we should also study it attentively. It is
of great advantage to the Christian to take a good, intense look at the Love
that God has bestowed on us. First this verse (1 John 3:1) speaks of the
measure of the Love God has for His children. Secondly, it speaks of the manner
of that Love. Lavished presents the idea of one-sided giving instead of a
return for something earned.
In some cases, it takes time for believers to gain a complete grasp on
the Love of God. So, what causes this delay? Occasionally, it might be pride,
which stresses to prove oneself worthy of the Love of God before they are
willing to accept it. Frequently, it may be unbelief, which has a problem in
trusting that true, perfect Love of God when one sees the hurt and pain of
life. However, more often than not, it just takes someone time to gain a deeper
perception of the enormity and magnitude of God's Love. Unbelievers can never
fully comprehend the children of God because of a lack of perception in fully
understanding God himself. In this case, since they do not know the parent,
they do not know the children (John 1:12-13; John 5:37; John 7:28; John 16:3).
Science fiction, for years, has been written and shown in movies about
aliens from outer space. The actual aliens on this earth are the children of
God, who have been born again and given a new heavenly nature. Those who are
working towards displaying a lifestyle of their Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus.
This nature is foreign to unbelievers (1 Corinthians 2:15; 1 Peter 4:3-4). It
is no wonder that the writer of Hebrews and the Apostle Peter describes
Christians as foreigners, exiles, and strangers (Hebrews 11:13; 1 Peter 2:11).
As children of God, we cannot
expect the world to treat us differently than it treated Jesus. Jesus indeed
loved sinners, and those sinners recognizing that flocked to Him. We must also
consider that it was the world that cried out, crucify Him! As true children of
God, we must understand what it means to be a child of God. Every person is not
a child of God in the perception that John speaks of here. The Love of God is
articulated to all, in Christ Jesus, to take our sins upon Himself (John 3:16).
God loves all people, but that does not mean that all people are children of
God. The faithful children of God are the ones that have believed and accepted
Christ Jesus, through His mercy and Grace, as their Lord and Savior.
To the ones trusting in themselves, trying to get to Heaven on their good
deeds and good works, they are not true children of God (John 1:12). There is a
great danger today in that so many Christians are trying so diligently hard to
show the world how much like the world they can be. Consequently, as Christians, we cannot be surprised or offended to discover that the world does not know us.
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