Aren’t We All the Children of God?

 

 

by Mihran Kulhanjian

 

 

My dear Friends,

Generally speaking, I am convinced that most people believe they are a child of God.  It is a nice thing to believe but is it true?  Of course not.  We are not all the children of God. In fact, I believe very few are truly children of God.  Some estimates by a leading research firm reported 10 percent to 8 percent of the world's population are God's children. I believe it is a lot less, perhaps under 5 percent.  If you are not 100 percent certain that you are a true Christian, this number should cause concern.  Only those who accept God [Jesus] as Savior and Lord by being “born again” of the Spirit become adopted children of God. The Bible is clear about this. As we grow and mature as Christians, mature in holiness, we gradually mature into the sons or daughters of God. We do not want to remain as children.  God chose them, His children.

 

On the mount Jesus said:  “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons [children] of God.”  A child of God has peace with God and he is blessed by God. A child of God has communion with God—a relationship with Him.“ But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God”  (John 1:12-13). Those who receive Jesus and obey Him have the right to be called “A Child of God.”

 

The children of God according to John 1:12-13:

  • Believe in His name: Believing in Him with all your heart with obedience.
  • Are not born of the blood: This is a spiritual birth
  • Nor of the will of the flesh: The new birth is not of any human or flesh action as procreation.
  • Nor of the will of man: Has nothing to do with the human activities of a man wanting a family, because this is of the spirit not of natural man.

 

To be a child of God we must be obedient to God, as a child is obedient to his father.  The children of God call God Father.  Addressing God as Father appears in the New Testament when Jesus prayed He called God Father.  Jesus brought us back in fellowship with God our Father, so when we pray we also address God as Father.  This makes Jesus our brother and this is why Christians call other Christians brothers and sisters in Christ.  We are a family and God is the Father of the family. All believes are of the same family, brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus and we take on the family traits, the attributes of our Father.  Our behavior is recognized not of this world because our Father and brother (Jesus, Savior, God, and Lord) are not of this world.  Therefore, the children of God are not of this world. We walk [live] in the Spirit rather than in the flesh.  We are children of our Father in Heaven and one day the children of God will join Him in Heaven. 

 

The children of God receive God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. If you do not know God, begin today. Open your Bible. You can begin to learn about Jesus with the Gospel of John. Pray and ask God to help you to understand what you read and to direct you through the Bible. You can be a child of God if you want to be.

 

The children of God are adopted by God. God chose His children because God had foreknowledge of those who He could use and would come to Him. God chose His children He has a plan, a mission for each of the children He chooses. A child of God is predestined before the world began: 

"For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren" [Romans 8:29]. 

 

We can see in Ephesians 1:3-6 the children of God were chosen before the foundation of the world..."having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ."

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved."

 

Jesus will never turn away anyone who seeks Him. He is knocking on the door.  Will you open it and let Him in?  There is nothing in this world that is greater than being called a child of God.  It is an honor.  God has a special love for His children and He discipline His children as a Father who wants the best for those who are His and belong to Him.

 

As a child of God you are a co-heir with Jesus to all the blessing that Jesus received. There is nothing greater that being a child or God.  In Romans 8:15-17 Paul explains the children of God are joint heirs with Christ:

 

"For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together" [Romans 8:15-17].

 

The word "Abba" is an Aramaic term of intimacy such as "Papa" or "Daddy" used by Jesus. The word was used primarily between a child and his father.

 

When Jesus shows us how we should pray in the Lord's Prayer [Matthew 6:9], He begins with an address:  "Our Father in heaven."  This is how we pray. We address God as "Father."  He is the Father of the children of God.

 

 If you are not sure you you are a child of God, then it is time to develop your relationship with Him now.  

 

Let's confirm whose child you are. Answer the following questions:

  • Do you pray daily? 
  • Do you believe Jesus is Lord?
  • Do you believe Jesus died on the cross?
  • Do you believe Jesus came to save sinners?
  • Do you believe Jesus was buried and rose from the grave three days later?
  • Do you believe Jesus was seen by over 500 people after He died?
  • Do you believe Jesus is now in Heaven and sits at the right hand of God with all authority to judge man in Heaven and earth?
  • Do you believe Jesus is the way, the truth and the life and no man comes to the Father but through Him?
  • Do you believe the Bible--all of it?
  • Are you born again?
  • Have you been Baptized?
  • Have you confessed your sins to God?
  • Have you forgiven all who have ever harmed you?
  • Have you repented from sin?
  • Are you obedient to God's commands?
  • Do you have peace with God?

 

If you answered any of these question "no" then you may not be a true child of God.  Pray and spend time with God's Word daily.  Ask God to lead you in truth, wisdom and knowledge. Reexamine your life. Are you living in the spirit?   Ask God for His spirit, the Holy Spirit to live in you and lead you through life.  Become a living sacrifice [Romans 12]. Walk in the spirit and leave the fleshly world behind. A child of God is not of this world.  If you love this world, you are not a child of God. Those who love the world are enmity with God.