HOW DO WE KNOW WHO IS A CHILD OF GOD?

I John chapter 3 contains several tests that indicate who is a child of God.  Let's start with verse 1. 

 " How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God."

The child of God realizes the love the Father has lavished on them.  They are humbled by the fact that God has done so much.  He has given them physical life, spiritual life, prepared works for them to do in advance, and given them eternal life.  It is a privilege and honor to be God's child and the child of God knows it. 

The second test is contained in the rest of the first paragraph of chapter 3.  "Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known.  But we know that when He appears we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.  Everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure."  The child of God has the hope in Christ's return and will purify their heart in preparation for His return.  This is a very important truth that is often ignored.  Christ's return is forever linked to purity of heart!

The third test has to do with how we handle sin.  Verse 9 says, "No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him  he cannot go on sinning because he has been born of God."  John introduces the idea of continuing in sin.  This means a lifestyle of violating God's law.  John has already made it clear in verses 8 - 10 of chapter 1 that we all have sinned.  None of us is without sin.  Chapter 3 is calling lifestyle of purity and calling us away from a lifestyle of lawlessness.  That is logical.  Verse 8 tells us that "The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work."  If Jesus came to destroy the devil's work, why would His child be helping the enemy?

The fourth test is in verses 11 and 16.  "This is the message we have heard from the beginning: We should love one another... This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers".  Our love for one another is a sure test of our being God's child. Verse 18 goes on, "Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth."

Finally, verse 24 says, "Those who obey His commands live in Him, and He in them.  And this is how we know that He lives in us:  We know it by the Spirit He gave us"  God's Holy Spirit dwells in all of God's children.  When we are a child of God, The Spirit's power invades our lives and we are not the same, but we are being transformed.  Turbulence turns to peace, timidity turns to boldness, selfishness turns to sharing, and bitterness turns to love.  We end up enjoying that which never interested us before.  Things we used to enjoy now bother us.  That is the Spirit bearing witness with our spirits that we are children of God.