1 John 3

Letters of John

When we become disoriented, we often ask two questions:

What did I do to get here?

What do I need to do to move on from here?

So If you have ever been disoriented, or are running from pant leg to pant let, trying to find something familiar, then looking at this passage can help us to settle into God’s claims on us as His children.

God’s claim on us as children shows us what love is and how we experience it

1 John 3:1–3 ESV

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

We know who(se) we are

John says, and so we are.

Maybe we need to remind ourselves of this truth. How incredible it is that God would love us enough, not to be called His minions or employees, but His children.

And when we orient ourselves to Him, we end up being able to understand much more about how to operate and live in the world. We understand what it means to be formed to be like Him.

1 John 3:3 ESV

And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

God is already complete. He is actual. He is pure. And to know Him is to become like Him. If He is pure and we belong to Him and orient our lives to Him, we know what He is like and become like Him. We choose to be like the GOd who calls us children.

We know where we are

We are free to love others and free to serve others when we are no longer disoriented and are oriented by the heart of God for His kids.

1 John 3:20 ESV

for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.

If we feel condemned, if we feel like it is too much, too far, too hard. If loving people feels like an impossibility, then God wants you to know that He is greater than that burden. He is inviting you into sonship and daughtership.