the basic message #E13
1 John 3:1
How great is the love the father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!
As a parent, I’ve spent a great deal of
time and effort in raising my children to the best of my ability.
Don’t start throwing roses at me- I did it for selfish
reasons. I’m planning on seeing my kids grow into
mature, responsible adults that are good Christians and solid
citizens. Basically, I’ve made an investment, and I
intend to collect on that investment. We have a Heavenly
parent that likely feels the same way. He expects to
collect on large investments he’s made in each of us.
1 Peter 2:1-2
Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
Our Heavenly Father, like a big
Andy Griffith, offers us loving advice that will make us the kind of
children he will be proud of. Don’t be misled- God
always, always loves us, but there are plenty of times he’s
not very proud of us. Whether you’re someone’s
parent or someone’s child, you know what I’m talking
about. When parents set standards they expect their child
to adhere to, they get disappointed when the child doesn’t
care enough to meet those standards.
John 3:16
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
God wanted us to be like him, but since we
couldn’t really understand how to be like him, he
sent us a perfect, unblemished example to follow. Since God
knows we’re basically stupid, he kept it real simple: “This
is my boy- try to be just like him”. I can picture God
looking down on Jesus during his triumphs and his trials. Like
an earthly parent watching a child in a school play, God might
well have said proudly, “That’s my boy!” God
would like to look down on us and say, “That’s my kid!”
Don’t we have a responsibility to be what God wants us to be?
1 John 3:10
This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother.
I define a brat as a kid that is selfish and
self-centered, largely due to a parent encouraging that type of
behavior. Unfortunately, little brats seem to usually grow
into big brats, compounding the problem. God doesn’t
have any brats in his household. Don’t get me wrong-
even we Christians pout and whine when we don’t get our way,
but God does not tolerate brats. Satan, on the other hand,
cultivates this type of individual. When one of Satan’s
kids fusses about how unappreciated he is, Father Satan
sympathetically says, “There, there baby, you know that I
love you. Come on, I’ll help you get even with those
bums”. Father Satan or Father God- who’s
yo daddy?