Here’s the Word of God. 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.

I love it. My girls are still in the phase of life where I’ll come home and they’ll run up to the door and give me a hug. This type of stuff. They’re still into crafts. Especially Isabella. Isabella will draw. She goes through tons. I don’t know how many trees have died because she likes to draw. But her and Emma both. But little Emma will come up and she’ll be like, Dad, Dad, I made this for you. And I’ll look at it and, oh, thank you, thank you, Emma. But Isabella, she’ll draw something for me and then ask me to recall it later on. Or she’ll tell me a story. Hey, Dad. And she’ll proceed to tell me something, and then maybe she’ll ask me a question and I’m not listening. And I can’t, I can’t, I don’t know. What would you say again, babe? Don’t do that with your wife, because your wife will definitely quiz you after she says something.

But she’s asking for my attention. She’s asking for me to focus with my mind and listen to what she’s telling me and to put my eyes on what she’s showing me. I remember a few weeks ago, or this may have been longer than that, me and Rebecca had the night alone and we were driving back from somewhere, cutting through the neighborhoods, and we were pretty close to Pastor Chad’s house. And I look up and, like, way off in the distance, like, over you guys’ house, north of town there, there was, like, this string of lights. And it was kind of vague at this point. That looks kind of weird. And then they just kept getting closer. And they kept getting closer. And I was like, this is some kind of, like, alien invasion or something. It was weird. And before you know it, like, they’re passing over where we’re at. And so, like, I pick up the phone and I’m like, hey, Pastor Chad, go outside. You’ve got to see this. You have to see this. Look. And they went outside. And it was, like, this perfectly spaced string of lights, like, just passing over our house. I didn’t know what they were. And come to find out it was, like, Starlink satellites or something from SpaceX. It was really cool to see. I had to call and say, hey, check this out. And both of those illustrations pale in comparison to what the Apostle was doing here. But I think it sort of gets at the heart of it. The Apostle says, see. Behold, look at this. Listen to what I’m about to tell you. It’s something to pay attention to. I need you to devote all of your faculties to help you understand what I’m about to say to you. I need you to look. I need you to look at it. And, yes, I want you to, with whatever power you can, put these things together so that you can understand them in your mind. But at the same time, he’s calling us to just be simply in a sense of awe about what he’s going to say. So, however, the best you can, look at it, see it, take it in. But then at some point, you’re going to reach a limit, and you just have to stand in awe. It’s no comparison, but as I look at the satellites passing over the sky, I didn’t know what they were. They were foreign to me. But it was just awesome to look at. It was a neat experience. And so, again, that pales in comparison to what the Apostle John is asking you to look at. He says, look at this. What kind of love the Father has given to us. I usually read. I study in the NASB, and it says, how great a love. That’s probably fine. But I think what the ESV uses right here, in my opinion, really gets to the heart of what the phrase means. As John Stott said in his commentary, he noted that the phrase literally means, from what country? Question mark. See what kind of love God has given. From where does the love of God come from? It’s a language that I can’t understand. It’s too lofty for me. It’s of a different quality, yes. It’s of a different quantity, yes. But it’s not just that God loves a little bit better than you can love me, or that I can love you. It’s a completely different kind of love. It’s foreign. Where is this love? Where is this love coming from? This is an otherworldly love. It’s an alien love. It’s a foreign love to us. See how out of this world, God’s love is that he gives to us.

Like in our culture today, where you see the banners, love is love. And what they’re saying. Is I want you to accept and approve of me. And whatever decisions I make, whatever I choose to do with my body, or my sexuality, or whatever it is. You need to love me. And so you can say love. But just because you say something is something, it doesn’t mean it is that. You can say that something qualifies as love, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that it is love. Because God has a very specific definition. Of what love is. And if I had to give you one in my own words, I would say that to love is to do something for someone’s benefit. Their enrichment, their betterment. Even if it costs me. Even if it means I must give something up. Or put myself in an uncomfortable situation. Or a less than favorable or ideal situation. Spot for me. I have to sacrifice something. That’s love. I’m giving of myself for your good.

And so what John is saying is the kind of love. The place that this comes from is so far removed from anything that you and I could know on our own. Or generate on our own. It’s out of this world.

So, he says that this kind of love is a kind of love. God’s kind of love is a love that says that we should be called children of God. A kind of love that says we should be called children of God. That should strike us sideways, I think. When we read that. Why should we be called children of God?

We. I know who I am. That’s one reason I like people to come up here and share testimonies. My goal is for it to magnify the love of God. For people to be able to look at your life and see an example. See a display of how God loves us. It’s a foreign kind of love. And it should always… It should always be strange. Like, this doesn’t make sense to me. But it’s so wonderful. I’m in awe of it. That we should be… I’ve heard some of your testimonies. You ain’t got no business being called a child of God. At all. I know who we are. Ephesians 2 says that formerly we were by nature children of wrath. By nature. It’s who we were. It’s not just something that you did or you thought or you said. It’s who you are. It’s what makes you up. So you can’t be a child of God if you’re a child of wrath. So again, what qualifies you and I to be called children of God? It’s God’s kind of love. Only God’s kind of love. Only God’s kind of love. You can’t be that person and make Him, by nature, a child of God. So it’s… Yes, you’re called a child of God. You’re identified as a child of God. And so, you know, you say that you are. It’s the label over you. But now, by nature, it really is who you are. You have been remade and reshaped and recreated into something new. By the power of God’s love. By the power of God’s love. We have no business being called children of God. But God’s kind of love, it’s an enduring love and it’s an everlasting love. Again, a little earlier in Ephesians, God says that we were predestined in love to be adopted. As His children. So it’s not something that you and I could have earned. Or it’s not something that you and I did to merit God’s favor. It’s simply that He chose, out of love, to make us His children.

This should baffle us. It baffles me. Because, again, I know who I am. I know who I was. I was an enemy of God. I hated God with my lips. I hated God with my hands. I hated God with my mind. I hated God with my heart. But He loved me anyways.

Jesus says, love your enemies and bless those who curse you. Pray for those who persecute you. So God not only says He loves us, but He has demonstrated it. In Romans, He says that God demonstrates His love for us and that Christ died for sinners. Christ didn’t die for righteous people. Christ didn’t die for somewhat good people. Christ didn’t die for okay people. He died for sinners. But God shows us. What kind of love He has with His actions. It’s when we are still sinning, Jesus died for us.

That’s what kind of love God has.

So, you’re called a child of God. And John adds this little appendage to the sentence. And so we are. So you have to be able to see that, by faith, you have to be able to look on what God has shown you, what God has demonstrated. Though you can’t fully comprehend it, though you can’t fully understand it, by faith you believe it. And you say, somehow, someway, by this amazing kind of love, I am now a child of God. It’s who I am. And again, you have to know that it’s not anything that was due you. It’s gratuitous. Ephesians says that God being rich in mercy, He was merciful to you because of the great love that He had for you. The great love that is in God is the very seat of mercy. And so then, the fruit of that and the product of that is that you are a child of God. You are a recipient of grace. Because God loves, it restrains His wrath, and He is merciful toward us. So merciful that it shows itself in redeeming us and adopting us into His family. He brings in the weakest, and the vilest, and the poor, and He clothes them with fine linens, and rings, and crowns, and He calls us, as His children. That’s an amazing kind of love. What country is that from?

What country is God’s love from?

Do you believe what John says when he says, and so we are? That’s where faith comes in. God’s kind of love gives faith. God’s kind of love, it gives, it gives you faith to believe that Christ died for you. It gives you faith to believe and to cherish and to hold on to that though you deserve death and punishment and wrath and the full weight of God’s vengeance, He restrained that. At least, what was due you, He did. And He put it on His Son. He didn’t erase it. Then God would not be just. He didn’t do away with all the wickedness that you and I partook in and all the dirt we did and all this and that. He didn’t wipe it away, sweep it under the rug, forget about it. He put it on His Son. What kind of love is that?

It’s an otherworldly love. It’s a love unique to God. Have you ever tried to love someone who does you wrong? I won’t say any names, but I know of this person who has a neighbor and something simple like tracking mud on their driveway can’t restrain his emotions and his anger towards that person.

Things people do bother us and it causes us to feel certain ways towards these people. And how we feel comes out in what we say about the situation. It comes out in what we do about the situation. It’s hard to love.

It’s hard to love my wife sometimes. It’s hard for my wife to love me sometimes. It’s hard to love people because we’re broken and we’re fallen. And we want people to suit our needs and our desires. And our demands. We want people to fall in line with what we want and then we try to call that love. What kind of love is that? Have you tried to love an enemy? Have you tried to get on your face and pray for that person that bugs the mess out of you? Have you tried to bless those who persecute you?

It’s not natural to man You can’t. It’s impossible to do that apart from seeing and beholding God’s kind of love. You can’t.

Yet, Jesus set His crown on His throne and He was born of a virgin and He lived a life subjected to our weak flesh roaming around on this dusty earth His hometown friends and family mocking Him. Who knows what was all said that’s not recorded in Scripture of Him walking around claiming to be the Messiah. They spit on Him and pulled His beard and beat Him and ultimately hung Him on a cross.

Yet it was out of love that He did that. That’s God’s kind of love.

Do you believe it? Are you a child of God? John seems to think that you can be pretty confident. So we are.

So, let’s say you you believe that you are a child of God. That’s that’s pretty weighty. I am now a child by nature of the eternal God. The everlasting King. The righteous judge. The King of Heaven. I am a child of His. So maybe we start walking around like hey, you know I believe in Jesus. You know, expecting that to mean something to people. John says the world, the world, doesn’t care if you’re a child of God. So what I want to say to you is if you find yourself being

less than recognized as a child of God by your fellow brothers and sisters in Adam, don’t let that affect you. Don’t let that oppress your faith. Don’t let that force you to believe less that you are a child of God. Because the world is not going to recognize you as that. People don’t care that you follow Jesus. People don’t care that you are a child of God. People don’t care that you do good works. People don’t care that you give money to the poor. People don’t care that you pray every night with your kids and with your wife. People don’t care that you read your Bible. The world does not care that you are a child of God. Don’t be affected by that. Jesus said, don’t be surprised when the world hates you. It hated me first. It still hates me. And it’s still going to hate you. We just have to wear that.

We are God’s children. That is a fact. If you believe in Christ, that He is the Son of God, that He bore your sin on the cross, that He was buried and that He rose from the dead on the third day, you are a child of God. You can’t believe that, truly, and not be.

And as much as that has, as many implications as that has for us now, it does. It changes things now. It changes who you are now. It changes how you speak. It changes how you walk. It changes your status and your standing with God. You can now come into the presence of God. You can now ask of God whatever you want according to His will and He’ll give it to you. Only a child of God has that type of favor. But, you’re still in this world. You’re still in a hostile environment. You’re still in a broken and weak and beat down body. You’re still subjected to some degree to your old nature. By the power of the Spirit, we can resist our flesh. By the power of the Spirit, we have power over sin. But none of us are perfect fully. We’re being sanctified. John says that this faith that you have, it’s real, but it’s looking forward to something. What, you will be one day, has not yet been shown to you. The Hebrews writer says that faith, faith is the assurance, the conviction of things, what, hoped for. It’s not necessarily something that’s fully realized now.

It doesn’t change the truth that you are, you are God’s now. But you have to understand that it’s not fully revealed yet. To some degree, it’s like, how much better can it, I’m a child of God, how much better can it get? I don’t know. I haven’t seen that yet and neither have you. And that’s part of the hope. We have this hope and it’s laid up in heaven and it’s being kept and reserved for us by the power of God and it’s going to be revealed to us in the last day. When Jesus returns, we will see Him and we will be changed into what He is. No, not fully divine. We won’t be gods, but we will have a glorified body. We won’t be subjected to this weak flesh anymore.

One day you won’t have any more pain, Mr. Richard. Be freed from it. You’re battling with depression or anxiety and you just can’t go to work and focus because whatever it is in the back of your mind just plagues you and you can’t escape from it. You’re growing old and you’re going to die someday. You lost a child. I don’t know what it is, but one day, one day, our hope is when Jesus returns, we’re going to be freed from that and you know what else you’re going to be freed from? The lust of the flesh. Yes, God has changed our passions and our desires, but somehow, that guy keeps crawling out of the grave and he says, hey, you forgot something. You forgot something. Come see. Let me show you. That man’s going to be done away with. And one day, we’re going to be raised with Christ into glory and we’re going to be raised changed into something that we’ve never known, and it’s far better and it’s far superior than anything we could imagine or think up. God’s kind of love gives hope. So in the midst of now, whatever it is, whatever your day consists of now, whatever hardship you face now, whatever oppression you receive from the world now, our hope is that one day it will cease. I love that Christmas song, all oppression will cease.

God’s kind of love gives us a faith to believe, a faith that looks forward to a hope that one day we will receive. And if you have that hope, John says, you love God. If you have seen and experienced God’s kind of love, John says, you will love. He says, you will purify yourself as he is pure.

What is it at its core for me to purify myself, for me to remove anything in me that does not fall into these two categories, loving God and loving my neighbor? Jesus says all the law and the prophets hinge on these two commandments, to love God and to love your neighbor. And so when I purify myself, I am removing whatever it is that is hindering me from fully loving God and fully loving my neighbor. God’s kind of love gives me a faith to believe in Christ and what he’s done for me and a hope to believe that he’s coming back for me to bring me and restore me into something that I’ve never known. And so when I purify myself, I am removing I can’t imagine how wonderful it’s going to be. And God’s kind of love enables me now, right now, to love him and to love you. Do you purify yourself? Because he doesn’t say it’s a certain thing. If you have this hope, you purify yourself. It’s not you should purify yourself or you might or you could. You do. It’s a fruit. You see, God’s kind of love is an effectual love. It causes things to change and it accomplishes what it sets out to accomplish. It is effectual. It has an effect on us, on who we are, on how we behave, on how we talk, on how we think about the neighbor that tracks mud in our driveway. It does. You can’t be a recipient of God’s love and not love him back. I’m not saying you’re going to do it perfectly. Nobody in this room could raise their hand if I ask that question. Me included. Far from it. But to some degree, when the Spirit convicts you, you listen and you make some effort to remove whatever it is that he’s pointing on so that you can live, for him, that you can love him. If you have received God’s love, you will love him. So what is it that’s hindering you from loving him? If you claim to have experienced that. Something so great, that kind of love, an amazing love, that says, before time ever began, man, I’m going to save this people. And through it all, through all the backsliding and cursing and rebellion and waywardness and filth and sin and everything, it says, nope, I set out before time to love you. And it demonstrates the faithfulness of that love when Jesus hung on a cross.

That kind of love, if we see that,

we should be changed.

You can’t go to work tomorrow and interact with your boss the same way you did before you experienced that kind of love. You can’t treat your wife the same way that you were treating her before you experienced that kind of love. You can’t be looking at the things on the internet that you were looking at now and not feel some sort of conviction if you’ve experienced that kind of love. You can’t neglect your family’s spiritual health if you’ve experienced that kind of love.

You can’t be driving down the road where nobody can see, put up a certain number of fingers at somebody who cut you off at the red light if you’ve experienced that kind of love. Maybe you do, but you should feel bad about it afterwards.

God’s love does something. It’s an effectual love. So I just ask you, if you’ve experienced that kind of love, if you’ve experienced what Christ has done for you, be zealous to reciprocate it. You won’t do it perfectly now, but one day you will. One day you’ll be glorified with Christ and you won’t have to war against that anymore. But you’ve got to purify yourself. It’s a process now. It’s a process now. But you have to. So what I want you to do is to see how marvelous and how magnificent and how wonderful God’s love is for us in the face of Christ. Would you pray with me? Lord, I thank You that You’ve loved us in a way that is completely foreign to anything that we could do. You’ve loved us in a way that is completely undeserved. You’ve loved us in a way that endures all things and in a way that accomplishes all things.

You’ve loved us in a way that endures all things. Lord, I just thank You for that love. I thank You that You haven’t just said it, but You’ve done it. Lord, I pray that You would teach us that Your Spirit would be constantly refining us and purifying us so that we too could love like You love. Surely we won’t be able to love like You love. We won’t be able to be perfect, Lord. But would You help us to be zealous for it? Would You help us to hunger for it? Would You help us to desire and chase after it? Because we know and understand that the way You’ve loved us is just so far greater and so far above anything we could know or comprehend. But we just can’t help ourselves.

I thank You, Lord Jesus, for dying for my sins. I thank You, Lord Jesus, for bearing the burden of Your church.

I thank You, Lord Jesus, for Your faithfulness. I thank You for this church. I pray that You would make us a holy church, a zealous church, a compassionate church, a praying church. I just pray that You would do this all for Your kingdom, Lord, and all for Your namesake. In Jesus’ name, amen. Amen.