Children of God
By John Lysaught
“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” (1
John 3:1).
The world:
I live in
it, you live in
it and until
death or the
Rapture─we are
stuck in it. The
bombardment of
“the world”
every day and
everywhere is
overwhelming.
But I’m not here
to knock on “the
world,” because
we as believers
know all about
“the world.”
Even though we
may live in it
we are not
active
participants of
“the world.” To
those who don’t
know what I’m
talking about
when I say “the
world,” I will
make it plain.
If it is not for
Christ, to
further Christ’s
kingdom for the
glory of God and
salvation for
you or others,
then it is
“worldly.” I’m
going to stop
using quotation
marks now. I
think you get
the point.
To my brothers
and sisters
living in the
world, let me
first say thank
you for reading
this and know
that I love you.
Remember, true
believing
followers of
Christ love you
and want nothing
but the best for
you, which is to
be saved by the
grace of Christ.
I am one of
them.
1 John 3:1
says: “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.”
This is the kind
of love He has
given to those
that love and
believe in Jesus
and sets us
apart from those
that don’t know
Jesus, hence the
world. If you
don’t know
Jesus, then this
will make no
sense to you.
I didn’t know
Jesus for a long
time. I was
raised in a
mostly Christian
home and went to
church on some
Sundays, and of
course on
Christmas and
Easter. I was a
nominal
Christian. Then
I became a
follower of
Jesus a couple
of years ago.
Before then I
thought I was on
a glide path of
success and
happiness. I was
(and still am) a
good person and
figured out my
own plan of
salvation
between me, and
the god of the
universe. That
is, until I met
Jesus.
Okay, I’m not
going to say
that I wouldn’t
been as
successful as I
am or have most
of my health or
my family, if I
didn’t know
Jesus. The world
is full of
greater material
and
surface-looking-success
stories than my
own.
The
success I’m
talking about
has eternal
consequences for
your soul.
I didn’t
know about this
until I met,
Jesus.
I’ve known about
Jesus since I
was a child and
through my
formative years
and into
adulthood. I
knew He was a
guy that
supposedly died
for all people
and came back to
life and then
went to heaven.
The kicker was
that if I wanted
to go to heaven
then I had to
believe in Him.
When I
did go to church
I would drink
juice as a
representation
of his blood and
stale pieces of
bread that
tasted like
cardboard,
signifying His
flesh. Whatever,
right? I figured
that since I did
go to church,
did the
communion thing,
and was a good
guy, I was a
child of God. I
was wrong… I
didn’t know
Jesus. We hadn’t
met yet.
I met Jesus a
couple of years
ago. Actually,
He was there the
entire time I
just never
opened my eyes
to Him. When I
did, I was set
apart from the
world. Looking
back to before I
truly accepted
Christ, I can
see that my
transformation
has been
amazing. For me,
it wasn’t an
immediate
transformation,
but more like a
slowly moving
river, etching
changes into the
landscape of my
heart and mind
steadily but
surely.
The more
my heart is
etched and
changed, the
more I realize
the world I had
been living in
was leading
to death.
When I left the
world and moved
into Christ, I
looked at the
world completely
differently than
I did before I
was saved and
accepted Christ.
Looking back,
with
retrospective
20/20 vision, I
can see the
errors of the
world and the
errors of my
ways.
The
details aren’t
important but
the holistic
view is, to me.
The world was
leading me to
eternal death.
My focus was not
heavenly, but
earthly. I
focused on my
career, money,
pleasures,
always looking
to fill that
void. If you’re
not saved, I
think you can
relate to the
void. The void
is the something
that is missing
in your life.
You may think it
is money, sex,
thrill seeking…
or some other
emptiness
that
you try to fill
with earthly
endeavors.
I can
tell you,
Christ is not
the void, but
the void is
filled with
Christ.
If you don’t
believe in
Christ, you
can’t
understand.
Before I knew
Christ I tried
other spiritual
things to try to
fill the
emptiness I had
within, but I
was never
fulfilled. I had
convinced myself
that I was
fulfilled, but
true
introspection
revealed I was
really just
fooling myself.
Christ is the
water that fills
the cup full.
Not half, not a
third, but
fully.
Once I accepted
Christ, truly
accepted Christ,
when I stopped
playing church
and stopped
going through
the motions --
thinking the
motions were
good enough
(they weren’t, I
was still
empty), I found
true happiness
and joy.
To my brothers
and sisters in
Christ, you know
what I mean. To
my brothers and
sisters who
don’t know
Christ, I urge
you to seek Him
out. You will
be
fulfilled. Don’t
go through the
motions; don’t
go to church
just to go to
church.
Investigate
Christ in your
heart and pray.
Pray for
revelation and
fulfillment.
Find friends who
are truly filled
with Christ, not
the ones who are
Christians only
on Sundays. Find
someone who can
help answer your
questions and
guide you in
this journey. I
promise that you
won’t be
disappointed.
More important,
read the
Bible─the New
Testament─to
learn about
Jesus and his
works and
wonders. Read
books on Jesus
that will help
you understand
better what the
Bible is about,
and just who
Jesus is.
I urge you to
get out of the
world and get
into Jesus. Be a
follower of
Jesus, and be
set apart from
the world. Your
eternity depends
on this simple
choice. Once you
truly accept
Jesus, you will
be transformed
into a new
person. Maybe
not overnight,
but maybe so.
Pray daily,
study daily, and
after awhile,
when you look
back at your
previous
pre-Jesus life,
you will be
amazed at how
much you have
changed and will
be eager for the
future eternity
with Christ.
You’ll
understand
the reason why
the world does
not know us and
we are not part
of the world,
but are called
“children of
God.”
God Bless,
John Lysaught
John_lysaught@yahoo.com