Two Places--Two People

The Uncomfortable Gift of Divine Adoption

(1 John 3:1, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, August 7, 2016)

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.

What kind of love has the Father given us? Family love. God has brought us into His family by adoption. We are called “children of God.” Surprised? Yet this is exactly what we are. Still, we are not yet home in every sense of the word. We do not yet live in the present heaven. We are not yet fully enjoying the perfect environment that will be ours at the return of Christ.

The children of God are currently living in a place that John calls the “world.” The only thing he says about the world in this verse is that the world did not “know” Jesus, and that it does not know us either. We have been given the gift of divine adoption. Though this is a tremendous grace, our new family relationship is a call to a life where we may not be understood by many of those around us.

This “world” is both a place and a collection of people with a person at the head of that group. The same can be said about our ultimate home. It is a place and it is a Person connected to a large group of people.

Contrast of Places

Jesus said that in this “world” you will have tribulation. (John 16:33) Sin entered the world, and with sin came all kinds of depravity and death. That is not all that we have in the world. There is plenty of truth, goodness, and beauty here. People are sometimes wonderful and can be very generous in every way you can think of. With all the good that is in the world, the reality of death is still looming, and the God who alone can bring life is not acknowledged in the world for who He is or followed in the way that He should be obeyed.

The present heaven and the ultimate new heavens/earth are different from the world on these key points. Notice the way John highlights the contrast for those who are counted as the Lord's children in Revelation 21:4, In heaven, God “will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” John also tells us about the person who is the Prince of that place. One of the key blessings of being there is the company that we will keep. So we cannot really separate the Person/people from the place.

Contrast of Person/People

Before we talk about the King of heaven, we should first consider the ruler of this world. It is true that Jesus already has all authority in heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:18), but not everyone in the chain of command on earth knows him. There is a prince here who has already been defeated, and is even being restrained so the other nations of the world can hear the gospel (Revelation 20:3). Nonetheless, that old prince still retains certain parts of his job, and he makes it more difficult for those on a mission from God to live the resurrection life. (Matthew 24:24)

Let's talk about this old boss who is still roaming the halls of a dying corporation. He is smart, powerful, and knows what he wants. We are told that he is at work in “the sons of disobedience.” (Ephesians 2:2) He is head over a vast host of smart, powerful, and driven spirits and angels. (Matthew 9:34, 12:24) While he believes in God with a keen mental assent, he does not know God with joy of a true son, and He does not love the fact that God has an eternal purpose to unite all things in Christ. We are instructed to resist this false spirit.

What about the King of heaven. He is far above the prince of this world. He is far more intelligent, far stronger, and far more aware of what is being accomplished for the glory of God. He is also a lover of a truth, goodness, and beauty that will last forever, and He has put His own life on the line in order to bring those who call upon His Name home to His eternal kingdom.

The King has a plan for you that is the very fullness of justice and love. He understands about your final homeland and about Himself as the person who has made a way for all who will call His home their home forever. “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.”

Frustration and Faith

I read a story recently about some Christians working among Syrian refugees in Greece. Their home as they once knew it is gone. Cities throughout country of Syria, once places where various groups could coexist, have now, in many cases, been entirely blown away. These refugees now need to do their best to live in some other place that is not really their home.

You and I are like them in a way. We too are not at home, but our home has not been blown up, it is in reserve for us in the heavens. Of course we face the frustrations of those who are children of God living in a world that did not know Jesus and that does not know us. We are shocked by mini-surprises of evil incursions onto this war-worn battlefield. We face ugly words, bad decisions, and painful signs that death and the devil still seem to be alive and at work.

Yet we are also not like all of them. We know Jesus, and some of them do not. We know that heaven is our home, won for us entirely by the merit of our Redeemer, and some of them have no idea about how to live in a faith that is more than a series of outward commands.

We are like Daniel and his friends in exile in Babylon, but we know more than they do. We know that there is yet a Son of David right now on the highest of all thrones. Yes we have frustrations, but we also have the gift of faith. We have heard the Word of Jesus and we receive His assurance that we are a part of His family. We have come to know the adoptive love of God.

We must not let the frustration that we feel loom larger than the faith that we have been given. We are already eating the bread of heaven in the Word of God. That diet makes us much healthier than those who have not heard the message of salvation through a perfect Husband.

Beloved, do not give up on the kingdom or the King. The events of life that seem to breed only frustration in your hearts are actually part of making you ready to be who you will be in the eternal kingdom of Christ. You know Him and He knows you. He who has all power and authority in heaven and on earth has not forgotten you in your greatest hour of need.

The exile will soon be over. The day of salvation draws nearer every second, just as it has for these many years. Your greatest Friend is on the throne of heaven, and He is working in your life and awaiting your arrival. His own Person and His place are better than anything in this world.

Old Testament Reading—Daniel 1 – Ten times better

Gospel Reading—Luke 8:19-21 – The true family of Jesus