How is a person supposed to determine whether someone is a child of God or a child of the devil? With as much deception as there is in the world today, can a person really know who is of the truth and who is of a lie? Sometimes the lines are so blurred that it is difficult to determine whether a person is deceiving others or if he or she is right on target. How is one to know? One of the greatest benefits to having and knowing the scriptures within the Bible is that it helps us to make determinations such as these. In today's scripture John the apostle shares the difference between those who are children of God and children of the devil. He wrote in First John chapter three and verse ten:
In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever does not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loves not his brother.
John says whether a person is a child of God or a child of the devil is determined by what they practice. Most of us have heard the saying “actions speak louder than words”, and the answer to the a fore mentioned question is determined by what we do. Are we busy about righteous acts or unrighteous acts? Do we involve ourselves in activities that are good, moral and pleasing to God or are we continually practicing immoral actions that would embarrass us if Jesus were to suddenly appear in our lives? What is our speech like? Do we say words that are righteous words, or is our sentence filled with expletives that would shame us should we be judged? What we say and what we do habitually helps us to know those who are children of God or children of the devil, but there is more.
John also gives us another way to know the difference: “neither he that loves not his brother”. Do we love our brothers? John is not referring to siblings but rather people around us. Do we really love other people? Is there anyone in our lives that we can say, “I don't love him or her?” In other words, whether a person is a child of God or a child of the devil has a lot to do with their love life. If there is unforgiveness and rage toward anyone, anywhere this trait could determine to which camp a person belongs. The devil hates everyone. God loves everyone. Do we regard hatred in our hearts toward someone? Do we desire revenge, pay back or penalty for actions taken against us by someone else? These are tough questions for us today, but John wrote “ neither he that loves not his brother” as a direct attribute of those who are God's children or the devils.
Challenging isn't it? This is one of those verses that we must all search our hearts and determine if there is anyone we do not love, then if there has ever been a time for prayer, we must submit ourselves before God and ask His help to be as He is, and lay all repercussions at His feet.
Next time we shall discuss more about loving one another as John continues this theme, so read ahead, and we shall share together then.
Until tomorrow...there is more...
Look for the new devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation” in all major bookstore sites, www.amazon.com ; www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore
No comments:
Post a Comment