But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the
right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the
will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
John 1:12-13, ESV
receive – Lambano – to receive what is offered; to take hold of; to accept
believe – Pisteuo – to think to be true; to have faith; believe; commit to trust, put trust in
right – exousia – power of choice, permission; physical and mental power; power of authority/influence
children – teknon – offspring, children; to be regarded as true, genuine children
blood – haima – blood; blood shed by violence
will – thelema – what one wishes or has determined shall be done; will, choice, inclination, desire, pleasure
flesh – sarx – flesh, the body, “the animal nature” of man
man – aner – man, husband, sir
These verses have me pondering today.
Does this mean that not everyone is a child of God?
Maybe I’m misremembering, but is seems as though I was taught that we’re all children of God, but some simply walk away from the gift he offers.
It plainly says that only those that receive him and believe in his name are given the right to be called children of God.
I don’t have the answers. I’m not a theologian or even a Biblical scholar.
Let’s talk about it. What do you think?
FYI, if these verses seem familiar, I have written a post on them before with a different focus. Here’s that post if you’re interested.
Blessings,
PS. Sorry for the compact formatting. I tried for quite some time to get WordPress to play nicely, but it would not. 🙁
Hi, Ginger! We’re all born in the image of God, believers and non-believers alike. But only those who accept the free gift of salvation and put their trust in Jesus Christ are actually called children of God. I’d encourage you to read the book of 1 John (it won’t take long), especially chapters 2-3. I hope this helps!
🙂
I agree, Laurie.
Thanks for your input.
Yes, Laurie said exactly what I was going to say.