S46P6 – A Father’s heart: imparted to his heirs

1 John 3:1

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

In his homeland, he enjoyed every advantage. People admired and respected him because they knew whose son he was. He came from a family known for their public service and generosity. If he walked into a cafe, the door was opened for him. If he stopped at a newsstand to pick up a paper, he was not charged the dime. If he committed a minor traffic infraction, he was let go with a warning. The benefits of being known as a good person from a good family did not seem unusual until he entered that foreign land. There, he was not treated the same.  At first, he was not sure why this was happening. Then, a light bulb went off. He was being ignored because nobody knew him. Nobody knew whose child he was or who was his father.

One thing the children of God certainly share is the fact that they each are continually being transformed more and more into his character. They begin to exhibit what they see in and learn from their heavenly Father. For the people who know God, this becomes obvious. We can discern who our brothers and sisters are by how the Father is shown through them. For the rest of the world who do not know God, this may go unnoticed. They do not know who our father is, and they do not know whose children we are. The love and respect that we receive from our brothers and sisters who see their father exhibited in us is not something we can expect from a world that does not know him. Because they do not know the Father, they do not know us. We are strangers who can expect to be treated as such.

Scripture is clear that we are aliens in this world. We are foreigners who identify with a citizenship that is not recognized by the world. We are strangers and often counted as strange. As our new identity is founded in God, it only makes sense that the world would not recognize us if they do not recognize him. What matters is that the Father’s heart shines through what we do and say daily. We do not seek the world’s recognition but seek the Father’s recognition. We look for opportunities for his heart to manifest its love through us. Father, thank You for using us as a vehicle to exhibit your love, and make us people who seek to serve you in this way daily.