The Fellowship of God 4: Walk Worthy
Part 1 Walk Worthy Of Who You Are - 1 John 2:28–3:3

28 And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming. 29 If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one that doeth righteousness is born of him. 1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. 2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. 3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.

Be What You Are, A Child of God

This portion of John’s epistle bears a strong resemblance to the same chapter in his gospel. Here John says, “everyone that does righteousness is born of him.” Reminding the child of God that he entered into this family not a natural process but by supernatural one, not by an physical birth but by a spiritual rebirth. You are a child of God, live your life in the knowledge, power and standards of who you are.

When Nicodemus came by night to talk to Jesus, Jesus told him, “You must be born again.” Reborn, born from above. John 3:3-8 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

John, even at almost 100 years of age is still amazed at this rebirth and the change it makes, says, “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God:” The idea here, if I could paraphrase is, “How incredible, how supernatural, how unbelievable is the love that God poured out on us that we have been made the children of God and yet that is exactly who we are!”

We are so much the children of God that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him. We shall see Him as He is, not as Moses did shielded by the cleft in the rock, but we will look directly upon our Father’s face.

This is such an overwhelming reality that John finishes that thought with “Everyone who has this hope in Him, purifies himself, just as He is pure.” And that is the point. If you are a child of God, if you have been reborn, if you have been changed by the supernatural love of God then that hope, empowers, enables you, inspires you to live according to your new family heritage.

Walk Worthy As A Child of God.

Peter, sounded the same theme as his former fishing partner John, in 1 Peter 1:22-23 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

You and I as children of God can’t walk the way we used to walk, we can’t talk the same way, we can’t think the same way. We have been reborn and are no longer the children of this world, but children of our Heavenly Father.

Paul says it this way in Ephesians 2:1-6 And you hath he quickened (made alive), who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation (the way we lived) in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

You know who is sitting right now in heavenly place in Jesus Christ? This guy! And if you have been reborn then that is where you sit as well.

Now how can people who are called by God’s name, born of God’s love and sit in God’s presence not walk in a manner worthy of such grace and such an honor? In truth you can’t. You just can’t, not if you are truly who you are supposed to be.

Oswald Chambers was the author of the most popular devotional book of all time, “My Utmost For His Highest” even though he never wrote a word in it. He died before it was ever written and his wife “Biddy” who had faithfully taken all of his sermons, lectures and lessons down by shorthand, wrote the book late at night as a widow trying to raise their only child. Chambers knew how important an understanding of our new birth was.

In My Utmost For His Highest, he wrote, “The answer to the question “How can a man be born when he is old?” is—When he is old enough to die—to die right out to his ‘rag rights,’ to his virtues, to his religion, to everything, and to receive into himself the life which never was there before. The new life manifests itself in conscious repentance and unconscious holiness - Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest.

Being born again of the Spirit is an unmistakable work of God, as mysterious as the wind, as surprising as God Himself… Being born again from above is a perennial, perpetual and eternal beginning, a freshness all the time in thinking and in talking and in living, the continual surprise of the life of God. - Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest: