The right to become a child of God

John 1:12 (NIV)

Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God—

Bill Glass was an All-American football player (lineman) for Baylor in the 1950s, then became an all-pro defensive end for the Detroit Lions and Cleveland Browns for 11 years.  While with the Browns, Bill studied at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.  After football he launched a new career as a Christian evangelist (his ministry now called “Champions for Life") and was a frequent speaker at the Billy Graham crusades.  He is still a sought-after motivational speaker.

I heard Mr. Glass speak years ago and will always remember him preaching about his life’s verse---John 1:12.  Up until then and even today, I have never heard anyone else claim John 1:12 as their life’s verse.  Being led by God to be an evangelist, Mr. Glass focused on this wonderful yet very simple promise that anyone who believes in Jesus Christ is given the right become a child of God.  It was his life’s mission to lead unbelievers to Christ and this was the verse on which he based his life and ministry. 

To receive Jesus Christ as your Savior, you must believe in Him.  Note that the Bible does not state “believe Him”, but believe in Him.  That preposition provides the imagery of action, of moving toward, of making a proactive decision.  To believe Him has a shallowness or superficial meaning while to believe in Him requires greater depth of intent and definite personal action.     

The word “right” (exousia) can also mean "power" or "authority."  It is not a legal term, but conveys the imagery of a person becoming person of power because of his/her belief in Christ.  Christ does not make you a child of God, but He does give you the power to become a child of God.   

Have you ever looked upon a crowd of people and thought of them as children of God?  Of course, you don’t know who is or is not a true child of God, but having this thought makes people more acceptable and personal.  This thought gives me a deeper feeling of love and caring for others than I would have if I didn’t think of them as children of God.  On the other hand, it saddens me greatly to look upon a crowd of people and realize that God is not everyone’s Father and Jesus is not their Savior and they are lost.   

Again, God gives you the right or power to become His child, it does not come from your own power.  However, it is up to you to receive this power from God and you receive this power through your receptivity to the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Plus think about what it really means to be a child of God.  A child is an heir to his/her father’s estate.  All that belongs to God now belongs to you (read II Corinthians 2:12).  Affix this thought always in your mind—“I am a child of God, now and forever”.  What amazing grace!

However, if you are reading this and know that you are not a child of God, what are you?  You are a slave to sin (Romans 6:6, 16, 20).  You are not an heir.  You are judged to be an unbeliever (John 3:18) and face final judgment (Revelation 20:12-15).   Yet this does not need to describe you, all you need to do is to receive Christ as your Savior and believe in Him.  Please pray about this, talk to a believer whom you trust, and make a life-changing decision that will affect not only the rest of your life on earth, but also your life for eternity.