From Being a Child of God into Becoming a Son of God.
A quick recap
Definition of the word, ‘Child’.
The Oxford Dictionary defines a child as;
a young human being below the age of puberty or the legal age of majority e.g. “She’d been playing tennis since she was a child.”
a son or daughter of any age. e.g. “When children leave home, parents can feel somewhat redundant. ”
an immature or irresponsible person. e.g. “She’s such a child!”
These three definitions match the biblical definition of a child.
Picking up quickly from where we stopped, we shall be exploring the characteristics of the believer who has grown into Sonship with God.
Characteristics of a son of God.
1. Unquantifiable love, zeal, respect and obedience to God, the things and ways of God.
When we have grown from being just a child of God into becoming His son, our desire for the mundane things of this world wanes. We earnestly long to please The Father.
Our love and zeal to walk blamelessly before Him develops into our daily quest.
Although we may still struggle with obeying His commands, we most sincerely repent of every misdeed and eagerly continue to follow Him.
Examples:
1. King David.
He genuinely loved God. Although he committed adultery and killed Bathsheba’s husband, he repented of his sin. God punished him by killing the child but he never stopped serving and following God till he died.
2. Apostle Peter.
Jesus prophesied that he would deny Him three times before the cock crew but he doubted. Nevertheless, it came to pass, Apostle Peter became dejected and went into hiding, he soberly reflected on his walk with Christ, prayed, repented of sin and became stronger in the Spirit and Power of Christ. He left this earth as the Foremost Apostle to the Jews, totally fulfilling his role as a Son of God.
2. The Fear of God
Joseph feared God and he did not sleep with Potiphar’s wife.
When we fear God as His sons. We run away from compromising things that will harm or hurt others (whether they are physical, mental, spiritual, emotional, financial etc). The fear of God drives us far away from all kinds of evil. Only the Beloved sons of God understand and walk in this reverential fear of God.
3. Wisdom and Leadership of the Holy Spirit in our daily life.
Our Saviour, Jesus Christ has become Wisdom unto us. We walk circumspectly, not foolishly. We allow The Holy Spirit to chart the course of our lives. We do not go on the frolic of our own, doing what appeals to men and not God!
“For as many as are led by the Spirit are the sons of God.”
4. The ability to endure, persevere, forbear and overcome.
One of the major characteristics of a son is Endurance.
The ability to endure hardship, forbear during tests and trials, and be remorseful and sober when corrected for wrongdoings without bearing grudges and always having the attitude of an overcomer showcases the depth of our relationship with The Father.
Examples. David and Nathan, Joseph and Potiphar, Jacob and Laban.
5. Humility and Patience
Having the humility and patience of Christ in the face of critical opposition and enormous challenges depicts great hope, confidence and trust in God which pave the way for success when passing through the crucible of life.
6. Maturity
It is mandatory for us to grow from one level of our spiritual growth to another, the same way it is in our physical developmental growth.
Moving past the elementary stage of our Christian journey to the level of maturity where God can entrust us with certain responsibilities is essential.
7. Faith and Hope.
Every believer is called to live by his faith. Strong faith and hope in Christ will see us through to the end. There is no room at all to give up or quit!
8. Praying and Watching
True sons of God understand the concept of praying in faith as the only communication process to bring God into their situations.
Since no one can answer his own prayers by himself, it is better “to let go and let God!”
The Lord Jesus Christ instructed us to “Watch and Pray”.
Like Prophet Habakkuk, the sons of God are watchmen!
We are to be spiritually alert and super sensitive to both the Spiritual and physical activities around us.
While we must not only depend on our physical senses otherwise we will become carnal, we are expected to be sober and vigilant at all times because of our adversary, the devil who relentlessly goes to and fro.
In conclusion, as sons of God, we have great inheritance and responsibilities in God. We are Heirs of The Father, Joint Heirs with Christ. Our job is to tell the world about Christ and unite the Body of Christ by fulfilling our roles as we await His second coming.
Fluttering while on our faith journey with Christ does not disqualify us but giving up, staying down in defeat or losing hope and faith in Christ’s finished work does!
Whether male or female, we are all called Sons of God in His Kingdom!
Shalom!
Bible References: John 1:12, 2 Samuel 11 & 12, Genesis 31; 39:11-23, Romans 12:12; 13:10, Habakkuk 1:1-4, Matthew 16:41, Mark 13:33;37, Luke 21:36, Romans 8:14
1 Thessalonians 5:6, Hebrews 5:14; 12:5-11, Proverbs 3:11, 2 Timothy 2:2-4; 3:16, James 1:2-4; 4:10, 1 Corinthians 1:24, 30; 9:24-27, 1 Peter 5:6
