You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.For you are all children of God, through faith in Christ Jesus.For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.For ye are all sons of God, through faith, in Christ Jesus.
9 sermons cite this verse
This is, first, a title of deep affection. The Christian Church is the home of Christian love. When it is what it should always be, it is a family—it is "the household of faith," of which God Himself is the Father, the Lord Jesus is the Elder Brother, and all the members are Brothers and Sisters—all equal, all one in Christ Jesus, all seeking to serve the rest, laying themselves out to be servants to the whole band of Brothers and Sisters in Christ. It seems most appropriate that an aged Apostle, such as John doubtless was when he wrote this Epistle, should have looked round upon the younger members of the Lord's family and should have called them, "little children." And when we recollect how much he knew and, above all, how much he had seen of Jesus, how he had fallen at the feet of his glorified Lord as one who was dead, and then had had the pierced hand of Jesus laid upon him to raise him up—when we remember how he had heard the blowing of the seven trumpets and seen the pouring out of the seven vials, how he had beheld a door opened in Heaven, how he had counted the foundations of the glorious City and gazed within its streets of gold, and heard the music of the celestial harps—I do not wonder that such a man with such a mind and heart, so full of God, must, as he looked upon the rest of his brethren, have regarded them, without any egotism, as still remaining as "little children." It is a familiar, endearing mode of speech such as I think should often be coming from the lips of aged saints. At any rate, if our expressions are not exactly the same as John's, the love to which the expression was thus given should burn in each one of our hearts. Like as a father loves his children, so should the pastor love his flock, so should the teacher love his class— and he may speak to them in such terms as these, "My little children." …
Let us also remember the Character of the King who sits upon the Throne of Grace. He is Infinite in mercy and love and He delights to bless His creatures. He is Infinite in power and is, therefore, "able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think." He is Infinite in wisdom and is, therefore, able to give us whatever is best for us in the best possible way. He is altogether unlimited in His Nature and, therefore, we cannot exceed His power or His willingness to help us, let our requests be as large as they may! Oh, when I think of what God is as He is revealed in Christ Jesus, and remember that it is He who sits upon the Throne of Grace, I feel that I may well repeat Paul's exhortation, "Let us therefore come boldly unto the Throne of Grace!" Remember also, O Christian, your relationship to the King who sits upon the Throne of Grace! You are not merely His servant—you are His child—an heir of God, and joint-heir with Jesus Christ! All that you ask for is already yours by right of inheritance and shall be in your possession in due time. Shall a child tremble in his loving Father's presence? Shall a son act as if he were a slave? Shall I, with tremulous hands, present a petition to my own Father whom I love? If I have perfect love to Him, it casts out all fear. So, because we are the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus, "let us therefore come boldly unto the Throne of Grace." …
Now, that type of prejudice still exists in the world. We do not hear much said nowadays against Christ's natural relations, but it is His spiritual relations who now come under the ban of Prejudice. "Yes," men, say, "this evangelical Doctrine certainly has a very singular power to attract the multitude. In the hands of Luther it worked a very remarkable Reformation. It is true that the preaching and writings of Calvin carried this Gospel into the hearts of vast numbers of hearers and readers—and we see the power it had over great masses of men as it was presented to them by Bunyan, Wesley, Whitefield and other popular preachers—yet, after all, what is the type of people that is attracted by such preaching as this?" Prejudice does not stop to answer its own question—it hardly likes to say what it thinks, but what it thinks is something like this. It thinks, in the first place, that they are a set of very poor people and Prejudice considers that to be one of the worst things you can say of them. In the estimation of those who are prejudiced in this fashion, poverty is regarded as almost worse than crime! A man may be guilty of nearly every form of iniquity, but as long as he is rich, nothing is said against him. Yet, if another possesses every virtue, but in addition to that is poor, Prejudice has not a word to say in his favor! We need not be greatly concerned at this, for we remember that our blessed Master said concerning His own ministry, "the poor have the Gospel preached to them." If He was glad to have them in His congregation, we also may rejoice if the poor are found among our hearers and among those who are children of God by faith in Christ Jesus! …
the remains of the noble being whom God made to have dominion over all the works of His hands. This is what he has come to now—an empty skull and a few dry bones! This is what sin has brought him down to—to be food for worms! But I will not linger over that dark part of the subject. Think how Grace has much more abounded even where sin did most abound. Grace comes in and finds man under sentence of death—hopeless and polluted and full of everything that is obnoxious in God's sight! What does Grace do in such a case at that? I answer by pointing you to that wondrous vision that John had in Patmos when he saw, "One like unto the Son of Man. . .His head and His hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and His eyes were as a flame of fire; and His feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and His voice as the sound of many waters. And He had in His right hand seven stars: and out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword: and His Countenance was as the sun shines in his strength." Who is this for whom all Heaven rings with hallelujahs, while Hell trembles at His word, and millions upon earth own allegiance to Him? Who is this? Why, 'tis the Man, Christ Jesus, who once slept as a helpless Babe in His mother's arms, who afterwards toiled at the carpenter's bench at Nazareth and who breathed out His earthly life amid the untold agonies of Calvary—but who is now exalted at His Father's right hand, "far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come." "Ah," you say, "that is all true concerning Hm, but we are not up there with Him." But faith says that we are if we are truly trusting in Jesus, for "God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sins, has quickened us together with Christ, (by Grace you are saved) and has raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His Grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus." Now you see how gloriously true our text is! Sin did us untold damage, but Grace has given us more than sin ever took away! Sin robbed us of silver, but Grace has given us gold! Sin slew this body of flesh, but Grace has given us a spiritual body which shall live forever! Sin threw us down among the masses of this fallen race, but Grace has lifted us up and set us among the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus! Yes, Beloved, "now are we the sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that when He shall appear, we shall be like He, for we shall see Him as He is." Verily, "where sin abounded, Grace did much more abound." …
the world was made, and which shall be the theme of grateful song when the world has ceased to be! But in the end the Shepherd tore the lion as though it had been a kid and, crying, "It is finished," He Himself fell prostrate over His foe, slain, but dying only to rise again and live in everlasting triumph! In that dread combat, His hand was, indeed, on the neck of His enemy—and now He has gone to Glory, leading captivity captive! You who have been delivered by Him from the old lion of the pit may well exclaim, "Jesus, You are He whom Your brethren shall praise." The next thing for which Judah was to be praised was Jacob's prophecy, " Your father's children shall bow down before you." Now, who in this house is a child of God? You will not be long in answering that question when I put to you another, "Do you bow down before the Lord Jesus Christ?" Here we are, a vast multitude assembled in this Tabernacle, but we are not all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. We cannot all truly say, "Our Father, who are in Heaven." Our text gives us the means of knowing who are the children of God, for the great Father says to His Son, "Your Father's children shall bow down before You." Do you bow down before the Lord Jesus Christ? Is He your only trust? Do you rest your whole weight upon Him? Do you depend for time and eternity upon Judah-Jesus whom God has anointed and appointed to be the only Savior of sinners? If so, you have proved your sonship by bowing down before your great elder Brother! …
[Another Sermon by Mr. Spurgeon, upon verse 14, is No. 166, Volume 4, in The New Park Street Pulpit, "The Destroyer Destroyed:"] BEFORE speaking upon the main subject of the text, I cannot help drawing your attention to those two words, "the children." Hear that sweet expression again, for it is one of the choicest descriptions of the saints, "the children." "You are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." What a wonderful influence the children have in the house! How many of the arrangements are made especially with a view to them! How much of the wear and tear of life to their parents is for their sakes! And we may truly say, concerning our Father in Heaven, that His plans, His arrangements, His actions, His gifts are very emphatically for the children! He uses all things in this great house of His for the education of the children—and when their education shall be finished—He will clear all these things away just as the builder takes down the scaffolding around the house when it is complete. …
Can with Jesus Christ compare, None so sweet, and none so fair!" I wish that some who have never yet been followers of the Lord Jesus Christ would become His disciples right now. But remember that if you enlist beneath His banner, it is for life. The Captain of our salvation has not six-months' soldiers—He grants no discharge from His army till the fight is fought, the victory won and the crown is bestowed upon those who have been faithful even unto death! Those are the conditions of His service. Will you accept them and enlist in His army tonight? There is nothing for you to pay, but everything for you to receive! Open your empty hand, bring your empty heart and receive Christ—and so shall you be enlisted into His service! And more than that, you shall become members of the great family of the redeemed, for "as many as received Him, to them He gave power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name." Believe on Him now and you, too, shall become the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus! And then if He says to you, when others turn back and walk no more with Him, "Will you also go away?" you will answer, as Peter did, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." The Lord bless you, for Jesus Christ's sake! Amen.
2. Perhaps it is not needful to give a definition of this, seeing the Scripture gives none. But as the question is of the deepest concern to every child of man; since, “except a man be born again,” born of the Spirit, “he cannot see the kingdom of God;” I propose to lay down the marks of it in the plainest manner, just as I find them laid down in Scripture. I. 1. The First of these, and the foundation of all the rest, is faith. So St. Paul, “Ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.” (Gal. 3:26.) So St. John, “To them gave he power” (exousian, right or privilege, it might rather be translated) to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name; which were born, when they believed, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, not by natural generation, nor of the will of man, like those children adopted by men, in whom no inward change is thereby wrought, “but of God.” (John 1:12, 13.) And again in his General epistle, “Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God.” (1 John 5:1.) 2. But it is not a barely notional or speculative faith that is here spoken of by the Apostles. It is not a bare assent to this proposition, Jesus is the Christ; nor indeed to all the propositions contained in our creed, or in the old and New Testament. It is not merely an assent to any or all these credible things, as credible. To say this, were to say (which who could hear?) that the devils were born of God; for they have this faith. They, trembling, believe, both that Jesus is the Christ, and that all Scripture, having been given by inspiration of God, is true as God is true. It is not only an assent to divine truth, upon the testimony of God, or upon the evidence of miracles; for they also heard the words of his mouth, and knew him to be a faithful and true witness. They could not but receive the testimony he gave, both of himself, and of the Father which sent him. They saw likewise the mighty works which he did, and thence believed that he “came forth from God.” Yet, notwithstanding this faith, they are still “reserved in chains of darkness unto the judgment of the great day.” …
When "the god of this world" comes to a man who is already blind by nature, he seeks to "make assurance doubly sure" by bandaging his eyes so securely that the Light of the Gospel shall be still more completely hidden from him! If such a man attends a place of worship, the devil persuades him that he is not a sinner, so that he need not take to him the preacher's warnings and exhortations. Another says, "I don't intend to trouble about any of these things—my one aim is to get on in the world." Yes, just so, "the god of this world" has blinded his eyes! So effectually does Satan blind the man that he cannot see his own depravity! O Soul, what shall it profit you if you shall gain the whole world, and yet be lost forever? What if you shall die upon a bed of down and wake up among the lost in Hell? May God give all of us the Grace to look upon the two worlds in their proper light! If the next world is only a trifle, trifle with it! If this world is everything, make everything of it! As you possess an immortal spirit, think well where that spirit is to spend eternity. As all have sinned and come short of the Glory of God, you are a sinner and you need salvation, so do, I entreat you, trust in Him who alone can save the guilty, "for there is none other name under Heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved," but the name of Jesus—and He is able to save unto the uttermost all who come unto God by Him. I said just now that I do entreat you to trust in Him, and so I do, yet this is not half so much my business as it is yours. The preacher of the Gospel ought to be in earnest, but when he has faithfully delivered his message, the responsibility is transferred to his hearers. As the Lord lives, I will take no responsibility of yours upon myself—to our own Master you and I must stand or fall! But, as your fellow man. As one who devoutly desires that you should not be lost, I do beseech you to seek Divine Grace from God to get rid of the scales from your eyes so that you may see sin, salvation and everything else as they are in His sight—and may look to Jesus and find eternal life in Him! …