Five Forks Church
Sermon: “The Family of God”
Series: “Yes I Know!”
Text: 1 John 3
Brian Black
Chapel – May 14, 2017
INTRODUCTION: ANCESTRY.COM
Off and on, over the past several years, I’ve done some research into my family tree, using mainly
Ancestry.com. You might be tempted to suppose that my personal family tree is filled with fruits and
nuts, with an emphasis on bananas. That may be! I do know that I’m no kin to the monkey. The
monkey wouldn’t be happy about that circumstance either!
Today being Mother’s Day, it’s rather appropriate, I suppose, to tell you that the farthest back into
history that I could go is through Mom’s family lineage. Her maiden name was Barkdoll. And the
Barkdolls can be traced back to one Christian Berthold, who was born in Hausern, Biberach, BadenWurttemburg, Germany, in about the year 1656.
His grandson, Peter Berthold, or Barkdoll (as it became known in its Anglicized form),
arrived in Philadelphia on September 16, 1748, aboard the English ship Patience,
Captain John Brown commanding. Peter moved to Ringgold, Maryland, where he
died in 1835.
But there are mysteries in family history! Take, for instance, this fellow here. This is a
relief found in Freiburg, which is a town that also happens to be in Baden-Wurttemburg in
Germany. So it’s curiously close to where Christian Berthold, his son Johan Berthold, and
his son Peter Berthold were all born, in the 17th and 18th centuries. The nobleman pictured
in the relief is Berthold II, one of the Dukes of Zahringen, which is just outside Freiburg. Berthold II
was born in 1078.
For a researcher of the Barkdoll family, the intriguing question then becomes, is there a connection
between Christian Berthold and the Dukes of Zahringen? There’s some 600 years of history in
between Christian Berthold and Berthold II. But if a connection could be shown, then I could trace my
lineage back nearly a thousand years!
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Now, I know you’re thinking I’m more likely connected to the Dukes of Hazard than to the Dukes of
Zahringen! And that may be so! Because, according to what I read, Berthold IV had no children. It
sounds like the end of the line. Still, maybe one of the Berthold dukes had a brother who thus carried
on the Berthold name down to Christian.
I.
THE FAMILY RESEMBLANCE
Family history and genealogy is an interesting, and even educational, pastime. The truth is, however,
we are all related to one another. We all came from Adam, by way of Noah. And if you consider it
that way then, if you’re married, you’re married to one of your relatives! If you insist you aren’t
married to a relative, then I’d like to chat with you later, because I’d be very interested in finding out
what it was you actually married! Because any human being who’s been born has been born a
descendant of Adam.
Now, if you know Christ as Savior, then you’ve also been born into another family – a spiritual family.
The family of God! Remember what Jesus told Nicodemus…?
John 3:2-7 – [Nicodemus] came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that You are a
teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs You are doing if God
were not with Him.”
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Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born
again.”
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“How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot
enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”
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Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are
born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You
should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’”
The Apostle Paul builds on this idea of being brought into the family of God….
Galatians 4:4-7 – But when the set time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a
woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to
sonship.
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Because you are His sons, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, the Spirit
who calls out, “Abba, Father.”
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So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you
are His child, God has made you also an heir.
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So, if we are born again, we have been born into God’s family. That means we’re all brothers and
sisters in Christ. This is a family lineage we can trace all the way back to eternity!
And think of this! Everyone born of the Spirit is first generation! There is no second generation! We
are all spiritually one generation. The Apostle Paul is our brother. So is the Apostle John! What a
family reunion that’s gonna be someday! We have spiritual siblings we haven’t met yet!
The sermon series is entitled “Yes I Know”. It’s a study we’re doing of the book of 1 John. Last
week, we heard about those proclaimers of false doctrine which, John said, have come out from the
church, but weren’t ever part of the church….
1 John 2:19 – They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had
belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them
belonged to us.
To connect this with today’s sermon, we learned that it’s possible to have people within the church
assembly who aren’t truly part of the spiritual church family. For today, as we look at 1 John 3, we
want to talk about family matters. We can see, even in the first paragraph, things that are true about
us as members of God’s family….
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.
You know what, brothers and sisters? Maybe no one else in the world will ever really love on you.
But your Father in Heaven? He has lavished His love on you! To “lavish” means “to bestow
something [on you] in generous or extravagant quantities.” John says the degree of our heavenly
Father’s love for us is evidenced in His choice to call us His children! He was not compelled by
anything to call us His children. We certainly do not deserve to be His children. But He has chosen
to call us His children! That’s true love!
What does it mean to be a son or a daughter of God? We can see from verse 1 that there must
obviously be some recognizable family traits. Because John says the world doesn’t recognize who
we are because the world doesn’t know our Father.
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Now, I don’t know if I look like Berthold II or not! It’s hard to tell from a sculpture!
But you know as well as I do that there are family traits that are passed along from
generation to generation. One of the interesting things about our new grandchildren – Finn and
Elwood and, most recently, Raya – is seeing how they look like someone else – their mom or their
dad. Or another relative.
But, in order to see the child’s resemblance, you have to know the original! You have the know the
source for the traits. For example, with the twin boys, most of the people on Dylan’s side of the family
don’t see the resemblance, that the boys have, to people on Steph’s side of the family. And viceversa, because these people have never seen each other! Dylan’s family is from our location here,
while Steph and her family are mostly in Ohio.
You must know the original! You must know the source to see the resemblance! So, like so much of
what John writes about in his letter, it has to do with knowing! Knowing the traits of the Father to see
them evidenced in His children. You must know the Father!
John says the world doesn’t know the Father, so it doesn’t know us as His children.
II.
THE FAMILY TRAIT OF PURITY
And you also must know His Son, Jesus Christ! John says the traits of Christ – His character and
nature – will be on display when He returns. Then we will know our own family resemblance….
1 John 3:2-3 – Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been
made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see
Him as He is.
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All who have this hope in Him purify themselves, just as He is pure.
John says that if we have the hope of the return of Christ, we will develop the family trait of purity.
Why? Because He is pure!
See, if I’m focused on the return of Christ, if I keep reminding myself that Jesus could return at any
moment, then I’m going to get myself ready for His soon return! It’s like, “Company is coming! Get
ready!!” This is a worthwhile question to ask yourself: “What would I want to be found doing when
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Jesus comes back?” That’s the kind of question that, when pondered, will elevate your quality of life.
It’ll change your values – change what you think is important in life.
And if your values change, that’ll change the decisions you make. It’ll impact your choices – because
thinking about the significance of Christ’s return will change your desires. And, face it, you always
make your choices and your decisions based upon your desires. Knowing Christ is soon returning,
you’ll more likely desire to be doing those things in life that will please Him! And you won’t end up
doing things which would displease Him.
That’s God’s family trait of purity in action. John says that members of God’s family don’t continue to
live in sin….
1 John 3:4-5 – Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.
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But you know
that He appeared so that He might take away our sins. And in Him is no sin.
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No one who
lives in Him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen Him or known
Him.
John is not saying that God’s children will never sin. This is not calling us to live in sinless perfection.
Notice how he’s describing sin in this case – “to keep on sinning” and “to continue in sin.” A true son
or daughter of God will not constantly live a life of habitual sin.
Anyone who lives life unto themselves, as though they have made their own laws for themselves to
follow – anyone who does whatever is right in his or her own eyes – is living lawlessly, apart from the
laws of God. God’s laws are the consequence of His nature; His laws flow right out of His character
traits. If you’re not living your life according to His character and nature, then you are, quite naturally,
breaking His laws. You are continuing in sin. And you are not part of His family. To continue in sin is
not found in the family of God. It’s not a family trait.
That’s why we want to keep the family trait of purity active in our lives. And remember – what does
John say will keep running the purifier in your life? Having the hope alive in you that Christ may
return at any moment – and we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is!
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III.
THE FAMILY TRAIT OF LOVE
We are familiar with Jesus’ command to His disciples when He was with them in the upper room on
the night He was betrayed….
John 13:34-35 - A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you
must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one
another.
And that’s a command for us, too! Brother Doug Russo often reminds me, “You gotta love me! I’m
family!”
The Apostle Peter, also our brother, reminds us that we’ve been born again into God’s family, and
that we must therefore love each other sincerely….
1 Peter 1:22-23 - Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have
sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart.
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For you have been
born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word
of God.
Loving our brothers and sisters in the family of God is a recognizable family trait. The world may not
know our family history because they don’t know our Father. But they will know that we’re different
from them! And that difference will be highlighted before them through our love for one another. As
Jesus said, “Everyone will know you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
I didn’t spend any time on it in today’s sermon, but there is another sermon to be found in a subject
John talks about here in 1 John 3. In verses 7-10, he makes a distinction between God’s family and
the devil’s family. There are two families here – and there are clear, distinguishing traits of each. In
John’s Gospel, chapter 8, you can read where Jesus tells some Jewish leaders who are fighting and
arguing against Him that they are of their father, the devil. So there are two families!
Those who are in the world, then, will display the traits of their father, the devil. They’re in his family.
And John warns us here in his first letter that, when they see the traits of our heavenly Father in us,
we will irritate them….
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1 John 3:13-14 - Do not be surprised, my brothers and sisters, if the world hates you.
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We
know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. Anyone who does
not love remains in death.
The devil’s family is the family of death – eternal death, eternal separation from God. Because we’ve
been born again into God’s family of life, we have eternal life. And the evidence of our new life in
Christ will be found in our family trait of loving one another.
What is this family love trait look like? Well, it looks exactly like the act of love which brought us into
the family of God in the first place….
1 John 3:16 – This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us. And we
ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.
I don’t know who it was who originally made the Bible easy for us to search and find things by
inserting chapter and verse numbers. But I do know that the Holy Spirit had His hand over that
process. Because no human could have so finely coordinated the internal workings of this system
such that 1 John 3:16 could be so intimately connected to John 3:16….
John 3:16 – For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever
believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us”, says 1 John 3:16! You
can’t plan such things that specifically, and you know it’s no coincidence! And what this does for us is
it bridges the gap between the Gospel message of John 3:16 and the mutual love for one another
found in 1 John 3:16. Since Jesus loved us so lavishly that He laid down His life for us, so ought we,
in response to His love, be willing to love each other to the point of laying down our lives for one
another! That’s the ultimate family trait!
How does that work out in the reality of everyday living? John gives an example….
1 John 3:17 – If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has
no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?
If you can meet a physical need for another person in the family of God, you should consider stepping
up to meet that need. Obviously, you can’t do everything for everyone you hear about.
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Nor, by the way, should being part of the church create within a person’s heart a sense of entitlement.
“I come to church every week, so I demand that you give me money, because you have to help me!”
I don’t believe that to be a proper approach. To me, it smacks too much of the American consumer
approach in the demand for customer satisfaction. You know, the idea that says, “The customer is
always right.” The church is not a business, attempting to attract religious consumers or something.
So we shouldn’t treat it like that; you don’t run a church like a business, and you don’t attend it like it’s
a business for goods and services, to just please you and meet your needs. That will lead down a
rabbit trail we have no time to take today. To the point, suffice it to say, you may – and should –
make your need known, without expectations. Allow God to lead His people to do the right thing.
John tells us here, if we learn of someone’s need, and we have means to help, we should consider
helping. It may be more involved and more time consuming than simply opening your wallet; every
case is different. But what I would suggest is that we sincerely pray for God to give us opportunities
to help. And then wait on the Spirit, looking expectantly for what He brings your way. And He will!
Also, recall I said John cited this as an example. Obviously, there are those in our family who do not
have the means to assist others materially. But we can still love on our needy brothers and sisters
through the power of prayer! And this avenue of prayer is open to all of us! Let’s acknowledge that,
all too often, we encounter needs among our family members which are beyond the scope of the
church family’s resources to fix! So, like the children we are, we turn to our Heavenly Father!
These are some of the beautiful aspects of the family trait of love!
CONCLUSION
This love in the family of God was so much on the Apostle John’s heart and spirit that he wrote more
about it later in his letter. In chapter 4, from verse 7 to the end, you will read more about these same
kinds of thoughts. He says deep things such as, “Everyone who loves has been born of God and
knows God…. God is love…. This is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His
Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins…. If we love one another, God lives in us and His love is
made complete in us…. We love Him because He first loved us.” Love is a family trait in the family of
God!
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We’ve seen how love is a trait of the family of God. And we’ve seen the same thing regarding purity to keep us from sin. I love how John explained to us that we need to keep our focus on the great
family reunion which is soon to come! If we daily remind ourselves that today could be the day Jesus
appears, we will live each day in purity and in love for Him. We want to be ready for the family
reunion!
That Jesus is going to return is a true doctrine, a true teaching, in God’s family. This reminds me of
the value of truth. In closing today, I believe it is equally important to say that truth is also a valuable
trait in the family of God!
In fact, in chapter 3, John says that, too. Biblical truth is not something dry and dusty on a theological
bookshelf; these words we have been given by God are words of life! Look at what else John says
about love….
1 John 3:18 – Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.
Like James says in his letter, love is not just saying, “Be warm and filled.” The equivalent of wishing
someone “good luck”! Love is an action word, as we’ve already discussed. Love is lived out.
And, to the final point, love is lived out according to truth. The more we know God’s Word, the more
we study His truth, the better we will be able to love! Because, to love better, we need to be
changed! And our Father changes the hearts of His children through His truth! If anything that I’ve
said today resonated with your spirit in any way, just know that it came from the Bible. The Bible is
the Father’s love-letter of truth which He has given to us, His children!
And how encouraging it is to know from words which come from the Father’s heart that we are His
family! The family of God!
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