Are we all God's children?

[Guest LadyC]

God is ultimately in control of the overall outcome. He will work all things together to glorify Him. that does NOT mean that every choice we make is His will. far, far from it. you tell me to point to a scripture, but yet i guarantee you can't find a single scripture to support your position. because your position indicates that it is God's will every time an adult molests a child. every time a man rapes a woman. every time a person commits murder, or just beats someone else to a bloody pulp, or sets their house on fire while the family sleeps. those kinds of things are not God's will. but He can and will use all those circumstances, those free will choices of sinful people, to bring about His glory in the end.

now nobody has said (as you accuse) that "God doesn't put any influence on our choices". that is the work of the Holy Spirit, to convict us. but those who reject Christ also reject the Holy Spirit. and even those of us who do accept Christ still sin. sin is NEVER God's will. He can not abide by sin. He certainly doesn't WILL US to sin. He allows us control over our actions and our choice.

as you grow in spiritual maturity, you will come to understand the nature of our heavenly Father more and more. right now your view of God is childlike... and that's not necessarily a bad thing, because God wants us to have faith as a child. but He also wants us to grow and mature and be able to understand more and more of Him. we'll never be "all grown up", but we are all on the same journey

[kross]

God is ultimately in control of the overall outcome. He will work all things together to glorify Him. that does NOT mean that every choice we make is His will. far, far from it. you tell me to point to a scripture, but yet i guarantee you can't find a single scripture to support your position. because your position indicates that it is God's will every time an adult molests a child. every time a man rapes a woman. every time a person commits murder, or just beats someone else to a bloody pulp, or sets their house on fire while the family sleeps. those kinds of things are not God's will. but He can and will use all those circumstances, those free will choices of sinful people, to bring about His glory in the end.

now nobody has said (as you accuse) that "God doesn't put any influence on our choices". that is the work of the Holy Spirit, to convict us. but those who reject Christ also reject the Holy Spirit. and even those of us who do accept Christ still sin. sin is NEVER God's will. He can not abide by sin. He certainly doesn't WILL US to sin. He allows us control over our actions and our choice.

as you grow in spiritual maturity, you will come to understand the nature of our heavenly Father more and more. right now your view of God is childlike... and that's not necessarily a bad thing, because God wants us to have faith as a child. but He also wants us to grow and mature and be able to understand more and more of Him. we'll never be "all grown up", but we are all on the same journey

Lady C, do not ever assume you are more spiritually mature than someone else.

Since I now see that you think yourself superior to me, not knowing me or the gifts HE has given me, I will end this conversation.

HIS peace to you and yours.

[Guest LadyC]

no, you are putting words in my mouth. i never said or assumed i was in any way superior to you. but your understanding of this particular biblical issue is weak. and i made it very clear in my post that we are all on the same journey and that not one of us will ever reach full maturity. we all have plenty of room to grow.

if you thought i was condescending, then that's all on you. it sure wasn't coming from me.

[Guest lovinghim4ever]

I'm sure we've all heard the expression, but is it so? IS everyone a 'child of God'. Frankly, I don't buy it. We're all creations of God by extension, but not His children until He adopts us. What say the brethren?

My belief is . . . YES!

We are ALL God's children.

Afterall, HE created us.

[kross]

no, you are putting words in my mouth. i never said or assumed i was in any way superior to you. but your understanding of this particular biblical issue is weak. and i made it very clear in my post that we are all on the same journey and that not one of us will ever reach full maturity. we all have plenty of room to grow.

if you thought i was condescending, then that's all on you. it sure wasn't coming from me.

Well, just for clarification, when you write to someone that they will see it more your way when they are more spiritually mature, and that their understanding is child like, that can be taken as a statement that you think you are all that.

If you were not saying to me that you have better and more mature understanding of the nature of GOD than I do, then I truly apologize for my error in understanding your words.

[Botz]

I think there's a case to consider mankind as 'chips off the block'.

G-d created man in His own image...to me this shows that He placed in man godly attributes...yes even in unregenerate man...especially the ability to create. All of us are the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve, created sovereignly by G-d...all of us have the spirit of life in us, given by G-d.

I have no problem with a non-Believer saying we are all G-ds children...in fact I wish some would as it is such a great opportunity to show how we can have the relationship that Adam had, restored through the Second Adam.

Like so many things it boils down to personal definitions, but its nothing to get too bothered about.

Actually I must reconsider what I previously wrote, especially in the light of reading several comments on this thread from people whose views I always respect, and from actually looking at the Scriptures and seeing I was answering from the top of my head, and not according to truth....apologies.

Since the Garden, Man has been in rebellion because of sin, and in the sense that a person truely becomes a son or daughter of G-d, this is only through redemption by the blood of Jesus our Messiah...the Biblical definition of who is and who is not a Child of G-d is certainly different from some of our own opinions....and (speaking especially to myself) our opinions are only of value if they are grounded in the Truth.

1John 3:1 See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. 2 Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. 3 And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.

[Guest lovinghim4ever]

My belief is this . . .

Children rebell against their parents, but that does not mean they are no longer children of those parents.

We rebell against God (our Heavenly Parent), but that does not mean we no longer belong to Him.

Without God none of us would exist. He created each of us in His own image, therefore we all belong to Him.

Genesis 127 . . . "God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them."

So, why would God's own image not belong to Him who created it in the first place?

[Botz]

My belief is this . . .

Children rebel against their parents, but that does not mean they are no longer children of those parents.

We rebell against God (our Heavenly Parent), but that does not mean we no longer belong to Him.

Without God none of us would exist. He created each of us in His own image, therefore we all belong to Him.

Genesis 127 . . . "God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them."

So, why would God's own image not belong to Him who created it in the first place?

I understand what you are saying, and there is that 'sense'...but the whole point of being united with G-d has to do with coming out of the Kingdom of Darkness, and into His Glorious Light...to become His Children we must undergo a birth process by the Holy Spirit, which is referred to as being 'born again', and in essence establishes our lineage from above...so much so that G-d pours His Spirit into us and we as children know Him and call out 'Abba, Father'. In Him. Botz