Are You Born of God? Part 2 – 1 John 5:1

Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him. 1 Jn 5:1

No event or blessing in life can compare to becoming a child of God. To be born of God, the Holy Spirit regenerates our hearts, planting the seed of saving faith that converts us to Jesus Christ, Who came as a man to suffer and die in our place. (Jn 1:12, Acts 4:12) Many may confess of being born again, but Scripture teaches that love is the foremost sign of being born of God. Before our conversion, we didn’t know love, but once we received the love of God the Father through Jesus Christ, we were adopted as His beloved children who can never be separated from His love. (Rom 8:38-39, 1Jn 4:10) His love begets love, and as we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, our love for the Father and fellow believers is the evidence of our divine adoption in Christ.

Love for the Father. Before you knew God as Father, you were utterly dead in sin. But God raised up your inner man to life through Christ, enabling you to love Him with all your heart, soul, and might. (Deut 6:5) To love God in this way is to seek and honor God in all circumstances, using your will, intellect, emotions, and everything you have for God’s glory. (Acts 16:22-25, Lk 22:42, Mk 12:44) We must examine why we fail to love God. If our love for God is indistinct from and compromised by idols and a love for the world, we will fail to love Him. (1Jn 2:15-17, Matt 7:22-23) If we don’t have a high view of God, our love for Him will not be biblical. (Ps 18:1-2) If we fail to love God- even though His love for us never changes- we will think God is distant. (James 4:8) To love God, we must live by faith. We must be satisfied with God every day, trusting that His ways are perfect, good, and worthy of praise. We express love for God when we are in constant prayer, praise, and gratitude, knowing that He is real and is the rewarder of our souls. (Hab 3:17-19, Phil 4:12-13, Is 66:2, Heb 11:6)

Love for the brethren. Christians must be steadfast in love. The Bible seriously charges those who don’t love to be liars, declaring them to be haters of God and condemned. (1Jn 4:20, 3:14, 2:9, Jn 15:23) It is impossible to have fellowship with God if you don’t love the brethren. (Matt 5:22-24) Therefore, before you worship, pray, or read Scripture, you must examine whether you have failed to love one another. If you do not love your brother, your conversion may not be true, because the fruit of genuine repentance is love. As we know the love of God, we practice His love toward others.

Jesus died on the cross because He loved you, even while you were yet a sinner. Nothing can compare to the love of God in Christ Jesus. (Jn 3:16) Do you believe in the love God has for you? Are you born of God? To believe in God is to love the Father and love one another.