Affirmation, a wonderful promise, and a tough challenge

1 John 3:1-3
³See how very much our heavenly Father loves us, for he allows us to be called his children, and we really are! But the people who belong to this world don¹t know God, so they don¹t understand that we are his children. Yes, dear friends, we are already God¹s children, and we can¹t imagine what we will be like when Christ returns. But we do know that when he comes we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is. And all who believe this will keep themselves pure, just as Christ is pure.² NLT

When I asked myself, what I could take from this text, I really couldn't see a single message. Instead I couldn't help but notice how the text is a big pat on the back, a tantalising glimpse of the future, and what seems to me, a very tough challenge.

Affirmation

In the first part of the verse, the apostle John says we really are God's children. Imagine all that goes with that. God loves us not only like we love our own kids, but even more. A parent's love for their children is tough to explain, but it involves yearning for nothing but success and happiness for them. Now imagine a perfect love, which only God is capable of producing. Take the moment when you felt love the most, and magnify it. That's the warm embrace we are walking in through life all the time!

A promise

"...when he comes we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is." What an amazing promise that is. Imagine the day we will see Jesus for who he really is, without our preconceived notions, or stereotypes that we (after all we're only human) have acquired through life. What will that day be like? What will we do or say? When will that day be?

A challenge

"...all who believe this will keep themselves pure, just as Christ is pure." For me this is when reality sets in. Personally a challenge like this can be very depressing if I just consider the statement. John doesn't ask us to strive to be pure, or try to be pure. He says everyone who believes this WILL keep themselves pure. Does that mean, the second a stray sinful thought enters our heads we have failed? And does failing then mean we don't really believe after all?
This kind of thinking is a very slippery slope and I don't mind admitting, I spend most of my life sliding down that slope on my butt, and crawling back up.
This challenge has to be taken into context with the rest of the bible, and the analogy as God as our father. To be pure for Christ we need His help!. We are not without sin, and God knows it. But we can strive to deepen our faith, to let Christ hold the reigns on our life!
If we were really pure "just as Christ is", would we even need God? Wouldn't Jesus' sacrifice have been a waste?
If this verse says one thing to me, it says God loves us like a parent, and one day we will see just how deep that love is. It's so deep that we cannot imagine a love that perfect. If we try to take every step with Christ, we can learn more and help others learn as well.
Is there anything better than that?

Greg Vandermeulen