From the publisher of The Good News magazine.

Request this FREE booklet

View booklet in PDF format

Internet TV Program Why Am I Here? The Poor In Spirit

Related Articles

God's Vision for You!

What's My Purpose Here?

What Is Your Children's Future?

Predestination: Are You Just a Pawn?

God's Family: The Reason You Were Born

FREE Booklets

The Road to Eternal Life

The Gospel of the Kingdom

Who Will Be in God's Family?

Who are the children of God? Who will become a part of God's immortal spiritual family?

The Bible explains that those inducted into God's immortal family must first sincerely repent of their sins, be baptized and receive the gift of God's Spirit (Acts 2:38). By receiving the Holy Spirit, they become converted members of Christ's spiritual body (1 Corinthians 12:12-13), which is His Church (Colossians 1:24). They await the resurrection at Christ's return, when they will be given immortality (1 Corinthians 15:51-54).

Receiving God's Spirit is essential to conversion. The apostle Paul makes it clear that you must receive the Holy Spirit to become a part of God's family and Church: ". . . If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His" (Romans 8:9).

Why are those without God's Spirit not the people of God? Because, as Paul explains, only "as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God" (verse 14). Paul clarifies the relationship of God's Spirit to salvation: "But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit . . ." (verse 11). Only those with God's Spirit will inherit eternal life.

How, then, may you receive God's Spirit? The apostle Peter explained that you must "repent" and "be baptized . . . in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 2:38, New American Standard Bible). (Real repentance and baptism, which open the way into God's family, are thoroughly explained in our free booklet The Road to Eternal Life.)

God's children, then, are those who are led by God through His Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the power and presence of God working within them (2 Timothy 1:6; Psalm 51:11; Philippians 2:13). Those who receive God's Spirit are regarded as the children of God even in this life. "Beloved, now we are children of God; and... everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure" (1 John 3:2-3). But what we are now is nothing compared with what we will be like at Jesus Christ's return.

At that time the faithful children of God will be resurrected to immortality to share eternity with Him. Paul describes the marvelous transformation that will occur when the dead are resurrected: "There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies; and the splendour of the heavenly bodies is one thing, the splendour of the earthly another. The sun has a splendour of its own, the moon another splendour and the stars yet another; and one star differs from another in brightness. So it is with the resurrection of the dead: what is sown as a perishable thing is raised imperishable. Sown in humiliation, it is raised in glory; sown in weakness, it is raised in power; sown a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is such a thing as a physical body, there is also a spiritual body" (1 Corinthians 15:40-44, Revised English Bible).

These verses depict an awesome change indeed. That is why Paul says: "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" (Romans 8:16-18, KJV).

A future beyond compare

Do you get the picture? Being resurrected into God's family as a very child of God, a part of God's own family, is so magnificent that it is futile to try to compare it to anything we have ever known. No amount of trials, problems and suffering in this life could ever approach the priceless gift of eternal life as children of God, actually becoming like Jesus Christ. That incredible future is what life is all about. That is why you were born.

No wonder Paul exclaimed, "The created universe is waiting with eager expectation for God's sons to be revealed" (Romans 8:19, REB). God gives us this faithful promise: "He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son" (Revelation 21:7).

The wonderful world of tomorrow will be inaugurated at the return of Jesus Christ, who will rule as King of Kings and Lord of Lords (Revelation 19:16). Every kingdom, power and government will be brought under His divine rulership (Revelation 11:15). He will establish the Kingdom of God on earth. This was the heart of His message—the gospel, or good news, that He preached (Mark 1:14-15). (Be sure to request your free copy of The Gospel of the Kingdom to better understand this central theme both of Christ's message and the entire Bible.)

Those sons and daughters of God who have been faithful to Him will share in that rule with Jesus Christ as sons of God. Notice Christ's promise: "To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne" (Revelation 3:21). Those who overcome will be given responsibility as kings and priests of God in that Kingdom (Revelation 1:5-6).

Change to immortality

How can we mere human beings ever hope that Jesus Christ would share with us such incredible responsibility? Certainly we can never do so while we are still weak, imperfect human beings.

That is just the point of these and many other scriptures. We must be changed.

"Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed; in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed" (1 Corinthians 15:50-52).

A vision of our future

The Kingdom of God, under the rule of Christ, will be wonderful. But what will make it so?

It will be wonderful because of the leadership of the children of God, each changed to an immortal spirit being under the leadership of Jesus Christ. Jesus Himself will reign as "the firstborn among many brethren" (Romans 8:29). He will share management of the kingdom with the resurrected, immortal children of God.

The prophet Daniel received from God a vision of the establishment of that Kingdom under Jesus Christ. He saw Christ receiving His Kingdom from God the Father. "I was watching in the night visions, and behold, One like the Son of Man [Jesus Christ], coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days [God the Father], and they brought Him near before Him. Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed" (Daniel 7:13-14).

Who will share the Kingdom with Jesus Christ? "Then the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him" (verse 27). Here again we see that people who are the "saints of the Most High" will be kings and rulers with Christ.

But their type of rulership will be vastly different from the rulership this world has usually experienced. They will serve rather than exploit humanity. Jesus Christ described the kind of giving, serving, loving leadership that will characterize those who rule with Him: "Among the Gentiles, kings lord it over their subjects and those in authority are given the title Benefactor. Not so with you: on the contrary, the greatest among you must bear himself like the youngest, the one who rules like one who serves" (Luke 22:25-26, REB).

God is creating not just a family of kings, but kings who are servants, kings who will pass on blessings to those they serve. As Proverbs 29:2 tells us, "When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice . . ." The whole world will rejoice under the righteous rulership of the family of God!

Leadership based on love

God's character is based on love (1 John 4:8-16). The loving character of God is evident in all His children. It is that loving character that distinguishes the true children of God, that reveals who is really a part of His family. "In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother" (1 John 3:10).

Jesus taught the same. "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven . . . You shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect" (Matthew 5:43-45, 48).

The practice of godly love by the resurrected, immortal children of God will produce the wonderful world of the future. God is perfecting the attitude of love and mercy in His sons and daughters who are the firstfruits of His spiritual harvest (James 1:18). They will be children befitting His family, children who will demonstrate to the remainder of mankind that obedience to God's law is the right way of life.

God is creating in His children His holy and righteous character. Those who become like Jesus Christ at the resurrection will be more than just spirit beings similar to Him. They will share with Him the very nature of our Creator, Almighty God (2 Peter 1:4).

Never underestimate the value of your life. You were born to become one of God's children. You were born to receive His very nature and, eventually, eternal life. You were born to become a glorified, immortal member of God's family. If you surrender your life to God, this is your destiny.