Larry the Lubber
The opinions expressed by Larry the Lubber do not necessarily reflect the views of the crew — mostly because Larry is a pompous, sanctimonious authority on Scripture whose pontifications tend ter offend most everyone, even when he is right — which is ter often. – Staff
“VATICAN CITY (AP News) Jan 26, 2023 — In a recent interview, Pope Francis said, “We are all children of God, and God loves us as we are.”
How charming. But let’s not get carried away with such sentimental musings. The real question is, does God truly love us just as we are? Are we all His children, no matter how we live? Or do the words of Jesus, “Repent and believe the good news!” still echo across the ages, demanding a response from each of us?
The Pope’s statement seems to show a rather fluffy understanding of humanity’s sin and our need for a savior. One might say it aligns more with the Pharisees’ self-assured proclamations who indignantly declared to Jesus, “We are not illegitimate children; the only Father we have is God himself”?
Ah, but many a church today would have you believe this same notion—that we are all God’s children. But is it true, or is it just another comfortable lie we tell ourselves to avoid the truth of God’s word?
“We are all children of God.” – Darryl W. Stephens, director of United Methodist studies at Lancaster Theological Seminary.
“We believe that all people are children of God.” – Collister United Methodist Church.
“Everyone is a child of god,” Becky Hall, Executive Director of Christ United Methodist Church in Chattanooga and a delegate to the UMC Conference.
“Seabold United Methodist Church believes that everyone is a child of God.”
But What Does Jesus Say to the Pharisees . . . And to Us?
“If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on my own; God sent me. Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
“This is eternal life: that they may know the only true God. I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They have obeyed your word. I am not praying for the world. Rather, I pray for those you have given me, for they are yours. They are not of this world even as I am not of the world. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message.” (John 8:40-44,17:3, 6, 9, 14, 16, 20)
These are certainly not the words of a savior who subscribes to the notion that everyone in the world is a child of God. So then, who exactly are the children of God? Jesus makes it quite clear, does He not?
(Matthew 13:38-39) “The field is the world and the good seed are the children of the Kingdom. The darnel weeds are the children of the evil one. The enemy, the devil, sowed the bad seed. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels.”
(Matthew 25:31-33) “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.”
(Matthew 13:47-50) “Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
If everyone were indeed a child of God, there would be no distinction between a good or bad harvest, no separation of good or bad fish. God is holy, after all, and His children are made righteous through life in Jesus.
What Do the Gospel Writers Say?
(John 1:12) To all who did receive Jesus, to those who believed in his name, Jesus gave the right to become children of God.
(Philippians 2:14-15) Be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation. Hold fast to the word of life.
(Ephesians 1:5) God predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ.
(Galatians 3:26) In Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith.
(Romans 8:14-17) All who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you have received a spirit of adoption as sons. The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God. And if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ.
Ah, how quaint it is to declare that we are all children of God, as if such a sentiment were the pinnacle of enlightened thought. Yet, if this were indeed the case, one might wonder why the arrival and agonizing death of Jesus were deemed necessary. If we were all, in fact, children of God, then surely His suffering and resurrection would be rendered utterly superfluous. But, as Jesus and the Word of God make unequivocally clear, we are not born into the kingdom of heaven. Only through Jesus may one hope to gain entry.
Therefore, I implore you to confess your sins with earnestness. Request Christ to be your savior, and hold fast to that belief. Undergo baptism with water as a public declaration of your newfound status as a child of God. And, most crucially, be baptized with the Spirit of Christ, so that you might be transformed into His likeness. This, indeed, is the very fulfillment of Jesus’ mandate: “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey all I have commanded you.“—a directive that, I dare say, even the most esteemed of church leaders and denominations would be wise to heed.