J. I. Packer begins the nineteenth chapter in his book Knowing God:

“What is a Christian? The question can be answered in many ways, but the richest answer I know is that a Christian is one who has God as Father.”

I would like to think about his definition of a Christian on two levels:

First, not everyone knows God as Father; therefore, we cannot say that everyone is a Christian. The Bible never teaches a universal sonship, like, everyone gets to heaven (the Father’s house according to Jesus in John 14) because of some sort of sincerity test. No, Jesus is the only way to get to the Father, and faith in the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus to save is the only right response to this extraordinary grace (cf. John 14:6). Paul also made it very clear how we become sons and daughters of God:

“For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith” (Galatians 5:26; cf. John 1:12-13).

God becomes our Father through the exclusive path of faith in what Jesus accomplished for us at Calvary. He gave His life in death so we could have eternal life (cf. John 3:16).

Second, God primarily relates to Christians as His children and we should primarily relate to one another then as daughters and sons of God. We must use the same glasses God uses to see one another, through the lens of adoption.

“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son…to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:4-5).

This means we are in the same family; we are spiritual siblings. And since we are in the same family we should love one another with a pure heart. A “pure heart” love is loving without an agenda or seeking something for selfish reasons from the relationship. It is loving un-hypocritically, authentically, and sacrificially. And I don’t think God wants us fighting over the kingdom toys like selfish two-year-olds.

Do we see one another as God’s sons and daughters? Or do we see one another as competitors? How we treat one another will reveal how we see one another.

Grace & Peace,