Thursdays Child-John 1:12,13

This week on Thursdays Child we'll continue on with John 1: 12. It says "but to all who believed Him and accepted Him, He gave the right to become children of God." As I was reading this I remembered a sermon I heard a few years back. I don't remember the preacher, but he was actually talking about John 3:16 and the way the word "believe" is used. I remember thinking that anyone could say "Sure, I believe in Jesus I must be going to heaven." Well, if you put in that context Satan believes in Jesus. He actually talked to Him in the desert, and we know where he ends up. So, I looked up the word believe in my new favorite bible study tool, the Lexicon, on Crosswalk.com. I found that there are 3 Greek words for the word believe. The one used here in verse 12 is pisteuo. It is used 85 times in the book of John alone including John 3:16. It means "to place confidence in. To trust in Jesus or God" Now, looking at it in that way we can see that wouldn't apply to satan. Another way to define it would be "to have a relationship with. Maybe it should say "to everyone who has accepted Him and has a relationship with Him, He gave the right to be children of God." Do we really understand what the last part of that verse means? To be a child of God. To be a member of God's family. Usually to be a member of a family means you get all the benefits and the inheritance of that family. Especially if you are adopted into a family,as we are in God's family. To those who may not be familiar with adoption, if a child is adopted he or she is legally guaranteed a portion of the inheritance. Children born to a man and woman can be left out of the will, but adopted children have to be included. Verse 13 says "We are reborn, it is not a physical birth resulting from human passion but the rebirth comes from God." Just think about what we're inheriting by being reborn or adopted into God's family. Basically everything Jesus was capable of is available to us. We need to get past the limitations of our human mind and venture out and be available to let God use us. Since we know God can perform the supernatural, then we need to let Him do it through us, and don't be surprised when it happens. Amazed maybe but not surprised. Next week we'll look at the gifts of the Spirit, to see some of the things that are available to us. Thanks for searching with me, Paul