1 John 3:1-3
Chapter 3
1
Children of God
See the incredible love the Father has for us: we are called children of God, and we truly are. That is why the world does not recognize us; it did not know him.2
Beloved, we are God’s children, and what we will become has not yet been revealed. But when he appears in his glory, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is.
3
Everyone with this hope aims to be pure, just as he is pure.
Commentaries
Children of God.
The apostle speaks with admiration about the great significance of Christians: from now on, we are children of God (2), and we are conformed to the image of the Son (cf. Rom 8:29). All of this is a gift and grace of his love.
The Father has ‘given’ us—as a grace and sign of his goodness—to become participants in the divine nature, thereby revealing to us the immeasurable extent of his infinite love (1; 2 Pt 1:4). Those who hold this hope are purified and freed from anxiety and existential pessimism. They live in gratuitousness.