Well, let's seek the Lord before we come to the word of God. Let's pray. Let's pray that God will minister to our hearts this evening as we've gathered to hear the word preached and then as we come around the throne of heavenly grace. Let's seek now the Lord together in a word of prayer. Loving Father, We come into thy presence. We rejoice, O God, that we can address thee as our Father. We come, Lord, as the sons and the daughters of God. We enter in by faith. We come by the new and living way, ever thankful, O God, for all that thou hast done for us in and through your Son, Jesus Christ. We thank thee, Father, for the pardoning of our sins, the putting of them away, the blotting out of our transgressions, the casting of them behind thy back, the subduing of them, and Lord, the casting of our sins into the depths of the sea. How glad, Lord, we are that we are the redeemed of the Lord, redeemed how I love to proclaim it, redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, redeemed through his infinite mercy, his child, and forever I am. We rejoice, dear God, in the blessings that are ours in and through our Savior. We thank Thee for the great work that He did on our behalf. We thank Thee that He came into this world and He would live for us. He would honor the law. He would die the atoning death, rise again, and is now in the glory, ever living to make intercession for us. We thank Thee for He who is our prophet, our priest and king. We bless thee for the anointed one, the Christ of God, the bright in the morning star, the fairest of 10,000 to our soul. And we're gathered, Lord, together as thy believing people, ever thankful, dear God, that thou has purchased us by thy blood and thou has bought us with a tremendous price. And therefore, Lord, help us to glorify thee in our bodies, we pray. Bless every child of God who is gathered in the house this evening. We thank you, O God, for the gathering of the people. We are gathered unto thee, Lord, tonight. Lord, we're not gathered, Lord, for the sake of the preacher, for the sake, O God, of the denomination, but we're gathered in thine aim, and we're gathered unto thee, Lord, by faith. Lord, we thank thee that God hears, and God answers prayer. We're evidence of it, Lord. We praise thee, dear Father, for your good mercy. that has led us even this week. And Lord, we look into the remaining days of this week and we trust thee that thou will continue to lead and guide thy people. Uplift our hearts, Lord. Encourage us in the Lord. How glad we are, O God, for all of the blessings that are ours in and through Christ. And Lord, as we come to handle thy word, now I pray that thou would empty me of self and sin. And Lord, fill me with the Holy Ghost. and with power. Lord, may there be a word for every Christian in this house tonight, from the youngest to the oldest, from them, Lord, those who are only recently converted to those who are long on the road. We pray that there might be something fresh and something encouraging, something challenging, something comforting, to every heart that is gathered here this evening. So come and answer prayer, glorify thy son. We offer prayer in and through our savior's lovely name, amen. Let's turn to 1 John and the chapter number three. 1 John chapter three, we welcome. each and every one of you this evening. Lovely to have so many out in the house of God. To those who are joining in online, maybe you're at home looking after children, well, we welcome you in our Savior's name. And others who are unwell, I know there's a bit of sickness going about the congregation at this time. So we welcome you in our Savior's lovely name. So 1 John chapter three, we'll read the first 10 verses of the children, of the chapter here, and well, we'll be speaking about the children of God this evening. So 1 John 3, and the verse number one. Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God. Therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God. And it doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that When he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. Whosoever commiteth sin transgresseth also the law, for sin is the transgression of the law. And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins, and in him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not, whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him. Little children, let no man deceive you. He that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. He that committeth sin is off the devil, for the devil sinneth from the beginning for this purpose. The Son of God was manifested that he might destroy the works of the devil. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin, for his seed remaineth in him, and he cannot sin because he is born of God. In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil. Whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. amen and we'll conclude as i said at the end of the verse number 10 as you're aware we have been already considering in this series of messages entitled christian identity we have already considered that a christian is one who is united to jesus christ someone who is in Christ, in the Lord. We've been thinking about that. We have thought about that. And then last week we thought about how the Christian is a person who has been justified. They have been declared righteous before God. Not made righteous, but declared righteous before God. It is a forensic declaration made by God that all of his children are declared righteous And thank God there is not one who is more justified than the other. But we're all fully justified by the grace of God. Well tonight we want to think about how the Christian is a child of God. A Christian is a child of God. Now the Bible makes it very clear, the word of God makes it very clear that no one enters this world as a child of God. Rather, the scriptures speak of us in our natural sinful state as being children of certain things. First of all, the Bible speaks of us as being children of disobedience. That's what we are by nature. Children of disobedience, Ephesians chapter 2, verses 1 and 2. And you if he quickened who were dead in trespasses and sins, wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience. It goes on to state there in Ephesians chapter 2 that we're not only children of disobedience but we're also children of wrath. Because in verse 3 it goes on to say, This is what we were by nature. We were by nature the children of wrath even as others. And then in John chapter 8 verse 44 we read that we are children, by nature we are children of the devil. The Lord Jesus Christ is a speaker here and he said, Now Christ was speaking there to the religious zealots of the day. but here we find in this chapter that we are also termed as children of the devil in verse number 10 in this the children of god are manifest and the children of the devil whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of god neither is he that loveth not his brother and so we have this term children of the devil once again the scriptures also say nothing about a person becoming a child of god through the sacraments of the church. The Roman Catholic Church, however, teaches in her catechism that an infant becomes a child of God by their baptism. The Catholic catechism, it reads as follows, through baptism, we are freed from sin and reborn as sons of God. We become members of christ are incorporated into the church and made sharers in her mission And so the roman catholic church believes that in baptism when a child is baptized That child is delivered from their sin That child is reborn as a son of god and that child is united or joined or becomes a member of christ rome teaches that an infant becomes a child of God at their baptism. This we deny, and this we reject because of the teaching of Holy Scripture. So let me set out then before you, how then do we become a child of God? If we're not children of God by our natural birth, and the sacraments of the church do not make us a member of God's family, how then do we become a child God well that brings us to one of the most blessed doctrines and yet I believe one of the most overlooked doctrines that we find presented to us in the Word of God namely the doctrine of adoption the doctrine of adoption what is adoption well I'll point you to the larger catechism to give you a good definition with regard to adoption let me quote the larger catechism for you adoption is an act of of the free grace of God in and for his only son, Jesus Christ, whereby all those that are justified, we thought about that last week, all those that are justified are then received into the number of his children, have his name put upon them, the spirit of his son given to them, are under his fatherly care and dispensations, admitted to all the liberties and privileges of the sons of God, made heirs of all the promises and fellow heirs with Christ in glory. Again, as it is the case with our justification, so with regard to our adoption into God's family, this is again an act of God's free grace. What that simply means is that we do not merit it. We do not deserve it, but rather God in grace. God in grace brings us into the family of God. Only through an act of God's free grace can anyone be made a child of God. Adoption is a one-time definite act that flows from faith in Jesus Christ. Just as you became a child of your parents and a member of their family by a physical birth, so by a birth we become a child of God and we become a member of God's family. That birth is not a physical birth, but rather it is a spiritual birth. Through the new birth, by being born again, we become a child God verse number nine of this chapter says that whosoever is born of God Born of the Spirit of God. This is a new birth. This is a being born again The Lord Jesus Christ said to Nicodemus accept a man be born again. He cannot see the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of God And so we must be born again, we must be and experience the new birth. In John chapter one, verse 12, we read, but as many, but as many as receive him, to them give he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name. The receiving, And the believing of Christ, the believing of Christ, and the believing on Christ is the means by which we become a son, a daughter, or a child of God. God made a pledge. He made a pledge on 2 Corinthians chapter 16 and 17 to those who would leave sin and uncleanness. He said that he would receive such a one, come out from among them and be separate, saith the Lord. And then he went on to say, and I will receive you. And then he said these words, and I will be a father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. When we are saved, When we are justified, we become members of the family of God. And no one becomes a greater member of the family. We all become members, children of God. God does not have stepchildren, half-children, as it were. God only has full-blooded children. And thank God we're all children of God. If by faith we have received Him, If by faith we have believed on him, then God has made us a son, a daughter of God. As we're told here in these opening verses of 1 John, we read here, at the moment of conversion, we're thinking here about how we become a child of God or when we become a child of God. We then are adopted into the family of God. And here in these opening verses, in John chapter three, we come to find out that now we're the sons of God. Behold, he says, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God. Therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now, and underline that word, now are we the sons of God. And it doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when he shall appear we shall be like him, because what is a son, a daughter, what is one of their marks? One of the marks of a child of God is they take on the resemblance of the Father. You're like your father. Many times have I heard that not said with regard to myself. You're like your father. In my mannerisms, I suppose, in my looks, I'm like the father because we take on the resemblance of the father. That's one of the marks of being a child. of God, but now we're the sons of God. We're not waiting, brethren and sisters, to a future time for us to become a son of God. No, we are a son, we're a daughter of God, we're a child of God tonight if we have believed on Jesus Christ. Our present sonship has spoken on a number of occasions Galatians chapter 4 in the verse 6 and this time it's the Apostle Paul Speaking here, and this is what he says and because she are sons and Because she are sons God has sent forth the spirit of a son into your hearts crying Abba father you are a son. This is your present state and As I said, I'm not waiting for myself. I'm not waiting to become a son of God. I am a son of God, and so are you tonight. Writing to the saints in Rome, in the city of Rome, Paul. wrote in Romans chapter 8 these words Romans chapter 8 in the verse number 14 for as many as are led by the spirit of God they are they are the sons of God not that they will be sons of God after you've had a kind of as it were, a propitiatory time, maybe a week, or maybe a year of being a Christian, and then I will receive you. No, he says, ye are the sons of God, for ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear, but ye have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are, that we are the children of God. That's what you are tonight. That's what you are. You are a child of God. And so Paul says, as many that are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. Those who are no longer led by the Spirit, but those who are being led by the Spirit. The Spirit of God who will lead us from sin, the Spirit of God who will lead us into the paths of righteousness, and from the ways of unrighteousness is the one who can say that they are a son, they are a daughter of God. I trust that you're being led by the Spirit of God. in your life and not by the flesh. You may say, well, preacher, how do I know if my loved one, how do I know if they're saved or not? Maybe you're here tonight and you've got a son or a daughter, a brother, a sister, mother, father, husband, a wife, and you're wondering, are they or are they not a child of God? How do I know that? What test, as it were, could I put upon that? Well, you can tell. not by what they profess, but by who they follow. If they're following after the Spirit of God, if they're being led by the Spirit of God, if they're being guided by the Spirit of God, then I can say that you can be hopeful and you can be optimistic that they are a child of God. But if they are being led by the flesh, if they're no interest in spiritual things whatsoever, then pray, brother. Pray, sister. Pray that God will intervene into their lives and make them a child of God. It's not what they profess whenever they were four or five or six years of age. It is what they are tonight. Are they one who is being led by the Spirit of God or by their flesh? I know at times as believers, sadly, the flesh can overcome us, but what is the general trend of the life? Not as it were the blips in our Christian life. What is the general direction of their life? Are they being led by the spirit of God? Or are they being led by the flesh? If it is flesh, then pray. Pray that God will intervene into their lives. And so we are the sons of God. This is our present position. This is our present state. And through our adoption into God's family, then we come to enjoy the privileges of belonging to that family. We're members of the family of God. We belong to the household of faith. What are some of those privileges? Well, let me deal with that under the second heading, the privileges of being a child of God. While regeneration gives to us the nature of children, adoption gives us the rights of children. In regeneration, we are given the nature of children, God's children, but in adoption, we are given the rights of the children. What are some of those rights, well, and privileges? I'll mention only three this evening before we get to prayer. The right, or the first privilege of being a child of God, and I suppose this is the most obvious. The most obvious privilege is this, that God is now our Father. God is now our Father. While God is the creator of all people, he does not stand in a fatherly relationship to all. To have God as one's father is a tremendous privilege reserved for only those who are adopted into the family of God. W.P. Nicholson used to say concerning the fatherhood of God, he said, If I walked down Bangor Street and every child pulled on my leg and said, hey father, hey father, he would have to say, you're not my child. Not everyone, as it were, that calls God their father is truly a child of God. It is only those who have the nature of God, the divine nature, those who've been changed by the grace of God. God is not the father of every brat, I think it was Nicholson saying. That was his coarse way of saying it. But it's very interesting to note that both in the Old and the New Testaments, that the saints address God as their Father, because both were adopted into the family of God by the same means, through faith, in the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus Christ. And so you'll find in the Old Testament men like Moses, David, and Isaiah addressing God as Father. In Deuteronomy 32 in the verse number six, this is the first example. This is with regard to Moses and how he addressed God as father. In Deuteronomy chapter 32 in the verse number six. Do ye thus requite the Lord, O foolish people and unwise? Is not he thy father that hath bought thee? Hath he not made thee and established thee? And so he's speaking here about a purchase that has been made. It brings us to think about redemption, for redemption is the purchasing of the child of God. A ransom price is paid, and in that ransom price we are bought. We are bought with a price. And so God, he speaks here, or Moses speaks here, and he says, is not he thy father? Is he not thy father that hath bought thee? And of course he is our father. Of course he has. In 1 Chronicles, 1 Chronicles chapter 29, David, here is the speaker, in 1 Chronicles chapter 29, in the verse number 10, Wherefore David blessed the Lord before all the congregation, and David said, Blessed be thou, Lord God of Israel, our father, forever and ever that is how david addressed god he spoke of him as our father our father isaiah chapter 63 isaiah chapter 63 this is isaiah speaking again using this endearing term isaiah chapter 63 and the verse number 16 it says doubtless thou art our father through Though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not, thou, O Lord, art our Father, our Redeemer, thy name is from everlasting. And so we have this thought of redemption again, a list of names. He's our Father, O Lord, thou art our Father, our Redeemer. Well, who is the Redeemer of God's elect? It's Christ. And so Christ is being spoken of here, yes, and yet we have this terminology, O Lord, thou art our father. Turn one chapter over to the chapter 64 and the verse number eight. But now, O Lord, thou art our father. We are the clay and thou art the powder and we are all the work of thy hand. And then in the New Testament, we find that the saints are encouraged. to address God as our Father in passages such as Matthew 6 and the verse number nine. After this manner, therefore pray ye, our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Romans 8, 15, for ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear, but ye have received the spirit of adoption whereby we cry, Abba, Father. And so God is our Father. Once we were under, as it were, the rule, the governance of the devil. The devil, as it were, was our father. You're off your father, the devil. But now no longer, God is our father. And as children of God, we then come to live under God's fatherly care and dispensations. That's why the larger catechism puts it. But what does that look like? What does that look like? We come under God's fatherly care and dispensations. What does that actually look like? Well, can I say, first of all, it means that as our father, God pities us. God pities us. Psalm 103, verse 13, as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. God pities his children. He knows our limitations. He knows our frailties, our weaknesses. He knows our shortcomings. He knows our besetting sins. And he pities us as a father pities his children. So our heavenly father, he pities us. Not only that, but our father, as our father, God provides for us. That is one of the roles, the responsibilities of a father in a home. He is to provide for his children under his care. And this is what our Heavenly Father does. Matthew 6, 31 and 32. Therefore take no thought, saying, what shall we eat or what shall we drink? Or withal, where shall we be clothed? For all of these things do the Gentiles seek. For your Heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. Matthew Henry said, your Heavenly Father knows our wants better than we do ourselves. Though he be in heaven and his children on earth, he observes, he observes what the least and the poorest of them has occasion for. He is your father that loves you and pities you and is ready to help you. God your father will provide for you. And if he withholds from you, then that is also his fatherly care for you. What father, we've used the illustration before, what father would give to their child of a young age a sharp knife or matches or poison? What father would do that? A father who loves his child will make sure that such things are withheld from the child. And there are times that God withholds things from us. And then that, we must submit ourselves, knowing that as our father, he knows what is best for his children. The Lord will not withhold any good thing from them that walk uprightly, and thus if he withholds it, therefore we must trust in his fatherly care. Something else that our father does, our heavenly father, God protects and preserves us Is that not what a father does? Maybe someone breaks into the home and the father will stand between them, the children, and his wife. and those who have entered the home, broken into the home, he will protect, he will preserve his children. John 10, 29, Jesus Christ, he says, my Father which gave them me, speaking of his children, my Father which gave them me is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. And so we're in the Father's hand as well as in Christ's hand. And yes, as our Father, God, He, and I was trying to get another pee, and I thought, God punishes us, but that is not right. God disciplines, God chastens, and God corrects us. You see, God punishes his enemies, but God chastens his children. God punishes his enemies, but he chastens his children. And he does it in love, not to break us, but rather to make us more like his own dear son. That we might become partakers of his holiness as we're told in Hebrews 12 and the verse number 10. And therefore his chastening of us is a badge of our sonship and of the father's love for us. Hebrews 12, six and seven. For whom the Lord loveth, he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons. For what son is he whom the Father chasteneth not? And so, first privilege is that God is our Father. The second privilege, and I suppose this really comes to be, as it were, a repetition of what we thought about last week, but we'll think about it again. The second privilege being a child of God is that we have access to God in prayer. The throne of grace is open to every child of God because of our adoption. As sons and as daughters of God, we can draw near to God the Father through God the Son. and prayer in the full assurance that we will be heard by him as we pray according to God's will because we have been justified And because we've been adopted into God's family, we have now unfettered and unlimited access to God the Father as His children through Christ the mediator. And in prayer we have the privilege of addressing God with the words, Abba, Father. The word Abba simply signifies that God is my personal Father. The term literally means my Father, my Father. He's not their father, but he's my father. He's my father, he is your father. What son, what daughter would not want to converse with their father? I speak in human terms, especially if that father is benevolent in his dealings with them. I suppose one of the nice things maybe about being a minister, maybe not being out at work is that you're able at times to be home whenever Abigail gets home and I normally hear the feet running down towards the study and she'll sit in the chair and then she'll tell me about everyone that she fell out with that day and she'll tell me all about her problems and all about her issues and there are things that she does need to worry about and other things maybe that she does maybe she didn't get her test done on time or she'll only get five out of ten but you know It's a wonderful thing that your child is able to do that, and to open up to you. That they're not running away in fear and apprehension, but they're able to come and just to speak with you freely, and to pour out their hearts. And to us, it's really little, insignificant things. Things that, if only she knew what to worry about then, she would worry about then. But is that not like us? We come in prayer to God the Father, the maker of the worlds, the universe, and we pour out our hearts to our Father, and he looks at us and he says, my child, these things, these matters, you need not worry about. Your heavenly Father knows that you have need of these things. We want to see ourselves as what we are, and how we can run in to the Father's presence as it were. Yes, we come reverently, of course we do, but we can freely speak. That's what the word boldly means, that we may come onto the throne of grace, that we may boldly come to the throne of grace. That word means to speak freely. We speak freely to our Father in prayer. What son or daughter would not want to come and speak to their father? I am sure there are people here tonight and you miss your father. We'd love to speak to them again. Thank God many of them are in glory and we'll see them again and we'll speak with them again. Oh, just to speak to them again. What a blessing it is because we love speaking with them. And yet, how reluctant we are at times in speaking to our Heavenly Father in prayer. I'm not speaking about public praying. I know that public praying can be difficult for many. But I'm speaking even about private praying. You see, one of the marks of sonship is supplication. We all know that from Saul's experience. Saul became a Christian, and Ananias went to Damascus. He was told by God that he would find Saul praying. One of the very first activities that Saul ever did was pray. It's a sign of sonship. Oh, that the sons and daughters of God in this assembly would be found frequently at the throne of grace and prayer, pouring out our hearts to our Heavenly Father. The third privilege that we have as children of God is inheritance. Romans 8, verse 16 and 17, the Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirits that we are the children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ. If so that we suffer with him, we shall also be glorified together. In ancient times, the first son was often the sole heir of the family inheritance. Remember that interaction that happened in the home Jacob and Esau with regard to Isaac and how Jacob stole the birthright, the inheritance as it were. It all always went down to the eldest son. The eldest son became the inheritor and really the rest of the family, though that family was large, that family did not share in the inheritance, but rather it was the eldest son that got all of the inheritance because he was the one who was going to carry on the family name. But here Paul calls all Christians heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. Every Christian, every child of God has an inheritance awaiting them in heaven. It isn't that one child's gonna get it all, but rather every child is going to have part of that inheritance. And Peter describes that inheritance as being incorruptible, undefiled, and fadeth not away. To be heirs of the rich on earth is something, but how much more it is to be a son, a daughter, an heir of the king of kings. No man is poor who is an heir, to all the riches that are in Jesus Christ. And so the privilege of heirship and the privilege of inheritance belongs to those who are adopted into the family of God. Let me close by making a remark on our responsibilities as children of God. Yes, we have this high privilege, we are children of God, but there are responsibilities. because belonging to a family has its responsibilities. I don't know if this ever happened to you and your family, but sometimes we would go to an aunt or an uncle's house, an aunt or an uncle's house for Sunday dinner. And whenever we started to near or get very near the house, my father or my mother, and some people are smiling here, my father and mother, they would turn to us at the back of the car and they would say, now, listen, B, on your best behavior. Imagine them having to say that to us. They knew us too well. That's why they said it to us. You see, the reason why they gave that directive was because the family name was at stake. The family name was at stake. And brethren and sisters, God's name is at stake by our behavior as his children. We have responsibilities as members of God's family. Some of those responsibilities include, as children of God, we are to follow God and walk in love, Ephesians 5, one and two. Be ye therefore followers of God as dear children and walk in love as Christ also have loved us and has given himself as an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor. As children of God, we are We are to submit without murmuring and complaining to God's chastening hand when we go astray from him. I've already quoted Hebrews 12 in the verse six and seven. As children of God, brethren and sisters, we are to live holy lives. Because John goes on to say in these verses, in these opening verses, Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not appear what we shall be, but we know that when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is, and every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. The children of God are to bear the image of God. We are to be those who bear his image. And he is holy and so his children are to be holy. That is his nature. And if we have become partakers of the divine nature, then we are to be holy. We are to be holy children. We are of a royal priesthood. We are to be those who live in holiness. And as a child of God, we are to cherish and care for and comfort others who belong to the household of faith. You know, there are too many Christians and they act as if they're the only member of God's family. And at times that results in them acting like spoiled brats. But we're not the only members of God's family. There are others in God's family. And they need our love. and they need our prayers, and we have a responsibility to them. 1 Corinthians 12, verses 24 to 27. God has tempered the body together, having given more abundant honor to the part which lacked, that there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care one for another, and whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it, or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now ye are the body of Christ and members in particular. We have a responsibility to our brethren and sisters. We are to love the brethren because did you notice what it says with regard to how we manifest ourselves as children of God? Whosoever, verse 10, doeth not righteousness is not of God. Theirs with regard to our lives, with regard to sin. Whoso doeth not righteousness is not of God. You're not a child of God if you do not walk in the paths of righteousness. Neither he that loveth not his brother And so as children of God, we have responsibilities to those who live and are members of God's family too. We belong to the family of God and we are to care for our brethren and sisters and love them through Christ, even those who are hard to love. Oh may God help us to live up to our privileges. And may God help us to live up to our responsibilities. I want to give you one final quote and time has long gone. It's a quote from Thomas Watson. And this is what Thomas Watson said. Since God has a son of his own and such a son, how wonderful God's love in adopting us. We needed a father, but he did not need sons. God didn't need. as it were, to extend his son. But in an act of pure grace, on his part, he did. And each and every one of his children, he is bringing to glory. He is bringing many sons to glory. In light of the fact that we are a child of God, may God help us to enjoy our privileges as his child, while at the same time, live up to our responsibilities as a member of his wonderful family. If you're ever asked the question, who are you as a Christian? Well, here's one way that you can answer. You can give this reply, I am, I am a child of God. What a high privilege, and yet what tremendous responsibilities. And so tomorrow, in the will of God, when we rise as children of God, let's remember to behave ourselves. The family name is at stake. May God challenge and solemnize our hearts with that truth. Let's bow our heads quickly in a word of prayer together. Our loving Father, we thank Thee that Thou art our loving Father. And we rejoice at times, Lord, that You do chasten us. And we thank Thee for the bounty that You provide for us day by day. We thank thee that our Father opens his good storehouse and provides us with mercy and grace, temporal and spiritual provisions, and we rejoice in our Father who cares deeply for each of his children. We praise thee, O God, that we are not waiting to become a child of God, But tonight we are children of God. Help me as a child of God to live up to my responsibilities. Many they are, but Lord, I cry for grace. Help us, we pray, for we offer prayer in and through this.