1 John 3: 4-10

What does it really look like to be a child of God?

This Sunday, Pastor Ryan continued our journey through 1 John with a powerful message from 1 John 3:4–10—a passage that draws a clear distinction between a life characterized by sin and a life that has been transformed by Jesus.

John reminds us that Jesus didn’t come simply to make us better versions of ourselves. He came to take away sin and destroy the works of the devil.

That doesn’t mean Christians never stumble or struggle with sin. But there is a difference between struggling against sin and settling into it. A person who has been born of God cannot be comfortable making sin the ongoing pattern of their life.

A changed heart produces a changed life.

We don’t pursue righteousness to become children of God—we pursue it because God has made us His children.

Jesus came to break sin’s hold on us.

Our lives should increasingly reflect the Father to whom we belong.

Verse 10 brings it home: our identity as God’s children becomes visible through righteousness and genuine love for one another.

May we be a church that doesn’t simply say we belong to Jesus, but lives in such a way that His transforming work can be seen in us.

We have been born of God. Let’s live like we belong to Him!