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 (1 John 3:2).
When you read this epistle of John, you have to be careful to read everything; otherwise, you may conclude that there are contradictions. For example, in our opening verse, the epistle says, “…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.” This therefore means we’re not yet like Him.
But when you go right to the next chapter, the Bible says, “Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world” (1 John 4:17). I thought we just read that we shall be like Him later when He appears? But here, it says we’re like Him in this world now; we’re just as He is. Is this a contradiction? No, it’s not.
The first one is about your appearance, your outward appearance. Look at it again, “Beloved, now are we the sons of God….” We’re already the sons of God in our spirits. The Bible says, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
That recreation took place in your spirit when you were born again. You were born of the Word of God and with the life of God. So, he says, “now are we the sons of God.” Now, your spirit is like Him, but your physical appearance isn’t like Him yet.
So when it says, “…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,” he’s referring to the Rapture where, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, we shall be changed. We will be clothed with our celestial bodies, and we shall be like Him in appearance. Glory to God!
Observe that 1 John 4:17 says, “as He is…,” not “as He was.” We’re like Him now, not as He was before His death. When He was raised from the dead, we were raised together with Him, and we came alive with a new kind of life: the resurrection life. So, as He is now, the glorified Son of God, so are we in this world!
PRAYER / CONFESSION
I’m born of God and have His nature of righteousness in my Spirit. Every fibre of my being, every bone of my body, every cell of my blood is replete with God. As Jesus is, in His glory and righteousness, so am I. Blessed be God!
FURTHER STUDY
1 Corinthians 15:48-49; Colossians 3:3-4
1-YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN
John 14:15-31; 1 Chronicles 1-2
2-YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN
1 Corinthians 14:10-19; Proverbs 25
