1 John 3:1 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.

What wonderful love God has for the world. Despite the world’s hatred toward Him, the Almighty God still provided for the salvation of the world by the death, burial and resurrection of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. The people of the world rejected His Son, but He did not turn away from them. The Gospel according to John chapter one and the first letter by John repeat similar themes.

John 1:9-13 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.  (10)  He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.  (11)  He came unto his own, and his own received him not.  (12)  But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:  (13)  Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

Note that the true Light (Jesus Christ) came to the world, but the world did not recognize Him or know Him. Jesus Christ came to the very people that God had set aside, the Israelites, and they did not acknowledge Him for who He was. The Jews had been looking forward to the arrival of their Messiah and had been waiting for many years for Him, but sadly, when Jesus Christ presented Himself before the Israelites, they rejected Him. They had read the Scriptures and they knew what God’s Word had said about the coming Messiah, but when He arrived, the Israelites chose not to receive Him. The Apostle John wrote: He came unto his own, and his own received him not.

During the three year ministry of Jesus Christ, people knew the prophecies concerning the birthplace of the Messiah, but did not accept that Jesus Christ was their Messiah. Even today, most people have at least an inkling of the Christmas story – the nativity story – but they still have not received Jesus Christ as the true Light of the world. They are not the children of God because they have not received Jesus Christ as their Saviour. Paul wrote to the Galatians: Galatians 3:26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. People are not the sons of God if they have not received Jesus Christ as their Saviour. John 1:11-13 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.  (12)  But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:  (13)  Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

People will use the name of Jesus Christ in various ways, unfortunately many of them in a blasphemous manner, but they will not trust in Him and receive Him and repent of their sins. People must be born again, not by man’s blood, not by man’s flesh, not by man’s will, but only by the grace of God. People can only be born again by the blood of Jesus Christ, by the sacrificed flesh of Jesus Christ, and by the will of Jesus Christ. There is simply no other way! It has to be by God’s actions and not man’s actions, because only God will do it and did do it right.