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Who Jesus Really Is: Jesus is the Eternal Light (Part 4)

Walk in the confidence of your new identity. Let the radiance of His Light shine through your conversations, your conduct, and your compassion.

 

John 1:9-13 - 9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

 

What would you say if I asked, “Are we all children of God?” If you say yes, then what distinguishes us from Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, and Buddhists, because they too say the same thing about themselves and even persecute Christians for their faith?

 

The problem is that people think we are all children of God because God created us. They need to know that makes God our Creator, not our Father, and what makes God our Father is faith in Jesus as the Son of God, which is the reason why people persecute Christians.

 

As we return to John 1:6-13 the fourth time to learn about the Eternal Light which we have already established is Jesus Christ, in John 1:12-13, God revealed that it is by receiving the Light that people become children of God. What began with the Revelation of the Light (v6-8) and the Rejection of the Light (v9-11) ends today with the Reception of the Light (v12-13), which grants the right to become God’s children.

 

The big idea is, God is the creator of everyone, but He is Father to only those who truly receive the Light, which is Jesus. The question is, how do we truly receive Jesus? John 1:12-13 explains the condition, consequence, and cause of reception.

 

The Condition of Reception

 

After describing the world’s tragic blindness to the truth of the Light in John 1:10 and God’s chosen people, Israel’s rejection of the Light in John 1:11, John 1:12 moves the reader from rejection to reception of the Light because that is the condition that turns sinners into saints and enemies of God into a family.

 

John 1:12, “But to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.” There are four key words in the first part of the verse that are important to understanding what it means to truly receive the Light, Jesus.

 

First, the word, “But.” In the midst of unbelief and widespread rejection, the word, “but,” declares the divine decision to receive strangers and sinners as His children and the condition for that is we must first receive Jesus. Now what does that really mean?

 

Second, the word, “receive.” The Greek word for receive, lambanō, means to take hold of, to welcome, to make one’s own. So, receiving Him does not mean merely acknowledging Christ intellectually, religiously, or morally; rather, it is to embrace Christ personally and entirely. This is why the word, believe, is important.

 

Third, the word, “believe.” Often, belief is an intellectual acceptance of the facts. However, the word, “believe,” in John 1:12 comes from the Greek root word, pistos, which means faith or trust. We could believe in Jesus and yet not have faith in Him. Faith requires us to act on what we believe. Since this month is stewardship month, let me take the example of giving. We all believe God will provide for all our needs, yet we struggle to give financially because we are not sure how we will pay the rent, mortgage, medical, food etc. We show our belief lacks faith in God that He can provide. In fact, it shows we have more faith in ourselves in meeting our own needs than in God. You can apply this to everything in your life. The solution is in acting on what you believe. Here, though, it’s about putting our faith in the name of Jesus.

 

Fourth, the word, “name.” In Hebrew thought, a “name” represents the totality of a person’s character and essence. To Jews, it wasn’t about the name by which a person was called, but rather how it expressed his or her nature and character. So, when God gave His name to Israel, “I am who I am,” He wanted to be known personally by His character, nature, and who He really is. The idea in John 1:12, therefore, is not to believe merely in the name of Jesus, but to believe in His nature, essence, and character that reveals who He really is. You see how these four words, but, receive, believe, and name, essentially says that to believe in His name is to place our faith and full trust in who Jesus is and what He has done. The condition to become God’s children is to receive Jesus by embracing and making His attitude, behavior, character, and nature ours.

 

Application

 

No religion, ritual, moral effort, or good deeds— including going to church, reading the Bible, giving and serving— make us children of God. Only in receiving and believing, putting out faith in Jesus for life, death, resurrection, and eternal life does that.

 

The Consequence of Reception

 

John 1:12b says,“…He [God] gave the right to become children of God.” Usually, a consequence is a negative thing, but not here because the glorious consequence of reception is divine adoption. The reason that adoption is a consequence and not a reward is because a reward has the connotation of being earned. No one can earn the right to be God’s child.

 

For that I want us to see three reasons in John 1:12b.

 

The first reason is the verb “gave” in Greek, edōken, refers to God’s grace of giving, which tells us that the right to become God’s children is a gracious gift, not an earned privilege.

 

The second reason is in the use of the legal term “right” here, showing God’s adoption of us as His children is binding. The Greek word for “right,” exousia, is one of the most powerful concepts. It means power and authority. In Mathew 9:6, Jesus showed He has the authority, exousia, to forgive sins. In Mark 6:7, Jesus gave a measure of this authority, exousia, to His disciples over impure spirits.

 

The third reason is when you put this together with the word “become” for which the root word in Greek is genomi, meaning to come into existence, it implies a change of status— a new birth into a new family with the legal right and authority and power that belongs to other family members; that is, the triune God. This is the miracle of regeneration that changes our legal status from alienation to adoption, from being enemies of God to being heirs with Christ, from powerless to powerful.

 

Galatians 4:4–5 illustrates this truth in these words, “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son… to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” Romans 8:15 states, “You have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’” Through Jesus, we become sons and daughters of God.

 

Application

 

In Jesus, we are given a new identity, a new destiny, and a new family. As family members, we don’t just get forgiveness; we get a forgiving Father. However, with a new identity, a new destiny, and a new family comes the responsibility to reflect the character of our Father. No longer should we chase worldly validation or approval, because now our worth is rooted in being loved by the Father. The world may reject you, but the Father has received you. The world will persecute us, but the Father will preserve us. The world may define you by your failures, but the Father defines you by your faith.

 

The Cause of Reception

 

John 1:13 says, “Who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” After declaring faith in Jesus as the condition of reception and adoption through Jesus as the consequence of reception, John 1:13 zeroes in on the cause of reception, which is divine regeneration. In John’s historical Greco-Roman cultural context, Jews believed that it was the Jewish blood and physical lineage from Abraham that guaranteed spiritual standing with God. The Gentiles also believed power and authority were transmitted through the blood. The truth in our text is that no one is saved because of their heritage. We see three unique claims that explain how people actually get saved, that is, how they end up receiving— putting faith in Jesus to become children of God.

 

First, “Not of blood.” That means spiritual birth cannot be inherited because it is not by physical descent or ancestry. Being born into a Christian family does not make us children of God. I have been sharing this truth with my children ever since they were able to talk.

 

Second, “Nor of the will of the flesh.” That means not by human desire or natural effort. It is not like the physical birth at all. In spiritual birth, salvation cannot be achieved through moral effort, self-discipline, and religious or emotional zeal. No amount of fleshly striving can produce spiritual life. No human efforts can force God to grant us the right to be His adopted children.

 

Third, “Nor of the will of man.” That means not by another person’s decision or religious system. No priest, pastor, or parent can will anyone into heaven. No bishop or pope has the authority and power to grant the right to be a member of God’s family. The only person who can do that; the short yet powerful phrase at the end says, “But of God.”

 

Ephesians 2:4–5 illustrates this truth remarkably. It reads, “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.”

 

Application

 

We are saved by grace alone, faith alone, and Christ alone. The new birth is a miracle that is caused by divine regeneration of new hearts in us, new nature in us, and new mind in us. Just as a dead body cannot revive itself, a spiritually dead sinner cannot bring himself or herself to life. Only the power of God can awaken a spiritually dead soul and open spiritually blind eyes to see the Eternal Light that saves us.

 

Closing Thought

 

As I close, I want you to imagine a child who has lived for years in an orphanage— unseen, unwanted, and unloved. One day, a man walks in, kneels down, and says, “I choose you.” The papers are signed, and that child’s entire status changes in a moment. She goes from having no name to bearing a new name; from no inheritance to a full inheritance; from no family to a forever family. This is what we receive through faith, adoption, and regeneration.

 

Action Step

 

Receive the Light and reflect the Light. That means, don’t merely admire Jesus— embrace Him. Don’t simply acknowledge the truth; show your faith through actions. This is what the disciples of Jesus Christ did when they embraced Him and He got hold of their lives. Their witness changed the world. They lived and died for what they believed to be true about who Jesus really is. Their belief was not merely an intellectual acknowledgment of Jesus as the Son of God who eternally co-existed and self-existed with God, but rather they put their faith in Him for life, death, resurrection, and eternal life.

 

On this International Day of Prayer for the persecuted church, I want us to remember millions of Christians who are being persecuted, in most cases, can escape persecution if they deny Jesus, walk away from Jesus. The reason that they don’t is because they, too, have put their faith in Jesus for life, death, resurrection, and eternal life. The question is, have you put your faith in Jesus for life, death, resurrection, and eternal life? If you say yes, then it should be evident in your witness to others. If the answer is no, then I want you to know the Light that came into the world still stands ready to enter the human heart— but only where He is welcomed.

 

Appeal

 

If you’ve admired Jesus from a distance but never surrendered your life to Him, receive Him today. Today is the day to open the door of your heart. He is knocking at the door of your heart, and if you open it, He will come and make a permanent home in your heart. Then, you will not be merely saved from sin; you will be adopted into God’s family.

 

Friends, only those who receive Him, He gives them the right to be called sons and daughters of the living God. However, to receive Him, in our text lambanō, means to take hold of Jesus, to welcome Jesus, to make Jesus one’s own. It is to embrace Christ personally and entirely to the point that you joyfully shout Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

 

Finally, walk in the confidence of your new identity. Let the radiance of His Light shine through your conversations, your conduct, and your compassion.

  

Inductive Bible Study: Observation, Interpretation, Application

 

 

Observation: What Does the Text Say?

 

  1. According to John 1:12, to whom is the privilege or right of becoming a child of God given?

     

  2. What contrasting word begins John 1:12 and why might it be significant in the flow of the passage?

     

  3. What two actions describe the people who receive this right?

     

  4. What does the phrase “believed in His name (v12)” suggest about the relationship between belief and receiving?

     

  5. What is the one source or cause of becoming God’s child mentioned at the end of John 1:13?

     

  6. What verbs are used to describe God’s role in making us His children? What do they imply about divine initiative?

 

Interpretation: What Does It Mean?

 

  1. What does it mean to “receive” Christ in this passage? How is it different from merely believing about Him?

     

  2. How does the word, believe (Greek: pisteuō), imply more than intellectual agreement?

     

  3. Why is believing “in His name” more than believing in the letters of His name? What does “name” represent in biblical thought?

     

  4. How does this passage contrast natural birth (blood, flesh, will of man) with spiritual birth (of God)?

     

  5. What does this teach about the difference between being created by God and being born of God?

     

  6. Why is divine adoption called a gift of grace rather than a reward for good works?

     

  7. What does the phrase “He gave the right” reveal about the believer’s new identity and authority as God’s child?

     

  8. How does understanding our spiritual adoption reshape our understanding of salvation— from forgiveness to family?

 

Application: How Does It Apply to Us Today?

 

  1. Personal Faith

     

    a.     Have you truly received Jesus or have you only admired Him from a distance?

     

    b.     This week, what would it look like for you to act on your belief and turn it into faith?

     

    c.     In what areas of your life (finances, relationships, ministry, fears) are you believing God’s Word but not yet acting in faith?

     

  2. Identity in Christ

     

    a.     How does knowing you are adopted by God affect your sense of worth and belonging?

     

    b.     To what worldly sources do you still look for validation that only your Father can give?

     

    c.     How can you remind yourself daily that your worth is rooted in being loved by the Father and not defined by failure or rejection?

     

  3. Community & Witness

     

    a.     How can you reflect our Father’s character— His light, love, and truth— in your relationships this week?

     

    b.     What practical steps can you take to “receive and reflect” the Light of Christ in your community?

     

    c.     Who in your life still confuses being created by God with being a child of God? How can you lovingly explain the difference?

     

    d.     What would it mean for your church to live as a family of adopted sons and daughters rather than as religious attendees?


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