“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.”
The Face
John opens with behold, an invitation to genuine, active wonder, not passive acknowledgment of a known fact but active astonishment at what manner of love has actually been bestowed, love substantial enough to produce actual sonship, not merely sentiment offered from a comfortable distance.
Notice therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. This new identity is named here as producing genuine consequence, a kind of unfamiliarity or misunderstanding from those who do not share it, not because anything is genuinely wrong, but because this identity is rooted in something the world itself does not recognize.
This is worth holding as encouragement against whatever confusion or lack of recognition you may experience from others regarding this deeper identity this whole movement has been exploring. The world’s failure to fully understand is not evidence against the reality of this sonship. It is named here as the expected, ordinary consequence.
Whatever unfamiliarity or misunderstanding you experience from others regarding who you actually are in Christ, receive John’s own behold today, active wonder at what manner of love has actually produced this identity, not discouraged by the world’s own failure to recognize what it does not share.
Turn Your Face
- Behold today, actively, the specific love that has produced your own identity as a child of God.
- Notice any discouragement over others’ failure to understand this identity, and release it today.
- Remember this unfamiliarity is named here as expected, not evidence against the reality itself.
Prayer
Lord, behold, what manner of love you have bestowed, that I should be called your child. Let me wonder at this today, undiscouraged by whatever the world fails to recognize. Amen.
Carry this today
The world’s failure to recognize this identity does not diminish its actual reality.