Trinity/After Pentecost · All Saints' Day
1 John 3:1-3
Children of God
November 1, 2026
Overview & Insights
“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!” (1 John 3:1)
This section of 1 John is unified by the idea of the children of God: who they are and how one can identify them by their lives. It is a passage dominated by ethics, particularly an ethical concern for righteousness and sin. It compares two “families”: the children of God and the children of the devil. In the background, as always, are the Elder’s opponents, the secessionists, whom he strongly contrasts to his own “dear children.”
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Commentary
Commentary on 1 John 3:1-3 Working Preacher
Luther Seminary exegesis of the children of God who will be like Christ, read for the feast of All Saints.
1 John 3:1-7 Commentary Center for Excellence in Preaching
Reformed, sermon shaped commentary on the love that names us children of God and the hope of seeing him.
1 John 3: The Children of God Enduring Word · David Guzik
David Guzik's verse by verse evangelical commentary on the chapter.
1 John Commentaries Precept Austin
A deep gathering of word studies and cross references on our adoption as God's children.
1 John 3:1 Commentaries BibleHub
Aggregates classic commentaries on the love of the Father in one place.
Background & Word Study
Enter the Bible: 1 John Enter the Bible
Luther Seminary background on the letters of John and their theme of love and assurance.
Books of 1-3 John Overview BibleProject
An animated overview of John's letters and their call to walk as children of God.
1 John 3:1 Greek Interlinear BibleHub
Greek word by word with parsing for the passage on the love of the Father.
The Church Fathers
Questions preachers ask
What is our destiny in 1 John 3?
We are already God’s children, and though what we will be is not yet made known, “when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:1–3), the hope All Saints celebrates.
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