As followers of Christ, we identify ourselves as children of God. We accept God as our Heavenly Father, meaning that He is a father figure in our lives. We look to Him to guide us and protect us just like a father would for his children.
In “Legacy Peak,” Jason holds onto his pocket knife very closely, and for good reason. His pastor gave it to him, and on it was etched a Bible verse, Matthew 3:17:
And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
Jason goes on to explain why this verse is so important to him – because of his upbringing in foster care, he didn’t have a father figure in his life. But then, his pastor stepped in to become an earthly father figure and impressed on Jason how God is a father to all of us. Jason explains to Ben and Sam that his identity wasn’t fully known until he entered the church and understood he was a child of God. Let’s take a look at what it means to be a child of God.
Here are some child of God scriptures to give you a solid foundation so you can understand your identity as a child of God.
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Jason was a firm believer in his identity as a child of God. But what does that mean? Let’s explore some scripture that explains this more:
Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
We are all children of God. This scripture verse reminds us that all of Abraham’s descendants are indeed part of God’s promise to Abraham himself.
In "The Girl Who Believes in Miracles," Sara firmly believes in her identity and faith in God. So much so, that her belief allows her to perform healings of the sick in her community, as well as bring a bird back to life. Her trust in her heavenly Father is evident in her belief in her prayers to Him.
So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith,
Our faith in Jesus Christ confirms our identity as a child of God. When we renew our faith and belief in Him, we also renew this identity. In “Legacy Peak,” Jason made this perfectly clear when he said he didn’t understand who he was until he found his faith. Once Jason's faith became the foundation in which he built his life around, his identity as a child of God, and therefore reliance on God as his Father, became abundant.
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Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
Our identity as a child of God means that we rely fully on God and trust in His plan for our lives. Just like a little child trusts their parents fully to guide them and protect them when they’re little, so should we trust God as we navigate our way through life with Him as our Father.
When Sara gets sick herself in "The Girl Who Believes in Miracles," she tells her mom that God told her she would go to heaven soon. Sara trusts God's plan for her life, regardless of how long or short it is, that she will live with Him and do His will.
And, “I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”
In this child of God scripture verse, God renews His promise to us that He will always see us as His children. As His children, we are given the gifts of His limitless mercy, grace and love. These gifts are available to all of those who accept Him, know Him and love Him.
Jason in “Legacy Peak” accepted God as the Father figure in his life, as children of God we are called to accept Him as Ours as well. Because of this, He was firm in his identity as a child of God, given the gifts of mercy, grace and love by the Father. He was able to give these gifts himself to his girlfriend's children, because he had received them himself.
READ ALSO: THE 9 CHRISTIAN VALUES THAT CHANGE LIVES
Being a child of God is part of understanding that we are worthy of God’s love. Let’s take a look at some child of God scripture that Jesus told us about how important we are to God as His children:
Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
Being a child of God, we are known and loved limitlessly by God, to the point where He even knows every hair on our head. How amazing it is to be loved by a God who still has time to know each of us intimately!
David in "Lifemark" was raised by his adoptive parents knowing full well how loved and wanted he was -- not just by his parents but by God as well. Because he knew how much God loved and cared for him, enough to place him in the loving home of his adoptive parents, he was able to forgive and thank his birth mother for giving him up for adoption. He was also able to thank her and be grateful that she chose to give him life.
And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
When we think of this verse about being a child of God, in particular we associate it with Jesus' baptism by His cousin, John the Baptist. Jesus was baptized because His Father asked Him to, as a symbol that started His public ministry. With this verse in particular, we know that God knew Jesus intimately, and was proud of Him like a father is often proud of his son.
As mentioned earlier, this is the verse that Jason in “Legacy Peak” had etched on his pocket knife to help him remember his identity as a child of God. God is pleased with us when we declare our identity as a child of God.
READ ALSO: 20 BIBLE VERSES ABOUT GOD’S LOVE
… rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.
As a child of God, the Holy Spirit enters us and renews our soul in baptism. Our soul is the very thing that we will take with us when we meet Our Father in heaven. When we declare that God is Our Father, we allow the Spirit to enter us.
In "5000 Blankets," Phillip's question to his mother, asking if the homeless people they saw earlier in the day were as warm during the cold nights as he was, made the Spirit move inside each of them. The Holy Spirit sparked in both mother and son the desire and motivation to help out their fellow brothers and sisters less priviledged than them. It's because of our identity as children of God that we have the Holy Spirit with us and can listen to His voice.
…Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth—everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”
God calls us back to Him each and every day. Through Isaiah, God is telling His children that we are already redeemed. He made us each individually and uniquely, and for that reason and our redemption, our identity as a child of God is confirmed.
In "No Vacancy," a pastor pursues the purchase of a motel to help act as a shelter for the homeless and give them the resources they need not only to get back on their feet but also to teach them their identity as children of God through the church. He feels called that his mission is to bring more sons and daughters into the church, to help them turn their life around -- whether from drugs or homelessness -- and to accept Christ into their lives.
We hope this list of child of God scripture inspires you and renews the foundation of your identity in Christ, just like scripture helped Jason in “Legacy Peak," as well as all the other characters we've mentioned from our Pure Flix movies. Be sure to check out our movies that renew your faith for more titles to help embrace your identity as a child of God.