Beloved radio friends, we greet you in the ever-precious and the worthy name of our beloved Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. This is your Bible teacher of the air speaking, J.W. Bramhall, giving you a hearty welcome to the continued ministry of God's precious and holy word. We continue our blessed theme that we have been recently considering concerning God the Father and his family. It is a wonderful thing to be able to boast about the best family in heaven as well as in earth. And that is the family of God. I do not know what you may think concerning your own earthly family, but let us realize that by the grace of God, we have a family revealed in the word of God that is worthy to be spoken about. manifested by the coming into this world in wonderful grace of the Lord Jesus Christ the Son of God for what God is doing through these days of his wonderful message the gospel being preached he is bringing into an eternal family his redeemed children we trust that you belong to the family of God In that particular reason, the family of God certainly must be a precious subject to consider and to study about. The Spirit of God, thanks be to God, is in this world seeking to bring the family to the Father, through the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior. We have noted some of the things relating to that family. In recent messages, we have considered the development of the growth and the classification of the members of that family. As in the Word of God in First John chapter two, we noted they were classified as matured fathers or as young men in their strength or as little babes or little children in their infancy. Now we would begin to speak by the grace and help of the God concerning the Father's children in a further way. For I'm sure that you would recognize and confess, as the children of God, His children should certainly have the features of the Father displayed in them. And may we be reminded, we who are the children of God, we have received a new nature. we have received eternal life in Christ. And John declares, the Apostle John, that this new life, this new nature will be exhibited in a distinct manner. Having derived this new life and new nature from God, it certainly is to be expected that there will be moral similarity to the one who has made us his children. May I repeat that in substance before we go to a text we wish to consider? Having been brought into the family of God, and I speak directly to God's dear children who have been redeemed and in that family, having received that new life from God, now possessing the nature of God, a new nature from God, It certainly is to be expected there should be similarity in character as well as in conduct that will distinguish us as the children of God. May I present the truth of this in another manner. If I claim to be a child of God, then I certainly should be proving by my conduct and character that I am one of his children. And so we come to a particular theme relating to the children of the father's family, where we shall consider the characteristic features that we should manifest as the father's children. We begin with a text that is found in First John chapter three and verse nine. The epistle of John, the first epistle, chapter three and verse nine. We quote from a translation that I believe to be more correct than the authorised version, though the authorised version is excellent, in my humble opinion. But here are the words in chapter three and verse nine of first John. Whoever has been born of God does not practice sin, because his, that is God's seed, abides in him, and he cannot sin. because he has been begotten of God. Now let us carefully consider this text. I am fully aware that there are those in the profession of Christianity who make the claim that now they cannot sin. Now let us be very careful before we make such a claim as that. John has been very careful In the first chapter of this wonderful epistle, he has been very careful to remind us that if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. In other words, if a believer says, I have no sin, that believer is deceiving himself or herself. And John says, God's truth is certainly not abiding in us. Now I'm sure that we can realize, and we have it in first John chapter two in verse one, that God declares to its children, my little children, these things right I unto you, that ye sin not. And naturally, this is to be expected as a commandment of the Father. who is made as his children. But let me finish the quotation from first John chapter two and go on into the second verse quoting it all together. My little children these things right I unto you that you sin not but if any man sinned and this refers only to a child of God if any child of God sinned we not the unsaved We who are the children of God, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. Then we may note carefully, and I trust with clear understanding, God has made provision to maintain the relationship of his children with himself. We have an advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous, and he is the propitiation for our sins. Our Blessed Lord, my fellow believer, maintains our relationship with the Father as his children, and though sin might, unfortunately, enter into our experience as a child of God, the Saviour Knowing that the adversary would quickly accuse us before the Father, and say to the Father, Look at what thy child has done. Yet the Lord Jesus, blessed be his name, immediately is our advocate. And the word advocate means one who pleads our cause. And when Satan accuses the Lord Jesus, reminds the Father that that child is under the shelter and the propitiatory value of his shed blood that was shed upon Calvary for his or her sins. Therefore we may recognize from first John chapter one and verse nine, as well as first John chapter two and verse one, as well as verse two, there is the possibility And if I speak, confessing mine own heart, if I speak as I'm sure many of my fellow Christians would do, we readily confess we are not yet sinless. Someday we will be when our Lord Jesus Christ comes and changes this earthly body and fashions it like unto his own glorious body. We shall be without sin in that day of glory. But while in the world today, I find, every believer will find, the motions of sin remain in the earthly body. Then what does our text mean in first John chapter two, three rather, in verse nine? Now let me repeat the reading again. Whoever has been born of God does not practice sin. Because his seed, God's seed, abides in him, and he cannot sin. Because he has been begotten of God. Now, I want you to notice an expression in this verse very clearly. There is the reference to God's seed in the believer. My fellow believer, may I suggest to you that according to the word of God, there are two natures within every believer in Christ. The old nature with which you and I were born is still with us. And we have another nature, a new life, which God has communicated to us, and which by the Spirit of God dwells in us. And that new life, that is God's life. The old life is my old flesh, my old nature. and thus dwelling within the believer in Christ is that dual nature. A nature that still is able to sin. And a nature that cannot sin. And that is God's own life. Now let me put it in this way my fellow believer. When you and I may unfortunately sin, do not attribute that sin to the new life, which is God's own life that is given to you and to me. You can attribute whenever sin comes into the life and experience of a Christian, you should and you must attribute that sin to the old nature, not the new. But in our verse, we are reminded that if we are the children of God, We will not make a practice of sinning. We do not practice what we once practice, and that was a life of sin. May God help us, and we shall seek further to understand this in our next message. But may He bless what we have taken. Father, bless the truth in the Savior's name for His glory. Amen.