1 John 3:10 - Explained
"In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother."
When you teach that salvation is by faith alone and there is no guarantee of a changed life simply by believing, people often say no, that is not true — because 1 John 3:10 says that if you are really a child of God it is manifest, there is going to be a changed life. They say see, you are going to do good if you are really saved, and if not, that means you are unsaved. But usually when people make that statement they do not understand that when it comes to this world, there are actually three types of people — children of God, normal unsaved people, and children of the devil.
A baby that is born into this world is not saved. Just like David and Bathsheba's son, when he died he went to heaven. But eventually you are going to reach the age of accountability, and once you reach that age you must become a child of God — as Jesus said to Nicodemus in John 3 — in order to go to heaven. When you believe on Christ you receive everlasting life and you will always be a child of God. But before somebody does that, they are not a child of the devil. They are just a normal unsaved person.
And just as someone is able to believe on Christ and become a child of God forever, the Bible actually says you are able to completely reject God and become a child of the devil forever. Someone can choose to reject God in their heart and not like to retain God in their knowledge, as the Bible says. Eventually, as Romans 1 teaches, God gives them over to a reprobate mind to do those things which are not convenient, and they are filled with all wickedness. That is why you see people in the Bible of whom it says they could not believe. There are people who have chosen to open the door to becoming a reprobate — like Cain, who is mentioned right after verse 10. Cain was told by God that if he does right he will be accepted, and if not, sin lieth at the door. When you believe on Christ you open up that door — as Jesus said, I am the door. But when you open up that door to being a reprobate on the other side, you are filled full of sin and you are going to be a child of the devil forever.
Most people in this world are just your normal everyday unsaved people. It is the minority of people that are saved, and it is the minority of people that are children of the devil. But when someone becomes a child of the devil they are filled full of all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, murder, envy, and everything listed in Romans 1. Now it is true that a normal saved person and even a normal unsaved person can commit a lot of these sins. But if someone is a child of the devil, this is going to be who they are at their core. That is why you see people like Jeffrey Dahmer and Ted Bundy where it does not seem normal — how could somebody be like that? It is because their conscience has been seared with a hot iron as the Bible says. They have been given over to a reprobate mind. They no longer have a conscience and they are just filled full of wickedness.
But you have to understand that some people who are children of the devil will actually try to pretend to be Christians — whether to take advantage of people at church or because the devil has sent them. They will say the right words. But then every once in a while you will see them do truly evil and disgusting things. And the Bible is saying that is actually a mark that this person might be a child of the devil. Though as the Bible says with the tares and the wheat, it is not going to be very easy to tell the difference. So do not make that your life's objective.
What the Bible is saying in 1 John 3:10 is that there is a difference between someone who is a child of God and a child of the devil. But what it is not saying is that there is a difference between a child of God and a normal unsaved person. Of course, being a child of God, God can help you overcome sin. If you are going to church and hearing the preaching of God's word and you choose to walk in the spirit, you can make some major changes in your life. But it is not a guarantee. And that is not what verse 10 is teaching — because verse 10 is not a comparison between saved people and unsaved people, but between saved people and children of the devil.
Pastor Matthew Stucky
