"For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you
their midst and be separated, says the Lord, and do not touch what is unclean; and I will welcome you'; 'and I will be a Father to you, and you will be sons and daughters to Me, says the Lord Almighty'" (2 Cor. 6:14-18). The concept that all men are the sons of God cannot hold true in view of these few verses. The children of God are not defiled by the world; they are those who come out of the world. In the presence of God, the separating line between those who belong to Him and those who belong to Satan is very distinct. God is not willing that His children mix with the world. From God's viewpoint, there is a deep gulf that separates righteousness and unrighteousness, light and darkness, Christ and Belial, believers and unbelievers, the temple of God (believers) and idols. God sees the world as two big families of people who are opposite to, and at enmity with, each other. His children are not those who remain with the worldly people, nor those who still touch unclean things, but they are those who are separate and holy. The position of the children of God is altogether incompatible with, and different from, that of the people of the world. If a believer is separate from the world, he will, of course, not receive praises and sympathy from the world. If he is separated, he is either being proud, or he is genuinely spiritual. Either he is so proud that he would not associate himself with others and is haughtily preoccupied with himself, or he must be having such a good manner of life that he becomes compatible with his separated position. If the children of God are mixed with the world, they will lose the power of their testimony. The world will think that this kind of Christian is not any different from them! But once a child of God is separated from them, the worldly people will consider such a person to be too proud! If the children of God are not proud at heart, they should not be afraid of public criticism. Nevertheless, in the present age, if a believer truly lives out the holy, heavenly, righteous, and loving life of the Lord Jesus, the world will surely not want to mingle with him. But if we who belong to the Lord cannot show our separated position in the Lord, the world will surely tend to believe that they also are the children of God, because we are the same as they are! Therefore, the believers should all the more manifest that they are separate from the world. 2. The Spirit of the Children of God "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you have not received a spirit of slavery bringing you into fear again, but you have received a spirit of sonship in which we cry, Abba, Father! The Spirit Himself witnesses with our spirit that we are children of God" (Rom. 8:14-16). The sons of
God are those who have the Holy Spirit in their spirits, witnessing in them that they are of God. The Holy Spirit is He "whom the world cannot receive" (John 14:17). Therefore, the people of the world are not the children of God. Our being led by the Holy Spirit confirms and shows that we are the sons of God, for He will not lead those who are not the sons of God. Not only the Holy Spirit, but our spirit also, bears witness that we are the sons of God. Those who are not the children of God are afraid of God. Whenever they think of majesty and the coming judgment of God, they are afraid, because they do not have a heart that loves God. Fear is the first issue of sin, which comes from the devil. Their conscience is still filthy because they have not received the cleansing of the precious blood of the Lord Jesus. That is why there is still much fear. But we who belong to the Lord and are the children of God have not received the spirit of fear, but the spirit of sonship. We are no longer afraid of God. Through the accomplishment of the cross of the Lord Jesus, God has forgiven our offenses, justified us, and made us His children. Now we have an intimate father-son relationship with God. He loves us and we love Him. How He loves us, cares for us, cherishes us, and looks after us are all manifested in the one word "Father." How we obey Him, adore Him, and freely pour out ourselves to Him are all reflected in the word "children." The various relationships between a father and a son in the world cannot compare to the depth and intimacy of the relationship between our spiritual Father and His sons. How dear and fitting is the expression "Abba, Father!" The people of the world do not have such a spirit. There is one thing which we need to remember: this spirit of sonship is received; it is not something we have by nature. This means that we, like the rest of the world, did not have this spirit. It is only through receiving this spirit that we are able to take God as our Father. If you remember this fact, you will understand the error in assuming that God is the Father of all the people of the world. Galatians 4:4-6 says, "But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under law, that He might redeem those under law that we might receive the sonship. And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, Abba, Father!" Here we need to remember that God had two sending forths: (1) He sent forth His Son, the Lord Jesus, to redeem man and to accomplish the sonship. Originally under the law, man was guilty. In order to deliver us from the condemnation of the law, the Lord Jesus sacrificed His life on the cross and received the punishment of the law in our stead. He condemned sin in His flesh. Once the problem of sin was taken