John marvels that the Father gave us this status: we are called children of God. And we are. But he adds a crucial note: what we will be has not yet been made known. We're in the already-not-yet. Already adopted into the family. Not yet fully revealed in our inheritance.
But here's what we do know: when he appears, we will be like him. That's the promise. Complete transformation. Conformity to Christ's image. Until then, we live as children waiting for the inheritance to be distributed.
John says everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself. Not from guilt or shame, but from the transformative power of expectation. If you're going to be like him, you start living that way now. The future reality shapes the present practice.
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