Everyone a Child of God? Wm Paul Young Interview

As many of you know, I host a talk radio show called Sozo Talk Radio. Recently I interviewed Wm Paul Young, author of The Shack.

In our conversation one thing that kept coming up was this idea that everyone is a child of God. But what about unbelievers? What about when Jesus says to some, “you are of your father the devil”?

“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” John 8:44 NASB

Apparently this needs some further investigation because on the surface it seems we are opposing the very words of Jesus Christ!

I have included in the description of this interview on youtube a blog post by a mutual friend Brad Jersak, Are All People Gods Children, Or Only Christians? Here is that blog post: https://www.ptm.org/q-r-are-all-people-gods-children-or-only-christians-brad-jersak

In this blog post he talks about the broad sense in which, yes indeed we are ALL God’s offspring, his children made in his image and likeness. He also comments how John and the Gospel writers and Jesus discuss how “God’s children in the narrow sense are those who resemble their Father by imitation.”

This was the sense that John refers to those who receive Christ have the right to become children of God. In the sermon on the mount, it is the peacemakers and those who love their enemies who will be called the sons of God and acting like their Father in heaven.

Give the blog post a read if you’re interested. What do you think?

Here is another blog post that lays out the case that ALL are God’s children: https://reforminghell.com/2016/06/04/everyone-is-a-child-of-god/