3:1 sons of God. We can be called “sons of God” because we have been “created in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:10), and are thus “new creatures” in Him (II Corinthians 5:17). Only those specially created by God (e.g., Adam and the angels—Luke 3:38; Job 38:7) can properly be called “sons of God.” In the last three chapters of this epistle, those who have been thus uniquely “born of God” are said to “not commit sin” (I John 3:9), “love one another” (I John 4:7), “believeth that Jesus is the Christ” (I John 5:1), “overcometh the world” (I John 5:4), and “keepeth himself” (I John 5:18).

3:3 purifieth himself. The hope of Christ’s second coming is not a dead hope, but a “lively hope” (I Peter 1:3); not a frightening prospect, but a “blessed hope” (Titus 2:13). It is a joyful hope (I Thessalonians 2:19), a comforting hope (I Thessalonians 4:13-18), a hope of glory (Colossians 1:27) and an anchoring hope (Hebrews 6:19). Finally, as this verse notes, it is a purifying hope, for it stimulates us to abide in Him.