OUR HEAVENLY FATHER

How often is it that when people try to visualize God they see Him as a commanding figure of a king sitting on a great high throne who is quite distant to men? While He truly is the King of kings who is to be revered, do we also recognize and appreciate another aspect of His person, which is that of a father?

Yes, God is a Father and the love expressed by our earthly fathers, may it be natural or spiritual, is but a reflection of the love of our Heavenly Father.

He protects and provides for us; and gives us His peace.

In Psalms 68:5, God is shown as the Father to the fatherless and Defender of widows. Some may have never known their natural fathers but God is saying that He is a Father to such people. In Psalms 27:10, King David speaks of God as the One who takes care of those who are abandoned. We, too, can be assured that when everyone else has turned their back on us, God will take care of us!

In Romans 8:15, we are told that when we receive God as our Savior, He also becomes our Father.

We become His children who can call Him "Abba Father."

When Jesus was praying to God in Mark 14:36, He called Him "Abba Father" which was an uncommon way for Jews to address God because it was not a formal term. “Abba” was such an everyday, casual word and a term of endearment that denotes a sense of intimacy. It is similar to how a little child would call his father “Daddy” or “Papa.”

Charles Spurgeon once said, "this sweet word Abba was chosen to show us that we are to be very natural with God, and not stilted and formal. We are to be very affectionate and come close to Him, and not merely say ‘Pater,’ which is a cold Greek word (for father), but say ‘Abba,’ which is a warm, natural, loving word, fit for one who is a little child with God, and feels the freedom to lie in His bosom and look up into His face and speak with holy boldness" (Rowe).

May we also come to know God more as our “Abba Father” by looking closely at three things that describe His love towards us:

1. God loves us just the way we are.

Saint Augustine once said, "God loves each of us, as if there were only one of us."

God loves us just the way we are but He refuses to leave us that way. 

We often think of rejection or saying "no" as not a sign of love but this is a childish thought. His "no’s" are actually a proof of His genuine love towards us as He always means it for our good. First Peter 5:7 says that God cares for us but His love includes correction and discipline. It is in His heart to give what is best for us.

2. God provides but He would only give or do what is good for us.

Goodness can be defined as being incapable of doing anything evil. Such is the goodness of God. He is incapable of doing evil to us. Matthew 7:7-11 shows the nature of God as a good Provider to those who ask Him. Jesus has a title of Jehovah Jireh which means "God will provide."

It is in the heart of God to provide for His own children.

There is a story of a pastor who needed $1 million for the building they were purchasing. The settlement date was getting closer and closer. He just kept praying. Then the day before the settlement date, an envelope arrived in the mail. It was a cheque for $1 million. He said, "Lord, why didn't you send this earlier?" The Lord said, "You didn't need it earlier” (HotSermons.com). The truth is God is always in time to provide for our needs.

We need to learn to trust God in our hearts and believe that it is in His Father's heart to provide. It can be easy to doubt the nature of God as a Provider especially when we are facing a difficult situation of need.

But we need to know that He knows and cares more for us than we know and care for ourselves.

In 1 Kings 17, the prophet Elijah met a poor widow exactly when she and her son were on their very last meal before they would die as all they had left was a “handful of flour in a bin, and a little oil in a jar” (1 Kings 17:12). In the moment of her greatest need, God spoke a promise to her through the prophet that He would miraculously provide for her.

God promised her that “the bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth” (1 Kings 17:14). As she believed in God’s promise, she gave her last meal to the prophet and true enough, the flour and oil were not used up and “she and her household ate for many days” (1 Kings 17:15-16). Such is the abundant love of God towards His children!

However, His provision may sometimes also come with certain restrictions. At times, we can pray for things that we want but they may not be what we need and can even be harmful to us. God is good but the goodness of His love does not spoil.

3. God the Father guides and trains us.

One of the greatest blessings in life is to have godly parents who will be able to guide and train their children to be strong and ready for the course of life. God also sends people in our lives to help lead us to the direction He wants us to take.

In Psalm 32:8, God tells us that He Himself will guide us with His eye. But just as how only people in an intimate relationship can communicate with their eyes, the Lord can instruct us with His eye only if we have grown close enough to Him to know His very heart.

There is a poem called the “The Parable of Tomorrow” by Ruth Gibbs Zwall that beautifully illustrates how God guides us every step of the way:

“I looked at the mountain. ‘It is too hard, Lord,’ I said; ‘I cannot climb.’
‘Take My hand,’ He whispered; ‘I will be your strength.’
I saw the road, ‘It is too long, Lord,’ I said; ‘so rough and long.’
‘Take My love,’ He answered; ‘I will guard your feet.’
I looked at the sky. ‘The sun is gone,’ I said; ‘already the way grows dark.’
‘Take the lantern of My Word,’ He whispered; ‘that will be light enough.’

We climbed. The road was narrow and steep, but the way was bright.
And when the thorns reached out, they found His hand before they touched my own.
And when my path grew rough,
I knew it was His love that kept my feet from stumbling.
Then I grew very tired. ‘I can go no farther, Lord,’ I said.

He answered, ‘Night is gone.
Look up, My child.’ I looked and it was dawn. Green valleys stretched below.
‘I can go on alone now,’ I said—and then I saw the marks.
‘Lord, Thou art wounded. Thy hands are bleeding. Thy feet are bruised.
Was it for me?’

He whispered, ‘I did it gladly.’
Then I fell at His feet. ‘Lord, lead me on,’ I cried.
‘No road too long, no valley too deep, if Thou art with me.’
We walk together now and shall forever!”

When we learn to trust in the Lord, we can see that He is not the same person whom our deceitful hearts or the world often portrays Him to be.

He loves, provides, and leads us ever so gently that we may come to know Him more and more... until we finally behold Him and realize that all along, He has been, and always will be, our Beloved Heavenly Father.


References:
Rowe, Timothy A. "The Heart of the Father." Goodness Of God Ministries. goodnessofgodministries.wordpress.com/2015/06/21/the-heart-of-the-father/. Accessed June 2017.
"Sermon Illustrations: Provision." Hot Sermons. hotsermons.com/sermon-llustrations/sermon-illustrations-provision.html. Accessed June 2017.
Gibbs Zwall, Ruth. "The Parable of Tomorrow." Bible.org. bible.org/illustration/parable-tomorrow. Accessed June 2017.