We saw yesterday that Jesus introduced the idea of addressing His Father as Father to the disciples. One of the first places that He did that inclusively to the disciples is in Matthew when He was teaching the disciples to pray.
“Pray then like this: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.’” Matthew 6:9
Jesus let them know right then that while Jesus was truly God’s Son, that we were inclusive of that right, or at least we would be. Paul goes on further to explain it to us in Romans 8.
In the first eleven verses of chapter 8 of Romans Paul taught that there were only two types of people, those who live by the flesh and those who live by the Spirit. When we are born, we are born with a selfish, sinful nature. When you look at a brand new baby it is hard to imagine when you look into their sweet face that they will ever have a sinful nature. But the fact is, that as that baby grows that sinful nature will reveal itself eventually. It does for us all. But one day we pray that they will accept Jesus into their heart and they will no longer live by that sinful nature. When we accept what Jesus did for us on the cross and we become children of God, we then can live by the Spirit. It’s like this, before we accept Jesus we are living like a slave in God’s kingdom. A slave gets food from the master, and may live in the master’s house or at least on his land, but does not get to enjoy the benefits of the children of the master. But once you accept Jesus you are then adopted by God and get to enjoy all the benefits of being God’s child just as Jesus is God’s child. You get to sit at the table!
“For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs-heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” Romans 8:15-17
Let that wash over you today. If you have accepted Jesus then you are a child of God, adopted into His family. We are fellow heirs with Christ! And that means we get to call God Abba! Father! Calling Him Abba is like calling Him Daddy! It’s not formal, it’s not stuffy! It’s like crawling up into your Daddy’s lap when things aren’t going right and you just need your Daddy. I talk a lot about laying things at the feet of Jesus, but sometimes I need more, I don’t need to just lay it down, I need my Daddy’s lap.
One of the sweetest things I love about staying with my son’s family or when they come to my house is the morning and seeing my grandchildren crawl up and snuggle with my son. My granddaughter left my lap one morning and looked over her shoulder at me and said “I want my daddy.” It is so precious to me to see them feel safe and snuggle with him in the mornings and to know that he is making them feel safe and loved.
Don’t miss the privilege that not only do we receive our salvation from Jesus, but because of what He did for us on the cross that we get to call God our Father! Our Abba! Our Daddy! We are no longer slaves to fear, we are no longer slaves to our sinful nature, the flesh. But we are adopted into the kingdom of God!
“And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’ So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.” Galatians 4:6
Hold your head up today my friend! If things are tough, close your eyes and go sit in your Daddy’s lap and tell Him! Then walk into the day as a child of the King because you have just spent time with your Daddy!
Restore 