Friday, January
6, 2017
And because
we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts,
prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.”
Galatians 4:6(NLT)
There is nobody in the world
who can call me Didah
but my grandchildren. I hate the sound
of it from adult lips (perhaps enough to fight),
Abba is the
Hebrew equivalent of Daddy. Only little, loved children can say
that! If being a true child of a loving,
caring, Heavenly Father doesn't make your heart laugh, you either have a
bankrupt notion of true fatherhood, or you’re
stone-cold dead.
Now, there is only one thing
that ever stands between God and His child having this kind of fellowship –
sin. We are all subject to temptation
and falling. But when we fall into
temptation, our fellowship can be restored, as well as intimacy that allows us
to enjoy the laughter of God, by repenting of sin:
But if we
confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to
cleanse us from all wickedness. 1 John
1.9(NLT)
The reality about prayer,
even intimate prayer where you can cry, Abba,
Father, is that not all answers are yes, but every answer will have the full attention and
wisdom of a loving Father who loves you and wants to hear from you.
Adoption tells us
we are wanted. Abba tells us we are enjoyed.
According
to Scripture[ii],
the promises of God are certain, and unquestionably true. What is the promise Paul mentions as he writes
to the Galatian believers?
And you, dear
brothers and sisters, are children of the promise, just like Isaac. Galatians 4:28(NLT)
And like all children are expected
to come home, so are Abba’s
children expected in their home, Heaven.
Beloved, the laughter of God means we are wanted, enjoyed and expected
home. Home is a place called heaven, and
it is wonderful beyond our imagination.
It is a place ringing with laughter and joy and love. It is the place of God.
A relationship with the
Father means no knocking on Heaven's door like some stranger. It means walking right in, wanted, enjoyed,
expected.
When serving in Vietnam in
1968 I got my orders to return home. I
wrote Elizabeth, telling my bride what time the flight would arrive. The plane ride home was long, filled with
turbulence and storms. But, when I
stepped off that plane, my whole family was there to greet me. For the first hour there was nothing but
hugging and kissing and tears and laughter.
It was the genuine laughter of reunion and the promise of much communion
together. I was home.
That, however is not even the
smallest hint of what the reception in Heaven will be like.
It’s similar in that, there, you
have a family waiting to welcome you. But,
oh, not just your
spouse, children, earthly
mother, or father, or a lost sibling, or friend. You have a heavenly Father, and an elder brother by the name of Jesus.
For You Today
There’s
enough political mess, and horror show on the nightly news to make one cynical
and full of despair. Now might be a good
time to lift your hands and eyes towards your real home and, with no need to knock, open the door wide
with one word: Abba!
NOTES
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