March 9, 2016 OUR FATHER
Mathew 6:9: “Pray then, in this way: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.”
If you want to ask someone how we should pray-Jesus is THE one to ask! We are so familiar with the Lord’s Prayer and we may read or repeat it so quickly that we miss the first two awesome words; practically everything that Jesus taught and did revolved around these two words: “Our Father.” This is indeed an astounding truth-that the God who created the universe, the all- knowing and all-powerful God, is our Father! By Jesus saying “our Father,” He is saying that He is our brother. Can we grasp the reality of Jesus being our brother, and God being our Father? We can’t fully comprehend this; but in eternity past, God knew each one of us and He knew the date of our physical birth, the color of our hair-the scripture says that He even “weaved us in our mother’s womb! (Psalms 139). God also knew that Adam and Eve would sin and break the fellowship between God and man, but even before Adam and Eve were created and before they sinned against God, God had a plan of restoration. Jesus came to earth and was crucified for the purpose of redeeming His brothers and sisters-the ones that belonged to Him. Salvation is so more than a ticket to heaven; it is God restoring man back to fellowship with Him. Most believers agree with their mind that God is there Father, but when God makes this truth alive in our spirit, everything changes. The awareness that God is our Father impacts every aspect of our lives in dramatic ways, and gives us an entirely new perspective of life. Since the all-powerful, all-knowing, all-loving God is our Father, what have I to fear? What have I to worry about? Do I have to fear sickness and death? Do I have to fret over having the necessities of life? Knowing God as our Father does not negate our call to take dominion in life and be good stewards. God is active, moving toward His goal-and He invites us to partner with Him in what He is doing. Talk about a partnership! God calls us to be stewards over all that He puts in our hand-including money, possessions, talents, position, and spiritual gifts. As an example, some think that if they tithe ten percent, the ninety percent is theirs to do with as they please, whereas in God’s plan, we are to be stewards over the one hundred percent. Sad to say, but many have had earthly fathers who did not know the love of God and as a result, they may have a misunderstanding of God as Father. If we are seeking to know God as Father, He will continue to reveal more of Himself to us, and as He does, we will come to know how blessed we are to have Him as Father. Let us be reminded of, and be refreshed by the fact that Jesus is our brother who redeemed us back to our Father who is in heaven-and may His kingdom come on earth and may His will be done on earth as it is in heaven!
Matthew 6:26: “Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?”
Blessings,
Buddy
Mathew 6:9: “Pray then, in this way: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.”
If you want to ask someone how we should pray-Jesus is THE one to ask! We are so familiar with the Lord’s Prayer and we may read or repeat it so quickly that we miss the first two awesome words; practically everything that Jesus taught and did revolved around these two words: “Our Father.” This is indeed an astounding truth-that the God who created the universe, the all- knowing and all-powerful God, is our Father! By Jesus saying “our Father,” He is saying that He is our brother. Can we grasp the reality of Jesus being our brother, and God being our Father? We can’t fully comprehend this; but in eternity past, God knew each one of us and He knew the date of our physical birth, the color of our hair-the scripture says that He even “weaved us in our mother’s womb! (Psalms 139). God also knew that Adam and Eve would sin and break the fellowship between God and man, but even before Adam and Eve were created and before they sinned against God, God had a plan of restoration. Jesus came to earth and was crucified for the purpose of redeeming His brothers and sisters-the ones that belonged to Him. Salvation is so more than a ticket to heaven; it is God restoring man back to fellowship with Him. Most believers agree with their mind that God is there Father, but when God makes this truth alive in our spirit, everything changes. The awareness that God is our Father impacts every aspect of our lives in dramatic ways, and gives us an entirely new perspective of life. Since the all-powerful, all-knowing, all-loving God is our Father, what have I to fear? What have I to worry about? Do I have to fear sickness and death? Do I have to fret over having the necessities of life? Knowing God as our Father does not negate our call to take dominion in life and be good stewards. God is active, moving toward His goal-and He invites us to partner with Him in what He is doing. Talk about a partnership! God calls us to be stewards over all that He puts in our hand-including money, possessions, talents, position, and spiritual gifts. As an example, some think that if they tithe ten percent, the ninety percent is theirs to do with as they please, whereas in God’s plan, we are to be stewards over the one hundred percent. Sad to say, but many have had earthly fathers who did not know the love of God and as a result, they may have a misunderstanding of God as Father. If we are seeking to know God as Father, He will continue to reveal more of Himself to us, and as He does, we will come to know how blessed we are to have Him as Father. Let us be reminded of, and be refreshed by the fact that Jesus is our brother who redeemed us back to our Father who is in heaven-and may His kingdom come on earth and may His will be done on earth as it is in heaven!
Matthew 6:26: “Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?”
Blessings,
Buddy
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