But you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ. —Romans 8:15-17
If we are serious about glorifying God, because it makes a difference, we can also glorify Him by perceiving Him as Father. The words that Paul uses point to this: “to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:11).
Jesus called God “the Father.” This is because they were of the same essence: there was therefore no alienation between Father and Son. However, He also told us to call Him Father. How can this be?
We can call God Father because Jesus’ blood atoned for our sins. The blood that Jesus shed on the cross satisfied God’s justice, and the consequence is that, because we are joint-heirs with Christ, we too can call Him Father.
Let me remind you of the most dazzling thought in the world: God loves you as much as He loves Jesus. Indeed, Jesus actually said it: “[You] have loved them even as you have loved me” (John 17:23). Now I do not have the vocabulary to convey how much God loves His Son. I only know that God spoke from heaven again and again saying, “This is my Son whom I love; with Him I am well pleased.”
As a parent, I want my son and my daughter to know that they need never doubt my total and absolute love. Yet just as human parents want their children to know that they love them, so the Father in heaven wants you to know how much He loves you.
That is the kind of God we have. He does not tell us to stand in the cleft of a rock as He passes by; He just says, “Call Me your Father.” By the merit of the blood of Jesus, all who love Him come before the God of the shekinah glory, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, and He says, “This is what I am. Love Me for being what I am, because I love you as you are.”
Excerpted from Meekness and Majesty (Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 1992, 2000).
