Our Father – Part 2 - Abba

John 1:12-13 “But as many as received Him (Jesus), to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

Big Faith Idea #2 – You do not have to be afraid of thinking about God as father. When we put our faith in Jesus Christ, we were born spiritually to God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Now, taking on the nature and identity as a son or daughter of a perfect Heavenly Father, Sustainer and Master of the entire universe. 1 John 3:1-2a “Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. Beloved, now we are children of God.”

Big Faith Idea #3 – We can either reinforce what’s been broken in our lives or we can be part of reversing the curse and leaning into what can be. We have a choice in this. Where we have significant relationship issues with our parents, it creates deficits in our lives. There may be “cover ups” or a “song and dance” to disguise, but there are things not working right on the inside. We tend to gravitate and lean to the negative story and cast blame, repeating it over and over again. But, Jesus came to reverse the curse in our life. We became grafted into a new story with a whole new story of glory, with new possibilities and a new future as children of Almighty God. So, when we look at our deficit now, we have two choices. We can either reinforce the negative story or reverse the curse by leaning into God’s story and the positive possibilities.   

Ephesians 6:4 “Fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord."

Big Faith Idea #4 – The power of the gospel is that we can be the reflection of the love of God to our parents, even if they are not the reflection of the love of God. We have a new identity in Christ, we have a perfect Father, we have power to reinforce or reverse the story of our life, and we have the incredible opportunity to show the world that the gospel of Jesus Christ is bigger than broken relationships. The gospel is the power to reconcile and restore things that are broken. The word of God commands us to obey our parents in the Lord. If the order is not in alignment with God Holy Word, Will, and Way then it is not to be obeyed as God sets the standards by which we live.

1 Thessalonians 1:4-5 “For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction.”

But, gospel faith in Jesus Christ can put back together again that which could not humanly be put back together. If God can take a fractured, formative relationship and, through us, begin to reflect freedom in that relationship, people are going to wonder: “How did you do that!” They may not know what it is that you have receive, who do you have to trust in, or how to put your faith in Him, but they will want to know Jesus. They will think: “Whatever is making reconciliation and restoring relationships happen, I need that in my life because I am not able to relate right now.” They need to see the gospel working in someone’s life that is real. Pastor Giglio concluded with six truths about when Father God looks at us: (1) He sees someone He loves, (2) He sees someone that He is thankful for, (3) He sees someone who is rare and a beautiful treasure, (4) He sees someone He forgives, (5) He sees someone who is here for a special purpose, and (6) He sees someone that He holds to His high standards. Why? Because we are born of God.

In Christ, Brian