Abba! Father!

July 11

I Chronicles 25-26

Psalm 79:5-8

Proverbs 17:21-22

Romans 8:1-17

Abba! Father!

“Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus….You are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you.  But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.  But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness…For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons by whom we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’  The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, also heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.”  Romans 8:1, 9-10, 15-17  LSB

Romans 7 is one of the most discouraging passages in Scripture in which Paul discusses the inevitability of sin in the life of the believer.  He acknowledges that sin is a part of this fallen world and we cannot escape its grip as long as we live on this earth.  Thankfully, our loving and understanding God chose to follow this chapter with arguably the most encouraging chapter in the Bible.  Romans 8 is the rest of the story for the believer. While it is true that sin still dwells in our bodies, it no longer has dominion.  We are changed and we are now free to live according to the Spirit.  We are able to set our minds on the things of God and experience abundant life and peace.  The Spirit works within us to create a pure heart and to transform us into His image.  We are no longer condemned because of our sin.  Jesus’ righteousness has been imputed to us and we are able to stand before God righteous and holy because we are washed in the blood of Jesus. 

We do not have to fear that we will be condemned again.  He has adopted us as His beloved children.  We do not have to approach Him as a judge or a king, we get to approach Him as our loving Father.  He is our Abba, our Daddy.  As our Father, He wants to take care of us.  He provides for our needs, guides and instructs us as we face the challenges of life, and He provides comfort and strength when we need it.  Because He loves us, sometimes He has to discipline us in order to train and teach us.  This may be hard to understand if your earthly father was not loving and gentle or if you had a difficult relationship with him.  I have counseled with several people over the years who have a hard time grasping this kind of relationship with God because they did not experience that from their earthly fathers.  If you struggle with this, my prayer is that you would go to God in prayer and ask Him to reveal Himself to you in this way.  Ask Him to help you understand His love for you so that you can experience the depth of His care and provision.  Our earthly fathers are human and they mess up just like we do.  Don’t let their shortcomings deter you from experiencing the fullness of God’s love for you.  He is a perfect Father.  We are His children with all of the privileges, benefits and responsibilities that entails. We are heirs of God  and fellow heirs with Christ.  Embrace your role as a child of the Kings of kings and Lord of lords, the ruler of the universe.