ABBA FATHER -- Tomorrow:
"For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father" (Rom. 8:15). "And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of
his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father" (Gal. 4:6).
The thought of a reconciled people that are not close to God is a contradiction of terms. Imagining that one can have eternal life while remaining fundamentally ignorant of God is nothing but a foolish imagination, to be cast down with Divine weaponry. We are not to allow such notions to find residence in our faculties of reason. Eternal life is knowing God, and Jesus Christ whom He has sent (John 17:3). Where God is not known, eternal life is not found.
Contrary to much thinking, the purpose of redemption is not to produce ideal social or domestic environments. Although these often result from being reconciled to God, their absence did not require the death of Christ. Corrupt government did not require the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. In contradiction of the teaching of many, poverty and sickness did not demand the death of the "Lamb of God." Broken marriages and fractured human relationships did not cry out for an atonement. While this ought to be obvious, it has become popular for some pseudo preachers to belch out these teachings as though they were true. They are not.
Sin had estranged humanity from God. Whether or not individuals got along with one another was not really the issue, although sin did cause people to be "hateful and hating one another" (Tit. 3:3). Sin alienated us from God. Sickness did not do that! Poverty did not do it either! Nor, indeed, did broken homes, else the unbelieving spouse could not be sanctified and saved by the believing one. It was our ignorance of God that caused us to be "alienated from the life of God" (Eph 4:18).
Christ's death reconciled us to God (Rom. 5:10). It tore down the barrier that sin had erected, and opened the floodgates of blessing. It brought man and God together, without man being destroyed, or God compromising His character! "Abba, Father" portrays this kind of relationship. These words are not a religious formula, but an expression of oneness with God through Christ, and by the Spirit.
The new covenant was promised through Jeremiah. Integral to that covenant was a new relationship to God. No longer would those within the covenant be admonished to "know the Lord." The unequivocal promise was, "They shall ALL know Me, from the least to the greatest" (Jer. 31:34). The Spirit confirms in Hebrews 8:10-13 that this is the covenant that has been sealed by Christ's blood. Such wonderful knowledge of, or acquaintance with (Job 22:21), God is not reserved for the mature. It is for "all" who are in Christ Jesus. It is not only for the strong, but for "all . . . from the least to the greatest."
The knowledge of God is what prompts us to cry out "Abba, Father." The Spirit of Christ is what empowers us to do the same. Our faith is what undergirds our call with confidence and godly expectation.
Blessed is the person whose heart cries out to God, "Abba, Father."
PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of Jesus, I thank You for urging me to come into Your presence, be taught by You, and know You in a personal and invigorating way. Blessed is Your name, Holy Father!