Today’s Truth

“I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters.” (2 Corinthians 6:18 NIV)

In the Old Testament, God has many names. He is Elohim – the Creator, El Elyon – God Most High, El Roi – the God who sees, El Shaddai – the All-Sufficient One, Adonai – the Lord, Jehovah – the Self-Existent One, Jehovah-Jireh –the Lord Will Provide, Jehovah – Rapha – the Lord that heals, Jehovah—Shalom – the Lord is peace, Jehovah-Raah – the Lord my Shepherd, and many more. His covenant name with the people of Israel was I AM. J.I. Packer, in his book, Knowing God, said, “He is: and it is because He is what He is that everything else is as it is.”

In the New Testament, Jesus introduced a new name for God – Father. It is the name that Jesus referred to more than any other and the name that He invites us to use to address the Creator of the Universe. Just stop and think about that for a moment. The God of the universe who created the heavens and the earth, who always has been and always will be, who is all-knowing, all powerful, and present everywhere at once – that same God invites you to call Him - Daddy!

When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray, He said:

But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name….’ (Matthew 6:6-9 NIV).

Packer went on to say: “For everything that Christ taught, everything that makes the New Testament new and better than the Old, everything that is distinctly Christian as opposed to merely Jewish, is summed up in the knowledge of the fatherhood of God.” All other religions demand followers to worship created beings (Mohammad, Buddha), but Jehovah the Creator, the great I AM, invites us to crawl up in His lap, become His child, and call Him Abba, Daddy. He said, “I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters.” (2 Corinthians 6:18 NIV)

Let’s Pray
Dear Lord, Thank You for being a father who loves me as His precious child. How amazing to think that the God who created the universe and all it contains invites me to be His child and call Him Abba, Father. I do not take this invitation lightly, but cherish it with all my heart.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Now It’s Your Turn
What would a perfect Father look like to you? Make a list of those qualities. Now put a check mark by the ones you have experienced in God as His child.

What does God promise in 2 Corinthians 6:18?

Describe how God, our Father is depicted in Hosea 11:3-4.

What do you learn about the love of God in Ephesians 3:18-19?

What do you learn about the Fatherhood of God in 1 Corinthians 8:6?