Who Do You Say That I Am? : Father

          Most of you are probably familiar with the scene in Matthew’s Gospel when Jesus Asks Peter, “Who do you say that I am?”  Peter replies, “You are the Christ.”  We all know that scene and many of us accept Peter’s reply as obvious fact.  But that's where we stop.  We don’t think about it.  Like much of my early reading of the Bible I read this passage like any other book, but the Bible is so much more than a book, it is the word of the LORD.  So now when I read the Bible every question Jesus poses to anyone I read as though he is asking me personally.  “Holly, who do you say that I am?”  It is much more powerful this way and it causes me to examine myself and to examine Jesus more closely.

           SO, that was my very long-winded introduction to a new series I am going to be doing: “Who Do You Say That I am?”  I am going to answer in several posts who Jesus is (to the best of my ability because I will never understand him completely in his mysterious divinity).  This first post is going to be focused on my favorite role of God, Father. 

Let the Children Come Unto Me by Richard Hook

          When I am asked, “Who is God?” my initial reaction is, “he is my father!”  Why?  First of all, I have a completely awesome earthly father (shout out Popsie!) and so the father child relationship is near and dear to my heart.  When God calls himself my father I am overjoyed that he can think of me with even MORE love than my dad has for me (that’s a lot of love).  Secondly, all of the responsibilities, actions, and emotions a father takes on are traits of God that we can observe on Earth which makes him more relatable. Let’s go through these together:

Responsibilities:

            A father historically has been responsible for providing for his wife and children.  As our father, God has promised to provide for his wife (the church) and his children (us!).  He tells us in Matthew 6:31-32 “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.”  The LORD will provide.  Thanks Daddy!

Actions:

            A father makes rules for his children’s best interest.  As children we think that our fathers’ rules are stupid and meaningless; invented to keep us from having fun.  “Why can’t I play in the street? That’s a stupid rule!”  But then, when we grow up we see the merit of the rules set in place.  “Oh yeah, if I played in the street I might have gotten hurt.”  Well, as children of God we are still in the “I like to play in the street” phase.  We don’t understand why God has given us rules like “don’t get drunk”, “don’t have sex before you are married”, and “don’t watch trashy movies” etc.  We think that God just doesn't want us to have fun.  The thing is, we should learn from our past and realize that Our Father has our safety, happiness, and best interest at heart. 

            
           A father comforts his children when they are scared or sad.  The most repeated phrase in scriptures is “Be not afraid”.  (It is actually repeated 365 time, one for everyday)  Jesus Christ became man and experienced humanity as we do, with all the ups and downs (minus sin).  Even Christ was afraid but he told God “thy will be done” and God used him for the greatest miracle of all time and resurrected him from the dead! If we trust the LORD he will use our fear for greatness.  When we are sad God tells us that all we have to do is ask and he will fill our joy. 

Emotions:

            A father loves his children.  This is the message of the Gospel.  God LOVES us!  What an incredible fact that the creator of the universe loves us enough to send his son and die for love of us! Is anyone else just blown away by this? Is it just me?

           What do you think of God as our Father? Who do you say that he is? Questions? Comments? Drop me a line in the comment section!

 Ps. I am trying to post every Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday nights to start making this blog more consistent and easier to follow!