God Is First And Foremost Abba ... Daddy

Due to the work of the advertising standards authority, you don't see them so often now, but you may recall those Before and After adverts? Usually two small pictures - on the left is the flabby man the right is the same man with a washboard stomach and well defined pectorals. Or on the left would be the woman without the corset, viewed sideways, looking glum. On the right is the woman with the corset, with a somewhat strained smile on her face.

So it appears on the day of Pentecost. On the left the disciples and followers of Jesus appear directionless, unsure, unmotivated, weak, and hidden away in a secret prayer meeting, afraid of the Jewish rulers, who had crucified Jesus. Afterwards, on the right, we see them confident, open, authoritative, wise, representing God and challenging those around with no fear.

So what has happened? Acts 2 tells the story. It's so familiar, and we all know it is obviously to do with something the Holy Spirit has done. Its not a coincidence. Jesus forbade his disciples to start his work, until they had gone through this baptism of the Spirit.

God has much to say about the role of the Holy Spirit in your life. He talks about the character changes that will be produced - love joy peace patience goodness kindness gentleness faithfulness self-control. He talks about a whole range of things, some of which he will give to you specifically - generosity, prophecy, hospitality, administration, teaching, etc, etc. He tells us that the Holy Spirit will remind us of the word of God, enables us to understand scripture.

But you know fruit takes time to grow, and it didn't happen in the few minutes before they tumbled out onto the street that morning. And while certainly the speaking in other languages was amazing, and essential to this mixed race crowd, it seems to me, the people seem to have responded principally to the style and content of Peter's message. Wouldn't you say?

Something has happened to Peter, which is now very clear in his whole demeanour. And the way he stands, the way he speaks, the words he says, the expression on his face.

In the letter to the ten or so churches in the area of Galatia, we read these words:

In the letter written to the church in Rome, we read these words:

The entire wealth of ideal parent-child relationship is present within God-Father-Son-Spirit.

The nurturing and the dependency, the giving and the receiving, the security and the growing confidence, the authority and the humility, the initial love and the responsive love, then later as the child grows, the mutual respect, the close unity, the understanding interaction. That is why God is relationally perfect.

Let's think for a minute about how children get created. We know that at the moment of conception, there is a one-time opportunity for the father's life-force to contribute to creating the child. But the life-force of God isn't called genes, it's called the Holy Spirit, the Holy Wind or the Holy Breath. You'll understand that since time immemorial life has been associated with breath! So in Genesis, we read

His Holy Spirit sent into our lives is the way in which his genetic material is transferred, and new life is created.

So in Luke, the angel says to Mary,

But the Holy Spirit is more than God's genes. And the genetic analogy fails us. Why? Because genetically, the contribution to the life of the child is at one moment only. And yet we read that Jesus Christ, at the moment of his baptism, received the Holy Spirit again. And again, the voice from heaven says,

Yet Jesus was born to Mary as the Son of God, says Luke. And at age 12, he knew he had to be about his Fathers business. So the Holy Spirit has both an initial work and an ongoing work in the area of creating the child.

Are you afraid, or are you a confident child?

Are you afraid of what is happening with your family relationships?

Are you afraid of what will happen with your marriage?

Are you afraid of what will happen to those you love?

Are you afraid to walk across the street and invite a neighbour to share in God's love?

Are you afraid to reply to a colleague 'the reason I go to church is because I love God, and love to worship him, and want to follow what he tells me'.

Are you afraid of the future?

Are you afraid to die?

Peter was - afraid of all of those! Then the spirit of sonship came!! And fear left.

French has the word Papa, German has the word Vati, Aramaic has the word Abba, and English has the word Daddy.

It's the word every father longs to hear his child say. The first word. You write the date in the baby-book. You tell the grandparents. God is longing for you to say 'Daddy'.

Ok, so you're 35, or 55, sophisticated, it's a long time since you said 'Daddy'.

Well, you know it's little children that get into heaven.

Maybe you've got a whole complicated set of troubles. And this all seems rather shallow and naïve.

Can I say this? When you open your heart to God, and as a child, say Daddy, in complete trust, he pours into your heart a confidence, that affects the way you approach every situation. He pours into your heart a love that spills out and transforms every situation.

Instead of sucking love out of your human relationships, you'll be pouring it in. Instead of holding on to steady yourself, you'll be holding on to steady your partner, your child or your friend.

Is your relationship with God distant, maybe a bit cerebral? You're missing the point.

At the bottom of this blog, I've appended about 70 verses, each one a declaration of how much God loves you. Like this one from Hosea.

Or this one from John

How about this from David ?

What does that mean? Let me tell you? Archaeologists have discovered that when someone died back in ancient days, the mourners would collect their tears in small bottles, and bury the bottles with the body. It was a symbol of how much the individual was loved. God not only sees your tears, but he collects and keeps them - a symbol of how much he loves you.

So take a moment to read through these verses, and dare to believe how much God cares for you, dare to believe He's your Dad in the most respectful and intimate sense, and dare to believe that his life is pouring into you and through you into the lives of others.