Abba Father

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Abba” is the Hebrew word for Father. Thus ‘Abba Father‘ means Father Father. A term reserved for the beloved of the most high God, (his children).

Galatians 4:6

“And so that we would know that we are his true children, God released the Spirit of Sonship into our hearts – moving us to cry out intimately, “My Father! My true Father!”

So the term ‘Abba Father‘ is an invitation for us to lay claim to our identity and sonship through Christ Jesus. We have been restored to a right standing with God and therefore are heirs alongside Jesus Christ. We can cry out ‘Abba Father‘ just as Jesus Christ did while he was present on earth.

God is our father and our comforter, and ‘Abba Father’ is a personal term for God.  It suggests an intimate relationship and personal knowledge of the person of God. Something we must daily strive to develop while we are present on this earth.

As we just celebrated Easter, we are reminded of Jesus Christ crying to his Father while on the Cross in such an intimate way

“Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” — the Aramaic form — “that is, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’” Matthew 27:46
(see also Mark 15: 34)

I find it interesting that Jesus did not refer to God as ‘My Father’ here, but rather highlighted God’s Lordship over his life as ‘My God’.

This verse mirrors what was said in the Old Testament in Psalms 22:1. It was almost like Jesus was pouring out his soul in anguish and couldn’t reconcile this as a part of his Father. He knew God had to allow the suffering to occur in order to reconcile mankind back to right standing with God. It had nothing to do with his own personal relationship with His Father. Isn’t this Jesus just so awesome! He would willingly shed his blood for our sins and so we can be brought back into right standing with God, that’s real love right there!

But, we also know that Jesus Christ was fully human just as he was also fully God, so like any one of us would, he tried to appeal to his Father to curtail the cup of suffering before Him.

Mark 14:36 

“Abba Father! Everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”

The relationship of Jesus with God is a clear example of this intimacy in calling God “Abba

The son of Man, Jesus Christ, could be vulnerable and real with God at this moment. Just as we to a large extent can be vulnerable with our earthly Fathers. Trusting that they want the best for us and feeling assured of our safety in their presence.

Yet, Jesus ultimately knew that God’s will must be done.

Isn’t this something we all would love to lay claim to one day? To have such an intimate relationship with God that we are aware of His will. That regardless of how situations make us feel, we can ultimately submit to the will of the Father.

As a child of my earthly father I know largely the things he likes, dislikes and what his values are. Therefore, when I am out and about and going about my business, the popular saying plays at the back of my head:

“remember the child of whom you are”.

This is just the same with our Heavenly Father. Because I have spent 20+ years of my life learning about my father and developing a relationship with him, seeing him through different life experiences and communicating with him, so I know what his values are. Imagine, how much more we can determine what God’s will, especially when we have the help of the Holy Spirit residing within us.

The beauty of ‘Abba Father’ is seen in Romans 8.

We are told that nothing can ever separate us from the love of God that is found in Christ Jesus. Imagine our earthly fathers and how much they love us. We know that nothing we can ever do will separate us from their love and care for us. Distance may create a barrier, but we are secure and assured in the love of our father for us. Now lets imagine the love of our heavenly Father, who is not as flawed as our earthly fathers neither is he swayed by our actions.

We are all beloved children of God. We lay claim to the nature of God as our Abba Father. He is our Provider (Jehovah Jireh), our Comforter (Jehovah Shalom), our Friend, our Confidant, our Teacher and our Protector (Jehovah Nissi).

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All we need to do is relax in his presence and let the peace of God that surpasses all human understanding reign in our hearts, as we walk boldly in our identity as children of God.

Other Verses to remind us of Our Father’s Love:

2 Corinthians 6: 18

“And I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”

Psalm 89: 26

“And he will call out to me, ‘You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.”

Jeremiah 3:4

“Yet you say to me, ‘Father, you have been my guide since my youth’.”

#SeekGodMore

Mo 🙂


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