FROM THE DAWGHOUSE….
WHAT DOES IT MEAN GOD IS OUR ABBA FATHER?
As Pastor Pete shared with us at Forge recently, in Scripture there are many different names used to describe God. While all the names of God are important in many ways, the name “Abba Father” is one of the most significant names of God in understanding how He relates to us. The word Abba is an Aramaic word that means “Father.” It was a common term that expressed affection and confidence and trust. Abba signifies the close, intimate relationship of a father and his child, as well as the childlike trust that a young child puts in his or her earthly dad.
Perhaps you’ve noticed that Abba is always followed by the word Father in Scripture, and further, that the phrase is found in only three passages:
- In Mark 14:36 – Jesus addresses His Father as “Abba, Father” in His prayer in Gethsemane.
- In Romans 8:15 – “Abba, Father” is mentioned in relation to the Spirit’s work of adoption that makes us God’s children and heirs with Christ.
- In Galatians 4:6 – Again in the context of adoption, the Spirit in our hearts cries out, “Abba, Father.”
Together, the terms Abba and Father doubly emphasize the fatherhood of God. In two different languages, we are assured of God’s care for His children.
Now the rub…
Many claim that all people are “children of God,” but the Bible reveals quite a different truth. Yes, we are all His creation and under His authority and Lordship, and all will be judged by Him, but the right to be a child of God and to refer to Him as “Abba Father” is something that only born-again Christians have (John 1: 12-13). When we are born again (John 3:1-8), we are adopted into the family of God, redeemed from the curse of sin, and made heirs of God (Romans 8:17; Galatians 4:7). Part of that new relationship is that God now deals with us differently, as family.
Truth be told, it should be a life-changing experience when we fully understand what it means to be able to call the one true God our “Father” and what it means to be joint-heirs with Jesus Christ. Because of our relationship with our Abba, Father, He no longer deals with us as enemies; instead, we can approach Him with “boldness” (Hebrews 10:19) and in “full assurance of faith” (Hebrews 10:22). The Holy Spirit “testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. And if we are God’s children, then we are heirs – heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ” (Romans 8: 16-17).
Becoming a child of God is the highest and most humbling of honors as we have a new relationship with God and a new standing before Him. Instead of running from God and trying to hide our sin like Adam and Eve did, we run to Him, calling, “Abba, Father!” and finding forgiveness in Christ. Being an adopted child of God is the source of our hope, the security of our future, and the motivation to “live a life worthy of the calling you have received” (Ephesians 4:1). Being children of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords calls us to a higher standard, a different way of life, and, in the future, “an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade” (1 Peter 1:4).
When Jesus taught His disciples to pray, He began with the words Our Father. There is much truth in those two words alone. The holy and righteous God, who created and sustains all things, who is all-powerful, all-knowing, and ever-present, not only allows us but encourages us to call Him “Father.” What a privilege. What amazing grace that God loved us so much, that Jesus would sacrifice Himself for us, and that the Holy Spirit would indwell us and prompt our intimate cry of “Abba, Father!”
Joe Bouch
FORGE Winter Springs
