Scripture: Matthew 6:9-13; Luke 15:11-31
Series – Names of God
Theme: God as Father – Ab, Abba and Pater
INTRO:
Grace and peace from God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
I want to talk to you today about one of the names God is called that many believe He loves the most. It’s the one that Jesus used on several occasions – Abba – Pater - God the Father.
That word Father can bring up a great many emotions and memories. To some people it brings a smile to their face and to others it can bring quite a bit of discomfort.
I thank God that I had a good father. If you had met him, you would say that he was the typical American father of the 1950’s and 60’s. He was a hard worker, a disciplinarian, a great provider and a stabilizing influence in our family. He wasn’t always a Teddy Bear father or one that was big on sharing his emotions, but I knew I could always count on him being there for our family.
One of the things that Jesus wanted to do while He was teaching and preaching was to talk about His Father – God the Father (Jehovah – Yahweh).
However, every time Jesus talked about God being His Father it caused quite a stir. The mere thought about a human talking about the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY being their father brought a measure of shock and awe.
The Pharisees and the scribes were deeply offended at such an idea. They couldn’t conceive of a human being having the audacity of calling the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY, the God of Israel as their own personal father.
Even God’s name – the one that He gave Moses and the Children of Israel, the name we say as Yahweh or Jehovah was rarely used. In fact, over time the writers purposely left out the vowel points in writing God’s name – YHWH out of respect with the idea that God’s name was so holy it should not be written nor be spoken out loud.
Most of the time when someone was referring to Yahweh they used the term THE NAME or Adonai (the LORD).
One of the things that Jesus sought to do was to correct some of this misguided thinking.
In our passage this morning, Jesus shares with us this simple story of a father to help us understand
+How we as human beings are to act and live with one another.
+How we are to see our Heavenly Father.
Jesus used parables and stories to help his listeners and followers better understand some foundational truths. One of those truths was how they were to see His Heavenly Father, Our Heavenly Father.
The story is rather a simple one.
+A man had two sons
+The youngest son decided that he wanted his inheritance. He was tired of waiting for his father to die, so he approached his dad and asks for his inheritance upfront.
+The father agreed to the idea.
+The son took his inheritance or the legal amount he could take considering his father was still alive and set off to make his own life.
+At first it seemed like everything went well. They young man flushed with cash makes a lot of new friends and they all have quite a time living the party life.
+But then his money dries up and his friends run away.
+He has no marketable skills so he forced to hire himself out to anyone who would employ him which happens to be a pig farmer who had to be amused at hiring a Jew to take care of pigs. Nothing was more awful for a Jew to do than to take care of pigs.
+After a while the young man comes to his senses and decides he needs to leave the pig farm, travel back home and throw himself at his father’s feet. He knows that he has destroyed any chance of ever being the man’s son. After all, wanting your father to die and demanding your inheritance beforehand is not a good way of promoting a good relationship with your father.
+He makes up his mind that he will become one of the hired hands and if need be, accept the position of being a servant. At least he will have some clothes to wear and something good to eat. And so, he sets out to walk back to his home, weary, tattered and torn.
I am sure as Jesus was telling this story that his listeners were waiting for the father to either reject the son (for that was the custom of the day) or to accept the young man back as a slave but never speak to him or have any personal dealings with him.
But this is where Jesus caused his listeners to sit up and take notice.
+The Father had been waiting for his son to return. It doesn’t take him by surprise that one day he sees him walking down the path.
I have a feeling that the father had been watching from afar over the last few weeks and months. I have a feeling that he had some hired servants that had been following the young man and had been seeing if everything was going okay. Don’t interfere but just watch.
+The Father runs towards the young man, hugs him, puts one of the family rings on his finger and sends the servants off to prepare for a party. His son has come home.
+The elder son who had been working hard and doing what he should have been doing was caught by surprise by all these events. He had considered his brother gone and not to be thought about again. In fact, Jesus says that he had an issue with his brother returning, obtaining a level of family status and having a party given in his honor.
Now, we could focus on both young men this morning and I am sure most of you have heard more than one sermon on either the Prodigal Son or the Self-Righteous Elder Brother.
But I would like for us to take a moment and reflect on the Father. A Father who Jesus wants us to understand reflects the personality of His Heavenly Father – Our Heavenly Father.
1. Our Heavenly Father is a Father Who Loves Us – Despite Our Conditions
Most people and even people in the Church don’t always understand the depth and the breath of God’s love for all human beings and creation.
They have this tendency to see God as this Everlasting Judge or Parent who is unhappy with His children and the things that they are doing. That He is always ready to correct, rebuke and to share His disapproval of how they are living and acting.
And it is true that God hates sin. And it is true that God has on occasion brought judgement upon a people who have decided not to obey and embrace a life of sin and idolatry.
But most of the time it is not God who has to bring judgement. We bring it upon ourselves.
Like this young man. Had he taken his money and gone out and started a successful business then this story would have had a different flavor.
But his actions, his stupidity, his lack of sound judgment landed him in the pig pen penniless and having to eat what must have tasted like garbage.
In Galatians 6:7 we find these words:
You cannot fool God, so don't make a fool of yourself! You will harvest what you plant. (CEV)
That’s what this young man discovered.
But what he also discovered was that His father is full of grace, love and mercy.
That’s what we need to understand about our Heavenly Father. He too is full of love, grace and mercy.
He is for us and not against us.
As Chris Tomlin reminds us - our Heavenly Father is perfect in all his Way and He loves us.
Just for a moment think about this:
+God is not only the God of Abraham and Issac = He is the God of Jacob
+God is not only the God of Mary the Mother of Jesus – He is the God of Sarah, Rachel, Leah and Rebekah.
+God is not only the God of Joseph both Old and New Testament, but He is the God of the Apostle Peter, John Mark and Martha the sister of Lazarus.
Now, what do I mean by saying those things:
God calls Himself the God of Jacob – this man who cheated his brother of out both his birthright and blessing. This man who bargained with God by telling God if God will bless him then he will in turn follow him.
God calls Himself the God of Sarah, Rebekah, Leah and Rachel – all fine women but women who did such things as:
+Sarah forced Hagar to carry Abraham’s child only to reject both her and her son once Sarah herself had a baby name Issac.
+Rebekah this amazing woman who wins Issac’s later decides to deceive him into blessing Jacob over Esau.
+Leah and Rachel spend their entire adult lives competing with one another for Jacob’s love involving not only themselves but two other women as well – Bilhah and Zilpah.
If that was not enough you have:
+The Apostle Peter rejecting Jesus when Jesus needed him the most.
+John Mark wanting to be a missionary then abandoning the mission and going home.
+Martha who at times tried her best to convince Jesus she was smarter than He was and that He should listen to her and not the other way around.
There are hundreds of examples of people in the Bible who time after time mess up, frustrate and all out reject God and God’s plan.
And yet, one of the wonders of all creation is – God sees our condition and rescues both the prodigals and those who think they are the holiest of all and who sadly are not.
Despite all our failures, our weaknesses and our tendencies to frustrate God – God so loves us that He gave Himself for us so that He could rescue us and redeem us.
II. Our Heavenly Father is a Father who desperately wants us to Live a Rich and Free Life – Both here on this earth and on the New Earth to come.
Again, think for a moment of these individuals:
+Joseph of the Old Testament
+The Prophet Daniel
+The Apostle Paul
+Mary Magdalene
When Joseph was sold into slavery and taken to Egypt our Heavenly Father did not abandon him but went with him and co-labored with him to become a man who saved millions of people from starvation.
When Daniel was taken prisoner and carted off to Babylon our Heavenly Father went with him and co-labored with him to save the people of God multiple times and live a life of blessing under three different pagan kings.
When the Apostle Paul was arrested, beaten and put in prison God was there every time walking with him and enabling him to fulfill His mission of sharing the message of salvation through Jesus and the infilling presence of God’s Holy Spirit.
When Mary Magdalene was at her lowest point the Heavenly Father did not abandon her but pulled her up and she became one of the greatest women of the New Testament.
All these people were rescued from evil that was doing its best to destroy them, steal from them and kill them.
God the Father never abandon them – but worked with them for them to live a full and victorious life in some rather strange places – Egypt, Babylon, Corinth, Ephesus and Rome.
Our Heavenly Father knows our thoughts, our hopes and our dreams. He knows our weakness, our frailties and our propensity to continuously mess up.
He does not abandon us to the pig pen nor does he allow us to sit down and just sulk.
No, our God – Our Father God – our Heavenly Father – not only rescues us and redeems us but makes a way for us to:
Enjoy the still waters of being in His Presence
Enjoy the knowledge of being under His Care
Enjoy the reality that we are His and as His children we shall forever drink from the fountain of everlasting life and eat from the Tree of Everlasting Life.
This morning as we close let us focus on exactly who Our Heavenly Father is
+He is the One who loves us despite our conditions
He seeks to rescue everyone from a life of sin and shame. In fact, Our Heavenly Father specializes in rescuing and redeeming those who sin and evil have marred, twisted and tried to destroy.
+He is the One who will help us live the best life possible here on this earth and on the New Heaven and New Earth some day in the future.
No matter where we are in this life – with God’s help we can live a life that is more than unbelievable. God can make it possible for us to sing in the prison cell like the Apostle Paul, have peace in the lion’s den like Daniel and find joy and happiness as we leave Moab and travel to the Promise Land like Ruth and Naomi.
This morning, we have no better friend than Our Heavenly Father.
Today:
Rejoice that God is Your Father
+He loves you – Seeks You - Is full of Mercy and Grace
+Never Abandons You – Prodigal or Self-Righteous
+Wants You to Work with Him
-To Enjoy Your Life
As His Child
As One He has Rescued and Redeemed and Filled with His Holy Spirit
Closing Song – listen to CeCe Winas – That’s My King
