He is Our Abba Father {Romans 8}
12:30 AM
Some
of you know I was raised in a dysfunctional home. Most of the time my father
was away, so I hardly remember any special moments with him. When I turned 15 my parents divorced so this
brought a broader distance between us. Of course, I was left with so many
questions and a deep desire to be loved. By the age of 22 this yearning came to
an end and a great part of the questions were answered! Psalm 40 can describe
what happened (I’ll only focus on the first 3 verses):
“I
waited patiently and expectantly for the Lord; And He inclined to me and heard my cry.
He brought me up out of a horrible pit [of tumult and of destruction], out of the miry clay, And He set my feet upon a rock, steadying my footsteps and establishing my path. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God; Many will see and fear [with great reverence] And will trust confidently in the Lord.” That was 33 years ago, and let me tell you, since then, Romans 8 has had a great impact on my life!
He brought me up out of a horrible pit [of tumult and of destruction], out of the miry clay, And He set my feet upon a rock, steadying my footsteps and establishing my path. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God; Many will see and fear [with great reverence] And will trust confidently in the Lord.” That was 33 years ago, and let me tell you, since then, Romans 8 has had a great impact on my life!
In the first verses, Paul describes
how important it is to recognize that in our walk with the Lord we continually
have to fight against our flesh which was for many years directed by the
law. “The law can do many
things. It can guide us, teach us, and tell us about God's character. But
the law cannot give energy to our flesh; it can give us the
standard, but it cannot give us the power to live pleasing to God. But now it is not so: Paul
tells us that not only are we saved by the work of the Spirit, but also we must
walk by the Spirit if want to grow and pursue holiness in the Lord. We cannot
be like some among the Galatians who thought they could begin in the
Spirit but then find spiritual perfection through the flesh (Galatians 3:3)”. (Bibleorg)
Now
that we are in Christ we do not continue to live according to our old nature,
but according to the Spirit which is in us!
At first it might be difficult, but the Spirit will begin to deal with
us and convict us. The power for the Christian walk is the Holy Spirit. We will never be alone, because He promised it:
"I will be with you to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20).
By having the Spirit of God in
our lives we will experience a life of peace (vs.6). However, for those who live in
the flesh, that is, sinful minds, death results because they are hostile to
God’s laws.
"It
does not say, 'As many as are driven by the Spirit of God.' No, the devil is a
driver, and when he enters either into men or into hogs he drives them
furiously. Remember how the whole herd ran violently down a steep place into
the sea. Whenever you see a man fanatical and wild, whatever spirit is in him
it is not the Spirit of Christ." (Spurgeon)
.How does the Holy Spirit lead us?
- We are led
by guidance
- We are led
by drawing
- We are led
by governing authority
- We are led as
we cooperate with the leading.
Where
does the
Holy Spirit lead us?
- He leads us
to repentance
- He leads us
to think little of self and much of Jesus
- He leads us
into truth
- He leads us
into love
- He leads us
into holiness
- He leads us
into usefulness
Paul
wrote: “For all who are allowing
themselves to be led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For
you have not received a spirit of slavery leading again to fear [of God’s
judgment], but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons [the Spirit
producing sonship] by which we [joyfully] cry, “Abba!
Father!”- Romans 8:14-15
Yes, we have now become His children, and now He is
our Daddy! Isn’t that awesome?
"In
the Roman world of the first century A.D. an adopted son was a son deliberately
chosen by his adoptive father to perpetuate his name and inherit his estate; he
was no whit inferior in status to a son born in the ordinary course of
nature." (Bruce)
Paul continues to explain: "The
Spirit Himself testifies and confirms together with our spirit
[assuring us] that we [believers] are children of God. And
if [we are His] children, [then we are His] heirs also: heirs of God and fellow
heirs with Christ [sharing His spiritual blessing and inheritance], if indeed
we share in His suffering so that we may also share in His glory.” (8:16-17) What a privilege and an amazing promise: we
are fellow heirs with Christ!
Our life in Christ will not always be easy (“Likewise the Spirit also
helps in our weaknesses…” vs .26 ),
but we have our Daddy who will always be with us to help us fulfill His perfect
will and purpose for our lives (vs.28); He will always be for us (vs. 31) AND
NOTHING will ever separate us from His
LOVE!
I am a living witness of all this and I can’t thank
Him enough for His Faithfulness! On June 2013 I received a telephone call from
one of my half-sisters (my father re-married after the divorce and raised 3
children), telling me that my father was diagnosed with a terminal cancer. From
then on I phoned him on a regular basis, and eventually he surrendered his life
to Jesus! For the last 3 months of his life we had the opportunity to share over
the phone many things. We knew nothing about each other, but it was especially wonderful for me
to share the unfailing love of our Heavenly Father!, I praise our Daddy that on
October 2013, he gave my husband and I the opportunity to fly to see him in the
hospital. I was by his bed, holding hands with him and praying for him and his
family, a few days before our Daddy took him Home with Him. This was something
I had never imagined!! His Plans, His Ways are Perfect and His Faithfulness
endures forever!
Let me ask you: Are you waiting to come back to
your Daddy? His arms are open to you!
Blessings!!
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