Fathers Heart

Kaua`I House Of Prayer Resource
www.kauaihop.com
TOUCHING THE FATHERS HEART

by LeRoy Metzger - email: [email protected] "And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us" (Romans 5:5). A big oversight for many Christian is Acts 1:8 talking about receiving power to be witnesses for Christ. So many of us take special note of the fact that they received Spiritual gifts and power to be a witness but overlook the love of God the Father was also poured out on that special day in a very intimate powerful way, right into our hearts. The out pouring of the Spirit and the experience of the Father's love are vitally linked. Deep within every human being God has placed a longing to know a father's love. Living in what some are calling a fatherless generation, many people today are searching for a deeper experience of this love. EVIDENCE OF ADOPTION Apostle Paul's loftiest theological work is contained in the book of Romans. Listen to his heart: Those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by Him we cry, "Abba, Father." The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs - heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in His sufferings in order that we may also share in His glory. (Romans 8:14-17) In Romans 5:5 we were told that the Spirit pours out the love of God the Father in our hearts. In Romans 8:1417, Paul gives us an even clearer picture of the work the Spirit does in our hearts to convince us that we are the children of a loving heavenly Father. Pauls message in Romans is sinful mankind can be saved through faith in Jesus. Paul then tells us the full benefit of the gospel is that saved men and women are sons and daughters of their heavenly Father, having been adopted in Christ. We have been saved by a loving Father who wants us to come into intimate relationship with Him, even as his Son Jesus knew. The Spirit works in our lives to make this coming into the embrace of God a relational reality. WE CRY ABBA, FATHER When we have a clear understanding of "the adoption", Paul says we cry out "Abba Father" as a result. This cry is one of intimacy and intensity. Henri Nouwen focuses on its intimacy in his devotional book Bread for the Journey: The Spirit reveals to us not only that God is "Abba, Father" but also that we belong to God as beloved children. The Spirit thus restores in us the relationship from which all other relationships derive their meaning. Abba is a very intimate word. The best translation for it is "Daddy." The word Abba expresses trust, safety, confidence, belonging, and most of all, intimacy. Not the same meaning of authority, power, and control that the word Father often evokes. On the contrary, Abba implies an embracing and nurturing love. This love includes and infinitely transcends all the love that comes to us from our fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, spouses, friends, and lovers. It is the gift of the Spirit.
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Kaua`I House Of Prayer Resource

www.kauaihop.com This is beautifully summed up by and Theologian Martin Lloyd-Jones one of my favorite authors. The ultimate object of salvation is not merely to keep us from hell, not merely to deliver us from certain sins; it is that we may enjoy "adoption" and that we may become "the" and "joint-heirs with Christ." To know God intimately as our Father, and to cry "Abba, Father." Have you ever known it? This is what is offered us in the Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. God forbid that any of us should stop at any point short of it! Listen to the words of this song by Brian Doerksen after he had a personal experience with the love of the Father. Father, I want you to hold me I want to rest in your arms today Father, I want you to show me How much you care for me in every way I bring all my cares and I lay them at your feet You are always there And you love me as I am, yes, you love me as I am. Brian Doerksen went on to write many more songs that leads people to the Fathers presence. Jesus taught us that the day was coming when we would worship the Father in spirit and truth (John 4:23). To worship Him means to enter intimately into His presence with reverence. As we meet with our Father He draws us to His breast, to that place Jesus has prepared for us (Jn 1:18), and there we receive His tender affections. Pastor and Teacher Ed Piorek say's: "When we worship the Father we not only grow in our love relationship with Him, but we find ourselves worshipping Jesus in an ever deeper way. We come to taste of the love with which the Father loved the Son. The love we receive from the Father is then poured out at the feet of Jesus. We learn to love Jesus with demonstrated affection and thus with all our body, soul and spirit. As we continually receive the love that is given to us by God our Father we find ourselves falling more and more in love with Jesus. This dynamic is very important in maintaining our first love for Jesus." In Daddys Arms, LeRoy
www.kauaihop.com [email protected] -2

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Kaua`I House Of Prayer Resource

TOUCHING THE FATHERS HEART

Kaua`I House Of Prayer Resource

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