When the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Lord teach us to pray,” Jesus began by saying, “Our Father!” Of all the terms which Jesus could have used-Almighty God,” or “Great Creator,” or “Oh Though, Maker of heaven and earth,” He chose simply to use the word “Father?” But what an interesting word, a word that is warm, intimate, and personal.
Yet for some that word is troublesome because their earthly fathers disappointed them. But God is not a man; He is God, and He unlike some earthly fathers, will never take advantage of you nor mistreat you.
In pondering the meaning of that word, notice that the term Father implies a relationship patterned after that which you probably had with your earthly father. All prayer is based on a relationship of a child with his father. In the prologue of the Gospel that bears his name, John wrote, “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12); wrote to those words to the Galatians, saying that we are adopted into the family of God. He wrote “Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father” (Galatians 4:6). As God’s children, we can call upon our heavenly Father, because we have been adopted into the family of God.
Notice, too, that the term Father is a term of reliance. When John F. Kennedy was president of the United States, his son, affectionately called John-John, was then four years old. Cuba was much in the news, and people were concerned about the missile crisis. The president had called a press conference in the Oval Office of the White House when a side door opened and had a little your-year-old boy wandered into the room. It was the president’s son. The press conference stopped as a father put aside the lofty affairs of government because his child needed his attention. That Is a picture of your heavenly Father’s concern for you. He is never so busy running the world that He doesn’t hear or have time for the most insignificant cry of His children.
The third though is that the term Father is a term of respect. Periodically I hear God referred to as the “The Man Upstairs” or even terms of less dignity. Twice Scripture says that the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.
He we lost sight of the awe and even the fear of the Almighty? Has God’s Name become so common that we no longer care when it is used so profanely? In the days of old the Name of God was so holy that ancient scribes would not even write that Name, but substituted lest they be guilty of profaning the holiness of God.
When you pray, remember the warmth which comes through a personal relationship with god, as you say, “Father!” When John McNeil, the Scottish preacher of another generation, was a lad, he was crossing a mountain pass often frequented by robbers when he heard footsteps behind him. Frightened, McNeil tried to walk faster, but he couldn’t elude the person behind him. Finally he heard the voice of his own father saying, “John, it’s me, your father.” And as you listen carefully you will hear His voice as well.
Unlike some earthly fathers, your heavenly Father will never disappoint you or lie to you. He will always be there for you.
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