The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, yet the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own people did not receive Him. But to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God, who were born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
— John 1:9-13 ESV
Praise the Lord! The Light did come into this world, and through His death and resurrection, we may have redemption of sins! And not only are we finally free from our sins, we are also adopted into God’s family! When we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we are given the right be called children of God! Isn’t that just amazing?!
But with God as our Father, we also have a responsibility to act like it. Just as there is a certain way you act toward your earthly father and a certain way you portray him to your friends, so also there are certain ways we should act toward God since He is our Heavenly Father.
Love Him
Boy, this is a simple one! Just as you love your earthly father, so you also should love your Heavenly Father. And it seems to me we have all the more reason to love our Heavenly Father, because He adopted us into His family, cleansed us of our sins, and freed us from an eternity in Hell!
But what exactly does it mean to love God? I mean, you can’t exactly go run and hug Him like you would your earthly father, can you? And love as an emotion can’t simply be enough, can it?
Well, there is an easy way to show God love. In fact, this should be a no-brainer! Jesus Himself told us how to do this!
If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
— John 14:15
But wait, you say. "This is Jesus speaking, therefore it is Jesus we show love to when we obey.
Ah, that is true. But Jesus also said this:
I and the Father are one.
— John 10:30
Jesus and God the Father are one together! This means when we show Jesus love by keeping His commandments, we also are showing love to the Father!
And is this not the same way you would treat your earthly father? If you love and trust him, you will obey him. So, if you love and trust God your Heavenly Father, you will obey Him too.
Oh, and by the way, the Apostle John had this to say on the subject:
By this we know that we are children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments.
— 1 John 5:2
Talk to Him
But it is not the same as talking to my earthly father, you say. It is so easy to talk to him! But praying to God is so hard!
But don’t you want to talk to your earthly father because you love him? And shouldn’t you want to talk to your Heavenly Father as well?
It is so easy to talk to God, and He Himself has told us to talk to Him.
He tells us to ask Him for wisdom:
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.
— James 1:5
He tells us we can confidently draw near Him to ask for grace and mercy:
Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
— Hebrews 4:16
He tells us He will give us good things if we ask for them:
If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in Heaven give good things to those who ask Him.
— Matthew 7:11
And there are so many more things we can talk to Him about! Unlike a human father who may not have the time (or attention span) to listen to you forever, God does! He is patient, and will listen to your prayers no matter how foolish they may sound or how long they may be!
Act On It!
God adopted us into His family the moment we received Jesus into our hearts! Shouldn’t we show Him the love and honor due Him because of His amazing gift to us? So go act like His children! Tell the world how much you love Him, and then show them! Talk to Him as you would your earthly father! Obey Him as you would your earthly father! Trust Him as you would your earthly father!
Hallelujah! We are children of God!
See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.
— 1 John 3:1a
Let’s Pray:
Hallelujah! Thank You, Father, for adopting us into Your family! What an amazing gift You have given us! Forgive me for my finite view of Your act, and help my love for You to grow more! Give me opportunities to serve You each day. Call me to draw near to You in prayer! I love You, Father!
In Jesus’ Name I pray,
Amen!
Related Songs:
The Family of God — Gaither
Abba, Father — Ron Hamilton
Child of the King — George Younce and Brock Speer
I Believe My Father — Ron Hamilton