“At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight. All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.” Matthew 11:25-27
One of the main reasons Jesus came to Earth was to reveal God to a greater degree to humanity. From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible is a progressive revelation of who God is. Little by little throughout the course of human history the Almighty has seen fit to show us more and more of Himself—and the more He’s shown, the better it has gotten for us! We go from the first pages of Genesis when God shows Himself as Elohim (Almighty Creator) to the Exodus of His chosen people and the unveiling of Himself to Moses as Jehovah (Our Lord), all the while building to the ultimate expression of His desired relationship with us revealed through the teaching of Jesus—that He is, get this, a Father.
Think about that for a moment. The Almighty could have chosen to have Himself known as any number of accurate identities—The All-Powerful, The All-Intelligent, The One Above All—yet when choosing the ultimate expression of Himself, He chose to make Himself known as Our Father. That was Jesus’ revelation of God, and it tells us a few very important things.
First, it speaks to us of the value that God places on fatherhood. Secondly, it tells of the importance of a father in our lives. Thirdly, it gives us an image of what a great father can and should be.
In a society, and at a time when the value of fatherhood is overshadowed by almost every other familial relationship, it’s important to know that God highly values dads, so much so that He desires to be one Himself to us all!
So, according to Jesus, God wants to be known as our Father, and for those who have chosen to accept Him as such, we can testify that He is a great Father at that, the epitome of Fatherhood, in fact. But what exactly makes Him so great at fatherhood? Many, many things for sure, but a few that warrant making note of here as food for thought and faith.
First, God is such a great Father because He’s a vigilant protector of His children. God has provided an army of angels to watch over His children. Why? Because He loves us and wants us to rest securely in His loving arms. Remember Psalm 91? If you’ve not read that in a while, you need to read it again. What about John 10:28-29? There we read that “no man is able to pluck” us out of our Father’s hand! I’ve known several great earthly fathers, all of whom desired to protect their own, but I’ve never met any with the heart and the ability that God possesses to protect those who will look to Him for their safety.
Secondly, God is a great Father because He’s a provider for His children. So many Christians have it very wrong in this area. They believe that God is only concerned about the salvation of their souls. For sure, He is concerned about our eternity; that’s why He sent Jesus to die for our sins, but He also desires to provide us with those things we need to live well in this material world. Think about the lessons of Matthew 6:25-33. There, it tells us He knows we need material things, and the implication is that He wants to provide these things if we’ll just focus on Him instead of the stuff. What’s more, in Luke 12:32 we read that it’s His “good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” Just as it would be for any great dad, it’s a thrill to God to provide for His children.
Finally, God is a great Father because He’s a true guide for His children. God is always there to guide us, to show us the right way to go, to direct us toward the correct decisions for our lives. In fact, He sent the Holy Spirit to live inside of us for that very purpose! We read in John 16:13-15 that the Spirit that He sent to us will guide us into all truth. Why? Because God knows the heartache and damage we can cause when we wander down the wrong paths in life and He wants to spare us and our families that pain. He loves us that much, and He’s that great of a Father!
Greg Crum is the pastor of Calvary Temple in Lovely.