Prayer's Address: Children Crying
Minister: | Rev. Ronald Van Overloop |
Date: | 12/6/2009 AM |
Text: | Galations 3,4; Lord's Day 46 |
Psalters: | 376, 324, 278, 434 |
- The wonderful basis.
- “Father” conveys a most reassuring attitude about God in prayer.
- Notice that the blessing of the Spirit is for those who are already sons (Gal. 4:6).
- We do not become sons because God sent the Spirit, but He sent the Spirit because we are already sons.
- Sonship is accomplished according to election and through the blood and merit of Christ on the cross.
- The reason why we may and can call God “Father” is because the Son’s Spirit is in us (6).
- The Spirit dwelling in us is the Spirit of God’s Son.
- This is the Spirit of adoption (Rom. 8;15), Who makes us actual children of God.
- The reality of the relationship.
- This relationship of Father/child implies four things.
- The children have rights, we have the right to His attention, affection, and riches.
- The children have His likeness.
- The children have an assurance of His love as we are His in Christ to supply all our need (Phil. 4:19).
- The children are heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ of His inheritance (Rom. 8:17).
- The intimacy of our relationship to God is balanced by the knowledge that our Father is “in heaven.”
- This expression does not indicate God’s location, but His unspeakable and unlimited glory.
- Our God is above all the earth and earthly.
- This beautiful name has wonderful implications for us.
- We can trust Him to care for and protect us.
- As His children we can speak to Him directly, without the anyone else mediating.
- Jesus teaches us to pray conscious that we are a part of a whole: “our.”
- Because God is our Father we may and ought to love Him.