“And then being assembled together with them, He commanded them to not depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, which, He said, ‘you have heard from me’.” Acts 1:4
The setting of this verse is after Jesus had died and resurrected. The apostle Luke wrote in Acts that Jesus appeared before the disciples many times. Jesus was preparing the disciples for their ministry. This particular time he foretold of the disciples being granted the power of healing and to perform miracles through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Bible tells us that the disciples performed many miracles along their journeys while they preached Christianity around the world.
“And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with the other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” Acts 2:4
The disciples followed Jesus because he delivered on His promises. Jesus modeled the traits of His Heavenly Father while He was on earth.
Father is a powerful word in our lives. The mention of that word may evoke feelings of warmth and admiration or emotions of disappointment and sadness. The relationship that we have with our earthly father, good or bad, may have a meaningful impact on how we view a relationship with our Heavenly Father. Is the word father a positive or a negative word for you? Do you (or did you) have a father that delivered on his promises?
I am fortunate to have a wonderful earthly father. He has been a mentor, counselor, comforter, intercessor, advocate, and when needed, a disciplinarian. I believe my relationship with my earthly father allows me to know and yearn for an even better relationship with my Heavenly Father. I am thankful everyday for the lessons taught to me by my earthly father.
Perhaps you did not or do not have a good relationship with your earthly father. Maybe you don’t know your earthly father or the thought of the word father does not inspire you to have a relationship with God the Father. I can assure you, there is a Heavenly Father who loves you unconditionally and wants a relationship with you. A relationship with your Heavenly Father will be very different than your earthly father.
We love and admire people who make us feel great and whom we trust. We want to spend time with those that love us unconditionally and value us for who we are, flaws and all, and forgive us when we are out of line. The best relationships are filled with honesty, candor, and the truest sense of expressing and acting on what is right for a person, even when they may not want to hear it at the time.
Our Heavenly Father wants one thing from us, follow Him. God the Father has never promised us a life of joy and happiness every day. In fact, our Heavenly Father is quite honest that our lives on earth will be filled with challenges and tribulations. James, the brother of Jesus, said in James 1:2-4 “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”
The apostle Paul wrote in Romans 3:23-26 is “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed.”
Did you catch that? God could condemn us for the sins we commit today, tomorrow, and every day thereafter. But, He chose to forgive us. He wants to us to ask for His forgiveness and be honest with our sinfulness and understand the sacrifice that Jesus made with this death on the cross. No other Father will love you as much as your Heavenly Father. He knows by our nature, we are sinful beings. We say and do bad things each day and have no idea why we did them. And then, we repeat them again the next day. It does not matter what the sin is, no matter how bad, your Heavenly Father will forgive you. All you have to do is ask.
Given the love God shows and his demonstrated actions of forgiveness, and fulfilling His promises, that is the kind of Father that I want to have a relationship with.
Heavenly Father. Thank you for your constant patience and forgiveness of my sins. You are a good Father. You are worthy of my praise and devotion. You deliver on your promises each day and I want a relationship with you. Please wash over me with your grace and peace. Amen
Good, Good Father by Chris Tomlin
