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7/23/2009 - My God And My Dad Romans 8:15-17

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My God and My Dad

REFERENCE: Romans 8:15-17 So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God's Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, "Abba, Father." 16 For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God's children. 17 And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God's glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.

Observation: It is easy to slip into a "slave" instead of a "child" mentality. We start to believe that all God wants from us is production - doing for Him. We know from having our own children that relationship with them is far more important than what they can produce.

We need to know, at the deepest level, that we have been adopted as children, not just given a pass into heaven but adopted as dearly loved kids. That is way we can come close to God, we can call Him "daddy God" and we can expect that He is committed to blessing us, just like we are to our children.

Here is the tough part, if we want to share in His glorious nature, we have to share in His suffering. That is the part we want to skip over! Yet, it is vital that we face suffering knowing that it produces good things in us. We should embrace it because it makes us better people.

So what are we? Dearly loved children who are promised blessing but also expected to face and embrace suffering as God's kids.

Application/Confession: I mentioned in a recent sermon that I can't fully, yet, get a hold on this grace thing. That God really wants to adopt me, love me and extend an inheritance to me as His child. Everything in me screams; "Why, what have I done to deserve that?" Of course the answer is nothing and that is what is so difficult.
I am learning to live in His grace and to fully accept it, but it is hard.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You that You want me as your child. May I relate to You as Abba Father. I want that intimacy. Teach my heart to run to it and expect You to fully embrace me with Your love.

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