For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God…” vss.15-16
Romans 8:12-18
When we, by the grace of God, begin to lead lives that bring us joy and that are a blessing to others, it’s not because we have somehow found the strength in ourselves to overcome sin and temptation. Rather, Paul insists that these fruits become ours through the power of the Holy Spirit. Through the Spirit, he says, we have received a spirit of adoption. In his estimation, when in the course of our days we cry out “Abba,” the Aramaic word for father, it’s like the cry of a child and a sign that we are the adopted children of God. While that term doesn’t likely pass muster for some–for them it sounds horribly paternalistic–it is true that there are days when we crave comforting hugs and words of reassurance. Paul simply means that in that cry our weary spirits are making a connection with the Spirit of God. We really are children of God and heirs of all God’s blessings. That’s probably why so many of us are comfortable praying regularly to “Our Father”–it’s an intimate prayer address, and it testifies to our conviction that we really are God’s children and dependent on God for all we have and are.
Thought for the Day: At its best, what does the term “Father” mean for me?
0 Comments