I often heard my dad pray like this, “Our kind and loving Heavenly Father, we come to you in the precious name of Jesus…” So from an early age I viewed my heavenly Father through the eyes of how my dad prayed, and how he treated my mom and us children. My dad was known in the neighborhood as a kind, honest man. His example shaped my view of the heavenly Father.
Our view of the heavenly Father can be affected either positively or negatively by our earthly father. Let’s look at the heavenly Father through the eyes of scripture. At Jesus’ baptism, he said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” (Matt.3:17 ESV). At the Transfiguration, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him” (Matt. 17:5). In these accounts we see the Father’s affirmation of the Son! Just think how Jesus must have felt, hearing those words from his Father. Dads, when you affirm your children it means the world to them! Your affirmation gives them confidence in the abilities God has given them!
We see the Father’s heart in the everyday life of Jesus.
Many times we view our heavenly Father as an abstract Being in the heavens that we can’t relate to. This was Philip’s case in John 14 when he posed the question to Jesus, “Lord, show us the Father…” (14:8). The response of Jesus has really helped me see the kind of heart our heavenly Father has: “Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, “Show us the Father”? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves’ ” (14:9-11).
I believe we see the Father’s heart in the everyday life of Jesus. “When he saw the crowd, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” (Matt. 9:36). Jesus reflected the Father’s heart of compassion when he observed the crowds of people. “The Lord is compassionate and merciful” (James 5:11b). “You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate” (Luke 6:36 NLT).
I believe we catch a glimpse of the Father’s heart in the response of the prodigal son’s father in Luke 15:20: “And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him” (ESV). I see four things the father did when he saw his son come home. The father saw, felt, ran, and then embraced and kissed him. In my mind I can see the dad running toward his son. He saw the dejected way his son walked with drooping shoulders and a haggard look. But his son was coming home! I can see him wrapping his arms around him and holding him tight and kissing him again and again.
At times we may feel unworthy to come to our heavenly Father and yet the Bible is clear that our Father in heaven has compassion for us and loves us as his own children. Our heavenly Father is waiting for us to come to his open arms of love, forgiveness, and acceptance. Receive his embrace today!
