Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Matthew 6:9The second word I want us to consider in the model prayer is the word “Father”. We have established the fact that He is a personal Father, but we need to now examine what this word actually means to us.
The word “Father” here is a word which root meaning is one of a person who provides nourishment, a protector or upholder. Certainly God is all of these things to His children. While this meaning was true in the Old Testament, it is interesting that the word “Father” in the New Testament, after Christ has appeared, apparently takes on a new, even deeper meaning.
The word “Father” in the New Testament seems to indicate a relationship, which can only be gained through faith. Of course, we know that faith is in the person of Jesus Christ. The New Testament word “Father”, which Jesus used in the Lord’s Prayer, has a much stronger bent towards a relationship with the Father. (Vine’s Dictionary)
Obviously the word father in the Bible applies in a broad sense to the head of a family or the beginner of a family. In Biblical times the father was the patriarch who held the power to bless and bestow riches on the children. Certainly these definitions are appropriate when we refer to our Heavenly Father. He is the Head of the family and everything began with Him. He is the One with the power to bless and bestow riches on His children.
I want us to see, however, that Jesus probably had a deeper meaning when He used the term “Father” in the Lord’s Prayer. Throughout the New Testament we are encouraged to call upon God, the Father, with boldness and a freedom that comes only through grace. This is not possible without a relationship to the Father. Jesus wanted us to see His Father as not only our personal Creator God, but also as our Heavenly Daddy! He wanted us to have a real, personal relationship with the Head of the family of God.
Have you spoken to Daddy yet today?
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