The Love of the Father

THE LOVE of The  FATHER!
God promises that no matter how bad a situation may look to you…His Love will never fail.
“In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”John 16:33

*Your greatest strength is your trust in God to provide for you in every way—regardless of the circumstances.

*We need to know our God given value so that we don’t sell ourselves short! We are of so much value to God and His purpose.

*We all experience times when we are called to act on faith with no sense of immediate reward. Acting on faith requires trust—trust in God.

GOD planned before the foundation of the world to make a way to be YOUR FATHER! (See Ephesians 1:3-11)

Ephesians 1:5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.

A great blessing becomes ours when we’re made to sit in heavenly places. *What is this blessing?
*It’s the privilege of acceptance:
*“He hath made us accepted in the beloved [Christ]” (Ephesians 1:6). The Greek word for “accepted” means “highly favored”.
That’s different from the English usage,
which can be interpreted to mean “received as adequate.”
This signifies something that can be endured, suggesting an attitude of, “I can live with it.”

That’s not the case with Paul’s use of the word. His use of “accepted” translates as, “God has highly favored us. We are very special to him because we are in our place in Christ.”

Because God accepted Christ’s sacrifice, he now sees only one corporate man:
Christ, and those who are bound to him by faith.

Our flesh has died in God’s eyes. How?

***Jesus did away with our old nature at the Cross. So now, when God looks at US, he sees only Christ. (PURITY-see Romans 5:1, Col. 2:10)

In turn, we need to learn to see ourselves as God does.
*That means NOT focusing solely on our sins and weaknesses, BUT on the
Victory that Christ won for us at the Cross.(Romans 8:1,2,31,35,39,1JN4:4)

The parable of the Prodigal Son provides a powerful illustration of the
acceptance that comes when we’re given a heavenly position in Christ.

You know the story: A young man took his inheritance from his father and squandered it on a sinful life.
Then, once the son became completely bankrupt—morally, emotionally and physically—he thought of his father.
He was convinced he’d lost all favor with him. And he feared that his father was full of wrath and hatred toward him.

The Scripture tells us that this broken young man was full of grief over his
sin and cried out, “I’m unworthy. I’ve sinned against heaven.”
This represents those who come to repentance through godly sorrow.

The Prodigal told himself, “I will arise and go to my father” (Luke 15:18).
He was exercising his blessing of access. Are you getting the picture?
**The Prodigal had turned from his sin, he’d left the world behind, and he’d
accessed the open door his father had promised him.
* He was walking in repentance and appropriating access.

So, what happened to the Prodigal Son? “When he was yet a great way off, his
father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed
him” (Luke 15:20). What a beautiful scene.
The sinful son was forgiven,
embraced and loved by his father, with NO wrath or condemnation whatsoever.

*When he received his father’s kiss, he knew he was accepted.(John 1:12. 15:15, 1Cor. 6:19)

There is a constant war going on between our flesh and the Spirit. As Christians, the Spirit seeks to move us under the authority of His domain in order for us to fulfill all that we were created for.
Every person was designed to be under some form of authority.
1 Corinthians 15:27 For the Scriptures say, “God has put all things under his authority.” (Of course, when it says “all things are under his authority,” that does not include God himself, who gave Christ his authority.)

The prince of this world does have his hold on many in our world, even among our brothers and sisters.
The one thing most of us want the greatest is the freedom to make our OWN decisions.
It goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden when the decision was made to exercise a personal right: freedom to decide, freedom of choice, freedom from hindrances, freedom from pain.

However, Jesus chose to live under the authority of the Father’s desire for His life. He was the ultimate model of a man under authority.

Each day we must determine if we’ll willingly choose to be under the authority of the Father and the direction of the Holy Spirit.
*It is a choice each of us must make.
* It is a choice that actually leads to freedom, not bondage.
**Choosing to live under the authority of our heavenly Father frees us to gain the greatest fulfillment in life!
God’s mission and the purposes HE has for us.

It is the little decisions of daily life that reveal whether we truly live under His authority.

Lord, Thank You that I AM NO MISTAKE.
Thank You that You CHOSE ME  to be Your child and that We were chosen to be holy, not because we were holy.
Thank you Lord for preparing a place for us in heaven and as a part of Your family, we get the inheritance of the kingdom of heaven.
Thank you God for the purpose and  plan You have for my life. Help me Lord to listen and see so that I can fulfill the vision that You have for my life.  Thank you for being the Perfect Father, always having my best interest in mind for Your Glory and my joy.  Amen