On my ride to work most mornings, I tune in to KHCB, a local radio station that features the sermons of one of my favorite Bible teachers, Dr. Tony Evans. Recently, he taught a lesson that I found very insightful. I’d like to share with you the notes I jotted down after reflecting on one word in particular found in the passage of scripture from which he taught:
The Lord’s Prayer is a prayer that Jesus taught His disciples in Matthew 6:9-13. There, we find these words: “. . . Our Father in heaven . . .”
Our Father. Turns out, God is not only concerned with you or me as individuals but with all of his children. We are tied to a family. He doesn’t want to just do things for you. He’s interested in doing things through you so that it benefits the family of God as a whole and not just you or me as individuals.
This model prayer also demonstrates, with the use of this particular word, the fact that all who “declare with [their] mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in [their] heart that God raised him from the dead” (Romans 10:9), have equal access to Him. He does not have favorite children. No matter your social or economic status, your race, your past, your present, your earthly family structure or lack thereof, or your feelings—YOU and all of God’s other children have been blessed with the privilege of accessing Him and every form of grace that He offers, namely love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23) –just to name a few!
It is so refreshing, encouraging, and humbling to know that we are family and are all loved and cared for by Our Heavenly Father!
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