The Marks of Sonship - Part Five

Posted 7/28/14 by Donald Barnhouse
SCRIPTURE
John 1:11-14
 
He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

LESSON

If abba is a Greek word, how then did it get into our English Bible? The translators who produced the King James Version were the best scholars of the seventeenth century. When they read Romans 8:15, "For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry-" they must have stopped to think about what really belonged there. Everyone of them probably knew the English equivalent of abba should be translated Daddy or Papa, but no one dared translate this intimate term. Instead, they created a monstrosity by transliterating abba, thereby creating a phrase that is just the opposite of what God desired to convey to His children. When we read that we have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry "Abba, Father," the mind trails off, unaccustomed to the very word which is supposed to suggest intimacy with God, and God is removed from us one degree.
 
But God was seeking to break down barriers between the soul and Himself. The "Word became flesh" in order that enmity might be slain at the cross. When we receive Him, we are reconciled to God by the death of His son. He then puts on us the new robe of spotless righteousness. Eternal life is now begotten in us because of the life of the risen Lord Jesus. As His children, God longs for us to come to Him in the intimacy that exists between fathers and children.
 
When a father comes home from a day's work and the children run to meet him, he takes them in his arms and carries them the last short distance to the house. The baby toddles ecstatically across the garden walk to meet him. All together they are in one joyous embrace. All this is in the word abba.
 
A child moans restlessly in bed, burning with fever. The father lovingly places his hand upon the forehead and the child faintly whispers, "Daddy!" All this is in the word abba.
 
A teen-ager comes home in shame and humiliation over misconduct. "I didn't mean to do it, Daddy!" The father says, "That's all right, I forgive you." With arms open they embrace each other and their tears are mingled together. All that is found in these words, "Abba, Father."
 
This implies, of course, none of the flippancy which exists in too many homes today; none of that disrespect which some children show towards their parents. There is none of that know-it-all spirit that leads to lawlessness. When God tells us to address Him as Abba, Father, His Holy Spirit within moves us to speak thus. Such words do not rise from the human heart. The Holy Spirit alone can call us to such grandeur. When we "receive" Jesus Christ, He gives us the authority to be called sons of God and the privilege of addressing God Almighty as Daddy.

STUDY QUESTIONS

  • What is the origin of our affection for God as our Father?
  • In what ways can we express a child-like humility toward our heavenly Father?
  • Is that type of humility a “once and done” action or is a posture of living?