Every human being who walked on earth, after Adam and Eve, is a product of human procreation. Whether someone is conceived by the union of a woman and a man, assisted reproductive technologies, or in some cases, even surrogacy, we all have what we call our biological mother and father. However, we cannot deny that not all of us have a loving father or mother, sometimes both.
Your earthly father may be imperfect or disappointing. On the contrary, God, our Father in heaven, has nothing but genuine love and care for us. He is a perfect God and Father to His sons in our world. His love for His own children is the highest and purest form of great love anyone can experience.
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What Does It Mean To Be A Father?
A father often symbolizes someone who produces, develops, represents, leads, or uncovers anything. To illustrate, the famed Newton, Galileo, and Einstein are considered the “Fathers of Modern Physics.” Newton for his universal law of gravitation, Galileo for his contributions to the study of motion and developing the telescope, and Einstein for his revolutionary theory of relativity.
In the Old Testament of the Bible, Abraham is recognized for his faith and righteousness in reference to Romans 4:16: “Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all.” Thus, he has been coined the “Father of Faith.”
God is the creator, protector, and provider, exemplifying unrivaled fatherhood to humanity, including sinners. To some faiths, a Father is a spiritual figure or a higher being deemed to be the source of wisdom, authority, guidance, and life. Christians consider the Lord Almighty as the spiritual Father of human beings.
The term father also refers to a male parent who serves as the pillar of the family and is addressed as “Dad,” “Father,” “Papa,” or something similar. They are expected to provide, encourage, discipline, love, educate, and guide their children, as God does to His sons and daughters. The word father can also be used to show respect or regard to an older man.
What Does God The Father Mean?
God, our Father, is a recognized and revered concept in many religions and cultures. Many religious traditions address God as God our Father, God the Father of Jesus, and God the Father.
Regardless of spiritual principles and customs, the concept of God as a loving and protective father figure has remained an essential element of many religious systems. The Lord is perceived as a Father over all creations and personally to Christians through His grace.
The Holy Trinity[1] of the Christian doctrine refers to three coequal divine “Persons” in one Godhead— God the Father, God the Son or Jesus Christ as the only begotten Son, and God as the Holy Spirit, who indwells us to guide us to the path of Christ. Do note that this doesn’t mean that there are three Gods. The Trinity is a belief that one God exists as three distinct persons with equal power and godly attributes.
The title “God the Father” distinguishes Him from our human fathers. Being our Heavenly Father means He is the creator of heaven and earth and everything in between. The Bible verse in 1 Corinthians 8:6 confirms this, “Yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom all things are and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things are and through whom we exist.”
God the Father also means that He is the sustainer of the universe, our protector, our redeemer, and the foundation of love and guidance for His Sons. It stresses God as the ultimate source of wisdom and sovereignty and has unmatched love and concern for His people. It emphasizes God’s loving parental and personal relationship with his worshippers.
What Does The Bible Say About God As Our Father?
The Old Testament portrays God as the Father of Israel. This concept became more prominent in the New Testament as Jesus often calls god as the Father. The Bible speaks of God as our Father in several passages.
- Then say to Pharaoh, ‘This is what the Lord says: Israel is my firstborn son, 23 and I told you, “Let my son go, so he may worship me.” But you refused to let him go; so I will kill your firstborn son.’” (Exodus 4:22—23)
- “One God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” (Ephesians 4:6)
- “But now, O Lord, you are our Father, we are the clay, you are the potter and we are the work of your hand.” (Isaiah 64:8)
- “For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” (Romans 8:15)
- Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)
- “And I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:18)
We can also find verses in the Bible that God, as Father, is our redeemer, hope, protector, and guide. God promises not to forsake us and watches over us. He seeks an intimate relationship with His creation and very much desires for us to be saved that He sacrificed Jesus, our Savior so that we can attain salvation.
- “Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32)
- “See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.” (1 John 3:1)
- “For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
Why Is God Known As Our Father?
God is known as our Father because He is our creator and source of all life. His fatherhood extends to both the angels in heaven and the people on earth, as Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 3:14–15, “For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom all fatherhood in heaven and on earth is named.”
Fathers are also expected to protect and provide for their families, which is what God does as our Protector, Sustainer, and Provider. He protects us from harm and evil and provides for us emotionally, physically, and spiritually. God is our Father who sustains us so that we can bounce back when life throws stones at us.
Like how a loving parent loves his son or daughter, God’s love is unconditional yet incomparable to human love. It is everlasting and never failing. He listens to us when we pray, forgives us when we sin, and disciplines us in order for us not to go astray.
How Is God Our Father?
Everyone who lives by the Gospel can become God’s children, making Him our Father. In the New Testament, Paul wrote in Galatians 3:26, “You are all sons of God through faith in Jesus Christ.” We are able to approach the Father and establish a relationship with him as a result of the manifestation of the Spirit inside us.
Though Jesus is God’s only son, we can be His adopted children and experience God as our own Father by receiving His Spirit. We let God’s Holy Spirit live in us through repentance and baptism. Peter revealed this in Acts 2:38, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
We are God’s creation and His image-bearers, meaning we share some of God’s attributes. Similar to how our parents pass on their traits and characteristics to their children. God also displays qualities essential to fatherhood, such as love, compassion, protection, and discipline.
- “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God, and so we are.” (1 John 3:1)
- Father of the fatherless and protector of the widows is God in his holy habitation. (Psalm 68:5)
- For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
- Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38—39)
What Does It Mean For Us To Call God Our Father?
Calling our Creator, God, as Father implies that we accept His truths and have a personal relationship with Him. God is interested in our affairs as our Father, like how fathers are interested in their children’s activities. God is our Heavenly Father who only acts in our best interest.
All the blessings we receive are gifts from our Father in heaven. As His child, every believer should give glory, and credit to Him as how Paul did in his letter to the Ephesians, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 1:3).
God, the Father, gives us hope, loves us dearly, and is preparing a home in heaven for His children, those who follow the Lord Christ. In John 14:2, Jesus assured His disciples of this, “In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?”
5 Verses About God Our Father
James 1:16–18
“Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers: all good giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no alteration or shadow caused by change. He willed to give us birth by the word of truth that we may be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.”
Luke 6:35–36
“But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”
Ephesians 4:4–6
“There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.”
1 John 3:1–2
“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.”
2 Corinthians 6:16, 18
“I will live in them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people… and I will be your father, and you shall be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”
Conclusion
God is our Father who gives us hope and loves us deeply that He sacrificed His own son on the cross for our redemption. He cherishes us and wants to give us the gift of the Holy Spirit and a chance for eternal life, like how flawed fathers desire to provide us with good gifts and good life. God’s character and affection perfectly represent a father’s love.
Being a father is a holy privilege and a high calling. Unfortunately, some fathers let the devil use them to neglect, abandon, or harm their children and cause them misery. If you are going through this, turn to our Heavenly Father, who will give you rest and comfort you in all your troubles.