Our Resolute Hope Podcast

Luke 15 presents what we’ve come to call the parable of the prodigal son.  But in truth, it’s a sober reminder of how greatly God’s children can struggle when their beliefs about their Father are wrong.

Our Abba’s perfect love works constantly to give us what we need most – to be conformed to the image of Christ.  Yes, suffering is crucial, but after that?  Glory!

The intimate name Abba goes hand in hand with suffering.  When we’re in great distress, whether physical, emotional, or spiritual, we should follow the example of Jesus in Gethsemane … and cry out to our Abba for help.

As His sons and heirs, knowing our God as Abba comes with responsibility.  Like Jesus, we must respect and trust Him, following where He leads, even if it’s through the valley of the shadow of death, and even if we’re crawling instead of walking.

The most personal name for our God is Abba.  It’s intimate, one of deep feelings, a cry of the heart.  Abba reflects our deep respect, trust, and obedience to our Father, knowing confidently that He’ll do what’s best for us … even when we don’t understand.

Christ came to demonstrate Who God is, what He’s really like when you take a close look.  Jesus is the perfect imprint of our Father God, and He invites us to investigate Him and discover for ourselves His incredible love for us.

Lord Jesus Christ came in the flesh to show us what our Father God is really like.  Embodying every divine attribute, His words and actions had a single purpose:  to point us toward our Father.

Father is a name of summation, wrapping up in a single word all God is and all He longs to be to us.  A father is strong.  He provides and protects.  And He loves his children immeasurably, doing only the very best for them.

When we trust Christ, God abides in us, makes His home in us, and we abide in Him.  But we must continue to abide if we wish to bear fruit.  Unless our minds are set on Him, we can do nothing for His kingdom.

When God makes His home in us, He gets busy immediately.  He becomes to us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption.  And He begins to train us to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives that honor Him.