Here is a most stunning pairing of two names of God: Father and Judge of All.
We often address God as our Father when we pray, and rightly so. Jesus taught us to pray in this manner. And our new relationship with God in Christ, being adopted into the family, is one that gives us the amazing privilege and right to call God our Father, and relate to him as little children would relate to their earthly father (Romans 8:14-16; Galatians 4:6).
All of this is very comforting, and a relationship to enjoy and find fulfillment. But, this is not all there is to say about our fatherly relationship with God. Some forget this and only view His fatherliness in ways that feel personally acceptable to them; and some misapply His fatherliness in presumption, take advantage of it, and learn the hard way.
It is common today to overemphasize this kind, providing, fun-loving and cuddly aspect of God’s fatherliness almost to the exclusion of another important connection Scripture points out to us. In fact, some authors and leaders even enjoin us to use baby-talk when conversing with God. These over-dramatizations of God as father keep us from maturing in our faith
Another Emphasis that Needs Inclusion
Remember who it is that we are calling our Father; it is none other than the Judge of All! He is the impartial Judge of all people of all time, of all deeds at the end of time. Even in the here and now, the Apostle’s point is that He knows all about our lives as Christians.
And then because He is our Father, He will be noticing our true character and bringing into our lives correction and various training experiences in order to conform us perfectly to His character, as seen in Christ Jesus. He does this, of course, that we may “share in His holiness,” that is that we may resemble Him (Hebrews 12:3-11).
This is why our Apostle Peter precedes verse 17 mentioned above with verses 14–16, “As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.””
Living with Healthy Confidence and Healthy Fear
This “fear” mentioned in v.17 that is to characterize our lives lived before our God and Father should be understood as a holy and healthy fear of displeasing Him, as He is our Father truly. However, it is not a fear of abandonment, or wrath, of course, but a fear within a secure and holy love. It is a fear that keeps us relating properly with God as our Father.
This healthy fear is not discouraging nor immobilizing. On the contrary it leads us to live our lives with a confident faith that we have a secure relationship with Him through our Lord Jesus Christ. This is why our Apostle Peter follows verse 17 with these words.
1 Peter 1:17 ESV “And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile.”Overdoing Abba Daddy Language
We often address God as our Father when we pray, and rightly so. Jesus taught us to pray in this manner. And our new relationship with God in Christ, being adopted into the family, is one that gives us the amazing privilege and right to call God our Father, and relate to him as little children would relate to their earthly father (Romans 8:14-16; Galatians 4:6).
All of this is very comforting, and a relationship to enjoy and find fulfillment. But, this is not all there is to say about our fatherly relationship with God. Some forget this and only view His fatherliness in ways that feel personally acceptable to them; and some misapply His fatherliness in presumption, take advantage of it, and learn the hard way.
It is common today to overemphasize this kind, providing, fun-loving and cuddly aspect of God’s fatherliness almost to the exclusion of another important connection Scripture points out to us. In fact, some authors and leaders even enjoin us to use baby-talk when conversing with God. These over-dramatizations of God as father keep us from maturing in our faith
Another Emphasis that Needs Inclusion
Remember who it is that we are calling our Father; it is none other than the Judge of All! He is the impartial Judge of all people of all time, of all deeds at the end of time. Even in the here and now, the Apostle’s point is that He knows all about our lives as Christians.
And then because He is our Father, He will be noticing our true character and bringing into our lives correction and various training experiences in order to conform us perfectly to His character, as seen in Christ Jesus. He does this, of course, that we may “share in His holiness,” that is that we may resemble Him (Hebrews 12:3-11).
This is why our Apostle Peter precedes verse 17 mentioned above with verses 14–16, “As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.””
Living with Healthy Confidence and Healthy Fear
This “fear” mentioned in v.17 that is to characterize our lives lived before our God and Father should be understood as a holy and healthy fear of displeasing Him, as He is our Father truly. However, it is not a fear of abandonment, or wrath, of course, but a fear within a secure and holy love. It is a fear that keeps us relating properly with God as our Father.
This healthy fear is not discouraging nor immobilizing. On the contrary it leads us to live our lives with a confident faith that we have a secure relationship with Him through our Lord Jesus Christ. This is why our Apostle Peter follows verse 17 with these words.
1 Peter 1:18–21 ESV “knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.”We need to learn to meditate upon and enjoy both aspects of God’s fatherliness, the encouraging traits as well as His ways that lead us toward increasing holiness. Surely, the overemphasis can just as easily go in the opposite direction causing different problems, and has at times in recent history. But it will be most helpful for all of us to seek to have our emphasis better mirror Scripture’s emphasis itself, in our personal lives and as we serve one another.
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