Calling God our Father raises a variety of images in our minds. But the image generally preferred in our Christian prayers and songs is probably of God being welcoming, generous in love and ready to meet our needs.
There’s good reason for this because Jesus says our Father in heaven is attentive to us and ready to help.
It’s surprising, then, to see how Jesus (in Matthew’s Gospel) often links God being Father with the coming of his kingdom or rule. It becomes clear that the two belong together.
This is certainly true in the Sermon on the Mount, and now, it continues.
Disciples are spreading news of the kingdom around Galilee. And although Jesus says they will be like sheep among wolves, they need not be worried about how to defend themselves. The Spirit of their Father will show them what to say when the time comes.[i] The Father will meet their needs. And when the battle is over, Jesus will acknowledge his disciples before his Father in heaven.[ii]
Jesus Christ isn’t training his disciples to be heroes, or wimps. He’s teaching them to love and to labour for the kingdom, but also to trust their Father, as Jesus himself does, and to drink deeply from his strength and graciousness.
So, as the disciples continue their kingdom ministry, opposition grows. Sometimes there’s good news.[iii] But there’s also bad news[iv]. Many reject the message of the kingdom. They’ve thought God would ‘dance to their tune’, in the way children expect their playmates to join their game and play by their rules.
And it’s in this setting that Jesus prays a simple prayer of thanks to his Father.[v] And he lets us listen in.
This is enormously helpful for us because the prayer reveals how the Father works. And it shows us how to focus on the kingdom and not be diverted by opposition.
Here’s the prayer.
Jesus gives thanks—I thank you Father, Lord of heaven and earth.
He’s thankful because—you have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to little children; yes Father, for such was your gracious will.
He explains that—All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
Here’s two things that are clear.
First, whatever turbulence is being caused by kingdom ministry, nothing is getting out of hand. The Father is Lord of heaven and earth, and Jesus is deeply grateful.
In fact, he’s full of joy. Luke’s account of the same prayer tells us he’s rejoicing in the Holy Spirit.[vi] That would be something to watch—Father, Son and Spirit, watching and delighting in the progress of the kingdom!
If the Father has complete authority—everywhere, he’s not running a democracy! There’s no balance of powers. And there’s no doubt about outcomes. The Father is managing the planet and its peoples.
But he’s using his authority so that arrogant people who don’t want God around can’t get their hands on what’s happening, because they can’t see it!
On the other hand, the Father is revealing his secret to ‘little children’—people who know their need for grace, and their unworthiness to be significant. They know they need God. They are being awakened. They are seeing who Jesus is.[vii] They are recognising that God, the Father, has come to help them and to be with them.
All this is God’s gracious will. He’s using his authority in the interests of love. There’s nothing sinister or unjust anywhere. Everything he’s doing is with a view to his kindness and mercy taking the upper hand. This is how the kingdom grows—one person at a time—by people discovering the identity of the Son and being grateful to the Father for his grace.
We need to join Jesus in this delight. He’s not getting engrossed by our little gains and losses. In fact, he’s just told his disciples not to delight in their mission successes but in their names being written in heaven.[viii]
It’s easy to become obsessed with how well we are going and forget that the battle is always wider and deeper and longer than we can grasp. And it’s easy to imagine that we are the important player in what’s going on!
So, we need to begin all our responsibilities where Jesus does—with our hearts happy in our Father—happy that he is Lord of heaven and earth.
Second, the Father has entrusted everything to the Son. He’s wholly responsible for everything God plans to do. But at the heart of this commissioning is a relationship.
Jesus is not thinking of a list of projects. He thinking about the Father knowing him—the only one who does. And he’s thinking about him knowing his Father—again, the only one who does.
It’s not simple to have a relationship like this. We tend to relate to others with an image of who we are. But with God—Father and Son—there’s nothing to hide and everything to enjoy.
Such knowing can only be the knowing of love—persons wholly focused on the other.
We can understand why Jesus needs substantial time with his Father in prayer. No-one anywhere else understands him! But then, he wants every word and act of his to reflect the Father—so that people seeing him will see the Father.
It’s out of this relationship that Jesus exercises his authority—revealing the Father to those he chooses.
If we read the Gospels, we can see Jesus doing just this. He encounters a vast array of people. He seeks to know each one as they are. And he wants them to know that they are known by the Father in the same way he is known.
In everyday life, if someone tries to be ‘their own person’ without regard to parents, mentors and friends, they tend to become unreal, and probably, deeply lonely. We all need personal relationships that are deep and satisfying. But we are created for more than that. We need to know God—as our Father. We need to know we are known by him.
So, it’s important for us to know that the Father’s kingdom is happening because of a relationship. Jesus calls us all to be known by the Father, and to know the Father.
And now, Jesus speaks directly to us in our need.
Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
There’s a context for what Jesus says here. Pharisees are manipulating God’s law to their own advantage, gaining attention by making out to keep it, and accumulating power by being able to teach it. Living in this environment is wearisome!
They, and we, all need to turn from a religion that starts with us. Any religion or ideology that starts with what we do rather than with the Father who has sent his Son will always be a burden too hard to bear.
We can never steer our way around our fallen nature. We can’t make other people conform to our image of what they should be. We don’t even know what’s really happening—either around us or within us. There’s no rest here!
We need to come to Jesus. And Jesus explains why.
Learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
Perhaps we are accustomed to hearing these words and they may not be penetrating our sorry lives. If we’re still confident in ourselves, if we’re sure we’ve got the right scheme to change things, we haven’t understood Jesus.
Our persistent turmoil ceases only when we know who is in charge. It’s the Father. And it’s because of this that Jesus doesn’t need a career goal; he’s been given a calling. He doesn’t need to compete; he’s living inside his Father’s promises. He knows the Father—not just knows what he’s like. So, he’s gentle and lowly in heart.
We need to learn from him.
Our Father in heaven is the authority that no-one needs to fear. His headship brings us into his family, with Jesus as our older brother.
There’s much more to learn from Jesus about the Father and we’ll look at this next time, in the Gospel of John.
[i] Matt. 10:16-20
[ii] Matt. 10:28-33
[iii] Luke 10:17-22
[iv] Matt. 11:16-24
[v] Matt. 11:25-30
[vi] Luke 10:21-22
[vii] Matt. 16:17
[viii] Luke 10:17-24
Simply True 