Without History
Our Father in heaven Matthew 6:9
Our Father – The usual interpretation of this opening phrase focuses on fatherhood. Questions are raised about how we can understand God as Father if we lack examples of human fathers. This is, of course, a monumental problem in our culture today. With more and more children raised in the absence of fathers, and with the sinful passion to simply eliminate the need for a father, our children are pushed one step further away from embracing the true Father. We need to be reminded of the importance of godly fathers.
But this is not what I want to look at today.
You may have been taught that the concept “our Father” was new to Jewish ears. Not so. It was not at the forefront of Jewish thinking, but there are plenty of examples of the collective understanding of God as our Father in Jewish thought. Nevertheless, there is something here that shines a new light on this divine connection. When God is our Father, none of us have any history.
Here’s what this means. We are all connected through some link in the history of our past. Somewhere back there, we all came from the same beginning. The Bible certainly emphasizes our common legacy. No man is radically separated from any other man. Enemy or friend, we are all still brothers. But Yeshua suggests something deeper. When we pray, “Our Father,” we stand in direct relationship to God. We no longer depend on our human ancestry to establish our relationship with Him or each other. He is our immediate Father. We stand before Him without any legacy or ancestry. He conceived us (that’s what Jesus says in John 3) and we are His direct children. This is commonly expressed as “God has no grandchildren.” That’s true. But what it implies is pretty deep.
If God is my immediate Father, and He is your immediate Father, then we are bonded together by spiritual blood ties. We belong to each other. Yeshua makes that abundantly clear in the pronoun, our. He is the Father of each of us, all together. And when we approach Him, we do so as part of His immediate family. Our presence before Him is not individualistic. We represent each other. We are His children, plural. We need to think of ourselves as His children, plural. This concept runs deep in Scripture. When one sins, all are affected. When one hurts, all cry out. When one rejoices, all dance. When one is lost, all are grieved. After all, He is our Father.
This is the opening thought of the model prayer. Did you get that? The very first thing in prayer is to realize our common bond. Prayer begins with “us,” not “me.” I have no history to rely on. I have only you, my brothers and sisters. We come to Him together.
Maybe we should start praying all over.
Topical Index: Our Father, history, community, children, Matthew 6:9
The Sabbath
Sunday, February 22, 2009
by Shirley Weaver/A Clear Trumpet Inc
http://www.acleartrumpet.org/content.asp?catID=10970
The Lord has sanctified one day in every week to be a “set apart” day, holy unto Him, a Sabbath. The seventh day is ordained for rest to protect the body from disease, heal the heart of heaviness and relieve the brain of tensions and driving routine. This set-apart-ness signals to my entire being – to my spirit, soul and body – a sense of recovery and hope rekindled.
That’s not all. “Sabbath” is a gathering of family—protecting family affections and refocusing them. The focus of the day is the Lord, His love for us and ours for Him.
In Israel and Jewish communities around the world, Friday brings the spirit of Shabbat, the Jewish Sabbath as sundown approaches. Flower vendors are stocked, the aroma of fresh bread fills the air and the brisk pace of preparation is everywhere. By mid-afternoon the pace slows, shops close, market customers gradually disappear, and as the sun goes down the streets become unusually quiet. The setting sun marks the end on one day and the beginning of another—a new Shabbat and the feel of God’s spirit in a special way.
As a Christian I am not a Jew; but as a Christian I see God’s provision in instituting a day apart, a day for concentrating on the Lord, a Sabbath Day. Some Christians don’t agree and honestly feel the whole idea is just legalistic carry-over from a pre-Christian time. But the word Sabbath appears is the Bible more than one hundred times, half of which are in the New Testament.
Jesus’ teaching clearly refutes judging any man according to the keeping of Sabbath in a legalistic or ritualistic way but supports the reality and spirit of the matter as an issue of the heart: Six days men pursue a way that seems right to them but on the Sabbath Day hearts are recalibrated and made sensitive to the One whose way proves perfect—and that changes everything!
Amen.
I have been wondering lately (since I am reading the Bible through in a year once again – thank You Lord for the privilege of You/Your Word – that I may eat of the scroll daily – give us this day our Daily Bread) – why did the Lord G-d find the aroma pleasing of the burning flesh of animals??? When I think about this – it seems so bizarre – does anyone know what this means in Hebrew or can explain why our Father (as it is in Heaven) would find this smell so pleasing??? Does this mean something else in Hebrew – am I missing something here??? Is it the smell of obedience – that fragrant aroma of those of us who are not the stench of death because we love Him???
I know it is off topic to the above Today’s Word – but it has been a question on my mind for years – please if anyone has discernment/knowledge here please contribute your thoughts/wisdom on this matter.
Daughter of Jerusalem/Zion
Ms. Jan Carver
Shalom Jan,
The “pleasing aroma” phrase is just a Hebreic idiomatic expression. We know that the Almighty is not physical, nor have a face with a nose. But He did make us with a face and nose and was giving us a word picture of pleasure. Picture yourself sniffing a roasting lamb or cow (or some aromatic flowers if you are vegitarian) and sense yourself filling your lungs, with a smile on your face, and the gladness in your heart of an upcoming fellowship meal. That picture of pleasure is the sense that our King feels when He sees His people turning to Him in obedience.
As an aside, I work in an operating room and have had frequent opportunity to smell human flesh caudarized, and I can assure you that it is NOT pleasing. Of course humans are not “clean animals” (neither are we without blemish) and should not be offered in that way. 🙂
An added point on your previous comment on the Sabbath, believers should understand that not only did the Creator set aside one day in seven to be a day of memorial and rest- but He set aside the SEVENTH day as His Sabbath. It is the day our Savior kept. It is an appointed time and He makes the time of appointment. 🙂
Tom thank you for your explanation – it made me cry. I somehow thought that it was what you said it was/is – the pleasure of obedience to Him by us. Sometimes I smell Him – I will be sitting or reading the Word & I will smell a very pleasing aroma in my presence – perhaps it is the Holy Spirit but it is so different but it is tangible – it doesn’t happen that often but when it does I know Who it is & it is such a blessing. I don’t know why He reveals Himself in this way to me & to others at times but it is special. OR – perhaps it is my obedience to Him that I physically smell that is going up as an aroma that is pleasing to Him – something to think about.
One time I made a deal with Him – that I would never buy another bottle of expensive perfume if He would put His fragrance on me. A day or so after making that statement to Him I was visiting with a friend & she gave me a hug goodbye & she asked me if I had anointing oil on my hands & I didn’t – we both smelled our hands & they smelled fragrant like fragrant anointing oil & we both rejoiced in our embrace – I told her the deal I had made with Him. AND – you know I don’t buy expensive bottles of perfume now – I do Bath & Body which is so much less expensive than the other $70 – $100 dollar bottles of expensive perfume & the job that I work at now does not allow perfume at all – so even that expense has been cut back now.
Thanks for you explanation & thoughts…
Ms. Jan
Baruch HaShem! o/o/o/
Hi Skip:
I like this message a lot, not only because it’s so true, but because I lost my father to a heart attack when I was almost 16 years old and having a Heavenly Father in such a direct way strengthens me to know that I am not alone, and that I can come directly to Him for strength, answers and guidance.
Thanks, keep them coming…..I learn something new each day! Praise the Lord!
Ellen
As Ellen celebrated having the Heavenly Father even though her father died when she was young, I agreed for the same happened to me. Now, I am older and all in my direct earthly lineage are gone but FAMILY in the FAITH…still here!
Yes, Skip…OUR FATHER!