Sunday: The Love of the Father
Not too long before the cross, Jesus spoke with His inner circle about how people can come to the Father through Him. It was then that Philip said: “Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us” (John 14:8, NKJV).
Image © Kevin Carden from GoodSalt.com
How did Jesus respond to Philip? John 14:9. What does His response teach us about the Father? What misconceptions about God should His response clear up?
Some people say that the God of the Old Testament is a God of justice in comparison to the God of the New Testament, who is full of mercy and grace and forgiveness. They draw a distinction between the two that is not valid. It’s the same God, with the same traits, in both the Old and New Testaments.
One reason Christ came to this world was to reveal the truth about God the Father. Through the centuries, wrong ideas about Him and His character had become widespread, not just among the heathen but among God’s chosen nation, as well. “The earth was dark through misapprehension of God. That the gloomy shadows might be lightened, that the world might be brought back to God, Satan’s deceptive power was to be broken”. — Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 22. These were some of the reasons that Jesus came to this earth.
God does not change. If we knew all the facts surrounding events in the Old Testament, we would find God just as merciful in the Old Testament as He is in the New. Scripture declares, “God is love” (1 John 4:8), and God does not change. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Heb. 13:8, NRSV) .
Remember, too, it was the God of the Old Testament who hung on the cross.
This God is also gracious, compassionate, and slow to anger (Ps. 145:8) . God has unfailing love (Ps. 143:8) and delights in His followers (Ps. 147:11) . God plans to prosper people and give them hope (Jer. 29:11) . In His love, He will no longer rebuke but rejoices over His people with singing (Zeph. 3:17) . This, and so much more, is what God the Father is truly like.
| Think about the fact that Jesus represents God the Father. Why is this such a wonderful and hopeful truth, especially for those who might sometimes be afraid of God? |
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Love of the Father
Three times Jesus asks the Father to remove the cup.
The Father had a choice to save His son and forsake humanity.
Agape - self sacrificing love
Sacrifices His son and redeems humanity
Love of the Father
I do not understand a comment. "Remember, too, it was God of the Old Testament who hung on the cross." What have I missed? I will not speculate.
Hi Paul
That sentence is consistent with 2 Cor 5:18-19 and appears to be suggesting that the misperception that Jesus is the 'good guy' and God (especially as commonly perceived in the OT) the 'bad guy' is just that - a mispercetion, "a distinction that is not valid".
Your thoughts?
To support what Phil said, we recognize that Jehovah/Yahweh, the God of the Old Testament, was the Son in His pre-incarnate form. He spoke to Moses on Mt Sinai, led Israel by a cloud by day and fire by night. He was the Captain of the Lord's host. In the OT, the name of God is almost always translated as LORD, and each reference refers to the same person as Jesus Christ i the NT.
Just a few references: John 4:11-12 and John 1:1,3; Ex 3:14-15 cf John 8:58; Hosea 13:4 cf Luke 2:11; Zech 12:10 cf John 19:34-37; Ex 13:21-22 cf 1 Cor 10:1-4; Isa 44:6 cf Rev 1:8. Also see Isa 9:6.
After being an SDA for over 50 years I came across a born and raised SDA that did not believe in the DIVINITY OF JESUS but he did believe in the 10 commandments and also the Seventh Day of the Fourth Commandment. One day he said to me, "My God carries A BIG STICK, but your God died on a tree." I then said to him, "What you fail to realize is that the same God that carries A BIG STICK is also the one that died on a tree." It was the God of the Old Testament that led His people out of Egypt and through the Red Sea etc. that took upon Himself Human Flesh in the form of Jesus Christ and then died on the cross for the sins of all humanity. Talk about GOD being LOVE. And then HE conquers DEATH by rising from the dead and now He lives to make intercession for US ALL and some day soon HE will come again to be our King forever and ever.
I recently saw the movie, 'The Shack'. Although it has attracted some negative Christian reviews and its theology is somewhat erroneous, I found some very significant moments in it. At one point the protagonist accuses God of sacrificing His ('Her' in the main portion of the story) Son on the cross while He stood by. 'Papa' (God) smiles sadly and shows her wrists - the same scars that the Son has. 'I was there too,' she whispers.
I have searched long and hard to explore Who and What God is and long ago came to the conclusion that I don't know. I can't explain Him. I can only know that He IS, and worship Him.
Question: Is God's love for us conditional or unconditional? Here is what I came to:
Romans 5:6-8
"You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us”
Ephesians 2:4-5
"Because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, mad us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved."
Everything I have studied reflects that God's love for us is unconditional. And without giving any credit or praise to the devil and his works, my other question is, "What in the world is wrong with us and when will we wake up?!" The lesson is called "End Times"
Gods love is unconditional, our love often times is conditional. Great is His faithfulness, even unto us. Romans 3:3.
Today's lesson raises a very relevant point when it states "Some people say that the God of the Old Testament is a God of justice in comparison to the God of the New Testament, who is full of mercy and grace and forgiveness. They draw a distinction between the two that is not valid. It’s the same God, with the same traits, in both the Old and New Testaments."
It also is correct in stating "Through the centuries, wrong ideas about Him and His character had become widespread, not just among the heathen but among God’s chosen nation, as well." Has this situation changed, or has Satan continued with this same tactic even down to today?
One important component in the overall "wrong ideas about Him (God) and His character" is the conception of justice.
There are a range of theories and models of justice.
3 questions I would raise for discussion:
1) What is the theory/model/conception of justice that is commonly ascribed to the God of the OT?
2) What might the theory/model/conception of justice be for the God of the NT (and/or Jesus) "who is full of mercy and grace and forgiveness"?
3) Is there a theory/model/conception of justice that eliminates the commonly seen distinction between the God of the OT and the God of the NT (and/or Jesus) and at the same time is biblically valid to both OT and NT?
well, I am so grateful that the God I serve is not like the criminal justice system in the U.S. All the drama that took place in the scripture the ATONEMENT was always moving forward in God LOVE for us human being, and at the correct time the ATONEMENT took place...John 3:16
and at this present, we as human being has a MEDIATOR for us in heaven, because God does not want anyone to perish.
What does it mean that Jesus is our mediator? Not is the sense of a public defender or a high paying lawyer.
I understand that the Hebrew people generally looked forward to judgment. That should give us a little hint that we may have lost something about the biblical concept of judgment. Also see "May you be sealed."
The Old Testament sanctuary service as well as the Messianic prophecies teach us that he Messiah takes the sinner's place in the judgment. That surely is Good News. Then the New Testament teaches us that Christ Himself is the Advocate of His people. (1 John 2:1) So the Investigative Judgment, at least, appears to be all about Christ for those who are "hid" in Him. (See Col 3:3) A judgment can't get any better than this!
(Please forgive for not answering your questions directly.)
Yes God is Love! Unconditionally! Question is "do we accept His Love?" When we accept His Love and tried at least to understand it, Love starts to change us! But How can we love someone we do not know?! We must have a relationship! God's Love for us may not be enough, we need to learn from Him and Love Him back! It's a daily choice!
Paul Blanke, the statement "Remember,too, it was the God of the old testament who hung on the cross" reminds us that Jesus and God are the same in love, character,justice, and mercy no matter where they are. The God of the old testament, in fact, was so loving, merciful, and kind that He gave us the one and only gift He could that would make a difference -- His son who died on the cross. His expression of love and compassion extended from old to new testament. In other words, nothing changed in the new testament times except the scene of His existence.
Jesus said I and my Father are one. From the beginning Jesus is one with the father. Hear oh Israel, The Lord your God is one. One in character, purpose........God the FATHER so love that He gave is ONLY begotten Son....It must be more painful for the Father to watch the scene at Calvary that day than for HE HIMSELF to die. Oh what love!!!
"One reason Christ came to this world was to reveal the truth about God the Father." I thought He came to redeem us. "These were some of the reasons that Jesus came to this earth." What were the other reasons?
Hi Gordon.
Good question. And one which could be answered in 2 (or perhaps more) ways. One is, I could list the multiple reasons that Jesus came to this earth. The other is I could unpack the breadth of the concept of "redeem".
Thank you Phil. I appreciate your answer. I didn't think of it that way. I read something else into it.