Like any good mother I have always wanted to give my kids the very best. What did that look like? I quickly realized my greatest treasure was not something of materialistic value. It wasn’t even about creating opportunities that would help them surpass my life experiences or education. It wasn’t even religion. My greatest treasure was a Person. If there was ONE THING I have desired, longed for, cried out for, it was that they would become open to receive the best gift I had to offer them.
This same striving I see in the life of Jesus. In His final prayer before His betrayal and arrest He laid bare His heart. Jesus prayed, “Father, I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They are yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me.” (John 17:6-9)
“They are Yours!”
You are a Son. You are a daughter. You have a Father who loves you. It was important that before Jesus was crucified the disciples had come to know their Father.
“And I will be a Father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Cor. 6:18)
The great tragedy of many believers today that I see are sons and daughters living and serving their Father as slaves. A slave works and serves apart from intimate relationship. They don’t know what their Father is doing. They don’t ever come into the kitchen and sit at the table to dine with Father. They don’t know intimately His heart because they honestly believe they don’t have access to this knowledge or they aren’t worthy to draw so near.
I lived too many years as a slave in my Fathers house and honestly my heart aches when I think about it. It wasn’t until I allowed all other identities to be lost did I discover where true identity is found and accepted its invitation. I finally took my seat at the table.
A son lives empowered because of a true relationship with the Father. Their identity doesn’t come positions or work given them, it comes from being a son. Its resting in knowing, He who knows me best, loves me most! This is our greatest treasure!
QUESTIONS/PRAYER
- Read 1 John 3:1; Romans 8:15-17; and 2 Corinthians 6:18
- It what ways do you still feel like a slave or that your living like a slave?
- Ask the Father to reveal the depths of His love to you.
