God our Father

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. (1 John 3:1)

We must remember that we were rebels, objects of God's wrath, and on death row. We should never lose sight of this fact, for it is the contrast between what we once were and what we have become by His grace that makes our sonship so amazing.

Bridges suggest five fatherly responsibilities that God has assumed toward His children:

• God provides for us. "And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus' (Philippians 4:19)
• God Protects us. "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows" (Matthew 10:29-31)
• God encourages us. "You hear, O Lord, the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry" (Psalm 10:17)
• God comforts us. "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God" (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)
• God disciplines us. "Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness" (Hebrews 12:10)