“After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.” Matthew 6:9

In the beginning God created both male and female. Genesis 1:27 states “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” These two were the first humans to be created…and from them all other humans come throug the process of procreation and the birthing process.

While our parentage is a fact, the process of life did not originate with Adam and Eve- just as with them Our Creator and God is “Our Father.” He alone created all life. . . “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” Genesis 2:7.

Our human birth process is physical, it is a fact that we are human flesh.  “Every drop of blood in an infant’s body is the contribution of the male parent,”- M. R. De Haan, M.D; but our essence or being is derived from a living soul that comes only from God- which is spiritual, for without the soul the body has no life . . . God is our Creator, source of life and lover of our souls- in and through Him we have our being..and it gets better ya’ll for every born-again believe is a “new” creature in Christ!  Yes…sin marred the way and separated us from God…but His amazing grace opened the away for the new birth– “Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” John 3:5-6.

Therefore, we can surmise that when the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray in Matthew chapter 6, that He began the prayer with “Our Father.” The disciples were having a paradigm shift, they knew God as Jehovah only, now they would be able to understand God from the prospective of a loving, merciful and gracious Heavenly Father as well.

As our Father we have access, intimacy and identity with God:

1. Access to Him – “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:” John 1:12. Only the high priest entered the Holy of Holies in the Old Testament. They did it once a year on Yom Kippur, to offer an atonement for the sins of the people. But Jesus our Lord and Savior atoned for our sins  on that old rugged cross, once and for all, giving us access to come bold before the Throne of Grace!
2. An intimate relationship with God – “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.” James 4:8. We are not only able to come boldly before the throne of grace, but God also wants us to share our hearts, our joys, our fears and even our uncertainties with Him….“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28.
3. Identity in God – we are His beloved children, every born-again believer, bare His name! “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.” Because our identify is with God and He is our Father, we can rest assured He will take care of us, because we belong to him- our identity is sealed in Him! “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,”

Let us find peace, joy, and love in the amazing grace of God. We have access, intimacy and identify in and through Him, and have been granted the privilege to call Him “abba” Our Father which art in Heaven, the Almighty Creator, Provider, Protector, Divine Leader, Forgiver and the Eternal One -the Great I AM- our way maker, promise keeper, light in the darkness … our GOD!

To God be the glory and may His blessings and peace be with us all now and forever!