2016.12.04_Let Us Return to Father Together

Happily Serving as Children

We are the children of God. This is much more than being saved from sins. However, many Christians live their lives as if they do not realize that they are the children of God. We must purposefully bear witness of our identity as the children of God so as not to forget our position as His children.

The Bible testifies about the children of God in many ways. John 1:12 says, “Those who receive Him, those who believe in His name, He gave the right to become the children of God,” and Hebrews 2:11 says, “Both the one who makes men holy and those who are made holy are of the same family.”Here, ‘the one who makes men holy’ refers to Jesus, and ‘those who are made holy’ indicates us, God’s children. Both Jesus and we ourselves are the ones who are from God. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call us brothers. Of course, since Jesus was with His Father from the beginning He is not the one who was born of God. But, despite the different starting points, we and Jesus are the same children of God.

However, for those of us who have obtained the status of a child of God, we have a special obligation to fulfill while we are here and that is doing God’s work as the servants of God. On earth, even though you are a child of God, you cannot fully enjoy the glory given to the children of God. But you do not have to be disappointed. Just as a prince does not become a beggar if he wears rags, so you do not lose your identity as God’s children even if you work as a servant of God. Rather, by being His servants, we can humble ourselves.

God’s children and His servants are those who work for Him and call Him ‘Lord’. However, no matter how faithful the servants are to God’s work, they can never call God ‘Father’. God’s children were once just like all other of God’s creatures, including God’s servants. Insomuch as they disobeyed God’s commandment and were corrupted, being enemies of God, they could not call God their Father. But having been saved from sin by the righteousness of Jesus and born again by the Spirit, they became a new creation. (2Cor 5:17)

‘Born of the Spirit’ means ‘birth by the Spirit’. Those who are born again are those whom God gave birth to by the Spirit. Many parts in the Bible testify that God gave birth to us. John 3:5 says, ‘No one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born again.’ And 1Peter 1:3 says, ‘His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.’ Also 1Peter 1:23 says, ‘For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God’, and Romans 8:15 says ‘The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.’ In this sense, our spiritual status in Christ Jesus is not the result of God’s creation, but of God giving birth to us.

The Father’s Heart Longing for His Prodigal Son

We are those who were born of the Spirit. But this does not mean that we have become perfect. As long as we are in flesh we cannot escape from the fact that we are creatures which came from the dust of the ground. In other words, we can be corrupted at any time since we are in flesh. In many cases, believers become corrupted even after they became the children of God. Of course, that does not mean that they turn back into ‘sons of hell’. They are considered a prodigal son, in this case. Even if a child behaved wickedly or abandoned them, parents miss their child and they wait with longing for him to come back to them. The heart of God the Father so longs for us to return to Him.

Many people compare God their heavenly Father to their earthly fathers. However, the fatherhood of the world cannot be compared with that of God. The fatherhood that God has revealed to us, can be understood as ‘parenthood’ which encompasses both fatherhood and motherhood. Generally a father has love for his children, but it cannot compare to the love of a mother. Our heavenly Father’s love is like the perfect love of a mother and a father.

Even if children do not ever come back, it is a father’s heart that waits for his children. Even if children abandon their fathers seeking after pleasure, fathers do not hate them, but miss them and worry about them. Likewise, God reveals His fatherhood only to His children. He does not worry about His servants being corrupted as He does regarding His children. For example, how would the master feel if his paid workers betrayed him? If they were to steal their wages and flee away, the master would say, “If I catch them, I will punish them!”, and if they were just to flee away stealing nothing, he would say, “Those betrayers do not matter anymore!” Paid workers would know the heart of their master. Generally, paid workers who have betrayed their master do not come back to him. Therefore, for God’s servants, corruption is the same as eternal death.

The Bible tells a story of younger son who left his father after receiving his share of the estate. Not long after he left his home, he squandered all his wealth, so that he was not even able to make ends meet. After this he thought about the servants who work in his father’s house, saying in his heart, ‘I would be better off returning to my father to live as one of his servants. I do not deserve to be accepted, but I will beg him to accept me as a servant.’ As the son is about to arrive at his father’s house, his father, having waited for him to come, rushes to his son and hugs him weeping. Then he ordered his servants to clothe his son with the best garment, a ring, shoes, and to hold a feast for him with a fatted calf.

When his older son heard this he became angry. He says to his father, “Father, Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!” And his father replied, “My son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again.”Through this story Jesus revealed God the Father’s heart toward His children.

Let Us Return to the Father

While we remain in the world, the Church is our Father’s house. Anyone who has become a child of God must serve the Church responsibly. Of course, servants of God also serve God. However, when a son works for his father and a paid worker works for his master, their level of responsibility cannot be the same. God made us His children who had been His enemies. For this, the One and Only Son had to shed His blood. How much then do you suppose God expects from us?

The prodigal son is not some special case, but it is us, ourselves. In the church, there are some prodigal sons who cause trouble for the church. Even though the degree may vary, many people keep some distance from God even though they attend the church. Even though we are the children of God, at the same time, we should remember that we are the ones who are responsible for carrying out God’s work. God gives us duties through the church. We must accept these duties and serve the church as servants of God. Some people might see the duties in the church as trivial. However, because we are God’s children, we should accept these duties with gladness.

Some people are considering turning their back on the church, not considering the church their family, even though they have become God’s children. Others even use the church for their own financial benefit. When the Pharisees criticized Jesus’ disciples for not washing their hands before they ate bread, the Lord said of them, ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.’ (Mark 7:1~23) In like manner, no matter how you confess your love for God with your mouth, if you hate your church, then you hate God. There are some people who criticize the church just because the church does not suit them. This is comparable to one criticizing God just because God does not suit him or her.

‘Love your brothers’ is the same as saying ‘Children, love each other’. God’s children must love each other. God’s children love their brethren and so testify that that they are born of God. (1John 5:1~4) While we love our brethren because we love God, we must also love our brethren to keep the Lord’s commandment to ‘Love each other’. God’s children must practice love.

God has done His part until He calls us as His servants. He took our sins, became cursed instead of us, gave us His promises, and made us His sons and daughters. Now, it is time for us to do our duty. Just as a son takes care of his father’s house first when the house is in trouble, so too must we help our church when our church is in need. Our lifespan on earth is the opportunity for God’s children to do work for the Father’s house. Even if we may seem to the world to be clothed with the lowly garments of a servant, if we love church and are faithful to our duty, we will be embraced by God into the bosom of Him who is waiting for His children’s glorious return.