Abba Father Part 1. Sermon Notes by David McCracken. Today, I am sharing on a subject that has so liberated and empowered my own life personally.

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1 Abba Father Part 1 Sermon Notes by David McCracken Today, I am sharing on a subject that has so liberated and empowered my own life personally. I have known it in my head theologically for over 4 decades but I have received a personal REVELATION of it these last few years that has exploded the potential of my life personally and our global ministry. What we are doing today would not be possible without it. If you get the revelation of it, your life, ministry and potential is going to explode! Pray for the Holy Spirit revelation day by day until one day you wake up and you believe it. And your whole world begins to change! I want to talk to you about God as your Father. Galatians 4:4-7 But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights (v. 4) of sons ( fully adopted children ). Because you are sons ( fully adopted children ), God sent the Spirit of his (natural born) Son Jesus into your hearts, the Spirit who calls out, (from within you) "Abba, Father." So you are no longer a slave, but a son ( fully adopted child ); and since you are a son ( fully adopted child ), God has made you also a full heir (v. 7). An heir of His power. An heir of His authority. An heir of His character. An heir of His dominion. An heir of His affection. You are a full heir. So the terminology sons, in Romans and Galatians, is not a reference to an exclusively male invitation but a reference to the nature of the relationship that God has given us that of full, total adoption. Friends, nothing of the relationship that Jesus had with the Father whilst on Earth in His humanity, has been withheld from you! Nothing! You are a FULL heir! Now, this legally took place when we accepted Jesus as Lord of our life, and we all believe it theologically but very few ever go on to experience it experimentally. 1

2 God is simply indicating the nature of the relationship that He intends us to have with Him by talking about the custom of the day. It was the well known custom of full adoption, in which that person took on all the rights, the privileges and authority, all the relationship of that family as a rightful heir of his or her adoptive Father. It was an awesome moment in a person s life when whatever limitations (no matter what they were or had been) previously part of their former life were replaced (legally) by their whole new identity of power and authority granted to them by their adoptive father. With that full adoption moment, came an amazing new life with freedom and potential never dreamed of previously. No longer a servant but a son! Illustration: BEN HUR But the most awesome thing was that they now had the right to call the head of that family (be it a Governor, a General or a King!): Abba Father and enter a relationship of spontaneity and affection reserved previously for only the natural born son or daughter. So: as we read Romans 8 and Galatians 4, we realise that this is God s intention for you and I!! We all know it theologically but I wonder how many of us grasp it in our hearts? When the Bible says that Jesus became the First- born of many brethren (Romans 8:29) it was declaring the kind of intimacy, the kind of relationship, the kind of interaction, that the Father now desired all future children, born of the Spirit and, consequently, fully adopted, to enter into, just as Adam & Eve had in the beginning as God s son and daughter. Prior to sin, they were just family (Father, Son & Daughter) and God wants it restored. When it comes to our relationship with Father, we are supposed to feel what Jesus felt, experience what He experienced, dialogue as He dialogued. When Jesus embraced humanity and was born into the womb of Mary by the impregnation of the Holy Spirit, He went from being the Eternal Word to being A SON (the first born of many). 1 Peter 1:23 speaking of you and I clearly states: being born again, not of corruptible seed (humanity) but by incorruptible seed through the Word of God which lives and abides forever. Born as a son, born as a daughter of God s seed. The womb of Mary was impregnated with the Father s seed (The Eternal Word by a supernatural act of the Holy Spirit) and a son was born. My spirit area was impregnated by the Father s seed and a son was born. The wonder, the miracle is that His adoption of you involves what no human adoption can: a new birth! John 3:16 Born again. This time by His own seed (the Eternal Word by the Person of the Holy Spirit). The miracle of the New Birth makes you literally His son and daughter. 1 Peter 1:23 born of incorruptible seed! 2

3 Adam & Eve, as God s original son and daughter, had incredible authority on the planet but that was only so because of their incredible intimacy with their Father as His created children. They were not members of the Trinity, they were not God, they were not divinity. But they were fully a son and a daughter with all the rights of a son and a daughter. They loved their Father and adored Him and their biggest buzz in life was spending time with Him in the cool of each day, strolling together in the Garden. They were family! Now listen: When a child is adopted as a baby, he or she grows up completely believing they are a son or daughter and they act that way: Bursting through the bedroom door and bouncing on Mum and Dad s bed, laughing and yelling, asking spontaneously for another helping of chocolate pudding! No inhibitions! No hesitating! Bold as brass! The only thing that distinguishes them may be the colour of the hair, or the colour of their eyes, or the shape of their nose. They don t have some of those physical characteristics. But relationally all of that is irrelevant! That s my Dad! That s my Mum! And they enjoy that wonderful experience right throughout life unless one day they listen to a lie that someone tells them: that as one that has been adopted, they are somehow different to the other natural born son and daughter and are not loved quite the same. Their parents rush to reaffirm the truth: that they make no distinction, that they love them just the same, treat them just the same, they re just as much their son and daughter! Then comes the pivotal moment that everyone of you has come to! Do they believe the truth or the lie? All logic and human reasoning tells them that, of course, they must be different, they should accept the level of relationship that is available. But it s a lie! If they believe the LIE, they go through years of not fully giving and receiving from that relationship all that is offered to them. They feel in some way second- class to that natural born son. But if they believe the TRUTH, they bounce back into Father s arms, cuddle up on His lap and ask for ice cream! They grow up to be a confident, bold, secure adult bursting with self- esteem and initiative. The majority of Christians who are forgiven and are going to Heaven, serving the Lord, many of them in full time ministry, have never had a revelation of God as their personal, individual, affectionate Father and that they are His actual son and daughter born of His seed. As a result, they have not enjoyed the intimacy of that relationship and as a result do not walk in the liberating, empowering knowledge of that. But that is exactly what He has given us at the moment of our adoption and new birth. 3

4 God doesn t want to be just God Almighty whom you must serve (though He is). That makes you a slave. He wants you to accept His love as a Father and be loved just as affectionately by you in return. That makes you a son or a daughter! But please do not misunderstand me. Is He to be worshipped? Should we hold Him in awe? Should we live life to serve Him? Absolutely! John 4:23 the Father seeks such to worship him in spirit and in truth. He is GOD (Ruler of the Universe) and He is to be worshipped. But He is also our Father to be loved affectionately and enjoyed as that Father. There is no conflict between these two. Just as a young boy can idolize his natural father and worship the ground he stands on and be totally subject to his command and authority; YET experience such wonderful times of love, spontaneity, laughter, affection and cuddles with him. No conflict! The love empowers the adoration and the adoration empowers the obedience. But we have put that in reverse: we have made obedience the pursuit without the empowering motivation of love and adoration. We then slip into religious striving. Now, we are all on a journey. But unless we see it, we will not yearn for it, if we do not yearn for it, we will not begin to confess it, if we do not confess it, we will not experience it. Did you get that? If you do not confess it (your sonship, your daughtership, His Fatherhood), you will not experience it! Confession first, experience second! Today, more and more, I am living this because I am confessing it, declaring it, shouting it. I am the beloved son of My Father. Now, as I have said: That relationship is already established legally (the ceremony has already taken place you have been born of His incorruptible seed) but until you accept it and to the degree you accept it, and confess it with your lips, you will not talk with Him and respond to Him on that basis. There will always be a gravitational pull towards religionizing that relationship. ( Almighty God in Heaven, please hear me. ) that denies His Fatherhood look at how Jesus told us to pray, Our Father! 4

5 Qualification: He won t change your God- given uniqueness nor personality. You will experience His Fatherhood in the context of who He has made you: subjective or objective, Sanguine or Choleric, romantic or academic. You are still you! So, do not fall into the trap of comparing someone else s expression of that relationship with your own. Love is not always a gushy feeling but it is a deep inner knowing that is incredibly real. Whatever that means within the context of your own disposition and personality. But God does want you to see Him as your Father and talk to Him accordingly, and act accordingly. So in our next session together I will share with you the 7 Marks of Living With a Personal Revelation of True Fatherhood and the 7 outcomes of that relationship. And when you see what it actually looks like experimentally it will explode your world forever!! And I pray that it will give you a hunger for that kind of a relationship and that you will cry out for it. For I know, as you do, you will most assuredly find that He longs for it more than you do. He is your loving, caring, all- embracing Father! Friends, as we will see, in our next session together, with such a revelation: Security replaces insecurity Confidence replaces anxiety Zeal replaces apathy Purity replaces compromise Diligence replaces slothfulness Large vision replaces small vision Boldness and authority replace intimidation. Not because of restraints and adherence to rules. Not because you feel that this is what Christian commitment demands of you. But because of gratitude, excitement, a joyous celebration, a passion to bring your Father joy and pleasure and enjoy life with Him! As I close this first session, I want to take a moment for all those that may have felt that this reality has either : 1. Not ever been really seen that way; or 2. Because of the heat of daily battle it has become blurred and dim over the years and you want it back as a strongly held conviction once again and live life that way again. PRAY. 5

6 About David McCracken David is recognized as a Prophet who walks with integrity and godly character. In a day where gifts can often cover a lack of Christ- like character, David believes that there is no substitute or shortcut for a personal and intimate relationship with God. David s passion is for the Church to live in this place of intimacy with the Father and see that reflected in an increase of true spiritual authority. David speaks in many denominations and is often the keynote speaker at Pastors Conferences. His passion is to input into those who will greatly multiply the seed. This sees him speaking to pastors, leaders, people in business, as well as frequently speaking at churches. David is received in an Apostolic role to many individuals and churches. Personal mentoring is also a key component of David s ministry. Over the years David has run many courses, including Leaders of Destiny, Overcomers: Born to Rule, The Power of Team, The Prophetic Life, and many senior pastors, church leaders, and believers have been impacted by these messages. David & Margaret have been married for over 40 years and have three grown children and six grandchildren. David & Margaret make their home in Melbourne, Australia and attend Planetshakers City Church. For more information visit us/about- david- mccracken/ 6