Galatians 3:26-27 & 4:6
By Drew Zuverink
"So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. Because you are his sons, God sent the spirit of his son into our hearts, the spirit who calls out, 'Abba, Father.'"
First off, how stinking cool is it that if you have repented of our sin and are trusting in Jesus Christ as your only hope of salvation, you are a child of God through that saving faith. Think about that for a second, don't just keep reading, think about the reality that Christians are all children of God. I know many of us have heard that phrase many times but don't let repetition take away the significance of it.
Man, I am a child of God...... God!
I have been adopted by God into his family. Jesus Christ is not only my savior, he is my brother. Wow! Loving families are intimate with one another, that's what makes them so wonderful, and I am welcomed into intimacy with God through faith in his son. Nobody can take that away from me - I will always be a child of God and that should make me feel something deep within my soul.
That is exactly what Paul is saying when he writes that God puts his spirit inside of each and every one of his children and that spirit cries out, "Abba, Father." That phrase is extremely intimate, basically it's like a young child crying out, "daddy, daddy!"
Man, we should really feel something deep towards our Heavenly Father and our brother Jesus Christ. Obedience and knowledge of God's holy scriptures are important yes, but surely there should be intense feelings of love towards God as well. I don't know what to tell you if you don't have passionate feelings towards God. Paul describes the heart of a believer as one that cries out, one that needs their father, one that feels deeply.
Every single person that I love in my life, I also have feelings for them. I might not have strong feelings towards my wife every second of every day, but you had better believe that I do have feelings for her regularly. When I take the time to think of the ways that she loves me, I am filled with deep feelings of appreciation for her.
I understand that love is not all about a feeling, but you had better believe that feelings are a part of love. I don't want some robotic relationship with God where I study his word and then obey without ever feeling excited about him. I don't want to obey him all of the time just because it's the right thing to do. I want to be motivated by a deep desire to put a huge smile on the God of the universe's face! I want feeling and passion towards my God.
There should be feelings towards God that accompany your faith. Don't let anybody tell you that feelings are bad. Feelings can be misleading, yes, and just because you don't feel strong feelings all of the time doesn't mean that you shouldn't still obey God. I'm only saying that if you are a child of God you will feel something.
Our relationship with God ought not to be boring or devoid of feeling - it ought to be the relationship that brings us the most feelings of joy in our lives.
Search your heart to see if there are strong feelings of love and gratitude for your savior. Reflect on his goodness and remember his mercies, bask in his glory and allow it to stir your heart towards love.