To see our own destiny as sons and daughters of the Father in Jesus, and our redemption in him as our ‘family-redeemer’ (Med.#7) requires us to continue living by faith: in God's Word, and in his Spirit as the ‘seal’ of our belonging and the deposit guaranteeing this destiny (Med.#8). Yet Jesus came to do more than reveal our destiny. He also came to speak words into our hearts and perform actions in our lives that have their origin in the heart of our real Father.

Since we were created with a destiny larger than this earth, we no longer need to be shaped by the words and actions, the silences and the neglect, of our earthly fathers. According to Leanne Payne, self-acceptance is dependent on affirmation by a father's voice. This is especially crucial during puberty, for both boys and girls, in the development of a positive self-image and sense of identity.[iii] We have all been shaped by what our fathers said (or didn't say) to us, and by what they did (or didn't do) in our presence. But the Good News is that the words and actions of Jesus and the Spirit in our lives are the very words and actions of our real Father towards us. And it is only his words and actions through Jesus and the Spirit that have the power: to restore in us a healthy self-acceptance and to reshape our incomplete and broken identities.

But in order for his words and actions to have this power in our lives, we need to receive them with faith—faith that as we hear the words of Jesus in the Scriptures, and observe his actions, we are seeing a true picture of our Father in heaven. The same is true of the words and works of the Holy Spirit; for these also reflect our Father's character and how he feels about us. And it is by the fruit of his Spirit in the lives of spiritual ‘fathers’ we have known—both men and women who really know Jesus—that we can tell which ones are truly reflecting to us the words, works and character of our Father.

Jesus is the only human being who, in the power of the Spirit, has perfectly reflected the Father's words, character and actions. All other spiritual ‘fathers’, including myself and even the ancient ‘church fathers', have been affected by the consequences of sin and darkness in this world. We have all been influenced as well by the blind spots and limitations of our own cultures. And even spiritual ‘fathers’ can again fall into temptation and be deceived about certain things. The words and works of Jesus, as recorded in the New Testament, however, do not deceive. For this reason, the gospels—and the other books of the New Testament—are foundational for coming to know the Father.

This does not mean that the Hebrew Tenakh, the Old Testament, is not God's Word or is no longer true. It is both God's Word and true; and it is able to tell us much about the character and ways of God. However, both the gospels and the other books of the New Testament testify clearly that ‘the Mystery’—of Christ, and of believers of all nations being now ‘heirs together’—was not made known by God before Jesus came (Med.#6). Only with the coming of the New Time of the Messiah and the Spirit can we know and worship the Father in Spirit and Truth (Med.#3).

This is why we need to focus on Jesus and keep him at the center of all God’s self-revelation in the Bible—and at the center of all our teaching about the Father. His words and works reveal both the character of the Father and how the Father truly feels about us. Yet like Philip, we can walk for years with Jesus and still be blind to what he wants to reveal to us about the Father. As the prophet Isaiah once said, ‘Who so blind as my servant, so deaf as the messenger I send. You have seen many things but not observed them; your ears are open but you do not hear’ (Is.42:19-20 JB). The Father himself was living in Jesus. And the whole point of Jesus living in us is not just so we can be rescued from sin, but so we can come to know God as our real Father and live lives in intimate relationship with him—lives which honor him. So when you read Jesus' words in the gospels, can you hear the voice of your Father speaking to you?

('Father, Righteous One' song lyrics based on Jn.17:25, Mk.14:36, Lk.22:42-43, and Mat.10:20 - © 2002 J.K. Mellis)