Close your eyes and picture God. The image that comes to mind isn't accidental — it has been shaped by every father figure in your life, for better or worse, and it directly affects how you relate to Him. This Part 4 message of the Your REAL ID series reveals how to see God the way Jesus came to reveal Him.
The Context
Romans 8 declares that everyone led by the Spirit of God is a son of God, having received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry, "Abba, Father." Yet for many believers, the word "father" carries baggage — distance, absence, abuse, disappointment — that quietly shapes how they relate to their Heavenly Father. This message confronts that mismatch by pointing back to the only accurate picture of God the Father given to us: His Son, Jesus Christ.
The Core Message
Pastor Tim Howe opens with sobering research on the impact of fathers — present and absent, loving and abusive — on a child's mental health, behavior, relationships, and even spiritual development. Statistics tell only part of the story; the deeper reality is that every person started life with a spiritual father who was a liar and an enemy of their soul, and many of the lies he planted still need to be uprooted. The good news of the gospel is that the moment a person receives Jesus, they are legally adopted into God's family — given full rights, full inheritance, and the privilege of calling the Creator of the universe Abba, Father.
But adoption alone doesn't automatically correct a distorted picture of God. Many believers still relate to their Heavenly Father through the lens of an earthly dad who fell short, or through Old Testament imagery they never connected to personal relationship. Scripture says Jesus is the exact representation of God's nature — so when believers want to see what the Father looks like, they look at the Son. The parable of the prodigal son is one of the clearest portraits of God's heart toward His children: a Father who runs, who restores, who clothes, who celebrates, and who reminds the faithful older son, "All that is mine is yours." Knowing that Father changes everything.
The Application
- Examine Your Image: Take a moment to notice the picture that comes to mind when you think of God, and honestly ask whether it matches who Jesus revealed the Father to be.
- Look To Jesus: When you want to know what your Heavenly Father is like, study how Jesus loved, healed, served, and restored people, because He is the exact representation of God's nature.
- Receive The Adoption: Embrace the truth that as a born again believer, you have been legally adopted into God's family with full rights, full inheritance, and the freedom to cry, "Abba, Father."
- Reject Father Lies: Identify any beliefs about God that have been borrowed from an absent, abusive, or emotionally distant earthly father, and replace them with what Scripture actually says about Him.
- Claim Your Inheritance: Stop living like the older brother who never realized "all that is mine is yours" — God's blessings are not held back from His children but are freely given to be enjoyed.
- Reflect The Father: As you grow to understand who God really is, allow His character to shape how you treat others, because believers are now called to represent the Father to the world the way Jesus did.
Conclusion
Take a few minutes to listen to this powerful Part 4 message and discover what changes when you finally see your Heavenly Father the way Jesus came to reveal Him.
Here are some of the concepts we'll be touching on in today's message:
Who's your daddy, Your REAL ID, Child of God, Adoption in Christ, Abba Father, God the Father, Romans 8, John 1:12, Heavenly Father, Prodigal son, Parable of the loving father, Spirit of adoption, True identity in Christ, Jesus reveals the Father, Hebrews 1:3, Father wound, God is love, Inheritance in Christ, Sons of God, Born again believer
Scripture References:
Romans 8:9-17; John 8:41-47; Ephesians 2:1-4; John 1:1-13; John 1:14-18; Hebrews 1:1-3; Hebrews 13:5-6; Luke 15:11-32; 1 John 4:7-8; 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
