God has many names and titles revealed in Scripture: God (Genesis 1:1), Lord (Genesis 4:6), I Am (Exodus 3:14) and Ancient of Days (Daniel 7:9, 13, 22), among others. But does He especially cherish one term that we may use when addressing Him? Does Scripture show the very special importance of one of His names?
Note Jesus Christ’s frequent use of a certain word in Matthew 6:1–8.
Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven.… But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.… But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.… Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.
Note the frequent use of the word Father! Just after this passage, we reach the “model prayer.” Count how many times God teaches us to address Him as “God” in the model prayer. “In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven” (Matthew 6:9). God loves for us to call Him “Father.” Not once in the model prayer did Christ use the term “God.” He used the word Father. As we read on in Matthew 6:14-18, we may notice that a certain word stands out in Christ’s teaching:
For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.… But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.
We should not be surprised that the great God likes to be called “Father.” After all, how do you address your father? Do you address him as “Mr. So and So”? Or do you instead call him “Daddy” or “Dad” or “Father”?
Still, we can certainly address God by any of His names. The Bible records that Christ and others addressed God by His other names as well—and saw spectacular results. We can know how the very Christ Himself prayed. What a privilege to read Christ’s own prayer in John 17:1–26:
Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: Father, the hour has come.… And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God… (John 17:1–3).
Christ here calls Him God—and so can we; we can address God by any of His names.
…and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.… And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.… Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are.… that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.… Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. O righteous Father… (John 17:3–25).
Yes, Christ freely called out to His Father in His prayer. But there is more! In His agony in the garden of Gethsemane, Christ used another word in praying to God. “And He said, ‘Abba, Father, all things are possible for You…’” (Mark 14:36). God’s Word admonishes us to cry out, “Abba, Father” (Romans 8:15). We are also told that because we are sons, the Spirit of God within us cries out, Abba, Father (Galatians 4:6). According to The New Bible Commentary: Revised, the word “Abba” is a child’s term for “Daddy” in Aramaic. Imagine that! Jesus Christ, a man’s Man when He walked the earth, called His Father Daddy! We can address God as Father—Daddy!
God is all about family! A damnable heresy that emanates from the very mind of Satan is the teaching that God is a trinity. Nothing could be further from the truth! God is a Family (Ephesians 3:14–15)! Notice the very words He uses in the Bible to describe our relationships with Him—father, son, daughter, child, brother, sister, wife, bride, mother and husband. God could not have made it any plainer that He is describing family relationships!
But why would being called Father or Daddy mean so much to God? One can find several reasons. For one, we know that God has existed for billions upon billions of years, and then some—He has existed from eternity. Yet only in the last few years—6,000 or so—has He become the Father of begotten children who will one day actually be born into His divine Family. And only in the last 2,000 of those years has one and only one of those begotten children been born into His family—our Savior, Jesus Christ—and it is through Him that we may also be born into God’s Family (John 6:44; Romans 8:29). This fulfillment of His Fatherhood is very recent to God, and is only in its beginning stages!
Another reason that being called Father or Daddy means so much to God is that it captures the very essence of His plan—his aspirations and goals for those He has created. God plans to become the Father of multiple billions of glorified, divine, sons and daughters. Addressing Him as Father—Daddy—reminds Him, and us, of His cherished plan for each of us, who were created to be His future sons and daughters.
Remembering God as our Father or Daddy certainly helps us, as it reveals His very nature. Just as a loving father keeps up with each and every one of his children, God the perfect Father does—but even more so. Even though there are more than 6 billion people on the earth today, God’s eyes are on you personally. A Christian does not and cannot escape God’s attention. God knows you better than you know yourself. Some feel that God does not know what they are going through, but He knows even the number of hairs on your head. Talk about attention to detail! We can share with our heavenly Father all our cares, worries, concerns, anxieties, problems, pain, hopes and dreams—everything—for, as a loving Father, He truly cares (1 Peter 5:7).
What sacrifice would a loving father not make for his children? To what lengths do fathers (and mothers) go to ensure the success, happiness and well-being of their children? By having us call Him Father, God wants to help us realize that He feels the same way toward us—and even more so, since unlike human fathers He is perfect. A loving father loves each and every one of his children. God wants us to realize that as a perfect Father, He does not have favorites! God is no respecter of persons! His love for you personally runs deeper than the deepest ocean! His Son, Jesus Christ, has revealed the Father (John 14:9), and the divine love that the Father and the Son have for us!
Yes, in Heaven we have more than a friend! The most powerful, yet most loving Being in the entire universe is our very own Father—Daddy—in heaven! What a wonderful way to call out to our God!