The true love of a Father revealed in Christ Jesus
Many people carry a wounded image of what a father is. Some grew up with an absent father, others with a distant, harsh or violent one; others had a good father but still long for a greater love than any human being can give. The Bible reveals that there is a perfect Father, whose love is faithful, tender, firm and eternal. And it tells us where we can see it clearly: in the face of Jesus Christ. In this article we will see how Jesus shows us the Father’s true love, what it means to be children of God, how that love can heal the wounds of our family story and how it can inspire fathers today.
“He that hath seen me hath seen the Father”
On the night before his death, Philip asked Jesus: “Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.” Jesus answered him:
“Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?”
John 14:9
If you want to know what God the Father is like, look at Jesus. Look at how he treated children, the sick, sinners, despised women and foreigners. Look at his patience with the disciples and his tears at Lazarus’s tomb. All of that is the Father’s heart made visible. John wrote: “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him” (John 1:18). And Hebrews says the Son is “the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person” (Hebrews 1:3). Prophesying about the Messiah, Isaiah even called him “The everlasting Father” (Isaiah 9:6), because in him God’s fatherly care is revealed to us.
The love that gives what is most precious
The greatest proof of the Father’s love is not words, but a gift: his own Son.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
John 3:16
A father who truly loves is willing to sacrifice for his children. God went further: he gave his Son for those who were far from him. “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). At the cross we see both the love of the Son who gives himself and the love of the Father who gives him. We do not have to earn that love; it has already been given. Read The crucifixion.
Abba: the closeness of a child
Jesus taught his disciples to pray, saying “Our Father” (Matthew 6:9). In Gethsemane, in his anguish, he himself prayed: “Abba, Father” (Mark 14:36). “Abba” was the Aramaic word a child used to address his father with affection and trust. The astonishing thing is that, through Christ, we too can call God this:
“For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.”
Romans 8:15-16
We are not slaves who fear a master, but children who trust their Father. John could not contain his amazement: “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God” (1 John 3:1). Read The Trinity.
A tender and compassionate Father
Psalm 103 compares God’s love to that of a good father: “Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust” (Psalm 103:13-14). Jesus showed that tenderness in many ways. When the disciples tried to send the children away, he was indignant and said: “Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.” And “he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them” (Mark 10:14, 16). In the parable of the prodigal son, Jesus described a father who runs to embrace the returning son before he can finish his confession. That is how God loves us. Read The parable of the prodigal son explained.
A Father who gives good things
Jesus invited us to trust the Father’s goodness with a simple comparison: “what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?… If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?” (Matthew 7:9-11). Jesus also taught that the Father feeds the birds and clothes the lilies, and that his children are worth far more (Matthew 6:26-30). A good father provides, protects and cares. God does so perfectly.
A Father who corrects with love
True love is not permissive. A father who never corrects does not truly love. Hebrews explains:
“For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.”
Hebrews 12:6
God’s discipline is neither revenge nor rejection, but the way he shapes us for our good, “that we might be partakers of his holiness” (Hebrews 12:10). Jesus himself corrected his disciples many times, but always patiently and without ceasing to love them. When Peter denied him, he did not humiliate him: he looked at him, waited for him and restored him with a question of love: “lovest thou me?” (John 21:15-17).
When your earthly father failed you
For many people the word “father” brings pain. Perhaps your father left, never told you he loved you, hurt you with words or blows, or simply did not know how to be present. Those wounds are real and can affect the way we see God. But God is not like the father who failed you. The psalmist wrote: “When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up” (Psalm 27:10). And God presents himself as “A father of the fatherless” (Psalm 68:5).
Healing those wounds takes time. It can help to pray honestly, tell God what hurt you, seek pastoral or therapeutic support and, when you are ready, walk the path of forgiveness, which does not mean excusing the harm. Read Forgiveness. If you suffered mistreatment or abuse, it was not your fault, and you deserve help and protection. In Colombia you can call 123 if you are in danger.
Joseph: a father after God’s heart
God chose a simple man to be Jesus’ earthly father. Joseph was a carpenter from Nazareth, a “just man”, who protected Mary when he could have exposed her to shame, obeyed God without hesitation, took his family to Egypt to save the child’s life and taught him a trade (Matthew 1:19-24; 2:13-15). Not a single word of his is recorded in the gospels, but his actions speak of a father who was present, protective, obedient and humble. Read the story of Mary and Joseph.
For fathers today
The Father’s love revealed in Christ is also a model for earthly fathers. Be present: time is one of the clearest forms of love. Say “I love you”: the Father said it aloud at Jesus’ baptism: “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17). Your children need to hear it from you. Correct without humiliating: “Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged” (Colossians 3:21). Apologise when you are wrong. Pray for them and with them. Be an example of faith with your life. Read How to raise our children in uncertain times.
Living as beloved children
Knowing that we are loved by the Father changes how we live. Someone who knows they are a child does not need to earn love through achievements, live in fear of rejection or desperately seek others’ approval. They can rest, obey out of love rather than fear, and love others freely. Jesus lived like this: before beginning his ministry, before performing a single miracle, he heard the Father’s voice calling him “beloved”. From that identity he faced temptation in the wilderness, rejection and the cross. You too can live from that truth: you are a beloved child of God through Jesus Christ. That identity does not depend on your past, your family of origin or your successes, but on the faithful love of a Father who never abandons his children. Each morning you can begin the day remembering it: “I am loved by my Father.”
Prayer
Father. I find it hard to call you that. For me the word brings memories that are not always good: an absence, a harsh voice, an embrace that never came. And without noticing I have imagined you the same way: distant, hard to please. But Jesus said: “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father.” And when I look at him, I see someone who takes children in his arms, who weeps with his friends, who runs towards the son coming home. That is what you are like. Come, Holy Spirit, Spirit of adoption, and cry within me what I do not dare to say: Abba! Slowly heal the child who is still waiting in me. Say to me what you said to Jesus at the Jordan: “You are my beloved son.” Teach me to live from there, and not from the fear of failing. And if I am to be a father or a mother, let my children see a little of you in me. Abba, here I am. Receive me. Amen.