Do you know the Father?

If we feel a distance between ourselves and the Father, it may be because we don’t really know what the Father is like. We have never seen him before. He did not live here as a human being like the Lord Jesus. It was the same for the disciples. But the Lord tells them: “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.” All they had to do was look at Him and they would know what the Father is like. So it was not only the words and works that bore witness to the Father, but He Himself, His whole being.

• John 3: When Nicodemus came to Jesus by night, the disciples saw the Father’s responsiveness.
• John 4: As their Master talked with a woman at the well, they saw the seeking love of the Father, which sets out to pursue the lost.
• John 5: When the paralytic was healed at the pool of Bethesda, the disciples saw that the Father wants to heal people in body and soul. “My Father is working until now” (John 5:17).
• John 6: At the feeding of the five thousand, the disciples were able to see the care of the Father, who wants to help and provide. And then, on the lake, they experienced the care of the Father, who comes to their aid in times of need.
• John 7: When the Lord Jesus stood at the feast in the temple and called out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink”, the disciples heard in Jesus’ words the voice of the Father, who wants to draw sinners to himself and satisfy their desire.
• John 8: In the incident with the woman caught in adultery, the disciples were able to observe the Father who protects the weak and at the same time shines his light into hearts.
• John 9: When the man born blind was thrown out of the synagogue, the disciples saw the open arms of the Father, who welcomes the outcasts and reveals his glory to them.
• John 10: The sheep for which the good shepherd lays down his life are the Father’s sheep, which He has given to the Son and yet at the same time keeps in His hands, from which they can no more be robbed than they can be robbed from the Son’s hands. “I and the Father are one” (John 10:29, 30). One in the interest of the sheep.
• John 11: At the tomb of Lazarus, the disciples saw the Lord Jesus weeping with the sisters. It was the father’s compassion that the son revealed. The subsequent resurrection was a work of the Father. Although the Son revealed his own glory in it, his prayer to the Father made it clear that no one should think that it was not also the glory and love of the Father that were visible in it.

“Anyone who sees me sees the one who sent me” (John 12:45). The Lord Jesus was seen, but at the same time it was the nature of the Father that became visible. Do you know the Lord Jesus, his love, grace, faithfulness, care, clarity, holiness and mercy? Then you know the father too! That’s exactly how He is. Is He not worth all our love and trust?