How Does God Feel Towards His Children

Good evening. It is an honor and a privilege to teach you guys this week. As Willie said my name is Jared Callison. As you may be able to tell from my last name I grew up here at camp.

Actually, that house right up there on the hill in the middle of camp is where I lived for most of my life. Now my brother Shane lives there and my Dad is the assistant director here. I say all that because camp is in my blood. I love camp. I love the way God uses camp to change people’s lives. I’m so excited that you are here this weekend and I can’t wait to see what God does.

That is my wonderful wife Abby and my beautiful daughter Suzy.

next picture… (end with weeding dress)

did you not want me to show pictures all night?....... Is that not why you came???

This summer Abby and I had the unbelievable opportunity to adopt this little girl into our family and it was one of the best things I have ever done. She brings so much joy and happiness into our lives.

So adoption holds a special place in my heart.

God actually uses adoption in our he describes those you have put their faith in Jesus for salvation.

Ephesians 1:3–5

[3] Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, [4] even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love [5] he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will (ESV)

SO if you have put your faith in Jesus Christ for salvation these verse tells us that you have been adopted into the family of God. What an incredible thought!

In other verses it calls God our Abba. That term Abba is the Greek word for Father but it’s a more affectionate term than Father. Some commentators have likened it to calling God our Dad.

I love that because I think we have a misunderstanding of who God is and how he feels towards us. I think we often think of God as this distanced frustrated Father if we even think of him as a Father at all. Maybe because that’s the kind of Father you have or how God has been taught to you. But that’s not the God of the Bible.

So, Suzy has been in our home for well over a year at this point. So for over a year my wife and I had been the one taking care of her. I’d been waking her up in the morning, feeding her breakfast, getting here ready for school, dropping her off at school, cleaning her up when she was dirty, kissing her owies, holding her when she was scared, hugging her when she was sad, reading her bedtime stories and laying with her when she couldn’t fall asleep. Caring for her every need. For a year I had been doing this.

But you know what I was to her still? Jared. She called my Jared for over a year. Which was fine. That’s who I was.

To her I was this wonderfully nice guy named Jared who was taking care of her. But I was not her dad. Then several months ago something changed.

VIDEO – Did you hear that??????

I can’t begin to express how much that meant to hear her call me daddy. I was so proud. Proud enough that I showed this video to 200 plus teens and can I be honest you’re not the first group of people I’ve showed this too. I’ve showed so many people this video. Maybe that makes me really weird. I don’t know. But I don’t care. Cuz I’m her Dad. I don’t care what you think of me. Because that little girl calls me dad.

For a year I watched her struggle. I watched her hurt. I watched her cry. And the whole time I so badly wanted her to turn to me. TO look to me as her dad. TO look to me as the one who would care for and love her. The one who would protect and comfort her. And when she finally did it filled my heart with more Joy than I can express.

I think the same is true about God.

He sits in heaven and watches us make mistake after mistake after mistake. He see’s us hurting. He sees us crying in private when no one else can see. He sees us running from sin to sin to sin, hoping to find joy, hoping to find satisfaction, hoping to find hope. But everything comes up empty.

All the while God lovingly meets our needs. He takes care of us in millions of ways that we could never know. But we just look to him this God this distant God. Not Dad. And yet here God is waiting patiently for the day when we look to him for the one who will comfort and protect us. The one who will give us real lasting joy.

That’s my passion. That’s why I’m here.

I want you to know and understand who God is. I want you to realize maybe for the first time that God is not a distant Father but a loving one. Who cares for you more than you could possibly know.

Now the question I’d like to answer this weekend however is this. How do we change? How do we find victory over our sin and how do we become more like Jesus. But before we can answer that question we have to first figure out who God really is and how does he relate to his children and that’s what we are going to try to answer tonight.

So for example If I were to ask you tonight, “how does God feel towards you?

What would you say? What do you think?

How would you describe God’s heart towards you?

Not, “what has God done for you?” For most of you here tonight. You know that Jesus has died on the cross for your sins. And if you came tonight and haven’t heard the gospel of Jesus Christ boy do I have some good news for you.

We know objectively that God loves us. But that’s not the question I asked. My question is similar; however, it makes a dramatic difference in our daily Christian walk.

Because although if we asked whether or not God loves us we would answer of course God loves us look at what he has done for us. Look at the cross. Look how he gave it all. Of course God loves me.

We may know objectively that we are loved by God, however, if we were honest, and I think this is proven by how we live and by how we talk that this is not what we think. It is not what we really believe.

Why? Well I think it is because our view of God’s love for us is incomplete. Because our view of God’s love for us has been tainted by how we love and by how others love us.

That is why we so desperately need our Bible. Left to our own imagination we construct a God that is like us. Which means we construct a God that loves like we love.

But God’s love for us is infinitely different and better than our love. Our love is inconsistent. Our love rises and falls based on the action on those whom the love is placed.

So, youth leaders, if you have been married for a significant amount of time or if you have children you know of a kind of love that will never leave. A love that remains in sickness and in health. A love that will stay through richer or poorer. You even know of a love that is willing to make significant sacrifices for the good of the other.

And yet if you were honest you know that even that love is inconsistent. The way we love our children the way we love our spouse changes based on how they behave. It is a love that may never leave but it is shifting, it changes, it rises and falls depending on the day.

Now teens you may not be able to completely relate to what I’m about to say. But I’m gonna say it anyway because I think it will be helpful and I think you have probably seen this in people who are older than you.

Husbands, you know what it’s like to love your wife so fiercely that you would go to war for her. That you would die to keep her safe. That you would give up everything to be with her. If my wife was dying I would rip the heart out of my chest if that would save her.

Yet, when my wife asks me to help clean the house, I roll my eyes. When Abby says something that I perceive as disrespectful. I become frustrated and I lash out.

Yes, I love my wife, I would die for my wife, but it’s a frustrated love.

Wives, you love your husbands. You serve them, take care of them. You are a gift from God to your husband. There is little that you would not do for your husband.

And yet, when they throw their dirty clothes next to the hamper instead of taking the extra ounce of energy it takes to simply put their dirty clothes in the hamper. You become annoyed.

Yes, you love your husband but it is at times an annoyed love.

Parents, love their children. They say being a parent is like having your heart ripped out of your chest and watching it walk around outside of your body. You want so badly for your children to be healthy and happy that there is nothing you wouldn’t do for them.

Any yet, after they have disobeyed them for the 100thtime this little phrase slips out of their mouth. “I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed…”

Teens have you heard this?

Parents love their kids and yet at times it is a disappointed love.

Frustrated, annoyed, disappointed. We all love this way and we have all been loved this way. Husbands you know what it’s like to be loved by your wife and yet have her be annoyed with you.

Wives, you know your husbands love you. But you also know you frustrate them.

Teens you know objectively that you are loved by your parents but you can’t seem to shake the feeling that you are also a disappointment to them.

Frustrated, annoyed, disappointed.

Is this how God feels towards us? Yes we know God loves us. But we can’t seem to shake the feeling that he is also so very frustrated with us. Annoyed that we can’t seem to get it right. Disappointed with us when we fail Him for the 100th time.

Is this true? Is this how God feels towards us? Or has our view of love tainted the way we view God’s love. Has the way we feel towards those that we love tainted the way we think God feels towards the one’s He loves.

That is why we so desperately need our Bible. Left to our own imagination we construct a God that is like us. Which means we construct a God that loves like we love.

This evening I want us to take a few minutes and look to what the cross tells us about the heart of Christ. Why did Jesus go to the cross and what does it tell us about the heart of Christ towards sinners.

Turn to Hebrews 12.

Tonight with the help of some old, dead puritans, the book Gentle and Lowly, and most importantly God’s Word. I want to help answer this question. I want you to leave tonight. Knowing how God feels towards you.

Hebrews 12:1–2 (ESV)

Jesus, Founder and Perfecter of Our Faith

12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

Who for the Joy that was set before Him endured the cross. I want us to stop and mediate on that phrase and let it guide our thoughts as we think of the heart of Christ.

Why did Jesus go to the Cross? Why was he willing to endure such pain and torment? Why was he willing to be hurt so badly. The text says it is because of the joy that was set before Him.

But what was the joy?

Thomas Goodwin a puritan from the 1600’s (that’s like a really long time ago) wrestled with that very same question.

In his book the Heart of Christ he writes this. “Christ’s own joy, comfort, happiness, are increased and enlarged by…..” Repeat

Now how would you finish this quote?

What do you think enlarges Christ’s own joy, comfort, and happiness?

There could be and is several answers to that.

It’s fair to say that according to Mark 10 that Jesus rejoices when His disciples forsake everything and follow Him.

It’s also fair to say that Jesus rejoices when believers faithfulness in a little prepares them to be faithful over much according to Matthew 25.

In Luke 10 we see Jesus rejoicing that the Father reveals divine truth to the child like instead of the intellectually impressive.

But there is something else that also engages Jesus’ heart. Something else that we often overlook. Something else that brings Joy to the heart of our Savior.

We know instinctively that it please Christ when we obey him but what if Jesus’ heart is also pleased in the midst of our short comings and failures.

Goodwin complete his sentence like this. Christ’s own joy, comfort, happiness, and glory are increased and enlarged by his showing grace and mercy, in pardoning, relieving, and comforting his members here on earth.”

To translate, Goodwin is saying that Christ own joy is increased or enlarged by the very act of showing us mercy and grace. Christ finds joy, comfort, happiness, and glory in pardoning, relieving, and comforting us.

Christ finds joy in showing you mercy and giving you grace.

He finds comfort in healing you.

Hebrews 12 tells us that for the joy that was set before him Christ endured the Cross.

What was the joy that was set before Him? The joy of seeing His people forgiven.

What is the point of Hebrews? Hebrews shows us that Jesus is Better. Better than the angels and better than prophets. But it also shows us that Jesus is better than all the priests that have come before Him. That Jesus is the High Priest to end all High Priests.

Well what was the job of the priest? The priest was the intermediary between God and Man. The priest was the one who would make the sacrifice to cover the sins of man.

Well Jesus is not only the sacrifice He is also the Priest.

Hebrews 7:23–25 (ESV)

23 The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, 24 but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever. 25 Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.

So we know that Hebrews tells us that Christ is the better and the final High Priest but go back to 12:2

looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

That phrase seated at the right hand of God is directly connected to Christ’s priestly ministry. It is directly connect to Christ’s atoning work.

Hebrews 1:3 (ESV)

After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

Hebrews 10:12 (ESV)

12 But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God,

So we know that when it says he sat down at the right hand of God it is connected to his priestly ministry. It is connected to his forgiving of sins.

What was the Joy that was set before Jesus as he made his way to the Cross? What drove Jesus up the hill of Golgotha? The joy of seeing his people forgiven.

Dane Ortlund writes, “It was the joyous anticipation of seeing his people made invincibly clean that sent him through his arrest, death, burial, and resurrection. When we today partake of that atoning work, coming to Christ for forgiveness, communing with him despite our sinfulness, we are laying hold of Christ’s own deepest longing and joy.”

Imagine a doctor who has given up his very profitable practice in the states where he enjoyed all that this world had to offer to travel to the heart of the jungle to provide medical care to a tribe afflicted with a contagious disease.

He has everything set up and ready to go. Medical equipment has been flown in. He has correctly diagnosed the problem. HE has brought with Him ample amounts of medicine that will kill the disease and give life to the tribe and he is willing to do it all for free.

However, when he tries to take care of the sick and dying the tribe fights back. They don’t want his help they want to take care of themselves. They don’t trust his heart and they don’t want the doctors help.

Finally, however, a few brave leaders of the tribe step forward and the doctor is able to provide care.

How does the doctor feel?

Joy

In fact I think it’s fair to say that His joy only increases the more sick that come for him.

I think it is safe to say that the doctor endured leaving his lucrative practice back home. Endured the hot and humid temperatures of the jungle. Endured the bugs, the rain, the lack of electricity, the comforts he was used to. He endured it all. Why? For the joy of seeing people healed. For the joy that was set before him.

The same is true of our savior.

Charles Spurgeon once said, “the joy which Christ felt! It was the joy of feeding us with the Bread of Heaven—the joy of clothing poor, naked sinners in His own Righteousness—the joy of finding mansions in Heaven for homeless souls—of delivering us from the prison of Hell and giving us the eternal enjoyments of Heaven!”

But this joy isn’t relegated to the moment of salvation.

Jesus is our high priest. He is our mediator between us and the Father. He lives to make intercession for us he lives to connect us to the Father which means he lives to show us mercy and Grace.

It is his joy to give us mercy and it is our joy to receive that mercy.

In fact, I believe that Christ gets more joy and comfort from giving us mercy then we do by receiving.

Like parents get more joy out of giving a gift to their child then the child gets by receiving the gift. Or the husband gets more comfort and relief by seeing his wife healed then he would by being healed himself.

Jesus gets more joy and comfort from giving you mercy then you do by receiving mercy.

It his deepest wish and desire to show you mercy. It was the joy of giving you mercy that was set before him that drove him to the cross.

Ortlund writes again, “When you come to Christ for mercy and love and help in your anguish and perplexity and sinfulness, you are going with the flow of his own deepest wishes, not against them.”

Luke 15:7 tells us that there is joy in heaven over a sinner repenting.

John 15 shows that Jesus is filled with joy when his disciples abide in His love

In John 17 Jesus says, “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am.

Isaiah 30:18 Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion.

Jesus longs for you to be with him. He longs to show you compassion.

Jesus is not frustrated, annoyed, or disappointed with you. He longs to show you grace. He longs to show you mercy.

But often we think of God’s grace and his mercy like our checking account or your allowance.

Something we use, we take advantage of it. But we must be measured. We must be careful and responsible. We have to budget out how much we can use from it each month. Because if we use to much we will deplete our funds.

But Paul prays in Ephesians 3 that we

18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge.

If you have repented of your sins and put your faith In Christ Jesus than God’s love for you is greater than you can possible know.

No matter how much you draw from it. No matter how much you spend. His love for you is infinite.

God’s love and His grace is more like the universe than it is a checking account.

We know that the universe is infinite. In fact the more we explore the universe the more we see it growing and the farther we go into God’s grace the more we see it expanding.

We are no more at risk at coming to the ends of the universe as we are at coming to the end of God’s grace.

When we come to Christ seeking forgiveness and healing not only do we not deplete His grace we actually increase His joy and his comfort.

In Ephesians 5 Paul tells us that we are members of Christ body. Which is why in Acts 9 when Christ is talking to Saul who is persecuting the church. He asks, “Why are you persecuting me.” To persecute the Church is to persecute Christ. Why? Because we are in Christ. We are members of the same body.

So when we are living in sin, when we are hurting we are hurting Christ. So Christ is not inconvinced when you come to him for forgiveness. He is not put out when you come to him for healing. His joy is increased and his comfort is enlarged because when you come to Him for healing it’s like his own body is being healed.

Christ longs to show you grace. He longs to show you mercy. He is not annoyed, disappointed, or frustrated with you. That’s not how His love works. In fact, the only time that maybe you could say Christ is annoyed, frustrated, or disappointed with you is not when you come crawling back to him on your knees pleading for forgiveness but when you refuse to come to Him at all.

Richard Sibbs a contemporary of Thomas Goodwin wrote, “We cannot please Christ better than in showing ourselves welcome by cheerful taking part of his rich provision.”

But you may be thinking shouldn’t we be measured with this kind of idea? Shouldn’t we tread carefully here?

Does the father of the suffocating child want his son want his son to draw on the oxygen tank in a measured responsible way?

NO. The father pleads with the son to take as deep of breathes as possible. To suck in as much oxygen as the boy can handle.

Why? Because it is the oxygen that will breathe life into the boys body

Similarly it is the grace and mercy of our Savior in the midst our sin and our failures that will breathe life into your soul.

So breathe it in. Moment after moment Day after day. Breathe in the grace of our God shown to us at the cross.

It was the joy of seeing you forgiven that drove Jesus to that cross.

Breathe it in. Soak it up and never forget it.

Jesus is not annoyed, disappointed, or frustrated with you.

He has compassion on you. It brings him joy to show you forgiveness.

Another Old Pastor, Benjamin Grosvenor, once attempted to summarize Christ heart towards the soldiers who crucified him, said, “If you meet that poor wretch that thrust the spear into my side, tell him there is another way, a better way, of coming at my heart, if he will repent, and look upon whom he has pierced and will mourn. I will cherish him in that very bosom he has wounded; he shall find the blood he shed an ample atonement for the sin of shedding it. And tell him from me, he will put me to more pain and displeasure by refusing this offer of my blood, than when he drew it forth.”

Now a good question that could be asked is how do this apply to my life? What do I now need to do?

But asking that question is kind of like asking a question like this…

So it’s freezing outside right? I don’t know about you but I hate the cold. I HATE IT. It make me physically angry…

Now imagine one of you came up to me after the service and by the way you are welcome to do this and you said Jared I was so touched by your message I’d like to give you a free all expenses paid vacation to the Caribbean.

So I pack my bags and I fly down with my wife and daughter to the Caribbean and we check into our resort.

But then somebody asks me this question. How do you apply that gift to your life? What am I supposed to do? The obvious answer is to enjoy it. TO step outside and soak in the sun. Go to the beach and swim in the ocean. To bask in the wonderful new climate of the Caribbean.

The same is true with our relationship with God.

Some of you have a relationship with God that looks a lot like Iowa in the winter. Cold. Barren. Miserable.

And what I am trying to do tonight is give you an all-expenses paid vacation to the Caribbean. To show you how God really feels towards his children. And all I want you to do with this possibly brand new truth is to breathe it in. Soak it up. Bask in the wonderful new climate of God’s love.

Two things though.

1. This is only true for those who have put their faith in Jesus Christ. Who have repented of their sins and trusted in Jesus alone for their salvation. If you haven’t done that, or you are still living in unrepentant sin, I urge you to take care of it tonight. There is a God who moved heaven and earth to save you but you need to repent of your sins and accept the gift.

If you want to experience this kind of love from God. If you want more love than you know what to do with please grab your counselor tonight and take care if it.

2. For those of you who have put your faith in Jesus. This weekend we are going to talk about how we change. How we became more like Jesus. But the first step in our process of change is understanding how God relates or feels towards his children.

So tonight if you are a child of God I don’t want you to do anything other than soak in the love of God. To rest in his arms. To trust that you are more loved and accepted in Christ than you could possibly imagine.

Let’s leave this nasty Iowa weather and move somewhere a little warmer. Let’s leave your preconviced ideas of God’s love towards you behind and come with me as I try to show you the God of the Bible. Not the God of your imagination. A God infinitely better. A God of warmth and love.

Let’s pray