If you are of a certain age, you may remember the music supergroup ABBA. They were popular in the 70’s and 80’s and their music reemerged in the movie “Mama Mia.” Next year, a tribute band is coming to my town. My social media feed is jammed with ads about the concert and so “ABBA” has been front and center.
Did you know that “ABBA” means “Daddy?” Its roots are Aramaic and the term was used to describe a parental relationship that is characterized by personal intimacy or knowledge. Do you know who used this term? Jesus.
Yes, Jesus referred to His Father as “Daddy.” Do you know when He did this? At the lowest point of His life when He was facing His crucifixion. Look at the Scripture below:
“And He said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will.” (Mark 14:36 NKJV emphasis mine)
Jesus was calling out to His Daddy to help Him. You may recall a similar time in your life, when you reached out to your own father (daddy) to “fix it.” I know I sure did.
Jesus had a close, personal relationship with His Father and so He could legit call on Him as such. Jesus knew His Father so well and was so close to Him that it makes perfect sense that He would call Him Daddy. They communed together daily and talked all the time. They were “besties.”
What we call God is entirely dependent on our relationship with Him. If we don’t know Him very well (or at all), we may call Him “God.” When we accept and believe in what Jesus did for us on the cross and beyond, we call Him “Father,” because we are now His children.
“…that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9 NKJV).
As we get to know our heavenly Father even better and we build a close, personal relationship with Him as Jesus did, we might lose the formality and call Him “Daddy.”
As we approach the end of the year, I’d like to encourage you think about your relationship with God and how you might want to change it. The only way to strengthen a relationship with someone is to spend time with them, learn about them, and talk with them regularly.
Like any parent, God longs to speak to His kids. He’s waiting for your “phone call.” You’ll never get a busy signal. God does not have His phone on “Do Not Disturb.” He will never send you to voice mail.
Your Father in heaven will always answer so…phone home today.
“For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved”” (Romans 10:13 NKJV).