The Fatherhood of God #4

Fatherhood of God Overview

In this fourth installment of his series on the Fatherhood of God, the pastor builds on earlier teachings about becoming true worshipers by diving deep into what it means to be born again as a child of God rather than merely adopted into His family. Drawing from foundational texts such as Ephesians 3:13-15, Romans 8:15-16, 2 Corinthians 5:17-21, and 1 Peter 1:22-23, he demonstrates that every believer is a brand-new creation in Christ — the Greek word ‘kainos’ meaning something that never existed before. He traces the biblical arc from Elohim the Creator in Genesis to Yahweh the Covenant Keeper, and finally to Jesus revealing the Father 167 times in Scripture. Using the contrast between Israel knowing the acts of God and Moses knowing the ways of God, he calls listeners to move beyond a ‘give me’ relationship into genuine intimacy with the Father. He also unpacks the difference between ‘praise’ and ‘worship,’ explains why the Ten Commandments are fundamentally relational, and shows how the word of God, like an incorruptible seed, transforms the human heart when received with humility and surrender.

Fatherhood of God Outline

• 00:00 – Series Context and the Goal of True Worship: The pastor connects this fourth part of the Fatherhood of God series to his earlier series on becoming worshipers, explaining that praise thanks God for what He has done while worship relates to who He is — our Father.
• 08:30 – From Elohim to Yahweh: The Names of God Revealed: A survey of God’s redemptive names — from Elohim the Sovereign Creator to Yahweh the Covenant Keeper — culminates in Jesus revealing the Father 167 times in the Gospels, marking the pinnacle of divine self-disclosure.
• 17:00 – Ephesians 3 and the Whole Fatherhood: Using the foundation text of Ephesians 3:13-15, the pastor explains that the Greek word ‘Patria’ means fatherhood, not merely family, and that Paul’s bowing of the knee points to the entire fatherhood of heaven and earth named after the Father.
• 27:00 – Moses vs. Israel: Acts vs. Ways of God: Drawing on Psalm 103, the contrast between Israel knowing only the acts of God and Moses knowing the ways of God illustrates two levels of relationship — one that receives from God and one that becomes intimate with Him.
• 36:30 – Born Again as a New Creation, Not Adopted: Using 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 and 1 Peter 1:22-23, the pastor distinguishes between ‘neos’ (renewed) and ‘kainos’ (brand new, never existed before), arguing that believers are not adopted but genuinely born again by the incorruptible seed of God’s word.
• 46:00 – The Spirit of Sonship and Huios: Romans 8:15-16 is opened to show that believers have not received a spirit of bondage to fear but the spirit of mature sonship — ‘huios’ in Greek — meaning a fully equipped, battle-ready son who cries out ‘Abba, Father.’
• 54:00 – A New Heart and a New Spirit: Ezekiel 36: Ezekiel 36:26-27 reveals God’s promise to replace the heart of stone with a heart of flesh and to place His own Spirit within believers, causing them to walk in His statutes by relationship rather than religious obligation.
• 62:00 – Seeking the Father’s Face and the Call to Reconciliation: The message closes with Moses asking to see God’s face in Exodus 33, David’s response in Psalm 27, and Paul’s declaration in 2 Corinthians 5 that every believer is an ambassador of reconciliation, sent to invite others into the Father’s family.

Scripture References

Genesis 1:1, Psalm 103:7, Malachi 4:5-6, Ephesians 3:13-15, Romans 5:17, Romans 8:15-16, Romans 12:1-2, 1 Corinthians 15:47-49, 2 Corinthians 5:17-21, Galatians 4:4, 1 Peter 1:22-23, Ezekiel 36:26-27, Psalm 27:8-10, Psalm 116:15, Acts 8:32, Revelation 22:21, 2 Chronicles 7:14, Exodus 33:20

Key Takeaways

• Every believer is not merely adopted into God’s family but genuinely born again as a brand-new creation — ‘kainos’ in Greek — a person who never existed before, made possible by the incorruptible seed of God’s word.
• The distinction between Israel knowing the acts of God and Moses knowing the ways of God reveals two levels of relationship: one that receives blessings and one that becomes intimately transformed by the Father’s character.
• Praise thanks God for what He has done and is doing, while worship is the deeper posture of relating to who God is — our Father — and allowing His character to become our character.
• The spirit believers receive is not a spirit of bondage to fear but the spirit of mature sonship — ‘huios’ — empowering them to stand firm, produce fruit, and cry out ‘Abba, Father’ with deep emotion.
• God’s word operates like an incorruptible seed: when it is received into a soft, humble heart, it brings forth new life, gifts, callings, and transformation that no human effort or religious duty could ever produce.
• Every born-again believer is a minister and ambassador of reconciliation, called to implore the people around them to be reconciled to the Father who gave His Son so that none would perish.
• Seeking the Father’s face — as David declared in Psalm 27 — is the one act that causes what no amount of counseling or human effort can achieve: the deep roots of bitterness, fear, and self-justification die in the light of His presence.

Fatherhood of God Notes

Praise Versus Worship: A Critical Distinction

The pastor opens by clarifying a distinction that shapes the entire series: praise is thanking God for what He has done, what He is doing, and what He will do. Worship, however, is something deeper — it is relating to who God is. Israel praised God in the wilderness when He parted the sea or provided manna, but Moses went further. He pitched his tent outside the camp, called it the Tent of Meeting, and met God face to face. The result was not more miracles but a transformed character. Moses became the most humble man on earth because sustained proximity to the Father reshapes the soul from the inside out.

Kainos: Brand New, Never Existed Before

One of the most precise and impactful teachings in this message is the distinction between two Greek words for ‘new.’ ‘Neos’ means renewed — like a restored classic car that looks fresh but is still the same old frame. ‘Kainos,’ the word Paul uses in 2 Corinthians 5:17, means something that never existed before, one of a kind, entirely unprecedented. This means that when someone receives Jesus Christ and is born again, they do not receive a spiritual renovation. They become a person who has never existed in any form before — a brand-new creation carrying the very nature of the Father, born of an incorruptible seed that lives and abides forever.

Huios: The Spirit of Mature Sonship

Romans 8:15 is commonly translated using the word ‘adoption,’ but the pastor argues this misses the depth of the original Greek. The word used is ‘huios,’ which refers to a mature, fully equipped, battle-ready son — not a ‘teknon,’ the word for a newborn infant needing milk. Kenneth Wuest’s translation captures it well: believers have received the spirit that places them as adult sons. This is not a foster arrangement or a legal formality. It is a declaration that the Father has invested His full nature into His children and expects them to stand, rule, produce fruit, and represent His kingdom on the earth with confidence and authority.

The Fatherhood Crisis and Its Spiritual Root

The pastor does not shy away from cultural application. He cites statistics that nearly eighty percent of American children go to bed without a father in the home, and that the United States consumes more antidepressant medication than any other nation on earth — despite being the most prosperous. His diagnosis is spiritual: a society that rejects the concept of fatherhood, dismisses patriarchal authority, and looks to other people rather than God for help will produce a generation crushed by depression and purposelessness. The answer is not political reform but the restoration of the revelation of the Fatherhood of God in the hearts of His people.

The Word as Seed: How Transformation Happens

A recurring metaphor throughout the message is that of seed and soil. The Hebrew word ‘Adam’ comes from ‘Adama,’ meaning soil or dirt. Dirt has one remarkable quality: it produces whatever is planted into it. A field full of thorns can be cleared and replanted to produce abundant fruit for everyone around. This is exactly what God does in the new birth. He removes the heart of stone — the hardened, self-protective soil that cannot receive the word — and gives a heart of flesh. Then He plants His incorruptible seed through His word. From that point, Ezekiel 36:27 promises, the Spirit causes the believer to walk in God’s statutes not through effort but through relationship.

Ambassadors of Reconciliation: A Daily Commission

The pastor closes with a call that transforms the entire message from personal encouragement into corporate mission. Second Corinthians 5:20 declares that every believer is an ambassador for Christ, and God is pleading through them. This is not a title reserved for ordained ministers. The moment someone becomes a new creation, they inherit the ministry of reconciliation. The gospel is not ‘give your life to Jesus so you can go to heaven one day.’ It is ‘give your life to Jesus and heaven will come into you today.’ Every person in a believer’s workplace, neighborhood, and family is a candidate for this encounter — and every believer is the messenger sent to make it happen.

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