GOD, A LOVING AND CARING FATHER

WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023

TOPIC: GOD, A LOVING AND CARING FATHER

BY T. O. BANSO 

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:4-6 New King James Version).

The Bible talks about the different attributes of God. Prominent among them is His loving and caring nature. God is loving and caring. Our heavenly Father is love. “We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them” (1 John 4:16 New Living Translation). Because God is love, He is a loving Father.

The dominant theme throughout the Bible is the love of God. People have described the Bible as a love letter written by God to human beings. To compile all the scriptures on the love of God for humanity will produce another volume as big as the Bible itself. If you remove the love of God from the Bible, little or nothing will remain. Certainly, the most popular scripture about God’s love for man is John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (New King James Version). Glory be to God! Ephesians 1:4 says, “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes” (New Living Translation).

Without the love of God, no person can be saved. It was the love of God that sent Jesus to the earth to die for sinners. Therefore, no one can become a child of God outside of the love of God. “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:4-6 New King James Version).

A child of God must keep himself in the love of God because the devil always wants people to either doubt the love of God or move outside of it to promote their work above the love of God. You do not have to feel loved by God but believe that He loves you and accept His love. It has nothing to do with your feelings.

The devil has cheated many people by this deceit. They allow their feelings to control them. In the morning, they feel that God loves them, and in the evening the feeling changes – they think God does not love them again. God’s love has nothing to do with your feelings. God says He loves you and that settles it. Before you were born again, He loved you and now that you are born again, He has not changed His mind.

You did not do anything before God decided to love you and you cannot do anything now that will make God stop loving you. What you need to do after your salvation is to keep yourself in the love of God. Your progress as a child of God in your Christian walk will be affected greatly by how strongly you are established in the love of God.

Do not let the devil talk you out of the love of God. It is not your circumstances that prove that God loves you; it is the Word of God. “Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life” (Jude 21 New King James Version).

Jude 24 says God is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy. But you must take heed to verse 21, which says, “Keep yourselves in the love of God.”  You must do your part and God will do His part. Focus on God’s love for you. Keep yourselves in the love of God. The New Living Translation puts it thus: “Keep yourselves safe in God’s love.” GOD’S WORD Translation says, “Remain in God’s love.” It is possible to walk away from the love of God. But that doesn’t mean God has stopped loving one.

God loves you. Reciprocate His love for you. Love the Lord with all your heart, soul, and mind (Matthew 22:37). Deuteronomy 6:5 and Mark 12:30 say a similar thing.

Because God is love and is a loving Father, as a child of God you should emulate Him. “‘He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.’ Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, ‘Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?’Jesus answered and said to him, ‘If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me’” (John 14:21-24 New King James Version).

Also, God is a caring Father. Joseph told his brothers in Egypt, “I am about to die, but God will certainly take care of you and lead you out of this land to the land he solemnly promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob” (Genesis 50:24-25 Good News Translation).

You should know that God cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7 says you should cast all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. The Contemporary English Version puts it this way: “God cares for you, so turn all your worries over to him.”

If you know that you have a caring Father in God, you will not be afraid. You know that He is concerned about you in any situation you find yourself in. You have faith in Him that whatever is happening He cares for you. But many people forget that they are children of God; they forget that they have a Father that cares. Therefore, they are anxious. Yet, the Bible says we should not be anxious about anything but in everything by prayer and petition and thanksgiving, we should present our requests to God (Philippians 4:6).  

In the Contemporary English Version, the Bible says, “Only people who don’t know God are always worrying about such things. Your Father in heaven knows you need all of these” (Matthew 6:32). The phrase “such things” refers to what to eat, drink, and wear. Your Father in heaven knows that you need all of these. If you know that God is a caring Father and cares for you, you won’t be anxious. Rather, you will boldly go to Him with your requests.

He knows your needs. “And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind. For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things. But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you” (Luke 12:29-31 New King James Version)

God is a caring Father. He took care of the children of Israel. “And I have led you forty years in the wilderness. Your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandals have not worn out on your feet. You have not eaten bread, nor have you drunk wine or similar drink, that you may know that I am the LORD your God” (Deuteronomy 29:5-6 New King James Version). Did you see that? God was concerned about all the details of their lives. For forty years, He ensured that neither their clothes nor their shoes needed replacement – they were in good condition. Many people would like that kind of a miracle! God will take care of you, too.

Understand that you have a loving and caring Father, no matter what your condition is now. God loves you and cares for you. Do not run your life on your own. Don’t live independently of Him. If you’ve entrusted your life to Him, rest assured that He will take care of you.

TAKE ACTION!

If you are not born again, you need to give your life to Jesus now. I urge you to take the following steps: *Admit that you are a sinner and you cannot save yourself and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life – your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your life. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church. There they will teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.

Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto You today. I know I am a sinner and I cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me and God raised Him on the third day. I repent of my sins and confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I surrender my life to Jesus now and invite Him into my heart. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank You, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.

I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You will need to join a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church in your area where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like a palm tree and grow like a cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I will be glad to hear from you. The Lord be with you.

PRAYER POINTS: Father, thank You for being a loving and caring Father to me. Holy Spirit, help me to emulate God and represent Him well by being a loving and caring person. I shall keep myself in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life in Jesus’ name.

(For over 900 in-depth and powerful messages by T. O. Banso, visit: www.cedarministry.org).

T. O. Banso is the President of Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
WhatsApp No: +2349081295947
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
cedarministryng@gmail.com
Website: www.cedarministry.org