Photo and Commentary ©2024 by Maylan Schurch
Friday and Sabbath, September 27 and 28, 2024
A week ago, driving home at rush hour from the library, I paused beside this car and noticed, hanging from its rear-view mirror, a photo of a smiling baby. After I snapped this shot, I pulled a little ahead and saw that the car’s driver was a young woman with a pleasant expression on her face.
I have no clue whether the real baby behind this photo belonged to the woman, or whether she’d hung the photo there in the fond hopes of one day becoming a mom, but one thing was clear: she wanted that little face always on view, because it lifted her heart and gave her joy.
And if you’ve read much in the Bible, you’ve realized that – even though He faces a lot more parental complexity than this woman ever will – God is first and foremost a heavenly Dad. Imagine Him gazing on your face with absolutely blissful joy. Can you believe it?
When Jesus spoke about God, He didn’t call Him “Sovereign Lord” or “Almighty” or even “God.” Almost 100% of the time He called Him “Father.” And that parental heart-throb can be felt all through Scripture, such as in these verses, written by a close friend of the Savior:
Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. (1 John 3:1 – 3 NKJV)
For more Bible verses about God’s love for kids of all ages, click the link just below: