Heavenly Family: Difference between revisions

Dictionaries define ''father'' as a man who gave birth to a child, or as a man in relation to his child or children.<ref>{{Cite web |url= https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/father |title=Father |website=Merriam-Webster Dictionary |publisher=  |date= |year= |author= |page= |series= |isbn= |quote= }}</ref> The New Testament teaches us that God is our ''Father''.  

Everyone who is born on this earth has his or her father. The Bible tells us that we should honor the Father of our spirits, by explaining our respect for our human fathers. It shows that we have our spiritual Father as well as our human fathers. Our spiritual Father is God, who breathed into human beings [[Soul|the breath of life [soul]]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.studylight.org/study-desk.html?q1=Genesis+2%3A7&q2=&ss=0&t1=eng_n84&t2=eng_kjv&t3=eng_nas&ns=0&sr=1&ot=bhs&nt=wh&hv1=1&b=verse&d=3 |title=Genesis 2:7 |publisher= |quote=}}</ref> Just as you call the man who gave birth to your body ''father'', you ought to call God, who brought your soul into existence, ''Father''. [[Jesus Christ|Jesus]] taught His disciples that God is our Father.

The Lord's Prayer, which Jesus taught, begins with the phrase, "Our Father in heaven." "Our Father in heaven" indicates God.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.studylight.org/study-desk.html?q1=Matthew+6%3A8&q2=&ss=0&t1=eng_n84&t2=eng_kjv&t3=eng_nas&ns=0&sr=1&ot=bhs&nt=wh&hv1=1&b=verse&d=3 |title=Matthew 6:8 |publisher= |quote= }}</ref> Until then, the relationship between the Israelites and [[God]] was firmly established as ''a king and his people'' or ''a master and his servant''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.studylight.org/study-desk.html?q1=Exodus+4%3A10&q2=&ss=0&t1=eng_n84&t2=eng_kjv&t3=eng_nas&ns=0&sr=1&ot=bhs&nt=wh&hv1=1&b=verse&d=3 |title=Exodus 4:10 |publisher= |quote= }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.studylight.org/study-desk.html?q1=Psalms+47%3A2&q2=&ss=0&t1=eng_n84&t2=eng_kjv&t3=eng_nas&ns=0&sr=1&ot=bhs&nt=wh&hv1=1&b=verse&d=3 |title=Psalms 47:2 |publisher= |quote= }}</ref> However, Jesus came and taught that God is our ''Father''. Jesus’ teaching that God is our Father implies that there is a family in heaven, too. It is because ''Father'' is a title used at home. Just as there is the family system on this earth, there is the family in heaven. Likewise, just as there is a father in the earthly family, there is '''[[God the Father]]''' in the heavenly family.

The title of father is based on the fact that he has child(ren). A man without a child or children cannot be called ''father''. God is called ''Father'' because He has children.  

God is the Father of those who will be saved, and they are the sons and daughters of God. At the same time, those who will be saved become brothers and sisters to each other. Just as there are a father and children as the members of the earthly family, there are God the Father and His children in the heavenly family.

The mother is the backbone of a family. Without a mother, no children can be born; and without children, no one can be a father. The existence of the mother in the earthly family shows that there is the mother in the heavenly family, which is the reality, too.  

“Above” refers to heaven, the kingdom of heaven, and “our” refers to those who will be saved. God’s people who will be saved are the members of the heavenly family and they are the children of God the Father and '''[[God the Mother]].''' Just as the mother plays the decisive role for a child to receive life, the heavenly children receive eternal life from God the Mother. Therefore, only when we believe in God the Mother as well as God the Father can we become part of “our” in Galatians 4:26 and be saved. Through the scene where God created man, we can know that there is God the Mother.

When God created man, God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness.” As a result, male and female were created. This shows that there is a male image of God "the Father" and a female image of God "the Mother." Just as sons and daughters in the earthly family have their father and mother and are born in the image of their parents, God’s sons and daughters have their Father and Mother.