The Bible is clear that as followers of Jesus Christ, you and I have instant access to God as our loving Father.
We find one of the clearest examples of this in John 14:1–3, where Jesus says…
“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.”
I know that many people picture Jesus up in heaven with a hammer, a saw, and some golden two-by-fours—and He’s making our mansions, putting sapphire and diamond windows in the bathroom.
That’s actually not what Jesus was saying at all.
The word house here literally means “household” or “family.” It’s translated that way throughout the New Testament.
The Greek word mansion here just means “dwelling place”—so what Jesus is saying is, “In My Father’s household, there are many dwelling places.”
Jesus is preparing a place for us in His Father’s family. Not a physical location, but a relationship that’s close to the Father…“that where I am, there you may be also.”
The same closeness Jesus enjoys with the Father is for you and me too.
When I was about six years old, I rode my bicycle to a friend’s house one day. We were in his bedroom, and we were playing with this little cheap plastic pinball machine that couldn’t have cost more than five dollars.
His dad, who I’d never met before, walked in, looked down at me, and said, “Kid, you break that game. I’ll break your neck.”
His dad left the room and I asked, “Can we do something else? I don’t think I want to play this game anymore.”
He said, “Okay, let’s go in the garage and goof around.”
We went to the garage, and his dad had all these tools hanging on the wall, everything in its place. My friend climbed up on the workbench and took down a saw from its place.
He then put a block of wood in the vise and started sawing. Then he said, “Bayless, you want to try?” I said, “Yes.”
Almost immediately after I started sawing, I broke the blade.
I fled the scene and jumped on my bike, my little legs going lightning fast all the way home. I remember dumping the bike in the driveway, running into my bedroom, where I huddled against the wall, crying.
I was convinced that big man was going to break my neck.
My dad came in and said, “What is going on, son?” I told him what had happened. He went and had a discussion with the other boy’s father, and my neck didn’t get broken!
The truth is my view of that man is typical of many people’s view of God—that He’s angry and threatening, just waiting for you to mess up so He can make something bad happen in your life or withhold something good.
Really, though, the opposite is true. Jesus tells us just a few verses down in John 14:7…
“If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.”
The same mercy and compassion we see in the life and ministry of Jesus is the exact expression and representation of the Father’s heart toward you.
Listen, the Father loves you no less than He loves Jesus. It sounds almost crazy to say that, but it’s true. You are in the household of God because of who you are in Jesus Christ.
Yes, we need to have great respect and reverence for our Father. He’s the creator of the universe who forms the stars and flings them out.
But He’s also Papa, Daddy, to those of us in His household.
I share much more about this full access you have to God as a member of His family in my message, What Is Yours as a Member of God’s Household.
