Child of God?

In Galatians 4:6 Paul suggests a simple litmus test whereby one can know if he/she is truly a child of God: "Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, 'Abba, Father!'" There is a wealth of "bread of life" in this simple gem of revelation:

(a) Christ has a "Spirit" that is given to the one who believes in Him.

(b) The gift is more than an intellectual insight-it grips the heart (we could say, it grips the heart of hearts deep, deep within us).

(c) Paul's insight includes his use of an Aramaic word, "abba" to be "cried out" from deep within our souls. This does not mean that you must learn Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, or even Latin in order to know that you are a child of God; it's an insight into Paul's comprehension of the gospel. To him, his own personal language of his babyhood was Aramaic, and "abba" is the first word framed by the lips of a baby, which means "father." Perhaps, quite probably, it was Jesus' own personal, family language. Before His own knowledge of His heavenly Father grew to the point where He had an intelligent understanding and confidence in Him as "Father," His human heart "cried out" in babyhood, "Abba," a pre-intelligence confidence; and that "cry" never died out of His soul as the Son of God, with one exception.

(d) In the darkness that overcame Him as He hung on the cross when He "was made to be sin for us, who knew no sin," the cry of "abba" was temporarily forgotten-the ultimate evidence that He was indeed "made to be sin." It was the awful sense of terror that caused Him to cry out, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" Why didn't He "cry," "Abba, Abba, Father, Father, why have You forsaken Me?"

(e) There He builds that bridge to our own souls, we who have never known in infancy and childhood the truest, wonderful love of a human father. Multitudes feel they cannot pray the Lord's prayer because it begins with "Our Father . " They have from childhood a deep emotional aversion to the word.

(f) "Though He were a Son," Jesus found Himself in their place; by virtue of His experience on His cross He meets them where they are.

(g) And there He teaches them deep in their hearts to "cry" as He did, "Abba, Father." Don't resist His teaching!