Jesus called His Father "Lord of heaven and earth" (Matthew 11:25). Think about what those words mean. They tell us that the Father is the Supreme Ruler over the whole universe!

In the introductory portion of his letter to the Church members at Ephesus, the apostle Paul makes it crystal clear that it is "the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ" (Ephesians 1:3).

The Father is the subject of the first chapter of Ephesians as Paul explains how He relates to Jesus Christ along with the magnificent benefits we all draw from that divine relationship.

God the Father is an essential part of the salvation process. It is to the Father that we must be reconciled. Repentance is toward God. It was He who initiated the salvation process and He is the One who calls us out of this world. He gave His only begotten Son so that we may have eternal life in the Kingdom of God (John 3:16).

Paul wrote: "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus whom God [the Father] set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God [the Father] has passed over the sins that were previously committed" (Romans 3:23-25).

Many overlook the role of God the Father in the whole process of redemptive salvation. Yet Jesus once said: "I work and My Father works." He also stated to His disciples after His resurrection: "I ascend to My Father and Your Father, and My God and your God" (John 20:17, New American Standard Bible).

Together these two divine Beings, the Father and the Son, direct their efforts towards preparing many sons and daughters for eternal glory in the Kingdom of God (Hebrews 2:10). GN