Most of the children in our local Church often come to me after each service shouting, “Daddy! Daddy!! Daddy!!!” Then they would reach out to my cup of water and drink. I noticed that one of them would always draw back. So I made it a point of duty to always draw this child closer. I’m teaching that child how to enjoy the fatherhood of God.

Friend, God is your Father but you need to learn how to behave as a son that you are. Your posture towards God does not affect His fathering towards you but it would affect how you enjoy His fatherhood. Simply put, we grow in sonship by growing in the understanding of the fatherhood of God and in our response to the same (Galatians 4:1-2).

“And he said, A certain man had two sons” (Luke 15:11). Perhaps, the story of the prodigal son gave us a very instructive lesson as far as the fatherhood of God is concerned. It paints to us a picture of who God is to us and His largeness of heart towards us. The story also shows us that God has at least two kinds of sons; the younger brother (who people call prodigal son) and the elder brother.

While we often blame the prodigal son for his prodigality, I think the elder brother is not to be emulated as well. Some Christians are simply “elder brothers” as far as enjoying the fatherhood of God is concerned. They live in their Father’s house as slaves or servants. They know their Father is wealthy and responsible, yet they do not see their place in their Father’s house. They want to earn their right to the Father’s inheritance by what they do (Luke 15:29).

It was almost too late for the elder brother to realize that all that the father had was his. He must have been nursing the desire to make merry with his friends but had been restrained by his ignorance (Luke 15:29-31). One of the portraits of a true son is that he is free with his father. The spirit of sonship is the spirit of freedom (Romans 8:15). It is the spirit that is free to enjoy the father’s love and generosity.

The kind of teachings you are exposed to would affect your sonship manifestation (Galatians 3:1-7). While some only see God as a consuming fire, others also see Him as a loving Father. Some see God as One who always demands, others see Him as One who always supplies. If your understanding of the fatherhood of God is faulty, your sonship manifestation would also be faulty.

© ‘Demola Awoyele
Lead Pastor,
Destiny Impact Church
Akure, Nigeria