Discovering the Father’s Heart

Father’s Heart

Jonathan Helser

The heart of this message is the father’s heart.

● The gospel is not a formula, the gospel is a father.

God isn’t like a father. He IS a father.

● God is seeking worshipers. Not worship, but the ones who bring him worship.

● I believe a great worship movement will look like family.

● “Worship is giving back to God what he first gave us.” - Oswald Chambers

Jonathan David tells a story about his kids coming to him and saying, “Dad we want to give you the best Christmas present! Can we have money for it?”

Psalm 32:7 - David sings about songs of deliverance. 32:8 God sings back to David.

● Psalm 103 - As a father loves his children so you love us.

● As we throw our crowns down in praise God is lavishing us with love.

● “How can you believe when you seek the praise of men but you don’t seek the praise of your father in heaven?” The first time I played my first song for my earthly dad. My mom was healed of cancer, told she was never going to have children and she miraculously did. When Jonathan was 19 he played his dad his song. His dad asked, “Who’s song is that? I’ve been waiting for 22 years to hear that song.”

When Jonathan found out he and his wife were pregnant he spent nine months praying over him and singing songs over him. When he was born, after the family and friends leave the hospital and Jonathan has a moment alone with him. He began singing over him a prayer he’d been singing for months. His little eyes open, and it was like he knew, “Oh you’re the one who has been waking me up.”

When we pass over into another life, we will be like that baby, seeing the Father face to face, and say, “OH! It’s you! The one who has been singing over me.”

Life began with a face to face encounter when God got in the dirt and created man.

● Adam looks into the eyes of the father and sees who he is.
● Worship in Greek and Hebrew is a position of the heart. Worship means to bow down and press your face against the earth.
 ○ The first time we see worship in the bible, it’s attached to a family.
● We are singing back to God the song he first sang to us.
 ○ When we tell Him who He is we remember who we are.
 ○ When we press our faces to the earth, our heart rises above our heads.
 ○ We worship to remember who he is, and who we are.
 ○ We are children of God.
● Romans 8:14–21
● My kid knows he’s a son. He doesn’t beg me for food. He walks in and takes what he wants.
● Psalm 32 was written after David murdered and committed adultery and God still responds to him.
● What you think about the father shapes everything.
 ○ If we are children we are heirs with God and co-heirs with Christ.

The Israelites were in the wilderness for 40 years, and it couldn’t have taken only 40 days to get to the promised land. The father is feeding them, mending their shoes. The wilderness revealed what they really thought about God. “Did you bring us here to kill us?” They would ask. God’s dream for the wilderness was to reveal their royalty!

When Jesus was baptized, the father says “This is my son in whom I am well pleased.” And then Jesus is lead into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

● Temptation in the wilderness
 ○ Identity is the first thing tested. “IF you are the son of God.” Jesus had been feasting on who His father said He was, for 40 days.
 ○ Perverts the scripture to test his identity
 ○ Who Jesus will worship - Worship the Lord your God and serve him only. Then the devil left and angels came.

■ When we stand up and worship, devils leave and angels come.

● If we look for our identity in ministry we will get burnt out.

● If we look for our identity in the father we will find fulfillment that will never end.

Psalm 23 - you lead me by still waters and in those waters, you restore my soul.

● In still waters when you look down you can see your reflection. And in our reflection, we see our father.

Jonathan reads part of the script of the Lion King when Simba has run away and he sees his father in the stars.
Simba sees his reflection in a pool of water. “That’s not my father, that’s just my reflection.”
“no, look harder…. You see, he lives in you.”
“Simba, you have forgotten me. You have forgotten who you are, so you have forgotten me. So look inside yourself, Simba. You are more than what you have become. You must take your place in the (kingdom)”

When we behold Him we remember who we are.