…Who is in heaven…
Yes we approach God with a confident trust in His Love for us as Father, but we must never forget that He is utterly “other” than us.
Jesus, in the first line of the Lord’s Prayer, “presents a dynamic tension for us”, as Sproul puts it.
The balancing act is between what seems to be two polar opposites:
- Childlike fearless love
- Trembling reverent fear
These at first glance would seem to be contradictions, but take a look at Psalm 2:11…
Serve the LORD with fear,
and rejoice with trembling.
(Psalm 2:11 ESV)
God is both transcendent and immanent. He is near, and yet at the same time above and beyond the highest corner of the universe.
Psalm 145 tells us that the greatness of God is unsearchable. He is God the intimate Father who has invited us into an intimate relationship with him.
So when we pray we must guard against the tendency to lapse into a form of praying that is too “chummy” with God. You might laugh at that word, but it represents a sociable informality that can miss the glory and grandeur of God.
We must hit the nail on the head, growing up into a mature intercession that rejoices with the faith of a child, and the fear of an awe-filled worshiper.