The Spirit who indwells us testifies with our spirit that we are the children of God, and if his children, then also his heirs, the very heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, our older brother! On the day of Pentecost, let us be mindful that through faith in the risen and ascended Christ, the Father has poured on us the Holy Spirit, the one who has regenerated us and brought adoption to us from God. We are now the very children of God, crying out like little children, “Abba, Father!” filled with his life, and clinging to the hope as heirs of the inheritance to come. All this by grace and through the love of God.

Every language has intimate terms that children call their parents. Mama, Dada, Papa. Baba is common in the middle east. That word in Aramaic, which was the language of the Jews in Paul’s time, was “Abba.” When a child cries, “Dada!” a father responds. Paul says here that we may cry out “Abba!” to the Almighty Maker of all things and expect him to respond.

“Abba!” We need you, please come to us. Hear the cries of your children and help us in our need.

Weekly Reflection on the Priesthood of all Believers
We have been entrusted with the words of salvation, but not the power to save. That power belongs to God alone. Only through the work of the Holy Spirit will we ever be effective or fruitful in our witness. It is crystal clear in the Scriptures that only the presence and power of the Holy Spirit can enable us to represent Christ and his Kingdom.

~ Ryan Carter, Guard the Good Deposit: The Great Tradition of the Whole Church.
Wichita, KS: TUMI Press, 2019, p.56.

Let God Arise! Seasonal Focus
You Will Be My Witnesses, Acts 1.1-11

Book Reading
Breslin, Embracing Our Priestly Nature at Work