We all pick up the words and phrases of the people we are close to, our friends, the ones we love. We create our own language, our place of identification and connection, short phrases that mean so much more based on our history together.

Naturally, John would pick up on the way Jesus talked about God. So different from anyone before him, Jesus spoke to him and called him Abba, Daddy, Father. It suggests a different level of intimacy than the seven redemptive names of God (Jehovah-Nissi, -Rapha, -Jireh, etc) that had come before, or any of the names from the OT. Maybe for us this word Father is over used or the impact has lost its edge, becoming a formality. But for John in his hearing it would have meant proximity and privilege, a closeness that had been unthinkable.

Paul Young once said it took him 50 years to strip the face of his own father off the face of God. What could it mean to flush what you think you know of this father’s love and give a fresh hearing to his good news?