“The Father of All”

“One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all” (Ephesians 4:6).

There is a damnable doctrine that has leavened the bread served from too many modern pulpits. Most recently a defrocked, former Pentecostal preacher from Tulsa began a national campaign to spread this heresy as far and fast as he possibly can. It is a sad and tragic delusion that is wooing popular preachers in this generation at alarming numbers.

The “doctrine of inclusion” is a false teaching that has at its root a claim about God that is a heresy. The doctrine of inclusion claims that God is “the Father of all”. The doctrine of inclusion claims that God is in a redemptive relationship with every person. The doctrine of inclusion wants us to believe that  God has brought every one into His family.  This doctrine of devils leads to one spurious conclusion – There is no real salvation and God has no eternal standard for faith or eternal life. How could we ever accept such a thought?  This is not what Jesus and the apostles taught!

God is not the “Father of all” as it is taught and preached by inclusionists.  They use  Pauline terminology to make their point that God has included everyone into His heavenly family. This is not Paul’s point. Paul has constructed a context for this statement. Paul does not place such a wide expression of God in a wide text. He confines his comment in the context of the “called”.

In verse one (Ephesians 4) Paul is speaking specifically to the called. He repeats this “called” language in verse four. He is speaking to a body of people who are committed to one another by agape love, the unity of the Spirit, one Lord, one faith and one baptism. The “called” are the ones who have responded to God’s call of salvation through Jesus Christ.

The “all” of Paul is not universal or omni-inclusive. Paul’s “all” refers to all who have placed their faith in Christ as Lord and have been immersed into the Christ life. God is the Creator of all. He holds a paternity for all of eternity. God is the original Originator. In this sense He is the Great Progenitor of all. He is nonetheless, only in a Father-child relationship with those who receive Jesus as Lord and Savior.

Happy Father’s Day!