The family is often referred to as the “first society a person meets after birth.” The family gives love and care to the child until he grows up to be a good member of society. The origin of the family, the nest of love, can be found in the beginning of the Bible. In the beginning, God created Adam and Eve in His own image and married them. When their children were born, their family was formed. Since that time, a traditional family is considered a unit that consists of parents and their children.
God let mankind know about the heavenly family through the earthly one. Just as there is a father, a mother, and their children in the earthly family, it is the same in the heavenly one. The Bible refers to God as the Father and Mother of the saints who will be saved, and the Holy Spirit Himself testifies that the saints are the “children of God” (Mt 6:9; Gal 4:26; Ro 8:12-16). The kingdom of heaven is an eternal place where there is not only God the Father but also God the Mother, and where God’s beloved sons and daughters dwell.
The Earthly Family Is a Copy and Shadow of the Heavenly Family
When we look at a copy or shadow, we can easily understand its reality. God made a copy and shadow on the earth, so that mankind, who cannot easily see and feel what is in heaven, can understand the kingdom of heaven.
They serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. Heb 8:5
The earthly sanctuary, which was established through Moses in the Old Testament times, is a copy and shadow of the heavenly sanctuary. God allows us to understand the invisible heavenly sanctuary through the visible earthly sanctuary. The same logic applies to the family system.
Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Heb 12:9
The Bible teaches us how much we should respect the Father of our spirits through our human fathers. It is because our human fathers are a copy and shadow of our spiritual Father. In the same way, the earthly family plays the role of a copy and shadow to show us the heavenly family.
Members of the Heavenly Family
The earthly family consists of a father, a mother, and their children. It is the same with the heavenly family.
God the Father
Most Christians call God the “Father.” It is because Jesus taught us that God is our Father in heaven 2,000 years ago.
“In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” Mt 5:16
“This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name’ ” Mt 6:9
“If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” Mt 7:11
Do you think Jesus said this because there is only God the Father? By definition, a father means a man who has a child. For a man to be called father, he must have a child; therefore, the fact that God is called “Father” means that He has children.
The Children of God
The Bible testifies that the saints who will be saved are God’s children.
“. . . says the Lord. . . . and I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” 2 Co 6:17–18
However, a father alone cannot have a child. If there is a child, there must also be a mother. Without a mother, children cannot exist, nor can a father who has children exist. In other words, the title father can be given only when there is a mother.
Then, whose existence does the title, God the Father, show? It is to reveal the existence of God the Mother.
God the Mother
The Bible testifies that God the Mother exists.
But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother. Gal 4:26
The Bible says that there is “our Mother” above, meaning in heaven. According to the Bible, there is not only God the Father but also God the Mother. We can also confirm the existence of God the Mother in the book of Genesis.
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, . . .” Ge 1:26
If God the Father is the only Creator who made mankind, He should have said, “Let me make man in my image, in my likeness.” Instead, God said “us” and “our.” This is evidence that God the Father does not exist alone. The reason He spoke, using plural terms, can be found in the following verse.
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Ge 1:27
When mankind was made in the image and likeness of God, male and female were created. It shows that God exists in both male and female images. Mankind has long regarded God as a male image and called Him “Father.” Then, what should we call the female image of God? We should call Her “Mother.”
In the heavenly family, there is not only God the Father but also God the Mother. That is why God referred to Himself as “us” and “our.” In the earthly family, children receive life through their fathers and mothers. In the same way, God’s children receive eternal life through God the Father and God the Mother. Therefore, we must believe in both God the Father and God the Mother according to the teachings of the Bible, so that we can become God’s children who receive eternal life.
How to Become a Member of the Heavenly Family
We must understand that we cannot become God’s true children merely because we believe in God the Father and God the Mother. Just as children inherit the blood of their parents, we must inherit the blood of God to become God’s children. For this reason, Jesus established the truth that enables us to inherit God’s blood. It is through the Passover of the new covenant.
When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.” . . . In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.” Lk 22:14–15, 20
Jesus said the Passover wine represents His blood. We can inherit God’s blood by keeping the Passover. The Passover of the new covenant is important truth that testifies that we are God’s children. Moreover, being a child of God implies that we become God’s heirs who will inherit the eternal kingdom of heaven (Ro 8:16–17). We will receive the inheritance of God, the Rulers of the universe, and enjoy eternal happiness in heaven as kings of heaven (Rev 22:1–5).
According to the Bible, if we want to fully know and believe in God, we must believe in God the Mother as well as God the Father. We earnestly hope that you will become God’s true children and have eternal life by receiving God the Father and God the Mother and keeping the Passover of the new covenant.
