# God the Father — Unspoken Sermons character guide > God the Father in Unspoken Sermons by George MacDonald. **Role:** major **Also known as:** the Father, Father, the infinite Father, Abba **First appearance:** 0001-unspoken-sermons ## Snapshot The Father whose nearness exceeds even fatherhood, whose consuming fire answers prayer not to punish but to burn away whatever in us cannot yet receive what we ask. ## Who they are MacDonald's God is not a distant sovereign to be appeased with correct words but a parent so close that the very category of fatherhood becomes a stepping stone toward something larger. The tension he explores is whether we trust this God's character or merely his promises—whether we come as children or as courtiers hedging our bets. This distinction shapes the book's whole argument about prayer, hope, and what it means to ask boldly, since a Father who gives only what we can safely receive is still giving everything. ## Relationships ### [Jesus Christ](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters/jesus_christ) _family_ Father and Son in a divine, intimate relationship of love and obedience. ### [The Child](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters/the_child) _family_ God as a nurturing parent to the innocent, trusting child. ### [Job](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters/job) _psychological_ God tests Job's faith through suffering, creating a dynamic of trial and submission. ### [The Brother Christ](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters/the_brother_christ) _family_ God relates to Christ as a brotherly figure, emphasizing shared divine nature. ### [St. Paul](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters/st_paul) _professional_ God calls Paul as an apostle, directing his missionary work and revelation. ### [The Youth](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters/the_youth) _friendship_ God reaches out to the youth with paternal care and guidance. ### [Lazarus](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters/lazarus) _psychological_ God raises Lazarus from the dead, demonstrating power over death and eliciting awe. ### [The Living One](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters/the_living_one) _family_ God is identified with the Living One, a title emphasizing eternal, active presence. ### [John Boanerges](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters/john_boanerges) _friendship_ God grants John visions and intimate knowledge of divine mysteries. ### [Moses](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters/moses) _professional_ God speaks to Moses as a lawgiver and prophet, establishing a covenant relationship. ### [Satan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters/satan) _rivalry_ God and Satan are cosmic adversaries, with Satan as the tempter and accuser. ### [Jesus Christ](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters/jesus_christ) _family_ Father and Son in a divine, intimate relationship of love and obedience. ## In the story ### [Unspoken Sermons](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/unspoken-sermons) Portrayed as the loving Father, the source of all goodness and the object of childlike trust. ### [First Series](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/first-series) Referred to as the loving Father, whose character is revealed through Christ. ### [The Child in the Midst](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-child-in-the-midst) Portrayed as childlike, devoted, and perfectly loving; the God of little children, not a monarch on a throne. ### [The Consuming Fire](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-consuming-fire) Described as a consuming fire, the active form of Purity and Love, who purifies and transforms. His fire is inexorable and loving, and he is the source of all creation and persistence. ### [The Higher Faith](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-higher-faith) Referred to as the Father who fills the spaces, holds answers to questions, and is the ultimate object of trust; His fatherhood is a step toward understanding His nearness. ### [It Shall Not Be Forgiven](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/it-shall-not-be-forgiven) Described as the loving Father who forgives daily, sending sunshine and rain, and whose love works to perfect forgiveness in the sinner. ### [The New Name](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-new-name) Central to the chapter as the one who gives the new name and with whom each person has a unique, individual relationship. ### [The Heart with the Treasure](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-heart-with-the-treasure) Referred to as the Father in heaven, the one who sees the heart and is the source of life and truth. ### [The Temptation in the Wilderness](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-temptation-in-the-wilderness) The source of life and will; Jesus trusts and obeys Him completely, refusing to act apart from the Father's direction. ### [The Eloi](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-eloi) The hidden yet ever-present Father, from whom Christ feels momentarily separated but to whom he ultimately commends his spirit. ### [The Hands of the Father](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-hands-of-the-father) The recipient of Christ's commendation; portrayed as the loving Father whose fatherhood is universal, and in whose hands all spirits may find repose. ### [Love Thy Neighbour](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/love-thy-neighbour) Described as the source of love and the one who will not rest until all are found; the Father of all. ### [Love Thine Enemy](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/love-thine-enemy) Presented as the model of perfect love, making sun rise on evil and good, and rain on just and unjust. ### [The God of the Living](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-god-of-the-living) Described as the Living One who gives life and remembers His people, making them alive unto Him. ### [Second Series](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/second-series) Depicted as the loving Father who desires a personal relationship with each individual. ### [The Cause of Spiritual Stupidity](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-cause-of-spiritual-stupidity) Described as the loving Father who gives good gifts, withholds only to give something better, and desires His children to trust Him wholeheartedly. ### [The Word of Jesus on Prayer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-word-of-jesus-on-prayer) Portrayed as a loving Father who hears and answers prayer according to His perfect wisdom and love, often withholding lesser gifts to give the greater gift of Himself. ### [Man’s Difficulty Concerning Prayer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/man-s-difficulty-concerning-prayer) Described as the perfect, loving Father who hears prayer, works with his children, and desires to lift them into sharing his divine nature. ### [The Last Farthing](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-last-farthing) The one and only goal of the human race; the refuge and home from whom the soul is separated and to whom it must return. ### [Abba, Father!](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/abba-father) Portrayed as the loving Father who desires sons and daughters to share in His being and nature, and who is the ultimate source of fatherhood. ### [Life](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/life) The source of all life, the infinite Father whose love is beyond measure and who receives every child with an infinite embrace. ### [The Fear of God](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-fear-of-god) Described as the Father of spirits, the infinite Father, the one who seeks nothing but his children themselves. ### [The Voice of Job](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-voice-of-job) God is portrayed as a loving Father who is bound by His own nature to seek and save His children, responding to their cries with perfect righteousness. ### [Self-Denial](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/self-denial) Referred to as the source of life and will, whose will is to be the disciple's all in all; the Father's life is the joy of the child. ### [The Truth in Jesus](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-truth-in-jesus) The loving Father who brings all who learn of Him to Christ, and whose peace is the ultimate destiny of believers. ### [Dedication](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/dedication) Referenced as the Father who buries the seed. ### [The Creation in Christ](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-creation-in-christ) Described as the source of life and the object of Jesus' devotion, with a perfect and eternal love for the Son and all his children. ### [The Knowing of the Son](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-knowing-of-the-son) The Father who bears witness of the Son; his voice and shape are not physically perceived but spiritually known; the chapter discusses how knowing the Father leads to recognizing the Son. ### [The Mirrors of the Lord](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-mirrors-of-the-lord) The origin of divine life and glory; the Father whose image we are made in and whose will is love and harmony. ### [The Truth](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-truth) Described as the self-responsible paternity embracing the whole being, the source of will and power, who longs to set his children right. ### [Freedom](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/freedom) Described as the loving Father whose will and heart are the center of the universe; freedom is found in being a child of the Father. ### [Kingship](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/kingship) The Father is the source of truth and goodness, whose will Jesus perfectly embodies. Jesus' kingship is rooted in his relationship with the Father, and his witness reveals the Father's character. ### [Justice](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/justice) Described as the righteous, merciful Father who will not let a man off with any fault, but compels obedience and purifies his children. ### [Light](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/light) Described as light, a loving father who will not give his children darkness but purifies them to receive his light. ### [Righteousness](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/righteousness) God is the source of true righteousness, which is a real gift, not a legal fiction; the Father's will and character define righteousness. ### [The Final Unmasking](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-final-unmasking) Described as a God who reveals, who sacrifices His will to man, and who awaits the return of His child with forgiveness. ### [The Inheritance](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/the-inheritance) Described as the source of all light and inheritance, the loving Father who desires his children to share in his own being. ### [Endnotes](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/chapters/endnotes) Discussed in relation to the hastening of processes and the ordinary ways of God. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters/god_the_father - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/unspoken_sermons_se/characters