Rom.1:3,4 – concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh, who was declared the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness by the resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,
I was involved in an official debate a number of years ago with some Islamic leaders on the campus at the University of New Orleans. The debate became quite contentious but the one thing that stands out above all others to me was the Muslims response to my insistence that Jesus was the Son of God. After thinking about their opposition to this point it became very clear to me what caused the turmoil, the Muslims realized to be the Son of God was to be God the Son sharing the same nature as the Father. This is exactly what happened during the time of Christ, His insistence on calling God Father brought the charge of blasphemy on Him and led to His crucifixion. Here is what the ESV EXPOSITORY COMMENTARY says about this.
“Jesus’ sonship is a reminder that the God behind Paul’s gospel is a relational being. He is not simply omnipotent (having all power) and omniscient (having all knowledge). He is also a God of compassion and personal connection, as those who come to know him for themselves discover. Jesus taught his disciples to pray to God using the words “our Father”. He addressed God as “Father” with such regularity and pathos that he was accused of blasphemy for it (John 5:18). Later Paul will refer to God as “Abba” (Rom. 8:15; cf. Gal. 4:6), pointing to the relational warmth for those who know God. The fact that Jesus is God’s “Son” supports the inference that followers of Jesus likewise qualify to be called “children of God”.
This is the very thing that attracted me to Christ fifty years ago, the personal nature of His love for me won my heart. The Father loves the Son, the Son loves the Father. This love has existed from eternity. Jesus became a man in order to bring us into that love fellowship He has always enjoyed with His Father in heaven. Today Jesus exists as the eternal Son of God as well as the Son of Man born as a man to the Virgin Mary. He has opened up the way for each one of us to live in this love as we have been born again. We are now sons and daughters of God.