Crises Of Being A Father

CRISES OF BEING A FATHER

Luke 15:11–32 (NIV)

ILLUSTRATION Bill Cosby once observed, "If the new American father feels bewildered and even defeated, let him take comfort from the fact that whatever he does in any fathering situation has a fifty percent chance of being right."

The reason I quoted this is because of the fact that fatherhood though a blessing is always challenging us. In fact, we never stop being a father. I am a father of three grown up children and still learning how to be a father. It is easy to become a Father than being a father of your children. I thank God there are mothers.

I believe that if want to learn being a father, we should learn from the greatest father of all – our heavenly Father. Please open your bibles to Luke 15:11-32. (Read the passage).

PRIMARY MESSAGE of this parable is to teach us how God accepts all repentant sinners, no matter how outcast they may be. God considered sinners as lost but when they are found it calls for a celebration. This is the primary message of the parable.

In conjunction to Father’s Day celebration, I would like for us to focus on the Father and how his example of being the Father serves as our guide as we Father of our own families.

Fatherhood is a divine plan and the Scripture listed the role and responsibilities of fathers. It also shows how God demonstrated being a loving father, who directs and guides his children. It is a privilege and responsibility that our omnipotent and omniscient God assumed the role of Father of His people gave us a role similar to His. Just as we honor all the mothers, God expects that we honor the fathers too.

Malachi 1:6 (NIV) 6 “A son honors his father, and a slave his master. If I am a father, where is the honor due me? ….

Our passage this morning reveals the decisive moment in the life of our heavenly Father. I think as human fathers, we are also predisposed to various crises as we perform our role. What makes fatherhood challenging? It is the various crises fathers’ encounters on a regular basis.

1) A CRISIS OF EXPECTATION (vv. 11-12)

We assumed that the Father in the parable is a responsible and caring Father since it depicts the image of our heavenly Father. Despite of that, the father ended up having sons with different behavior. Although he managed it very well, it signifies the crisis that all fathers experienced.

A crisis of expectation is the decisive moment in the life of a father or parent where he or other people expect his children to live according to his conviction and example.

In our parable, the Father had two sons. The younger one demanded that his share of the estate be given to him right away. It is obvious that the older son did not ask for his share yet. Comparing the two, the younger son is selfish, rebellious, wild, and squandered his inheritance while the older son is obedient, responsible, and thoughtful and care for his father’s business.

How can a loving and caring father have two sons with different character? Is it not godly parents raised godly children?

Personally, as a minister we are expected to have godly children. Or let say you are an elder or deacon and regular church goer, people expect that your children are nice and good person. You are a parent with high moral standards and example that are pressured to produce the same quality of children.

This is a crisis that each father or parent would encounter along the way despite of their being responsible spiritual guide, teacher, and provider for their children. This is not unique to our generations.

1 Samuel 2:22–25 (NIV) 22 Now Eli, who was very old, heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they slept with the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 23 So he said to them, “Why do you do such things? I hear from all the people about these wicked deeds of yours. 24 No, my sons; the report I hear spreading among the Lord’s people is not good. 25 If one person sins against another, God may mediate for the offender; but if anyone sins against the Lord, who will intercede for them?” His sons, however, did not listen to their father’s rebuke, for it was the Lord’s will to put them to death.

1 Samuel 8:1–3 (NIV) When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as Israel’s leaders. 2 The name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second was Abijah, and they served at Beersheba. 3 But his sons did not follow his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice.