"Present And Involved - A Real Father" Series

“When Dad Speaks”

Central Zion Baptist Church

Fathers Day - June, 2012.

Mark 1:11-12; Matt. 3:16-17; Luke 3:21-22

Salutation – Salute the fathers… commend them for the work they do.

General comments…..

Speak about the positive aspects of fatherhood.

Say: one of the greatest problems facing the average family today is the absent or uninvolved father. Explain absence.

There are so many young men and women walking around still looking for affirmation from the man who is supposed to be their father.

and when a child does not have the involvement of a father in his or her life, it leaves a void that can only be filled by the Holy Spirit himself.

Fathers, I believe that many of us in here today, especially the men, have experienced the very same thing I am talking about right now. Because we did not have a responsible man we could call daddy, we struggled through life trying to figure out what it means to be a man or wondering whether we had what it takes to be one.

I want to personally congratulate and applaud the many hard-working single mothers… good job… But while a woman can teach a boy a lot of things, there is one thing she cannot teach him – a woman simply cannot teach a boy how to be a man – only a man can do that. No woman can model for a young girl what a husband is like or should be – it takes a man to do it.

If fathers are going to make a difference in the lives of their children, they must make their presence felt and they must be heard. Children must know the voice of their fathers. The dads must stay involved.

But in order for a dad to be involved and stay involved in the life of his children, he must be a dad that speaks.

You see, God spoke and the world came into existence. Jesus is referred to as the Word who became flesh and lived among us. But what is so significant about a dad speaking…

A couple of things…

Life and death are in the power of the tongue and every time a dad speaks, he either speaks life or he speaks death. We must not miss that.

But today I wish to draw some examples from the perfect father as he related to His son during the Baptism and there are some things we can learn from this brief exchange.

Read: Mark 1:11; Matt. 3:16-17; Luke 3:21-22

When a Dad is involved, the children know he is present because he speaks to them and when he speaks, he must speak words that….

I. Communicate a sense of belonging – a sense of close relationship – words that send a clear message of approval. In our text, God makes it plain and clear who Jesus was. “My beloved son.”

These are words that move the heart of a child – put a smile on their face - be it a boy or a girl because to hear words like these gives children a sense of belonging. A sense of attachment - When we communicate words of approval and belonging to our children – that young boy no longer has to look to a gang leader to tell him who he is or that he is important -

When your daughter knows that she belongs to her father and is an integral part of the family, she does not have to seek out the approval of another man who may exploit her, use and abuse her, take advantage of her and when he doesn’t get his way, sexually abuses her, maybe beats her up and then dumps her and looks for the next one in the same shoe. Fathers it is our responsibility to let our children know that they belong to us.

If God the father took the time out to speak words of approval and belonging to His divine Son, what about us? Read text…

Ill. My experience….. not a good one as my own father was not involved in my life…

Maybe you are here and are seeking healing from a father who ignored you or never recognized you as his beloved--- I want to tell you, there is healing in the name of Jesus-

You may need to forgive that father who never spoke words of approval and belonging to you and there is a deep seated hurt, anger and un-forgiveness that has taken deep roots in your heart –

You are bitter - I have come to tell you that there is forgiveness in the name of Jesus. We may never have heard those words from our earthly fathers, but when we live right and walk by the spirit and not by the flesh, God who has promised to be a father to the fatherless is saying to you and me right now- You are my beloved son – daughter … we have his approval.