LEARNING from a FATHER’s FAILURES—1Samuel 2:12-36
Father & son/Open cockpit ride thrill ride/Bartered price/Not 1 word or high price/Loop-Dive-Turn-Climb/ “You almost won!....‘Cause I sure felt like hollerin’ when my boy fell out!”
A Father’s Failure!
Need:
Responsibilities/Role/Disobedient/Misdirected/
Homosexuality—Whatever trips your trigger.
Sex OK—Don’t get caught
Products of Evolution—Society—World
Eli failed to have a positive influence on his sons Hophni & Phinehas.
Fathers have the responsibility of being positive influences on their children.
What responsibilities can be undertaken by fathers to influence their children positively?
5 directives of having a positive influence on your children.
1—To have a positive influence on your children....
APPLY RESTRAINT(3:13-14)
Explanation:(3:13-14)
3:13-14—“For I have told him that I am about to judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knew, because his sons brought a curse on themselves & he did not rebuke them. “And therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.””
Man is Head of household=Responsibility
Children left to themselves are a danger to themselves & others.
We may be blinded to sin/Restraint must be applied.
Hophni & Phinehas shouldn’t have been allowed priestly duties but family ties were basis for service. Therefore the application of restraint was of greater importance.
This is why many businesses fail with the original visionary. The children don’t share the vision & the vision is not incorporated into the working orders/by-laws of the business. Thus detrimental business behaviors go unrestrained when the visionary passes, also killing the business.
Eli—“All bark & no bite” — “All talk & no do”
Argumentation:
Prov. 22:15—“Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of correction will drive it far from him.”
Prov. 23:13-14—“Do not withhold correction from a child, For if you beat him with a rod, he will not die. You shall beat him with a rod, And deliver his soul from hell.”
Prov. 29:15—“The rod & rebuke give wisdom, But a child left to himself brings shame to his mother.”
Illustration:
Loaded 18-wheeler/I-26 Down mountain/Speed must be checked every 5mph/If unrestrained, certain disaster!/Runaway truck ramps along way/No excessive measures needed if restraint applied all along the way/APPLY RESTRAINT
Don’t spank/Govt. says physical punishment is child abuse & cruel/BUT There’s a vast difference between spanking & hurting a child!/APPLY RESTRAINT
Application:
?You a positive influence thru APPLIED RESTRAINT?
?You have a Positive Influence on your children?
2—To have a positive influence on your children....
Be DILIGENT with DISCIPLINE(:22-25)
Explanation:(:22-25) Too Little-Too Late/Consistent
:22—“Now Eli was very old; & he heard everything his sons did to all Israel, & how they lay with the women who assembled at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.”
:23—“So he said to them, “Why do you do such things? For I hear of your evil dealings from all the people.”
Eli did express concern for his sons’ actions. He is hearing the concerns of others. He calls their “dealings” “Evil.”
:24—“No, my sons! For it is not a good report that I hear. You make the LORD’S people transgress.”
Eli expresses his disappointment but there are no teeth in his disappointment. No consequences for such action. The decision is left up to Hophni & Phinehas. Just the restraint of a corrupted heart, which is no restraint at all!
:25—“If one man sins against another, God will judge him. But if a man sins against the LORD, who will intercede for him?” Nevertheless they did not heed the voice of their father, because the LORD desired to kill them.”
:2:17—“Therefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD, for men abhorred the offering of the LORD.”
*Call sin... Sin—But be Consistent over time!....
PROCRASTINATION of punishment condones sin....
What is the IMPLICATION?—Time is essential w/ children!
Eli confronted sons only when confronted by those outside family.
Now to be fair, sometimes our children are involved in the likes of which we are unaware.
Eli chided them but left the decision completely up to Hophni & Phinehas. ?They are adults by this time? Eli was the high priest & had direct supervision over them & was responsible for grooming them to take his place.
They were directly responsible for representing God’s design to the people.
Too Little-Too Late doesn’t cut it.
Argumentation:
Prov. 19:18— “Chasten thy son while there is hope, & let not thy soul spare for his crying.”
“Chasten”—roy yaw-sar’—To chasten, discipline, instruct, admonish.
There will come a time when a child will be completely independent & ungovernable!
Prov. 13:24—“He who spares his rod hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines him promptly.”—Careful, steady effort.
“Spares”—Ksx khaw-sak’—To withhold, restrain, hold back, keep in check, refrain.
“Disciplines”—rowm moo-sawr’—Discipline, chastening, correction.
“Promptly”—rxv shaw-khar’—To seek, seek early or earnestly, look early or diligently for
Illustration:
Japanese Bonsai/Miniature of full-sized tree/DILIGENT with DISCIPLINE/Otherwise yields a tree whose grandure is neither original nor directed.
Footbal player/Athlete/Trains constantly/DILIGENT with DISCIPLINE
Application:
?You a positive influence thru DILIGENT with DISCIPLINE?
?You have a Positive Influence on your children?
3—To have a positive influence on your children....
LEAD By EXAMPLE(:29)
Explanation:(:29) Model/Pattern
:29—“‘Why do you kick at My sacrifice & My offering which I have commanded in My dwelling place, & honor your sons more than Me, to make yourselves fat with the best of all the offerings of Israel My people?’”
:13-17—“13 And the priests’ custom with the people was that when any man offered a sacrifice, the priest’s servant would come with a three-pronged fleshhook in his hand while the meat was boiling. 14 Then he would thrust it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; and the priest would take for himself all that the fleshhook brought up. So they did in Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there. 15 Also, before they burned the fat, the priest’s servant would come and say to the man who sacrificed, “Give meat for roasting to the priest, for he will not take boiled meat from you, but raw.” 16 And if the man said to him, “They should really burn the fat first; then you may take as much as your heart desires,” he would then answer him, “No, but you must give it now; and if not, I will take it by force.” 17 Therefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD, for men abhorred the offering of the LORD.”
This is a selfish practice initiated for self & in direct disregard for the Law.
Different methods of sacrifice, i.e., all offerings. Burnt, Grain, Sin, Guilt, Peace—Lev. 7 had various methods prescribed.
Specific portions designated of God for priests...
—Lev. 7:35— “Breast...Right thigh”
—Deut. 18:3— “Shoulder...2 cheeks...stomach”
:16
All fat to be removed & burned...
Lev. 6:12— “he shall burn thereon the fat of the peace offerings.”
Lev. 7:22-25— “Ye shall eat no manner of fat, of ox, or of sheep, or of goat...For whosoever eateth the fat of the beast, of which men offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD, even the soul that eats it shall be cut off from his people.”
Lev. 3:16— “the priest shall burn them upon the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire for a sweet savour: all the fat is the LORD’S.”
:14b—“....So they did in Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there.”
Jer. 7:13-14
Rom. 1:32--2:1
:22—“Now Eli was very old; and he heard everything his sons did to all Israel, and how they lay with the women who assembled at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.”
—Ramifications to actions
*Thus—Eli participated in children’s sin!
:30—“Therefore the LORD God of Israel declares, ‘I did indeed say that your house & the house of your father should walk before Me forever’; but now the LORD declares, ‘Far be it from Me--for those who honor Me I will honor, & those who despise Me will be lightly esteemed.”
Argumentation:
Noah—Building ark/Seemed silly/Sons helped—Dad Led by EXAMPLE
Prodigal son—Left/Returned—Dad Led by EXAMPLE
Illustration:
POOR Example:
Mike P./1972-3—Back in the day/Grew pot, Mushrooms, Sold Drugs/Entire family involved!/LEADING BY EXAMPLE
FINE Example:
Danny Akin/President of SEBTS/4 boys/Well-mannered, Purposeful, Together/LEADING BY EXAMPLE
Drugs—Drinking—Cigarettes—Porno—HBO—Internet— Video games—Movies—Music
?Where are you leading your children by your example?
Application:
?You a positive influence thru LEADING BY EXAMPLE?
?You have a Positive Influence on your children?
4—To provide a positive influence for your children....
HONOR GOD’s VOICE ABOVE that of YOUR CHILDREN(:29)
Explanation:(:29)
:29—“‘Why do you kick at My sacrifice & at My offering which I have commanded in My dwelling, & honor your sons above Me, by making yourselves fat with the choicest of every offering of My people Israel?’”
FACT—Children provide a constant testing of authority in home!
—?Do you cave in to their whims?
—?Is God heard thru father or children?
:35—“‘Then I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest who shall do according to what is in My heart & in My mind. I will build him a sure house, & he shall walk before My anointed forever.”
In contrast to Hophni &Phinehas, Samuel would grow in age, in his personal walk with God, & in his relationship with men.
Argumentation:
Matt. 10:37—“He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.”
1Sam. 3:14—“And therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.””
PRIESTS who despise God’s name:
Mal. 1:6-7—“A son honors his father, & a servant his master. Then if I am a father, where is My honor? And if I am a master, where is My respect?’ says the LORD of hosts to you, O priests who despise My name. But you say, ‘How have we despised Thy name?’ “You are presenting defiled food upon My altar. But you say, ‘How have we defiled Thee?’ In that you say, ‘The table of the LORD is to be despised.’”
PRIESTS—Instruction...preservation of knowledge:
Mal. 2:1-7—““And now, this commandment is for you, O priests. “If you do not listen, & if you do not take it to heart to give honor to My name,” says the LORD of hosts, “then I will send the curse upon you, & I will curse your blessings; & indeed, I have cursed them already, because you are not taking it to heart. Behold, I am going to rebuke your offspring, & I will spread refuse on your faces, the refuse of your feasts; & you will be taken away with it. Then you will know that I have sent this commandment to you, that My covenant may continue with Levi,” says the LORD of hosts. “My covenant with him was one of life & peace, & I gave them to him as an object of reverence; so he revered Me, & stood in awe of My name. True instruction was in his mouth, & unrighteousness was not found on his lips; he walked with Me in peace & uprightness, & he turned many back from iniquity. “For the lips of a priest should preserve knowledge, & men should seek instruction from his mouth; for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts.”
Hosea 4:6—“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you, that you shall be no priest to Me: seeing you have forgotten the law of your God, I will also forget your children.”
Js. 3:1—Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we shall incur a stricter judgment.”
—Who teaches your children? You do!
Pro. 22:15— “Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.”
Pro. 29:15— “The rod & reproof give wisdom, But a child who gets his own way brings shame to his mother.”
1Pet. 2:5—“you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”
Acts 5:29—“Peter & the apostles said, ‘We must obey God rather than men.’”
Illustration:
Matthew & Sam at stoplight/ Go Daddy!/They all want to be in control!/HONORING GOD’S VOICE ABOVE YOUR CHILDREN
Grandfather’s(Daddy’s Dad) & 1st car/Used to horses/Needed to stop the car but instead of using brake he pulled back on the steering wheel & called out ‘Whoa!’/HONORING GOD’S VOICE ABOVE YOUR CHILDREN
Application:
?You a positive influence thru HONORING GOD’S VOICE ABOVE YOUR CHILDREN?
?You have a Positive Influence on your children?
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
Father & son’s Plane ride/“I sure felt like hollerin’ when my boy fell out”
A Father’s Failure!
Action:
Your Sons learn Parenting/Husbanding/Fathering from you Daddy!
Likewise Daddys, your Daughters learn what kind of Husband/Father/Parent to seek!
To provide a positive influence for your children....
1. APPLY RESTRAINT(:22-25, 3:13)
2. Be DILIGENT With DISCIPLINE(:22)
3. LEAD By EXAMPLE(:29)
4. HONOR GOD’S VOICE ABOVE That of YOUR CHILDREN(:29)
Presented 06/20/2010am (Father’s Day) to:
Needmore Baptist Church
1620 Mt. Vernon Rd.
Woodleaf, NC 27054
