The program was a real hit with the public because with all the problems this family had Daddy was the main figure of the show with the solutions for the problems his family faced.
“Make Room for Daddy” is an American sitcom that ran:
• From 1953 to 1957 on ABC
• From 1957 to 1964 on CBS.
Today in America we need to MAKE ROOM FOR DADDY because in many cases today in American DAD IS BEING PUSHED aside for these heroes in Hollywood and in the sports world.
Illus: There was a time when children would spend play time pretending to be like their MOMS and DADS. They would dress up in their parent's clothes, and try to imitate their voices.
But today many of our children want to become like a basketball star or some actor. They wear the same brand tennis shoes, jerseys, hair styles, etc., as their favorite sport's hero, or actor.
They want to talk, dress, and live like those sport's heroes, or actors.
Today dad has been replaced in many cases as the role model to the children.
Today is Father's Day. This is a special day we set aside a month after Mother's day to recognize the important role that Fathers have in families.
Even though fathers play a major role in the lives of the family.
Illus: In June of 1998, Vice President Al Gore made a speech before Father’s day. Being the politician he was, he thought it might be a good time to make a speech on the American family because every politician wants to be known as being concerned about the family. That’s good!!!
However, during the speech he said something he probably would not say if he could do it again, because what he said was so outlandish that people all over the nation were shocked in what he said about today’s dad.
In this family speech he announced that some research had been completed and he wanted to make it known that the researcher had discovered a father has a special role to play in the family.
They had to do research to discover that!
All they had to do is read the Word of God.
Most of the things in the scripture that deals with the family Dad had a very special role in the family as the head of the home.
However, one of the main reasons America is suffering morally and domestically is because society is not making room for Dad but pushing him aside.
Anyone who reads the Bible has discovered a long time ago that dads were intended to have a major role in the family from the beginning of time.
Again, the sitcom MAKE ROOM FOR DADDY emphasized this family looked to dad for wisdom and solutions.
Since Dad has been pushed aside the children of our nation have been brainwashed by this evil crowd and have come to the conclusion even after only living on this earth for only
10 or 13 years that they are already smarter than their parents who have been living here for many decades.
In fact the adult male of today often seems to be so degraded that we have some men who have come to the conclusion that the only reason God placed them here on earth is to be sperm donors.
In China, John Stuart Mill so appropriately said, "A state which dwarfs its men will soon find that with small men no great thing can really be accomplished.”
Illus: It is the same in a marriage. If a wife is always putting her husband down, to him and to others, she should not be surprised that he lives up to her expectations.
Men have A UN1QUE ROLE in the home. If men do not function in that capacity, the nation, family, and church suffer greatly.
Let us look at some things in the scriptures.
First, let us look at...
I. THE BLESSED MAN.
Psalm 112 brings out the blessings of a man of God!
Look at Psalm 112:1. We read, "Praise ye the LORD. Blessed (happy) is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments.”
Notice in this chapter that God is speaking to the man.
Now that is not to say the things in this chapter are not applicable to the women and children of this congregation, because they are.
However…
• There are chapters in this Bible that talk to the women.
• There are passages through which God speaks to the children.
• But, in Psalm 112 God addresses men. He says, "...Blessed (happy) is the man that feareth the Lord...”
God wants to bless the men of this congregation, but there is something men have to offer Him before He can bless them.
Let's look at...
A. His offering.
The word, "blessed" means, "happy."
It is the will of God that every dad in this congregation has a blessed--happy--life.
When we say it is the will of God that every man be a happy man we need to define the kind of happiness God has in mind.
Illus:If we did a survey on the streets and asked men what would it take for them to be happy most of them would say WIN THE LOTTERY!!!
Many dads today consider being rich as the same as being happy.
There are men (and women) who are working as hard as they can work every day of the week because they believe if they have riches and material things they will be happy.
Sad to say, wealth does not always guarantee happiness.
Some of the wealthiest people in America are very miserable.
Illus: We are told in Hollywood where some of the richest people on earth live it is filled with psychiatrist dealing with depression of the rich.
The things we want the most can sometimes be the worst for us.
This principle often applies to material possessions.
Many have discovered that once they acquired wealth it did not make them happy.
And some when they have acquired wealth was so disappointed with life they committed suicide.
Again, the things we want the most can sometimes be the worst for us. Again, this principle often applies to riches and material possessions.
Illus: This reminds me of the story of the dog named Dusty that learned this the hard way. He would often chase a particular squirrel that always ran up a tree and got away from him.
But, one day a heavy snow came. Dusty saw the squirrel in the yard and the chase was on!
Because of the snow, the squirrel could not go as fast as he normally could and Dusty caught him.
But once Dusty placed that big paw of his on top of the squirrel and lowered his nose, the squirrel started clawing him and bit his nose.
Dusty finally had what he thought he had wanted, but immediately wished he did not have what he thought he wanted.
Now, when Dusty chases squirrels, he makes sure they get away.
A lot of people have "chased" after wealth, thinking to find happiness in it, but once they got it, it "bit" them!
God wants every man here to be happy, but the happiness that God has in mind for you may not necessarily be in what you have in mind.
Illus: God could make every dad rich but God knows to do this would not bring happiness to their life but misery.
We have a good example of this with those who won the lottery.
There are those today who play the lottery because they believe if they win they will be happy forever.
REALLY?
Money doesn't always buy happiness!!!
Let’s look at SOME who have won the lottery.
(1)William Bud Post.
Post won Pennsylvania's $16.2 million jackpot in 1988, the Beaver County Times reported. This was the start of a series of unfortunate events for Post.
His ex-girlfriend sued him for a share of the winnings and won.
His brother hired a hitman in an effort to inherit part of the cash. Other relatives spent months demanding money.
Within a month of winning, Post filed for bankruptcy and had $1 million in debt.
(2)Janite Lee.
The St. Louis Post Dispatch reported Janite Lee, an immigrant from South Korea, worked in a wig shop before she won $18 million in the Illinois Lottery in 1993.
Lee was set to receive an annual payout of $620,000 and took the opportunity to buy a million-dollar home for her family.
But she later sold her rights to her annual checks for a lump-sum amount.
Ten years later at 60, Lee filed for bankruptcy and was left with $2.5 million in debt.
(3)Abraham Shakespeare.
In 2006, Shakespeare won $30 million in a Florida lottery, and three years later he was murdered. The 47-year-old was shot twice in the chest by DeeDee Moore, who befriended Shakespeare after his lottery win, according to ABC News. Moore was found guilty of first-degree murder in 2012.
(4) Denise Rossi.
In 1997, Rossi won $1.3 million in the California lottery and immediately filed for divorce from her husband, People reported. Two years later, Rossi's husband discovered she won the lottery and took her to court. He sued Rossi for not disclosing her winnings in the divorce, and the judge awarded him every cent.
(5) Jack Whittaker.
Before winning $315 million in West Virginia in 2002, Whittaker was already a millionaire, according to TIME. Just four years later, the then-construction company president claimed he went broke. Tragedies swarmed his life. His granddaughter and daughter died soon after from drug overdoses. Then Whittaker was robbed of $545,000 while sitting in his car at a strip club.
We could go on and on of how wealth has destroyed the life of many.
The psalmist shows us how we, as dads, can be happy.
Notice, he said, "...Blessed (happy) is the man that (What?)
feareth the Lord...”
Illus: In the Old Testament we read about a father named Solomon.
He was like most dads today. That is, he sought after happiness.
But, unlike most Christian dads today, he sought for it in the wrong places.
There was not a rock that he did not turn over in his search for happiness. Yet throughout the book of Ecclesiastes, at least nine times he talked about how his spirit was VEXED, or TROUBLED!
DID YOU EVERY HEAR THE EXPRESSION, "He is a troubled man!"
Perhaps this expression began in reference to Solomon. He was surely a troubled man.
He had many things that one might think it would take to make one happy.
- He had wisdom.
- He had material things.
- He had many children.
- He had much fame
- He had power.
- He had prestige.
- He was married to some of the most beautiful women of the earth
He had everything imaginable, yet he was absolutely miserable. The Bible states many times that he was "vexed.
But at the close of the Book of Ecclesiastes, see what this wise man said concerning the pursuit of happiness.
Look at Ecclesiastes 12:13. We read, "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man."
The man Solomon finally discovered that true happiness is not found in RICHES AND THINGS, but is found in THE LORD!
It seems that Solomon had lived much of his life IN FEAR THAT HE WOULD NOT FIND HAPPINESS, but then he discovered that happiness is found IN FEARING THE LORD.
Some people have a hard time FEARING THE LORD!
Often this is because they do not fully understand the KIND OF FEAR God was talking about.
Let me give you an example.
Illus: The kind of fear most of us are familiar with is the kind one might see in a monster movie when a person is being chased by a fifty-foot gorilla when that person falls down and looks up at the fifty-foot gorilla with horror and fear, knowing his fate.
This is not the kind of fear God wants us dads to have.
Illus: Let us suppose an executive sits in his comfortable chair. And suppose, to make it more comfortable he has a cushion in it. As different people who work for him want to see him, they will knock on the door before entering. Once they are in his office they are polite and courteous.
Why? Because they revere him. They do not treat him the way they would treat others they work with. He is the boss!
They recognize his position makes them recognize he is someone special in their life.
Now suppose that same executive, who sits in his comfortable chair, has a three-year-old grandson who wants to come into his office. He does not bother to knock.
He reaches up and opens the door and enters.
Then he walks over to the executive's seat, takes the cushion and throws it on the floor, and then crawls into the chair and waits for the executive to push the chair around.
This grandchild has no REVERENCE for him whatsoever.
WHY IS THERE SUCH A CONTRAST IN HOW THE EMPLOYEES TREAT THIS MAN AND HOW THE GRANDSON TREATS HIM?
• It is because to the employees this man is the boss and is to be respected (revered).
• To the little boy, this man is grandpa. Need we say more?
When we talk about fearing God, we are talking about having a reverence for Him.
Let me ask you DADS today on Father’s Day how do you think of God. Is He someone special in your life!!!
God wants to be so special in our life that each day of our life we live for Him only.
This that the scriptures talks about is fear born of AWE, FOR WE RECOGNIZE GOD IS AWESOME.
Dad, if you ever hope to find any degree of happiness in this life you have to come to know THE AWESOMENESS OF GOD! YOUR CREATOR!!!
Every Lord’s day we have some who recognize the AWESOMENESS OF GOD!
Their life reflects that on the Lord’s Day and every day of the week.
• We also have some dads who do not see God has someone SPECIAL IN THEIR LIFE.
• Illus: In fact, fishing, hunting, golfing is more important to them and their life reflect that seven days a week.
To be a happy father we must have knowledge of the AWESOMENESS OF GOD.
Until dad has this kind of fear (awesness of God) they will never have the happiness that God intended for them to have here on earth.
We have looked at the happy father OFFERING now let us look at…
B. His offspring.
Look at Psalm 112:2-3. We read, "His seed shall be mighty upon earth: the generation of the upright shall be blessed. Wealth and riches shall be in his house: and his righteousness endureth forever.”
Notice, not only will his children be blest to have a dad like him, so will his grandchildren
Look at verse 2, "His seed shall be mighty upon earth: the generation of the upright shall be blessed."
This verse could be paraphrased, "A generation of upright men shall be blessed.”
WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
Illus: There is a commercial on television advertising the 'Bush" canned vegetables.
The Bush family claims they have a secret recipe for making their "Bush beans" so SPECIAL.
Then it shows a man pretending to be washing windows outside the office on a scaffold. He is really trying to peak in the window to see if he can find out the secret recipe for those delicious Bush beans.
But, the member of the Bush family inside that is doing the talking is vowing that no one will ever know what the secret recipe is except the Bush family. And it will be passed down from one generation to the next.
Here is the point I am trying to make.
Illus: A family has been richly blessed of God. The little boy turns to his dad and says, "Dad, why is it our family is so blessed of God. I notice friends that I go to school with do not seem to have the blessings on their families that we have.”
The dad says, "Son, I am glad you asked me that because I have been meaning to talk to you about that. You want to know why our family is so blessed of God. The reason is because your great, great grandfather came to know the Lord like most men who ever came to know the Lord. God blessed his family and his son came to know God in the same fashion. And then later, when he got married, his son, (my dad) came to know the Lord in that same fashion. And my dad wanted me to know the Lord in that same fashion. And he wanted God to bless me so he taught me to know the AWESOMENESS OF GOD and God has blessed my life also.
Now son, I want God to bless you the same way he blessed my great, great grandfather, my great grandfather, by grandfather, my father, and me.”
To be a BLESSED (HAPPY) FATHER we have looked at THE BLESSED MAN.
A. His offering
B. His offspring
We have looked at THE BLESSELD MAN but now let us look at…
II. THE DEDICATED MAN.
He is dedicated to God and man!
Illus: In Chuck Swindoll's book, Growing Wise in Family Life, he asks these questions that concern men:
• Remember when men were men?
• Remember when you could tell by looking?
• Remember when men knew who they were; liked how they were, and didn't want to be anything except what they were.
• Remember when it was the men who boxed and wrestled and bragged about how much they could bench press?
• Remember when it was the women who wore the makeup, the earrings and the bikinis?
• Remember when it was the men who initiated the contact and took the lead in a relationship, made lifelong commitments, treated women like ladies, and modeled
• Masculinity that displayed security and stability?
Then he went on to say something even more profound, "We need fewer spineless wimps who've never disentangled themselves from mama's apron strings, and more clearly, hard-working , straight-talking men who, while tender, thoughtful and loving, don't feel the need to ask permission for taking charge. I'm convinced that most single ladies would love to have men like that to spend time with...and most wives long to have men like that to share their life with. Children especially like having dads like that."
Did you catch that last line?
"Children especially like having dads like that."
I believe that is absolutely true, but I will go a step farther and say, "I believe GOD LIKES FATHERS LIKE THIS ALSO!"
Illus: We have men today in this transgender age who wants to change their sex and become a woman.
They want to look like a woman, dress like a woman and talk like a woman.
In Psalm 112 I want to remind you this chapter is written to BLESSED MEN WHO ARE GLAD GOD MADE THEM TO BE A MAN.
Again I remind you in this chapter God speaks to us dads and shows us how we can have a blessed (happy) life.
The dads who serve the gods of this world will never find the happiness that satisfies.
NEVER! Unless they come to recognize that God is greater than ANYONE or ANYTHING IN THEIR LIVES.
They may be happy for a short time, but they are building their lives on "sand" and one day a storm of life will come and destroy everything they have.
But, a man who has come to realize the greatness of God knows a happiness that the world knows nothing about.
Look at verse 4. We read, "Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness: he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous."
This knowledge he has is referred to as LIGHT IN A DARK SINFUL WORLD.
Illus: One reason it is difficult to win the lost man to Christ is because he lives in darkness every day of his life. And he will continue to live in darkness until He comes to know Christ as His Savior.
Notice in this verse the "blessed," man has light in darkness.
That is, the world in which we live is filled with the darkness of sin.
This is why the lost man is only one breathe away from landing into a place call hell. BUT HE IS IN DARKNESS AND HE CAN NOT SEE THE DANGER OF BEING ONLY ONE BREATHE AWAY FROM ETERNAL DAMNATION.
This is why we have people who do not have the slightest idea what life is all about. They do not know:
• How they got here
• What they are supposed to be doing here.
• Where they are going.
• They are walking darkness.
Today we live in a transgender society that is so mixed up mentally they do not know if they are male or female.
But look at the contrast between the lost man and the man of God. The Bible says of Him, "Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness..."
God makes a clear distinction between the MAN OF GOD AND THE EVIL MAN.
We can see that distinction in Psalm 1:1 we read, "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish."
God makes the distinction between the godly and the ungodly because they serve different gods.
But the man of God that God can bless recognizes that the most important thing in life is GOD WHO CREATED HIM!!!
Life is not complicated to him because he does not walk in darkness.
He has his priorities STRAIGHT.
Look what his life produces.
Look at verse 4 again. We read, "Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness: HE IS GRACIOUS, AND FULL OF COMPASSION, AND RIGHTEOUS."
We have looked at the blessed man.
I. The Blessed Man
II. The Dedicated Man
Now let's see...
III. THE STEADFAST MAN.
Look at verses 6-8. We read, "Surely he shall not be moved for ever: the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance. He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the LORD. His heart is established, he shall not be afraid, until he see his desire upon his enemies.”
These are wonderful verses that deal with the blessed man, speaking about a number of things that surround his life.
Look at verse 6. We read, "Surely he shall not be moved for ever...”
That is, while others are running around like a chicken with its head cut off, jumping all over the place, the man of God is established.
Look at verse 7. BAD NEWS DOES NOT SHAKE HIM. "He shall not be afraid of evil tidings...”
A lot of times you cannot tell what a people are like until they are stricken with bad news.
That is, they might appear to be men and women of God, but let some bad news come their way and you will learn something about them that you never knew before.
Let me illustrate with a personal illustration…
Illus: Dr. Odell Belger recently faced some bad news when he discovered he had lost his bill folder. Inside of his bill folder was his driver’s license, credit cards, social security card and some more valuable things.
As he was preparing this sermon that dealt with bad news does not shake him instead of getting upset losing his bill folder he was reminded that a godly man put his trust in the Lord.
He had looked everywhere and could not find it. But throughout the dad he kept trusting in the Lord because He knew that the Lord knew exactly where it was.
In going home from his office he was talking to the Lord about his bill folder and God spoke to his heart and told him to go home and look in his suit pocket that he had preached in three days ago. He did just that and that is exactly where it was!!!
God wants to teach us dads to trust him and not let bad news shake us.
But listen, a man of God can hear bad news and it will not shatter his faith.
Why?
Because he has come to recognize that God is on His throne and nothing crosses his path that God does not have a purpose in for our good.
For example...
Illus: One day Job, of the Old Testament, was sitting in his
home, enjoying the blessings of God on his life when someone came to his door and began to tell him he had lost his...
- Livestock.
- Most of his servants.
- Children.
But yet that man of God knew the God of this Bible he said, "Though he slay me, vet will I trust in him..." (Job 13:15)
The man of God is not shaken by bad news.
Also-
Look at verses 7b-8a. GOOD NEWS DOES NOT SHAKE HIM. "...his heart is fixed, trusting in the LORD. His heart is established, he shall not be afraid…”
Another way you can tell that a man is a man of God is not only is he fixed when bad news comes his way, also he is not moved when good news comes his way.
Illus: If someone knocked on the doors of some in this congregation and said to you, "You have just won $10,000.00 DOLLARS. This would be the worst thing in the world for some.
Why?
Because they cannot handle BAD NEWS or GOOD NEWS.
Some people cannot handle good news.
But the man of God that God speaks of in Psalm 112 can because he has come to recognize the only thing important in life is God.
In other words, he is more excited about the giver than he is the gifts.
Look at verse 7. These words describe the father that God can bless. "...his heart is fixed, trusting in the LORD." This man's heart is established!
This man is not up and down on a spiritual roller coaster, the Bible says his heart is FIXED, his heart is ESTABLISHED.
Conclusion:
I would like to close this sermon on Father's Day with a prayer of a father. It goes like this:
"Dear God, my little boy of three has said his mighty prayer to Thee.
Before his eyes were closed in sleep, he asked that Thou his soul would keep.
And I, still kneeling at his bed, my hand upon his tousled head do ask, with deep humility;
That Thou, dear Lord, remember me.
Make me, dear Lord, a worthy dad,
That I may lead this little lad in pathways ever fair and bright.
That I may keep his steps aright.
O God, may his trust never be destroyed or even marred by me.
So, for the simple thing he prayed with childish voice so unafraid, I, trembling, ask the same from Thee.
Dear Lord, dear Lord, remember me.
Lastly, that I be God's kind of Father.”
Illus: In 1924, the summer Olympics were held in Paris. One of the athletes heading to Paris that year was an American named Bill Havens. Everyone knew he was a sure winner for the gold medal in the canoeing event, for he was far superior to all his competition. But, Bill Havens found out his wife was going to have a baby at the exact time he was scheduled to compete for his gold medal. He had to make a decision: to miss the opportunity of a lifetime, or to miss the opportunity of a lifetime. He chose to stay home with his wife and miss going for the gold. He was alongside his wife when she gave birth to a boy named Frank.
Twenty-six years later Bill knew he had done the right thing.
In 1950, the Olympics were held in Helsinki, and competing in the canoeing event was Bill's son, Frank Havens. Bill received a telegram that said, "Dear Dad, thank you for being there for me when I was born. I want you to be the first to know that I'm bringing home your gold medal for you that should have been yours in 1924. I love you. Frank."
In closing I want to do two things:
(1) I want to encourage every dad here who does not know Christ as their Savior, make this Father’s day be the day you come to know Him.
(2) I want to encourage every family here to MAKE ROOM FOR DAD in your family.
Wives recognize God has placed him as the head of the home.
Children honor your dad in every way you can honor him, not just on Father’s day but every day of the year.
And you will have the home God intended for you to have here on earth.
I. THE BLESSED MAN.
II. THE DEDICATED MAN.
Ill. THE STEADFAST MAN.
