JOB 1:1-8 "FILLING A FATHER’S SHOES"
A) If you were asked to name the world’s hardest job, what would you say it is?
* Serving as president of the U.S.? * Heading up the United Nations?
* Serving Jesus Christ somewhere as a missionary or as a pastor?
B) Each of those choices could be defended!
* But I believe that an even harder job than any of those is being a good parent!
* And today I’m thinking especially of the work of the father!
C) I want to tell you why a father’s job tops nearly every other!
* And if you are a father, I want to suggest some insight into what your job is & how you can
do it better!
D) A father must make decisions - right decisions!
* And he dare not make them in a state of confusion or panic!
E) A father, like a person steering a canoe, must always be ahead of upcoming situations!
* The effective father must look down river in the life of his family,
* Preparing to make good decisions! * His job is to keep his family dry!
F) You can be a good father, but faith and good intentions are not enough!
* Even a godly man can be a failure as a father!
* Samuel, David, and Aaron are some men in the Bible who show that is true!
G) The Bible, in fact, tells of many who failed in their tasks as fathers!
* Isaac was partial to Esau! * You cannot read of his home life without sensing that he failed
in raising his sons!
H) Jacob in turn was a failure! * Gen.34 tells of a crisis in his family in which he failed to
act at all! * As a result, an entire community perished!
I) Eli failed to guide his sons into a walk with God!
* And his house came tumbling down around his ears!
J) Solomon’s son was weak & foolish - a living reminder that even the wisest of men was a
failure as a father!
* The question of the failure of so many fathers in the Bible is a troubling one!
K) Why did they fail? * And how can we fathers today avoid the same kind of failure?
* Consider with me three important questions about fatherhood!
(1) WHAT IS A FATHER? * A father is a parent, a partner in transmitting human life!
* He is a protector and a provider! * He is also a teacher sharing knowledge and instruction
about living in our world!
A) Being an effective father is a staggering responsibility!
* It’s one thing to guide your own footsteps, but it’s quite another to guide someone else’s.
B) Many fail as fathers simply because they underestimate their task!
* The rate of failure among fathers may well be higher than that of any occupation!
C) No other calling is as demanding than a father!
* A father must transmit to his children God’s basic revelation, that we are God’s creatures,
* Accountable to Him in all we are and do! * He is the source of right & justice in the home!
D) He must be a leader, provider, teacher and counselor!
* Examine the role of the father closely and you begin to see a tiny likeness to God’s own role
with reference to the human race, as God loves, rules & provides for all creation!
* So the human father is to nourish, protect & guide his little family!
E) David clearly perceived that likeness when he wrote in Psalm 103:13,
* "Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him."
* That word "pitieth" means - to love, to have compassion on.
F) So a father must use his position to minister to his family’s needs!
* He is their protector and provider! * They are guarded by his love!
* As the one in authority over your family, as the one responsible to provide for them and
protect them, you are God’s representative to them!
G) That, of course, is not to say that God does not deal directly with them - He does!
* But in many ways, God deals with those in your family through you, through your authority,
through your example and through your leadership!
* Thus, the child who has a faithful, godly father learns what God Himself is like as he sees
the father in the home!
H) Fathers, your children will base their concept of God on what they see in you!
* What I am saying is that you should develop the kind of relationship with your children that
you wish them to have with God!
(2) WHY IS A FATHER? * Why does a family need a father? * What is the father to do?
* We have already listed some of the duties of the father, but I want to look closely at three
basic functions that contain all the duties of the father!
A) The family without a father faces a very grave hardship!
* So important to the family is the father that the Word of God regards the lack of a father
as a great calamity!
B) In such a situation however, God makes special provision for the family!
* He says that He Himself will step into the breach to protect and meet the need!
* Ps.10:14 "Thou art the helper of the fatherless."
* Ps.146:9 "The Lord preserveth the strangers; he relieveth the fatherless and widow."
C) Why is the father so vital? * What functions are there that he must perform that no one
else can perform?
* First, He Is To Steer Or Guide His Family! * Eph.5:23 "For the husband is the head ......."
* Not only is the father head of the wife, but he is the head of the family as well!
D) The family is not a democracy! * It’s authority is vested in a person & that person is the
father! * And his authority is derived from God who is the beginning of authority!
* But with his authority goes a great amount of responsibility!
E) In Eph 5, as well as in every passage that speaks of the father’s authority,
* It is clearly taught that husbands & fathers are not to rule for personal advantage, but for the
well being of the family! * The key word is "responsibility!"
* As a father, when you view your position, you are to see your responsibility, not your authority!
F) No father who is worth his salt will throw his weight around or demand personal respect!
* He is there to serve & his motivating power is the love of Christ!
* He recognizes that his position makes him a minister to his family, not one to be ministered to
by them! * He is there, not to demand, but to deliver!
* He is the Lord’s representative! * "I’m the boss!" * Story of newlywed .......
G) Another basic function of a father is to shape or mold his family through teaching!
* He doesn’t do all the teaching of course, the mother may do much of it!
* But the father is to oversee all the training that his children receive!
H) He must see that they get the teaching they need!
* And he must see that the teaching that they get is the right kind!
I) A father is shaping the lives around him - He should teach love for God & faith in Christ!
* He must bring his children to the Bible, teach them what it says, what it means for them,
* How to apply it to their life and mold their lives to it!
J) Father’s, that’s your responsibility! * And it’s a very large one!
* What your children learns is your responsibility! * God holds you accountable!
* What are you teaching spiritually to your children?
K) A Third Basic Duty Of A Father Is To Seek God’s Blessings For The Family!
* He must pray! * Father, you are the priest of the home!
* You are the spiritual leader - if you don’t pray for your family, who will?
L) Possibly the cause of more friction in family relationships,
* The cause of more failure in the home & the cause of more defeat in the family, is the
prayerlessness of our parents! * We’ve examined the responsibilities of the father,
M) How can any father approach his duties without first approaching God in prayer?
* Listen fathers, we cannot do our job alone! * We dare not leave God out of our families!
* We can’t afford the sin of prayerlessness!
(3) HOW IS A FATHER? * How can any man ever hope to succeed in the job of being a father?
* I believe I can give you the answer!
A) You Will Have To Be Like God! * I’m not saying that you can be sinless & perfect!
* And I’m not saying that you can be all powerful or all knowing!
* But I am saying that you can & you must have all the characteristics of God working in your life!
B) You will have to be just, loving, wise, patient, merciful, self-giving, tender,
* And a lot of other things! * And God can enable you to be that kind of father!
C) You remember that I said that you are God’s representative to your family?
* God does not ask you to represent Him without giving you the resources to do it!
* But you must let Him do it for you & not try to transform yourself!
D) The First Step Is To Receive Christ As Your Savior!
* Let God reshape your life through the salvation that is in Christ!
* You must know Christ before you can have His blessings for your family!
E) Once you have made that step, you will need communication with the Lord everyday!
* I’ve already mentioned the importance of prayer for your family, but now I’m talking about
prayer for your own personal spiritual needs!
F) I’m talking about reading God’s Word daily to get His guidance, wisdom & understanding!
* You’ll need renewal everyday! * Make it your priority to get alone with God and pray and
read His word each and everyday!
* It’s foolish to attempt to undertake the huge task of fatherhood without proper daily preparation!
G) Finally, You’ll Need Commitment To The Task!
* Ask God to make you a dedicated father!
* Make it your purpose to honor God in the way you lead your family!
CLOSE
A) Are you a committed father? * Do you represent God well to your family?
* The shoes of a father are big shoes to fill!
B) Wont you today trust God for the wisdom, power, direction & skill that you must have to
fill those shoes! * Or are your needs more basic?
C) Do you need to yield to the Lord & accept Christ as your savior?
* You can do it right now!
D) Fathers, ours is a huge responsibility & we can’t wait to come to terms with it!
* Make your surrender to the Lord complete today! * Come To Jesus!
