UPBEAT DADS
I Corinthians 16:13-14
S: Fathers
Th: Father’s Day
Pr: Dads are to lead the home positively.
?: How?
KW: Exhortations
TS: We can be dads that lead positively when we follow these five exhortations.
The _____ exhortation is…
I. BE ALERT
II. BE TRUE
III. BE COURAGEOUS
IV. BE STRONG
V. BE LOVING
Version: ESV
RMBC 16 June 02 AM
INTRODUCTION:
Nobody can take the place of dads.
Consider these lessons testified to by one person:
ILL Notebook: Father (What my dad taught me…)
My dad taught me be about…
…religion: “You better pray that stain will come out of the carpet.”
…behavior modification: “Stop acting like your mother.”
…time travel: “If you don’t straighten up, I’m going to knock you into the middle of next week.”
…logic: “Because I said so, that’s why.”
…weather: “It looks like a tornado swept through this room.”
…circle of life: “I brought you into this world and I can take you out!”
TRANSITION:
There is no doubt that dads make a huge impact on our lives.
We have already observed this in the testimonies we have heard this morning.
So, in turn, I want to encourage the dads this morning to be there for your family, to lead the home positively.
And I want to share how you can do it.
Consider with me for these next few minutes the passage found in I Corinthians 16:13-14 (p. 1207).
Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love.
While these are some of Paul’s final words to the church of Corinth, they seem to be perfect words to father this morning.
So let us consider these exhortations…
OUR STUDY:
I. The first exhortation is BE ALERT.
As dads, we need to realize that spiritual danger is everywhere.
Satan attacks the family.
He attacks our family.
The admonition then is important.
We are to be on our guard.
We are to watch over our families.
We are to be awake, vigilant, and alive.
We must be wary and alert to the temptation to do less rather than more.
We must not become apathetic or indifferent when it comes to our children.
For when we do, this is when Satan slips in and breaks it up.
His work is to divide.
Our responsibility is to be alive, awake and prevent him from doing so.
Be alert!
II. The second exhortation is BE TRUE.
Dads need to be men of conviction.
They are to know what is true and stay with it.
ILL Notebook: Father (Sproul—Marx)
Years ago in Germany there was a young Jewish boy who had a profound sense of admiration for his father. The life of the family centered on the acts of piety and devotion prescribed by their religion. The father was zealous in attending worship and instruction and demanded the same from his children. While the boy was a teenager the family was forced to move to another town in Germany. In the new location there was no synagogue and the pillars of the community all belonged to the Lutheran church. Suddenly the father announced to the family that they were all going to abandon their Jewish traditions and join the Lutheran church. When the stunned family asked "why" the father explained that it was necessary to help his business. The youngster was bewildered and confused. His deep disappointment soon gave way to anger and a kind of intense bitterness that plagued him throughout his life.
He left Germany and went to England to study. He sat daily at the British Museum formulating his ideas and composing a book. In that book he introduced a whole life and world view and conceived of a movement that was designed to change the world. In the book he described religion as an "opiate for the masses" that could be explained totally in terms of economics. Today there are two billion people in the world who have lived or live under the system invented by this embittered man. His name, of course, is Karl Marx. The influence of this father’s hypocrisy is still being keenly felt around the world.
Dad, it is so important for you to be consistent.
We live in a word that believes that truth is relative.
It mocks those that believe there is such a thing called standards that God has created.
But there is a prescribed way to live.
So be firm and live it.
Be firm.
III. The third exhortation is BE COURAGEOUS.
Dads, be men of courage.
In the text, this phrase is just one word in command form.
Its most literal translation is “be a man.”
ILL Notebook: father (Wanted:)
If we were to advertise for someone to be a father, here is how it may have to read:
Wanted: Mature, healthy man with solid employment history and potential for advancement. Must be engaging conversationalist, creative lover with mature spiri-tual understanding and unwavering loyalty and family commitment. Essential skills: Household repairs, special knack for communicating with preschoolers, juniors, and adolescents and the wisdom of Solomon.
There is no doubt that being a father is a tall order and even an impossible task.
But be the man.
Be confident in your calling.
You are the father and your family looks to you for leadership.
They look to you for spiritual guidance.
So…be courageous!
IV. The fourth exhortation is BE STRONG.
ILL Notebook: Father (Shhh!)
A father had three very active boys. One summer evening, he was playing cops and robbers in the back yard after dinner.
One of the boys "shot" his father and yelled, "Bang! You’re dead!" He slumped to the ground and when he didn’t get up right away, a neighbor ran over to see if he had been hurt in the fall.
When the neighbor bent over, the overworked father opened one eye and said, "Shhh. Don’t give me away. It’s the only chance I’ve had to rest all day."
Well, fatherhood can be tiring!
The text here is helpful though.
Literally, it says to “be strengthened.”
We are to be made strong.
Have you ever noticed that we cannot strengthen ourselves?
Our strength comes from our connection with the source of strength.
We learn who to lean on.
We lean on the father.
Note this…
God is not just like a father.
He is the Father.
So dads, if you want to know what a Father is like, look to God and be strengthened by Him.
As Paul writes to the church in Philippi:
“I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.”
So go forward dads.
It is time to be bold.
It is time to be men of faith.
We can be strong!
V. The fifth exhortation is BE LOVING.
It is love that complements and balances everything.
It is love that keeps us from hardness and domination.
It is love that prevents obstinate dogmatism, smug self-righteousness and legalism.
It is love that makes a dad a sensitive servant that sees interruptions as opportunities to teach and train.
When we dads live our faith, we are known as men who are faithful, true, merciful, compassionate, affectionate, patient, and kind.
That’s not a bad list.
In fact, it’s a list that will make an eternal difference.
So, be loving.
APPLICATION:
Today, my friends, you have heard the testimonies of men that have left legacies of faith.
It is right for us to consider whether we will leave the same kinds of legacies.
Will the world and the people we have touched be better because of our lives?
Dads…
Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love.
Amen.
BENEDICTION: [Counselors are ]
Dads, be alert…be alive for God, be alert to the deception of the evil one, and recognize that he does not want the family to be unified, but divided.
Dads, be true…hold on to the truth, and don’t let go, though the world calls on you to compromise and to be tolerant.
Dads, be the man God has called you to be…and find strength in the Father so that you can move forward boldly with the gospel.
Dads, be loving…for we never more like the Father than when we love.
"The LORD bless you and keep you;
the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you;
the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace."
