I heard that a man once had this conversation with God: "God, why did you make woman so beautiful?"
God said: "So you would love her, marry her and be a father."
"OK God, but why did you make her so illogical?"
God said: "So she would love you, marry you and have your children."
I suggested that my family get me something for Father’s Day that we could all get something out of – so they did – they got me a wallet J
Three out of four adults concur that the family unit is weaker today than it was just 30 years ago.
• One out of two marriages has ended in divorce.
• Cohabitation (living together without being married) has risen by more than 500% in the past 20 years (even though people who cohabitate prior to marriage have an 82% greater chance of divorce than do couples who marry without having first lived together.)
• One out of three children born this year will be born to an unwed mother.
Across the board American fathers have failed. They have failed their children by being absent from the lives of their children. The Bible shows us that when fathers fail nations fail. America is in danger of failing - not because of financial colapse (although that will eventually occur) – not because of an external enemy threat – not because of famine, pestelense or disaster. No, America is in danger of failing because of moral failure.
We are experiencing moral failure in this country because fathers are either physically or spiritually absent in the lives of their children. It’s a generational problem – a downward spiral that will ultimately end in a firery crash.
Mothers have a great deal of spiritual influence in the lives of their children, but fathers……… fathers hold the keys of spiritual blessing or cursing.
Fathers, invest yourselves in your kids and release the blessings of being raised by a godly father into the lives of your children! Be there for your kids. Teach your kids how to love God. How do you do that? You model it. Do your kids see you read the Bible? Do they see and hear you pray? Do they see you come and worship the Lord on the Lord’s day? Do they see that you make serving God the number one priority in your life?
Today men are consumed by concumerism. They desire to buy things they don’t need, with money they don’t have, to impress people they don’t even like.
What is the result of massive consumerism? Massive debt.
The number one most pressing issue confronting American families today is their financial condition. 1 out of 3 Americans state that they are struggling with a serious financial problem.
Financial stress creates friction in marriages and is a major contributing factor to the break-up of families. But financial stress is not the problem, it’s just the symptom of a lagrer problem.
Dads, one of two things happen – 1. You have to get another job just to make ends meet and you don’t see your kids enough or 2. You end up getting a divorce, you still have two jobs and you still don’t see your kids enough. Either way the cumulitave result is a “fatherless family.”
Dads, untaimed consumerism will destroy your family.
Responsible dads must learn to say “no” to their consumer appetite.
1 John 2:15-17 says, “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For everything in the world-the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does-comes not from the Father but from the world. 17 The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.”
Our recent Bible reading has highlighted the results of fatherless families.
Both King David and King Solomon are a case study of what happens in a fatherless family.
David had numerous wives and concubines. As a result, he had many children. David had so many things distracting him, wars, commerce, building projects, treaty negotiations, entertaining, judging, that at the end of the day he had little time to spend with his kids. David was an absentee father. What was the result of his absenteeism?
His son Amnon raped his sister and Absolom had him assisinated.
A few years later Absolom tried to usurp the thrown of his father David, slept publicaly with David’s concubines and almost succedded in usurping the throne. Joab, David’s leading general killed Absolom.
While on his death bed David’s son Adonijah tried to usurp Davids thrown and David had to quickly have his son Solomon anointed as king to prevent it.
Listen, if King David would have restricted himself to one wife and poured his life into his children he wouldn’t have had all these problems in his family.
And what about King Solomon? The Bible tells us that he had 700 wives and 300 concubines. Talk about an absentee father and husband. If you were one of Solomon’s wives you would only get to sleep with him once every 2 ½ years. We don’t know how many kids Solomon had, but he wasn’t able to play catch with all of them, I can tell you that much.
So what happened to Solomon’s kids? Rehoboam, Solomon’s son and successor to the throne lost his father’s kingdom because he was greedy, arogant and stupid, but primairly because of his father’s sins.
Solomon’s downfall was his love of foreign women. He intentionally disobeyed God and married women from Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidon, and from among the Hittites. The Bible says, “The Lord had clearly instructed his people not to intermarry with those nations because the women they married would lead them to worship their gods.” Sure enough, Solomon fell into idol worship in his later years and did evil in the sight of the Lord.
Listen men, you may think the grass is greener on the other side of the fence, but I can assure you that if you cross the fence you will suffer! Your family will suffer! Take care of business on your own side of the fence and you’ll never regret it!
Solomon’s son Rehoboam lost the Northern 10 tribes of Israel to Jeroboam. Jeroboam failed to serve the Lord and lost his entire family to political terrorism.
Just to give you a flavor of life in those turbulent times, let me read you 1 Kings 16:1-19.
16:1 Then the word of the LORD came to Jehu son of Hanani against Baasha: 2 "I lifted you up from the dust and made you leader of my people Israel, but you walked in the ways of Jeroboam and caused my people Israel to sin and to provoke me to anger by their sins. 3 So I am about to consume Baasha and his house, and I will make your house like that of Jeroboam son of Nebat. 4 Dogs will eat those belonging to Baasha who die in the city, and the birds of the air will feed on those who die in the country."
5 As for the other events of Baasha’s reign, what he did and his achievements, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel? 6 Baasha rested with his fathers and was buried in Tirzah. And Elah his son succeeded him as king.
7 Moreover, the word of the LORD came through the prophet Jehu son of Hanani to Baasha and his house, because of all the evil he had done in the eyes of the LORD, provoking him to anger by the things he did, and becoming like the house of Jeroboam-and also because he destroyed it.
8 In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah son of Baasha became king of Israel, and he reigned in Tirzah two years.
9 Zimri, one of his officials, who had command of half his chariots, plotted against him. Elah was in Tirzah at the time, getting drunk in the home of Arza, the man in charge of the palace at Tirzah. 10 Zimri came in, struck him down and killed him in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah. Then he succeeded him as king.
11 As soon as he began to reign and was seated on the throne, he killed off Baasha’s whole family. He did not spare a single male, whether relative or friend. 12 So Zimri destroyed the whole family of Baasha, in accordance with the word of the LORD spoken against Baasha through the prophet Jehu- 13 because of all the sins Baasha and his son Elah had committed and had caused Israel to commit, so that they provoked the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger by their worthless idols.
14 As for the other events of Elah’s reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel?
15 In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned in Tirzah seven days. The army was encamped near Gibbethon, a Philistine town. 16 When the Israelites in the camp heard that Zimri had plotted against the king and murdered him, they proclaimed Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel that very day there in the camp. 17 Then Omri and all the Israelites with him withdrew from Gibbethon and laid siege to Tirzah. 18 When Zimri saw that the city was taken, he went into the citadel of the royal palace and set the palace on fire around him. So he died, 19 because of the sins he had committed, doing evil in the eyes of the LORD and walking in the ways of Jeroboam and in the sin he had committed and had caused Israel to commit.
The whole nation of Israel was spinning out of control! Immorality, idolatry, witchcraft, graft and corruption were the rule of the day. The Devil was having a heyday!
The sins of the fathers were visited upon their children over and over and over again. It’s a vicious cycle, yet, things are no different today. Fathers abuse their wives and their little boys grow up to be wife beaters just like daddy. Fathers abuse drugs and alcohol and their little boys grow up to be just like daddy. Fathers spend little to no time with their kids and they wake up one day to discover that they’ve lost that time with their kids forever – and they can’t get it back.
Listen, dads, you’ve got to pour yourselves into your kids while their young. Teach them the ways of God! Teach them to pray, read their Bible, tithe, worship and serve the Lord while their young. Dads you are responsible for discipling your kids!
The great American tragedy is that men have left the spiritual development of their children up to their wives. It doesn’t work! Both boys and girls need their dads to be role models. Boys need their dads to teach them to be men – men of God! Girls need their dads to teach them to be women – women of God!
Dads, like it or not, you are a hero to your kids – the question is, what kind of a hero are you?
In Thursday’s Bible reading you read about the kind of dad that all us dads should strive to be. His name – Cornelius. He was a career Army officer. My family knows what it’s like being a military family. Frequent moves, long periods of time when dad is gone, hardships, sacrifices, having to say goodbye to your friends every few years and move to a completely different environment. And there is always the lingering possibility that dad might come home in a coffin. A military man’s life is hard on families – no question.
So here is Cornelius who is the captain of the Italian Regiment, a high ranking Roman Army Officer. Yet, the Bible tells us that, “He was a devout man who feared the God of Israel…” (and here is the most important part) “as did his entire household.”
Cornelius devoted himself to the discipline of military life and was extreamley successful in his military career. In order to attain his rank meant that he was battle hardened, had spent many months away from his family and endured countless hardships. So how was it that he was so successful in bringing his entire household to be devoted to God?
Simple, he modeled his faith in front of his family. Let me read the account in Acts 10:1-8
10:1 At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment. 2 He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly. 3 One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, "Cornelius!"
4 Cornelius stared at him in fear. "What is it, Lord?" he asked.
The angel answered, "Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God. 5 Now send men to Joppa to bring back a man named Simon who is called Peter. 6 He is staying with Simon the tanner, whose house is by the sea."
7 When the angel who spoke to him had gone, Cornelius called two of his servants and a devout soldier who was one of his attendants. 8 He told them everything that had happened and sent them to Joppa.
Not only did this man’s man model his faith in front of his family, but even in front of his soldiers. Notice that one of his soldiers is described as “devout.”
This didn’t happen by accident. Cornelius lived his life out authentically not only in front of his family but also on the job!
And when God told him to do something he was obedient immediately. No questioning – no backpeddeling – just a “Yes Sir” a smart salute and he executed his orders.
Cornelius was a man of authority under authority and he understood the value of prompt obedience.
Oh, God I pray that we would have a whole Church full of men who have the character of Cornelius.
So what was the reward of this godly father?
Acts 10:29-48
29 So when I was sent for, I came without raising any objection. May I ask why you sent for me?"
30 Cornelius answered: "Four days ago I was in my house praying at this hour, at three in the afternoon. Suddenly a man in shining clothes stood before me 31 and said, `Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor. 32 Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. He is a guest in the home of Simon the tanner, who lives by the sea.’ 33 So I sent for you immediately, and it was good of you to come. Now we are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us."
34 Then Peter began to speak: "I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism 35 but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right. 36 You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, telling the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. 37 You know what has happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached- 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.
39 "We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a tree, 40 but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. 41 He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen-by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42 He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. 43 All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name."
44 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. 45 The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. 46 For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.
Then Peter said, 47 "Can anyone keep these people from being baptized with water? They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have."
Men what is the purpose of your life?
Why do you exist?
How will you find meaning in life?
How do you satisfy your need to be significant?
Why are your relationships in shambles?
How did you get so far into debt?
Who are you trying to please anyway?
How did you get caught up in the rat race in the first place?
Men, will you be like the Kings of Israel – complete family failures or will you be like Cornelius a faithful father – a true success and an example of godliness?
I would like every man in the building to come down here to the altar now for prayer.
(Give out books – and pray for them)
