Title: The Blessed Father
Text: Acts 13:32-33 and II Cor 6:18
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Introduction:
- This morning it’s Father’s Day, a day in which we honor our fathers and show off what we are good at. Lets briefly show what we are good at:
1. We are good at redirection:
Kids can sometimes ask the toughest questions.
Son: Father, Can I ask you a question?
Father: Ok ask.
Son: When a doctor doctors a doctor, does the doctor doing the doctoring doctor as the doctor being doctored wants to be doctored or does the doctor doing the doctoring doctor as he wants to doctor.
Father: Go ask your mother!
2. We are good at negotiating
A young boy had just gotten his driving permit. He asked his father, who was a minister, if they could discuss the use of the car. His father took him to his study and said to him, "I’ll make a deal with you. You bring your grades up, study your Bible a little and get your hair cut and we’ll talk about it."
After about a month the boy came back and again asked his father if they could discuss use of the car. They again went to the father’s study where his father said, "Son, I’ve been real proud of you. You have brought your grades up, you’ve studied your Bible diligently, but you didn’t get your hair cut!"
The young man waited a moment and replied, "You know Dad, I’ve been thinking about that. You know, Samson had long hair, Moses had long hair, Noah had long hair, and even Jesus had long hair...." To which his father replied, "Yes, and they WALKED every where they went!"
3. 5 Things you will never hear Fathers say
5. Well, how ’bout that?... I’m lost! Looks like we’ll have to stop and ask for directions.
4. Here’s a credit card and the keys to my new car -- GO CRAZY.
3. Your Mother and I are going away for the weekend ... you might want to consider throwing a party.
2. Why would you want to go and get a job for? I make plenty of money for you to spend.
1. Father’s Day? aahh -- don’t worry about that -- it’s no big deal.
Transition:
- According to our text this morning, God has an idea of what a Father is suppose to be.
- The question is does our society know? And do we as a church know?
- Approx 20 million children have been abandoned by there father. That’s 10 million shy of the population of Canada.
- What I mean by abandon is, a lack of spiritual, financial and emotional support.
- They are not there to love them and take care of them, because they are too busy living for the moment.
- And it’s affecting our society. Kids need there father and father’s need to show there kids they are loved and wanted.
- What does it mean to be a blessed Father? And how can we live under the full blessing of God as a Father?
- How does God define the word FATHER?
- This is what we are going to look at this morning to help us live to our fullest potential as Dads.
Point 1: Godly Fathers Lead By Example
Billy Graham tells of a time, during the early years of his preaching ministry, when he was due to lead a crusade meeting in a town in South Carolina, and he needed to mail a letter. He asked a little boy in the main street how he could get to the post office. After the boy had given him directions, Billy said, "If you come to the central Baptist church tonight, I’ll tell you how to get to heaven." The boy replied, "No thanks, you don’t even know how to get to the post office!"
John 4:19-20 says, “Sir, the woman said, I can see that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”
- Godly fathers not only lead there own children spiritually, but also are an influence on other kids and generations. (Vs 20)
- A Father who desires to make an impact on both there children and there friends are considered role models in my books.
- This woman Jesus was witnessing to was a Samaritan.
- She was not living a moral life but had 5 different men. She was a person living common law and outside the will of God.
- But yet she still remembered people who worshiped on a certain mountain, (vs 20) she knew what the prophets had said before (vs 19) and she knew about a coming Messiah. (Vs 25)
- Meaning she was influenced by Godly men. She heard about God somewhere from someone.
- The men she heard God from had there problems and disagreements, but they still portrayed God to this woman in her life.
- She may not have chosen right, but she heard and saw men worship God.
- Men who were fathers. Family men who loved God and I believe desired to make an impact.
- As Fathers this morning, we don’t always have to say something, but we always have to live out our convictions.
- I believe it’s important that not only our kids see us worship, but there friends also see us worship.
- And what I mean by worship is prayer, singing, church attendance, Bible reading and Godly living. Choosing to do what is right, and standing up for what we believe in.
- We need to show our kids, our spouse and there friends that we love the Lord and why it’s important to serve Him.
- Godly fathers are blessed because they lead there home and lives by example.
- There is always someone watching your life. Know where you are going and decide in your heart that you want to serve the Lord and lead by example
Point 2: Godly Father’s Lead The Family
Josh 24:14-15 says, “Now serve the Lord and serve Him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”
- Each believer must continually choose whom he or she will serve.
- We can say as fathers that we want to raise our children in the fear of the Lord, but with that statement comes fruit.
A. Some examples of fruit is this: We won’t send our kids to Sunday School, we will bring them.
B. We will teach are kids to pray, and not leave it up to the church to do it.
C. And there will be an inner desire to see my kids at the altar receiving from God.
- I pray my kids go under the power of God at an early age and receive from God all that God has for them.
- But in order to see those things happen in my family I have to lead them to those things.
- I have to go to the altar, and have to raise my hand in worship, I must give to the Lord in tithes and offerings, and I must desire to pray so that my kids will see that God is important to me.
Three ministers were discussing the problem of bats in the attic at church and how difficult they were to get rid of. The first minister said that his congregation had tried "smoking them out", but they still came back. Another had tried poisoning them, but enough survived to repopulate the attic. The third minister shared his solution: "I just baptized and confirmed them all, and they NEVER came back!"
A 4 year old boy was nosily squirming all through the church service. His father tried several times to quiet him, but to no avail. Just as the pastor was asking for prayer requests, the boy let out a loud yell. His father, obviously at the end of his rope, picked up the boy, tossed him over his shoulder and headed out of the sanctuary. When he was nearly out the door, the pastor continued asking if there were any more requests when this little voice yelled desperately from across the threshold, "Oh, please pray for me!"
- If church is not important to you, or is undesirable like Joshua said, then it will be to our children.
- God is looking to you and me as the Priest of our home, to lead the home into the things of God.
- It should be our desire as dads to see our kids in church.
- But it will never happen if we don’t have that intense desire.
- It’s not the preachers job, or the Sunday School teacher to see that they get to church.
- It’s the responsibility of the Father to make sure the family goes to church.
Point 3: Godly Fathers Love There Wives
Eph 5:25 says, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her.”
- God has established the family as the basic unit in society.
- Every family must have a leader.
- Therefore the husband has been assigned the responsibility of being the head of the wife and family.
- Now the husbands headship must be exercised in love, gentleness and consideration for his wife and family.
- What are the responsibilities of the husband to his wife and family?
A. God expects the husband to provide the families spiritual and domestic needs.
- The husband has abandoned some 20 million kids and wives are left picking up the pieces.
- All those men will have to give an account to God for failing to provide for there wife and children.
B. To Protect in the same way that Christ loves the church.
- Meaning it’s time the husbands meet the needs of there wives.
- Children need to see daddy do the dishes, sweep the floor and vacuum. If my wife has a need and is tired, I need to meet that need.
- We need to have an interest in her welfare and have a servants heart.
- And we are not going to be perfect in this, but we need to strive in this area.
C. We need to honor, respect, understand, appreciate, and become more thoughful.
- Fathers, like myself love to receive presents and gifts, well so do our wives.
- We need to be thoughtful in our romance and what she likes.
- Husbands need to think of there families first, then themselves.
- Wife comes first, then kids, then daddy. That’s what God expects.
D. Faithfulness to the marriage relationship.
- Meaning increase in your love relationship with your wife, and learn to value her qualities and not someone elses.
- Our kids need to see that dad is devoted, committed and loves his soul mate. Then words will not need to be spoken to your children they will follow willing in your footsteps.
- Daughters will want a spouse just like dad and sons will want a spouse just like mom.
- Meaning the same characteristics and values.
- Understand when mama is happy, everyone is happy.
- So fathers this morning, learn to love you wives as Christ loves the church. Learn about them and desire to meet there needs.
- When you do this, your home will change, because it is God honoring.
Conclusion:
So in order for dads to be blessed by God I believe we need to be:
Fathers that lead by example - John 4:19-20
Fathers that lead the family - Josh 24:14-15
Father that love there wives - Eph 5:23
- When God said in II Cor 6:18, “I will be your Father”, I believe He meant these 3 qualities for us, and then in turn we show them to our children and families.
- In what why did God show these qualities to us? Many why:
- God wants to take care of us, protect us, provide for us and have a relationship with us.
- He is our faithful high priest, and He died for us.
- We need to have those same attitudes in our lives towards our family.
- And we need to lead by example, lead the family as the priest, provider and protector of our home and love our wives as Christ loved the church.
- Lets strive as Father to be blessed of God.
Lets Pray!!!
