"The Perfect Father"

“The Perfect Father”

June 21, 2015

On this day we honor our fathers. It is good we do this because God said we are to honor them. The Bible says,

“Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.” Exodus 20:12

“Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise” Ephesians 6:2

For some it is a hard thing to honor your father. You may not have even known him. He may be an absentee father. Others may have had abusive fathers. All of us had fathers that were less than perfect. They made mistakes. And some have a hard time honoring their fathers. The Bible says,

“There are those who curse their fathers…” Proverb 30:11

We are all human. But God says to honor them anyways. I think it may be more for our benefit than theirs; more for our needs than theirs; more to bless us than them.

This morning I want to talk to you about the perfect Father. We fathers have a perfect example to emulate. God has given Himself as a pattern for us to follow. And maybe we can all learn something to apply to our own lives. Jesus taught us to begin our prayers with, “Our Father in Heaven…” (Matthew 6:9) He taught us to live and forgive and do things the way our Heavenly Father would do them. Let’s take a look at qualities of a perfect Father.

First of all, I think it is significant that our Father is always there. He will never leave us or forsake us. One thing you can depend on – God will always be there for you. Maybe not in the way you want to expect or hope. But He has promised.

“God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

Hebrews 13:5

“the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you or forsake you.”

Deuteronomy 31:6

“For the LORD will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance.” Psalm 94:14

“For this God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end.” Psalm 48:14

Earthly fathers may desert us; neglect us; and forsake us – but our Heavenly Father won’t. You can depend on Him being with you all the way. Jesus said He would be with us to the very end of the age. There are many times when it may seem like we are on our own, that we are alone and deserted by all – even our Heavenly Father. But we aren’t. Joseph must have felt terribly alone when his brothers threw him into a pit and sold him into slavery. He must have felt all alone when he was falsely accused of a sex crime and thrown into prison. But he wasn’t. God was with him all the time. God was always in control and because Joseph trusted God – God was able to take him from that dirty, smelly prison and overnight place him in the highest position in the land – second only to pharaoh himself.

I want you to understand that as a child of the King – you are never alone. God will never leave you or forsake you.

Secondly, I want you to understand that your Heavenly Father has wonderful plans for you. The Bible says,

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Jeremiah 29:11

God has awesome plans for His children. He loves you so much. He wants what is best for you. He is an awesome God. He is the Creator God. He is the source of all that is good. And He loves you. He delights in blessing His Children. Listen to some of my favorite promises.

“For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor;

no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.”

Psalm 84:11

“In his days may the righteous flourish and prosperity abound till the moon is no more.” Psalm 72:7

“How priceless is your unfailing love, O God! People take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house; You give them drink from your river of delights.” Psalm36:7-8

Do you see how God loves to bless you and prosper you? He wants you to drink from a river of delights! How awesome is that! But there is more. It only gets better. Jesus said,

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?” John 14:1-2