“A Biblical Father”
Josh. 24:15
Introduction:
· The role of fatherhood is under attack, like never before
· I went to the Focus on the Family website, and although today is Father’s Day, they, a Christian organization, had one small article on their homepage about father’s. To make it worse, they actually were promoting two books titled, ‘Where Women Walked’ and ‘Mom Time’ on the front page!
o Some would say, ‘Good. Father’s don’t deserve anything!’
o Let me say this, the reason the world is like it is can be credited or blamed on father’s.
§ What I’m about to say will offend some, but many know it to be true:
· “A woman is not equipped to raise a child, especially a boy, without a father, or positive male figure in their life!”
· For years, woman have done the best they can do in trying to raise godly children. But, what has it gotten us:
o Each year, over 1 million babies are aborted. The number one reason: Mom can’t afford to keep the baby by herself. She didn’t make the baby alone. She should have to raise the baby alone.
o 40% of children live in a home without a father
o 46% of teens are sexually active
o 70% of ‘hardened’ criminals are from fatherless homes
o 71% of high school dropouts are from fatherless homes
o 75% of teen suicides are from fatherless homes
o 80% of rapist are from fatherless homes
o 85% of children with behavioral disorders are from fatherless homes
o 90% of runaway’s are from fatherless homes
§ Consider the following:
o Children in a fatherless home are 3 times more likely to abuse drugs.
o Children in a fatherless home are 5 times more likely to experience poverty
o Boys living in step-parent families were almost 3 times as likely to face incarceration.
· The reason we have some many broken homes, dysfunctional families, rebellious children, and the like, is because …
o Marriage has been replaced with Shacking
o ‘Abstinence till marriage’ has been replaced with “Sex Now, Marriage Never”
o Husbands have been replaced with ‘My Man’ or ‘Sugar Daddy’
o Father’s have been replaced with ‘My baby’s daddy’
· Consider this:
o The word ‘father’ is used more than 1,700 times in the Bible
o The word ‘mother’: 328 times
o The word ‘heaven’: 582 times
o The word ‘forgive’: 108 times
· But today, we don’t have very many biblical fathers, today
o A biblical father is one that raises his children in the fear & admonition of the Lord
o A biblical father is one that doesn’t promote his children to wrath
o A biblical father is one that disciplines his children when their wrong
o A biblical father is one that give wisdom and instruction to his children
o A biblical father leaves an inheritance for his children
o A biblical father is one that has a wife before he has children
Today, we don’t have many biblical fathers!!! And, that is why we have so many ‘bastard’ children.
· “Bastard”
o Webster Dictionary: ‘A child born out of wedlock’; ‘A child of unwed parents’
o Bible uses the word ‘bastard’ three times:
§ Deut. 23:2 & Zech. 9:6 – a child born of a Jewish father and a heathen mother:--bastard.
§ Heb. 12:8 - an illegitimate son
· Biblical Father’s are what make:
o Wives content!
o Children legitimate!
o Homes complete!
“Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?”
Gal. 4:16
~ So, what is a Biblical Father?
I. A Biblical Father Doesn’t Go Back From Where He Came, ‘on the other side’
A. On The Other Side, there was BONDAGE
1. Bondage to stay were they didn’t belong
2. Bondage to do what they shouldn’t be doing
3. Bondage to be less than what God intended
B. On The Other Side, there was
C. On The Other Side, there was NO SALVATION
1. Salvation came when they applied the blood and crossed over to the other side.
2. Salvation came when they walked by faith the night of the Passover
3. Salvation came when they saw God destroy their enemy, before their eyes
II. A Biblical Father Doesn’t Stay Where He Doesn’t Belong, ‘ye dwell’
A. He doesn’t belong with false ‘gods’
1. A false ‘god’ is anyone or anything that you put before the true and living God
2. A Biblical Father worships only one God!
B. He doesn’t belong with unsaved people
III. A Biblical Father Doesn’t Wait For Someone Else To Be First To Do Right, ‘as for me and my house’
A. Notice, he didn’t ask his wife if it was okay
B. Notice, he didn’t ask his children if they would cooperate
C. Notice, he didn’t ask his friends for their opinion
D. Notice, he didn’t ask his father what should he do
E. Notice, he didn’t hesitate in making a decision
F. Notice, he didn’t avoid the issue, by making excuses
G. Notice, he didn’t pretend there wasn’t a problem
H. NOTICE, he DID what was right, as spoke for his entire family
Conclusion
· One startling bit of research conducted by the Christian Business Men’s Committee found the following: When the father is an active believer, there is about a seventy-five percent likelihood that the children will also become active believers. But if only the mother is a believer, this likelihood is dramatically reduced to fifteen percent.
· If a young person gets saved then they will reach 19% of their family
If a woman gets saved she will reach 32% of her family
If a man gets saved He will reach 82% of his family.
· Fathers, no one, and I mean no one can do your job but YOU!
