Jesus Talks About His Father

A Sermon by Dr. Neil Chadwick


Introduction:

    When Jesus came to this earth, He brought with Him a special revelation about God. Before He came, God was known as the Creator, the Almighty, the Judge, the One who was to be feared. Jesus taught us that God is Father. In Matthew and Luke we learned the prayer He taught His disciples. When you pray, say, "Our Father" - "Abba" or in our vernacular, "Daddy". But it was John who gives us more, He reports many teachings of Jesus where He talks to us about God the Father. Here we learn about God, but we also learn about what it means to be a father.

The Seven Roles of the Father from the Book of John

1. The Father Gives Life (John 5:26).

    The rudimentary meaning of "father" is "giver of life". However, it takes only a moment of passionate lovemaking for a man to become a "father".

    It would be a tragedy if the giving of life stopped there. The truth is, it takes years for a man to become a "Dad".

2. The Father Provides (John 6:32).

    He gives bread, food, provision for this life. However, remember what Jesus said, "Man shall not live by bread alone". More is needed than just food to be put on the table - provision also needs to be made for the spiritual and emotional well being of the family.

    Furthermore, the Father gives what is requested (John 16:23 - Luke 11:11-13).

    The Father also provides for a future (John 14:1);

3. The Father Works (John 5:17).

    Note the "Creative week". For six days He worked, on the seventh day He rested.

    The Father also gives work to the Son (note also John 5:19).

    Fathers teach their sons (and daughters) what they know - children are interested in learning what parents are excited about. Dads, if you're excited about God, your sons and daughters will want to learn from you.

4. The Father Teaches.

    He teaches the Son what to say (John 8:28; 12:49).

    To underscore this, the heavenly Father also gives to His children the Spirit of truth (John 15:16).

5. The Father Protects (John 17:11).

    Physical safety, yes. A Quaker gentleman, hearing the sound of an intruder in the living room, grabbed his gun and from the top of the stairs, but firmly spoke, "Sir, I mean to do thee no harm, but thou standest where I am about to shoot."

    One of the greatest horrors taking place in our country at the present time is that men who have been charged with the responsibility of protecting their families have become their batterers. According to the most recent year accurate statistics have been kept, over 1,200 children died as the result of parental abuse or neglect. And this figure is thought to be extremely low because of the great number of deaths which are wrongly identified.

    Beyond physical safety, fathers need to provide for other kinds of protection as well: mental (education, books, TV, Internet); emotional (are the children being affirmed or put down?); character development (who are their friends?); and spiritual (reading and discussing God's Word, prayer, church attendance).

6. The Father Praises.

    He glorifies the Son (John 17:1), and draws people to the Son (John 6:43).

    This is one of the greatest gifts a father can ever give to his children, "affirmation". Far too many people have grown up believing, "I never good quite please my father, nothing I ever did met with his approval."

7. The Father Loves (John 10:17; 14:23).

    Often this is delegated to the mothers, but a new movement is sweeping our country; fathers are more and more willing to be affectionate toward their children. But love is not equal to permissiveness, nor does it lack discipline.

    The Father listens to the Son (John 11:41). Again, this is often delegate to the mothers - how many people have said to me, "I always seemed to be able to talk to my mother". The most sure way to demonstrate love is to make sure the children know they are being listened to.

    Furthermore, the Father transfers the ability to love (John 8:42).

Conclusion:

Here's a report of one father (from "Spirit" magazine).

The other evening, I had a tussle with my seven-year old son. We were not seeing eye-to- eye on a matter. It was time for him to get ready for bed, and I felt as if the evening had been rather botched up. I didn't like the feeling at all.

After he climbed into his pajamas and then curled up under the blanket, I sat on the edge of his bed and started to pray, as I usually do. It was hard to find the right words, but I made a stab at it.

Should I turn the prayer into a mini lecture, trying to get in one last punch? Don't the pros tell us that during sleep the brain keeps on absorbing the last thoughts that are planted on the mind? Well, this would be my chance!

Or should I turn tender and love the little fellow to pieces? Would that be copping out? Or would it be wisdom?

His face was turned away from me. He was wondering as well what approach Dad would take! After all, this was not the first time the day's endings had wound down to this.

Then I caught his big, brown eyes turn a bit more to size up my expression. With that, I wilted. After all, he knew he had done wrong earlier. But there was the look of hope in his face.

Could there be mercy in the court? I closed my eyes to pray, Dear Lord, thank You for my boy. You know how much I love him. He means the world to me. Now we thank You for this night's sleep. Be near us all. And may tomorrow be a good day. In Jesus' name, Amen.

He swung his body around toward me and hugged me tightly around the neck. His eyes were closed tight. There was no more reason to glance in wonder.

"Daddy, do you love me even when I am bad?" he asked in my ear.

"Yes," I answered. "I always love you."

So, with that he said one of the most encouraging statements known to mankind. It isn't novel or new. Yet it's powerful, that's for sure.

"You're the best daddy in the world."

It was then that I promised myself something. Yes, there's still much room for improvement as far as my being a father is concerned. And yes, I've goofed from time to time.

Yet that night I told my memory to hold on to one thing as the years kept passing by. It was the innocent testimony of a little boy to a father who was sincerely trying.

"You're the best daddy in the world."

Don't forget it, I said to myself as I turned out the light. Don't ever forget it.

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