What a precious blessing that Jesus taught us to pray,
“Our Father in heaven…” (Matt 6:9)
In what way is our Father in heaven looking to shape fathers on earth? Let’s take this phrase–fathers who walk with God–and work our way backwards.
GOD (Jer 9:23-24)
- God can be understood and known through the revelation of himself to mankind.
- God “practices” or “exercises” steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth.
- Indeed, not only does he “practice” these things, God “delights” in these things.
WALK (Micah 6:8)
- “Walking” is used throughout God’s written revelation to describe how we conduct ourselves, how we spend our time, how we prioritize, with whom we align ourselves, “day by day” (Exo 18:20; Lev 18:4; 26:23-24; Josh 22:5; 2 Kings 21:22; Psa 81:13; John 1:14; Rom 6:3-4; 1 John 2:6; Gal 5:16; 2 Cor 5:7; 6:16).
- By the grace extended through Jesus Christ, we can “walk humbly with our God.”
FATHERS (Gen 5:1-21)
- By God’s design, men have “fathered” sons and daughters since Adam and Eve.
- Not all biological fathers “walk with God” (Gen 5:22; 6:9-10).
- Our heavenly Father wants fathers on earth not only to walk with him, but to walk with him “before” their children; to say with their mouths and by their lives: “Watch me.”
WHICH MEANS, FATHERS, WE MUST BE:
- Be intentional in our urging (1 Cor 4:14-16)
- Be watch-worthy (1 Cor 11:1)
- Wisely draw our children into not only watching, but participating (Phil 3:17)
- Teach them the ultimate reason behind the participating (Phil 4:8-9)
- Consistently remind ourselves of the power of our examples (2 Thes 3:7-9)
- Realize that our influence extends far beyond what we say (2 Tim 3:10-11)
This sermon was delivered on June 19, 2016.
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